Project Enduro – four wheels are more rad than two

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This Wednesday, June 17th, there’ll be a new world record attempt. No, it’s not Guy Martin and Terrahawk doing something in a damp tandem again, it’s an attempt on the world record for greatest number of vertical metres descended in 24 hours – on a four wheeled mountain bike. And the team will be trying to get as many laps in at Antur Stiniog as they can.

Project Enduro – Nathan Stephens (paralympian) testing his Gravity Bike at Afan Bike Park, Neath Port Talbot.
Picture: ©Adam Davies | All Rights Reserved 2015
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Led by Project Enduro manager Calvin Williams, the record attempt team comprises Paralympic athlete Nathan Stephens, paraplegic racing driver Brian Roberts and Simon Powdrill from Loco Tuning. All money raised from this 24 hour challenge will be donated to Disability Sports Wales.

Project Enduro – Nathan Stephens (paralympian) testing his Gravity Bike at Afan Bike Park, Neath Port Talbot.
Picture: ©Adam Davies | All Rights Reserved 2015

The initial brief for Project Enduro was to design and manufacture two prototype four wheeled downhill mountain bikes (a mid-range model and an elite model) predominantly for use by disabled people.

“Our objectives were to create a product which is suitable for as wide a range of users as possible and which has been designed from scratch using technology familiar to the mountain bike industry, enabling improved performance in areas such as suspension, handling and stability,” says Calvin. “The bike has been developed taking into account feedback from over 40 riders ranging from 5ft to 6ft 2in in height and from 50 to 120kg in weight. These include paraplegic athletes, amputees and able bodied professional riders.”

This video will give you a little idea of what they’re aiming at. While it looks great fun, it’s going to be a real test of the riders and their machines, not to mention the backup crew keeping bikes and riders in good shape – as well as those driving them back to the top of the hill again. We salute their bonkersness!

Project Enduro – Nathan Stephens (paralympian) testing his Gravity Bike at Afan Bike Park, Neath Port Talbot.
Picture: ©Adam Davies | All Rights Reserved 2015

Supporters of the Project Enduro world record attempt include Hope Technology, Renthal, Disability Sports Wales, Polaris Bikeware, Nukeproof Bikes and LOCO Tuning.

Check out this video for an idea of what they’ll be up to, here filmed at Bike Park Wales.

“We have an amazing team and are keen to set a new world record for four wheel bikes that exceeds the current two wheel bike record,” adds Calvin.

Donations to Disability Sports Wales can be made via www.justgiving.com/disabilitysportwales
More information about Project Enduro can be found via www.projectenduro.co.uk.

Chipps Chippendale

Singletrackworld's Editor At Large

With 22 years as Editor of Singletrack World Magazine, Chipps is the longest-running mountain bike magazine editor in the world. He started in the bike trade in 1990 and became a full time mountain bike journalist at the start of 1994. Over the last 30 years as a bike writer and photographer, he has seen mountain bike culture flourish, strengthen and diversify and bike technology go from rigid steel frames to fully suspended carbon fibre (and sometimes back to rigid steel as well.)

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