Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 76 total)
  • Innerliethan gravity? Enduro, very dissapointed.
  • pussywillow
    Free Member

    Stage one, fantastic and exactly what I was expecting, nice steepish techie n rooty off camber lines, basically proper mountain biking, a true test of bike handling skills, stage 2 to 5 a big let down! Yeah down to the shit weather and me not being as fit as a xc whippet! But I wasn’t expecting it to be trail centre style xc race, I thought with these kinda of races you were proving yer fitness by getting to the next stage in time? Stage four started off well and promising only to be let down by a hard pedally xc section in the middle, then the last bit was fantastic down the muddy steep descent, however again, I think this race was more focused towards an xc rider, I would say it was 60% fitness to 40% skill
    Not what I was expecting! Stage two was good though, a bit more gravity enduro affect but was let down by the weather. Stage 3….what a joke!!! Never again am I entering one of these events, and by the sounds of it, a lot of folks were saying the same thing! I appreciate the organisers have made an effort and worked hard but they really haven’t thought hard enough about what people want. And for £60 I expect better! All in all there was only two stages I would have classed as gravity enduro.

    Trimix
    Free Member

    If you had less skill would the 60/40 ratio not be different though ?

    So perhaps your skill to fitness ratio meant you were dissapointed, not that the course was disapointing ?

    ojom
    Free Member

    You obviously won it then cause you is teh awesumz.

    eyerideit
    Free Member

    “Too much uppy and not enough downy” 🙁

    richmtb
    Full Member

    Didn’t go to this one but it doesn’t sound like any Innerliethen Enduro’s I’ve done.

    Both the i-cycles enduros I have been were at the Mini DH end of the spectrum. I guy on a V10 podiumed at one of them.

    I was totally out of my depth and as such had a right laugh!

    Sancho
    Free Member

    seeing as it’s a series, Id expect other events to balance out the overall xc/DH ratio.

    its like a lot of event series, some tracks are more in favour of certain aspects, others are different, would you have been moaning if it had been too technical for you, and not enough as per your perfect course.

    Seems people forget its a not a course designed with the individual in mind.
    I race motorbike enduro and the courses in the chamionship vary from very motocross biased to flatland to mental extreme almost trials.
    i am better at some than others, but I dont moan about the course, just accept the challenges it throws up and try my best.

    BTW my mates got 12th male elite and 3rd womens elite so totally chuffed to bits for them. They train hard for it.

    br
    Free Member

    So you expected it basically to be downhill?

    And Tracey Mosely won the ladies, XC, I don’t think so.

    The route:

    http://www.ukgravityenduro.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Innerleithen-2013-Route-Map.jpg

    ahwiles
    Free Member

    Sancho – would that be Mandy and Mini?

    Sancho
    Free Member

    it was yes and in that order lol

    ahwiles
    Free Member

    and

    pussywillow – Member

    I thought with these kinda of races you were proving yer fitness by getting to the next stage in time?

    you were wrong.

    think of the pedally stages as a small mercy, if ‘stage X’ doesn’t drop very far down the hill, then you don’t have to ride so far back up the hill to get to ‘stage X+1’

    hels
    Free Member

    (and it’s “Innerleithen”)

    kimbers
    Full Member

    I wouldnt say that it was an xc race

    only 3 was trail centre style,1 was a standard dh track, 2 and 4 were mostly steep and muddy 5 came down caddon bank so still plenty of gravity

    there were some pedally sections but its 90% DH tho fitness, stamina etc are what its all about

    Im still not 100% convinced by the timing, the penalties seem to be applied at random and at least 2 people lost places when they overtook others on their runs

    DaveyBoyWonder
    Free Member

    OP starts a thread saying how disappointing something was.

    Gets loads of replies from people who weren’t there telling him he’s wrong.

    Classic STW.

    scotroutes
    Full Member

    Oh teh ironing….

    kimbers
    Full Member

    I was there daveyboy, I think hes wrong

    DaveyBoyWonder
    Free Member

    I wasn’t there. I wasn’t making a comment on whether it was good or not so there is no irony (its irony, not ironing unless you’re trying to be funny like all this tools who call every thread <something>trackworld and call cyclists and walkers cyclisters and walkerists).

    As far as I can see, only the OP and kimbers were.

    Sancho
    Free Member

    classc mountain biker moaning about something that wasnt exactly to their narrow pre-defined expectations.

    ron70
    Free Member

    I was there with some mates, I found it had a lot of pedally sections, my mates were more pissed off about it than me though as I don’t mind xc 😀

    legend
    Free Member

    Tbh, from the map and the feedback it doesn’t sound as good as last years course. On the other hand, I was riding a desk in the library, so probably would’ve given my left testicle to race

    ndthornton
    Free Member

    The trails would have been superb if not for the conditions – a good mix of everything. I didnt have a great time but then I dont ride very well in slop. Annoying how some people manage this – and enjoy?

    DaveyBoyWonder
    Free Member

    I’ve thought about it and I apologise for my comment above.

    But my first comment stands. I’ve noticed it loads on here recently, someone says something and then is ‘corrected’ by someone who either has no experience or wasn’t at said event. Just a bit weird…

    I’ve been wanting to do a few Gravity Enduros so await some more actual real life feedback on this but I did hear that sections suffered a lot from the weather / hundreds of riders ploughing through sections.

    100mphplus
    Free Member

    So you expected it basically to be downhill?

    And Tracey Mosely won the ladies, XC, I don’t think so.

    TMo is quite a good XC racer, she’s doing XC and ‘Gravity’ Enduro races this year after ‘retiring’ from WC DH last season;

    RESULTS 2013
    Midlands XC 1 – 2nd place
    UK Gravity Enduro 1, Afan – 1st place
    Forest of Dean Summer DH series – 1st place
    Midlands XC 2 – 1st place

    😉

    Northwind
    Full Member

    I was there but DNF’d, bike issues. Bit peeved! Still had a good weekend but not the best enduro I’ve done.

    Personally I thought stage 1 and 5 were excellent (believe both were shortened by the bad conditions up top though) though stage 5 should probably have gone down the luge not magic carpet… Stage 2 I can see would divide opinion, very badly affected by the weather (hope it recovers…). Stage 4 I ended up not doing on race day so won’t comment other than that the pedally trailcentre bit really isn’t very long before it goes black. I think it’s a great stage, covers all the bases.

    I won’t stick up for stage 3… I assume there was a reason it was used and not one of the good trails, but it was terrible, and a bad transition too. (for those not there- the transition was mostly a push, and the descent was largely a pedal down the red route’s climb) There was a good bit at the end and it felt like the rest was all just there to give it distance.

    The weather’s really hit innerleithen this year. There were feet of snow on the top of the trails til very recently. Also there’s still extensive closures and I think we’ll have lost some offpiste stuff to the harvesting. And stages have to be planned and approved ages in advance. So sure there’s things that could have been better but I think it’s mostly understandable (and the other stuff might have good reasons that we just don’t know about)

    So all in all I’d call it a success and say cheers to all- good effort. And no I wouldn’t say it was at all an XC race! In the entire field, how many hardtails? How many Orange Fives? 😉

    pussywillow
    Free Member

    Sancho – Member
    seeing as it’s a series, Id expect other events to balance out the overall xc/DH ratio.
    its like a lot of event series, some tracks are more in favour of certain aspects, others are different, [/b]would you have been moaning if it had been too technical for you, and not enough as per your perfect course.
    Seems people forget its a not a course designed with the individual in mind.
    I race motorbike enduro and the courses in the chamionship vary from very motocross biased to flatland to mental extreme almost trials.
    i am better at some than others, but I dont moan about the course, just accept the challenges it throws up and try my best.
    BTW my mates got 12th male elite and 3rd womens elite so totally chuffed to bits for them. They train hard for it.
    POSTED 3 HOURS AGO #

    Errr…no, I would have loved that but I was given the impression that it was all gravity fed like all the nice steep secret lines they have on the golf course side, how wrong was I!!

    b r – Member
    So you expected it basically to be downhill?
    And Tracey Mosely won the ladies, XC, I don’t think so.
    The route:
    http://www.ukgravityenduro.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Innerleithen-2013-Route-Map.jpg

    POSTED 4 HOURS AGO # REPORT-POST

    Yeah I expected it to be all gravity fed downhill, then pedal to the next stage, This was the whole point of gravity enduros designed for people who prefer the descents to there climbs but have to pedal to get to there descents, and so only the downhill is timed.. Well put it this way, the most people I spoke to seemed disappointed with how much xc was in it! It’s just I’m not afraid to say it! 🙂

    getonyourbike
    Free Member

    I was there and I thought that it was brilliant. It was exactly as an Enduro should be- not just a DH race with a pedal between descents but a form of racing in its own right to test skills and fitness.

    Stage 1 was great.
    Stage 2 was hard but a real test of mostly skill and then a bit of all round fitness.
    Stage 3 was a great fitness test and then the last bit was fun too.
    Stage 4 was the best stage on the hill for me. I can’t fault it at all. Good muddy technical bit at the top, a small bit of pedaling, some fun trail centre and then the brilliant, steep, muddy, rocky, rooty descents to the finish.
    Stage 5 was good fun and a bit of a test of fitness again.

    bikeind
    Free Member

    As regards to Enduro,as we may well be aware that yes we have now have different wheel sizes including the 29er and as our bikes change so does what we race, hence why the gravity enduro has gone more to the side of xc of late.

    it is true,the market we are in drives it that way im afraid.

    pussywillow
    Free Member

    getonyourbike – Member
    I was there and I thought that it was brilliant. It was exactly as an Enduro should be- not just a DH race with a pedal between descents but a form of racing in its own right to test skills and fitness.

    Was not just an enduro, it’s called a gravity enduro, anyway perhaps I’ve been mislead by peoples interpretation of what a gravity enduro is, but like I said, I wasn’t the only one dissapointed, if I wanted a true test of skill and fitness I’d have done a xc race or marathon event or even just enduro!

    kimbers
    Full Member

    so what youre saying is the 29er has ruined gravity enduro? im not entirely convinced

    full on dh tracks would be fun but wouldnt they require full on dh bikes, climbing (or even pushing) to the top of inners 5 times on a dh bike-whos gonna do that!

    Blower
    Free Member

    sounds not for me 😕

    Northwind
    Full Member

    If Bikeind believes that, I will eat my own arse.

    Since when was it ever supposed to be 5 downhill races? Stage 4 is a classic inners enduro stage, I think it’s been in the UKGE every year and has been in a load of the innerleithen mtb racing events including the very first (in which I went down it mostly on my head). Stage 2 also a fixture ever since it was built for the Classic Enduro. Stage 1 and 5 have had bits used before (classic innerleithen dh-trail mashups)

    getonyourbike
    Free Member

    pussywillow – Member
    Was not just an enduro, it’s called a gravity enduro, anyway perhaps I’ve been mislead by peoples interpretation of what a gravity enduro is, but like I said, I wasn’t the only one dissapointed, if I wanted a true test of skill and fitness I’d have done a xc race or marathon event or even just enduro!

    Now the XCers have realised that Enduro isn’t Endurance, there’s no need for the Gravity bit, except to show continuity in Parr’s Series. Everything in Europe is just called Enduro too. Enduro is still the best balance of skill and fitness. It tests your endurance on the transitions and general length and climbing in the loop, and then sprinting and technical skills in the stages. I’ll wager that generally, the fitter you are, the more you enjoy the stages and the loop as a whole.

    You might well not be the only person that was disappointed but I’ll happily also wager that more people enjoyed it than disliked it. The only people I talked to who didn’t like it were those who were scared by stages 2 and 4. But hey. Horses for courses and all that.

    EDIT- Stage 3 was used because they were making the most of being able to use that last natural section before it gets felled by the Forestry Commission.

    pussywillow
    Free Member

    I expect a gravity enduro to be like the first stage and second although second could have been steeper in my opinion, 4 was good but only the start and finish, I felt my hard earned skill in the first and last bit was let down by the lengthy xc bit inbetween, now I’m far from unfit but I haven’t the strength to power those sections where I think someone who’s fitter would gain so much more time by being quicker on the flatter xc bits, horses for courses but when someone who’s more a xc rider beats someone who’s more a downhill or technical rider on something that’s supposed to be a gravity enduro then I think there’s something wrong? I think a gravity enduro should be about slow technical skill with some proper hard tech bits mixed with fast downhill like the one on stage one, that would create a true test of biking skill and agility!
    Maybe people have different ideas of what downhill is, but none of the bit in the middle of stage four was to me, stage 3 even worse just basically a trail centre stage!! 😐

    Northwind
    Full Member

    pussywillow – Member

    I expect a gravity enduro to be like the first stage

    Which has a huge amount of trail centre in it! Not to mention a load of easy “dh” trail on the tunnel and make or brake which is no different to the trailcentre stuff. S1 was the second most trailcentry stage of all.

    crikey
    Free Member

    Sounds like someone wants a race for fat unfit people… 🙄

    Tom-B
    Free Member

    Now I’ve only really looked into Enduro’s very recently. In the past, I have raced xc. I’m just getting into more gravity assisted riding and quite fancy having a crack at an Enduro as I haven’t got enough riding time to get to a race level of fitness for xc anymore.

    Anyway, I’m wondering if people are complaining at it not being technical enough and not wanting to pedal, why not enter a proper downhill race?

    legend
    Free Member

    I think a gravity enduro should be about slow technical skill with some proper hard tech bits mixed with fast downhill like the one on stage one

    You might want to google SDA or NDH for that.

    Enduro has always (since Salomon and Avalanche races at Ae, and probably before that) been a proper mix of pedal like ****, horrid nasty wee ups and balls out downs. The mix will obviously change from race to race, but if you aren’t absolutely hanging by the end of it then something’s very wrong.

    Maybe people have different ideas of what downhill is, but none of the bit in the middle of stage four was to me, stage 3 even worse just basically a trail centre stage!!

    See previous SDA/NDH comment, and did the stages not all drop in altitude? Really think you’ve got a bit mixed up about what these enduro races are

    but when someone who’s more a xc rider beats someone who’s more a downhill or technical rider on something that’s supposed to be a gravity enduro then I think there’s something wrong?

    Nope, a good XCer with some good skills could easily whoop a mediocre DHer with average fitness

    hels
    Free Member

    If I remember what stage was which rightly, stage 4 is in fact known locally as “the Classic Enduro stage” as we did indeed use it in one of the first Innerleithen MTB Racing events, which for the record we were running before the Gravity events started.

    So if you want to look for where Enduro went to learn itself in the UK, have a ride down there and stop yer whinging.

    glupton1976
    Free Member

    Is stage 4 not just known as “the classic”? Classic as in one of the very first DH race runs in that part of the world

    legend
    Free Member

    Just the bottom section where it turns back off of the red route. Generally referred to as either the Classic of DH Classic. Used to run from much higher up the hill but all that’s gone now (it also crossed the bottom fire road and popped out right at the very bottom)

    br
    Free Member

    Nope, a good XCer with some good skills could easily whoop a mediocre DHer with average fitness

    If there’s a decent climb in it, they wouldn’t even need good skills.

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