I don’t think its a massively new phenomenon, it just gets a bit more coverage now.

I raced took part in the Avalanche Series at AE five years ago. Nico Vouilliz won it, it got about this >< much coverage in the MTB press at the time. That race had 300 entries

It was just a fun format, a way of pushing yourself a bit on trails you were used to riding. Nothing was overly technical it really was trail centre red / black.

It has definitely evolved courses have got longer and the timed sections more technical. I’d be completely out of my depth at the EWS stuff (I’ve minced down most of the stuff based at Glentress at one time or another but there is no way I could race it.

So before Enduro riders did Enduro you just didn’t here about it

wrecker – Member

There are no enduro riders. Enduro is racing.
It’s like going for a F1 drive.

I like that. But it doesn’t quite fit any more, since along came the industry and started using it as a tag for bikes, hats, yellow shorts etc.

OP- do you mean top enduro riders, or all us knobbers as well? I was really lucky, the UK enduro thing kicked off at just a time when I was ready for it- so wasn’t really that much before, just your standard trailcentre/xc stuff, one (orrible) 10 Under the Ben…

Innerleithen MTB Racing put on a 3-race series, a mini-dh, this mysterious “enduro” thing that nobody understood (*), and the alistair lees timetrial, I signed up for the mini-dh and the timetrial, but it was the enduro that I loved. Pure shiteing it all day mind 😆

(* Alister told us “it’s like the kona mashup if the kona mashup wasn’t shit”)

But bikes have been improving, IMO it is the improvement in bikes that has opened up the possibility of the race format

yeah until the advent of 1×11, uppy downy seatposts, slightly bigger wheels and neon yellow paint bikes couldn’t ride up and downhill 🙄

yes bikes have been improving but no they haven’t suddenly become enduro proof/certified

I think you either have some sort of competitive urge in you or you don’t. If you don’t, then enduro racing may be alien to you.

I’m not skilled (or mentally unhinged) enough to race DH. I’m not fit enough to race XC. What I am is competitive enough to want to race and enduro racing offers that. I have always plodded up to the top and rode down as fast as I can; that’s what I “get” from riding. I have used Strava for sometime now and enjoy trying to better my times.

That said, I did 3 enduro races last year:

Caersws
Eastridge
Penmachno

The first two used stages which were previously DH tracks and the Penmachno enduro had stages which were 5-9 mins long, one with an average gradient of 0% (IIRC). There are plenty of enduro racers who raced both XC and DH before their enduro careers kicked off and there are enough series open that whatever your background, you can find a venue which suits your skillset.

Enduro is what they used to call freeride.

Freeride is what they used to call all mountain

All mountain is what they used to call trail riding.

Trail riding is what we used to call mountain biking.

I’m sure there are some here who US d to just call it riding bikes. That’s all it ever is.

5min fitness doesn’t necessarily mean smash out several runs over 50km fitness

ha ha.. STFU
are you really suggesting there’s an expert/elite DHer in the UK who couldn’t pedal up a few fire roads and blast out 5 descents (albeit ones with stupid flat/uphill/bog sections) over a weekend?

PMSL @ using kms to try and make 31 miles sound as if it’s some sort of achievement BTW

That’s not even one Tunnocks territory.

OP- do you mean top enduro riders, or all us knobbers as well?

no, not the top guys, more the average folks, but I wouldn’t dare call you a knobber 😀

Some great thoughts, cheers.

PMSL @ using kms to try and make 31 miles sound as if it’s some sort of achievement BTW

I do like seeing that quoted as some sort of achievement, great, you did a shorter than average ride, and mine stoped at a pub halfway 🙂 tell me again how awesome your fluro shorts are?

(I actualy quite like the sound of the format, I just CBA paying £60 for a days racing when I can go race boats for a whole weekend at half the price)

what did Enduro riders do before Enduro?

they rode the same trails but saved £40.

And had a cheaper bike.

are you really suggesting there’s an expert/elite DHer in the UK who couldn’t pedal up a few fire roads and blast out 5 descents (albeit ones with stupid flat/uphill/bog sections) over a weekend?

I’d be fairly amused if most normal people couldn’t do that, let alone an Elite/Expert DH rider 🙂

yeah until the advent of 1×11, uppy downy seatposts, slightly bigger wheels and neon yellow paint bikes couldn’t ride up and downhill

yes bikes have been improving but no they haven’t suddenly become enduro proof/certified

Well I am sure you are a happy on your 1990 rigid steel bike with cantilever brakes, anyone else can see improvements in technology has opened up far more technical and steeper trails to enjoy.

improvements in technology has opened up far more technical and steeper trails to enjoy.

ha ha…
no it hasn’t.
You can ride them a bit faster that’s all. plenty folk, me included, ride “Enduro” approved trails on hardtails.

I was a scratch golfer I am sh1t at enduro instead now

ha ha…
no it hasn’t.
You can ride them a bit faster that’s all. plenty folk, me included, ride “Enduro” approved trails on hardtails.

Well have a cigar, you are now my god.

Depends how you take that statement doesn’t it. Better bikes have definitely opened this sort of riding up to more riders. And not necessarily because they need it but because they think they do, and it helps.

You can ride them a bit faster that’s all.

And that’s the whole idea. Enduro is a competitive format, and in bike racing, the aim of the game is usually to be as fast as possible.

Someone else on here commented about the appeal depending how competitive you are as a person – fully agree with that.

And if you’re the kind of rider who likes to winch up and blast down, the Enduro is perfect. Sadly, a certain sub sector of MTBers (who seem well represented on this site) are pretty negative about the fastest growing area of the sport, maybe only “into the wild”/bikepacking/singlespeed/ancient bikes are good enough for them in their grumpy little worlds, but they’re far from a representative sample of the UK and global riding scene so can safely be dismissed.

As Tang says, to be a good Enduro rider, you need DH skills and an XC engine.

But more importantly than any of the above – if Enduro serves to get more people out riding bikes and buying bikes & kit, so supporting the industry, growing businesses and creating jobs, while at the same time getting fitter and having fun, that’s all good with me 🙂

mtbel – Member
ha ha.. STFU
are you really suggesting there’s an expert/elite DHer in the UK who couldn’t pedal up a few fire roads and blast out 5 descents (albeit ones with stupid flat/uphill/bog sections) over a weekend?
PMSL @ using kms to try and make 31 miles sound as if it’s some sort of achievement BTW
That’s not even one Tunnocks territory.

Stop being a penis. Someone who trains to be the best at a very short course (in miles or kms to keep you happy) should be absolutely spanked by someone who trains to ride longer courses that also include significant climbs. If that doesn’t happen then someone’s training is going badly wrong.

what did Enduro riders do before Enduro ?

I’m pretty sure it was ‘all mountain’ and before that it was ‘slopestyle’…………

Is there an inverted enduro format yet?

Ride as hard as you can up hill then an untimed descent to get to the next?

possibly with a dab type system for number of falls/dismounts.

I’d bloody terrible at that too.

Yeah, it’s called a hill climb…

Didn’t an XC racer riding a hardtail just beat 200+ Enduro “Racers” on technologically improved bikes at the SES at the weekend?

Before Enduro? erm well before I did my first one in the UK 1998 (well it wasn’t called that then it was called Multi Stage Downhill) Before that I had raced 7 years of XC and four years of Downhill.

This year will be my 25th year of racing and i’m glad to see the Format now has it’s own identity, is here to stay and going from strength to strength.

Mountain Bike racing is great, so many disciplines can be raced now
Downhill
XC
4x
Marathon
Enduro
etc.

It’s odd how so many people have a bit of a chip on their shoulder when it comes to Enduro? It’s a shame, just enjoy what you do.

Someone who trains to be the best at a very short course (in miles or kms to keep you happy) should be absolutely spanked by someone who trains to ride longer courses that also include significant climbs. If that doesn’t happen then someone’s training is going badly wrong.

And yet Ruaridh spanks Farry at enduro races held on their own mannor ?
Hmmm… 😕

What i really want to know is for events longer than 31 miles, how to keep an unsquished tunnocks in my bumbag enduro pack.

@mtbel One example (or even a few) does not a rule make.

Tunnocks are one tough buscuity snack 😉

Anybody taking a teacake to an Enduro is asking for trouble.

I like the chocolate covered ones

Enduros are fun, some people don’t seem to like that ^^^^^

mtbel – Member

Didn’t an XC racer riding a hardtail just beat 200+ Enduro “Racers”

If they’re “racers” not racers then no, he didn’t beat them. Durr.

But more importantly than any of the above – if Enduro serves to get more people out riding bikes and buying bikes & kit, so supporting the industry, growing businesses and creating jobs, while at the same time getting fitter and having fun, that’s all good with me

And keeps the trails quiet for me 😉

To be a really good Enduro racer you need DH skilz and the engine of a XC rider(Having ridden with EWC/trans race top pro, I know!). Thats me out!

like motorbike enduro. Top riders have skill of trials riders and speed of moto-crossers

Enduro – A new thing?
Maybe not but it’s popularity is new, the number of events means it’s moved on from being something you could do one a year or every other year in the UK (for those who have to say it’s been around since time began) or travel to Europe for.

What it does do is capture the fact that you can have an event that appeals to and is accessible to a large section of the MTB community. You don’t need a DH bike or a really light race bike. You can turn up with what you go out on the weekends in.

Before you could find an Enduro event to enter really easily people were Riding DH, riding XC or just riding. Some were put off by the technicality and expense of getting into DH and the image, some were put off XC by the level of fitness and seeming need for a really light no travel bike and perceived dull courses.

The concept of Enduro works, for all those it’s just paying to ride what you can ride any day of the week so is the world cup DH at Ft William if you live there. It’s a race, with timing and competition, you can enter a race for a laugh or with your mates but you can also push yourself. So it’s not really like just going for a ride with your mates.

As for the pro’s the current World Champion was winning National XC & DH races last year and I think he has kicked it off again this year.

I find it quite sad that people are so insulting about people racing enduro.
its a fairly new format, but the lads I know riding it, train relentlessly, putting in a massive amount of varied training,
road miles for base fitness
BMX for sprint,
DH for flat out downhill speed
XC for more overall conditioning and fitness
sprint efforts uphill
gym for more strength.
and a lot of fun miles.

its paying off at the moment and I hope they get a shot at the worlds.
2nd at gisburn with a crash and the other 2013 masters National Champ.

if people want to have fun doing it non competitively then cool but dont knock it

an to add to that Sancho, there is a lad from round here doing really well in the Oz series and off to the EWS, he’s taking heaps of road and XC KOM’s and winning stuff like this
http://mtwellingtonchallenge.com.au/

With an ascent of 1,167m over a distance of 21.3km, the Mt Wellington Challenge is Australia’s toughest time trial for a very good reason

while also racing XC having stepped back from DH, it’s a level above but great to see so many people enjoying it.

#Enduro, as experienced by mountain bikers who don’t race in deadly earnest, is above all fashion.

Sure, the bikes are incredibly exciting etc. But it’s the first time I can remember where most riders are paying really serious attention to looking awesome.

It’s blanketed in thick irony, of course, but the aesthetic is very strong and huge numbers of people at the races are going for it very hard: flatteringly cut clothes in really bright colours and bold patterns, extreme colour-coordination, goggles worn rakishly on the helmet, and legions of photographers on hand to catch everyone throwing great #pro-elbows shapes.

We are dressing the part, and enjoying doing it. More important even than the fact that this is a race format for hobbyists who struggle with traditional formats, it’s an aesthetic for people who weren’t into DH, were repulsed by XC lycra and who understood deep down that the previous “trail riding” look of black baggies, black shirt (possibly with a word written on the front) and grey helmet just wasn’t very fabulous. Those guys have discovered the joy of wearing matching cyan shorts and shirt with bold cerise panels, topped off with a fluo-yellow lid and mirror-goggles, and they are loving it.

It’s good to see. 🙂

I still look like I got dressed in the dark. But then what’s teh point of trying to look good when your wheels are small and #unduro

Embrace your fabulousness Northwind, embrace it.

🙂

+1 bigdummy

and fabulous bikes.

I think the goggle aesthetic is key though. Any chance you get a pair of goggles on then you have made it. Go moto.

Having witnessed BigDummies satorial style first hand I can vouch for him embracing Enduro.