On this Thanksgiving Day, we’re thankful for a new mountain bike racing series completely free of UCI meddling. The new series is launching in 2013 and will feature seven stops, including the Enduro des Nations. The series is being organized by the event organizers of the Enduro Series (Coupe de France), SuperEnduro, Crankworx, and Chris Ball.
Chris Ball had been the Technical Delegate for UCI Gravity Events for the past five years, but left after the UCI failed to formalize rules and oversee events, despite his internal efforts.
So what is Enduro and why is our inner racer stoked? It’s a new-ish race format that mirrors the kind of riding that many of us love to do. There are several stages (usually no less than three) where riders must pedal to the top within a certain time constraint and are then timed while descending. You are required to ride the same bike throughout the climbs and descents, and don’t bring your weight weenie rig, if you break a component you’re done. No swapping wheels, forks, etc…
Enduro racing is like a perfectly cooked steak (or you know, the vegetarian equivalent), not too raw that the XC crowd won’t enjoy the descents, and not too tough that the Downhillers won’t make it up the steeps.
Hit more for the full press release
EDINBURGH, UK – November 15, 2012 – The Enduro World Series will take place in 2013, thanks to the efforts of Chris Ball, formerly of the UCI, and the unified event organizing powers of the Enduro Series (Coupe de France), SuperEnduro and Crankworx. As a seven-stop tour taking place over the course of the entire 2013 mountain bike season, including the Enduro des Nations, the Enduro World Series aims to build a lasting event series for riders, teams and the mountain bike industry.
“I’ve heard the demand for this type of series for quite some time. Along with SuperEnduro, the Enduro Series and Crankworx, we want to develop the sport of Enduro mountain bike racing so it can grow as a sustainable worldwide discipline,” says Chris Ball, managing director of the Enduro World Series. “The execution of this tour for 2013 has been of the utmost importance to the organizing teams at Crankworx, the Enduro Series and SuperEnduro. We aim for its existence under our collective umbrella to cater to the needs of athletes, the mountain biking public and the bike industry.”
While the racing calendar for 2013 will be released on Tuesday, December 4, the Enduro World Series will be the official global race series of the newly formed Enduro Mountain Bike Association. Made up of a board of directors including Chris Ball, Fred Glo of the Enduro Series, Enrico Guala of the SuperEnduro Series and Darren Kinnaird of Crankworx Events Inc., the Enduro Mountain Bike Association will look to support from the riders, teams and industry.
More information regarding supporter and membership packages will be released soon, including the launch of the Enduro Mountain Bike Association website.
About the Enduro World Series
The Enduro World Series was created in October 2012 with the aim of uniting the world’s mountain bike enduro racing community. The Enduro World Series links the largest mountain bike enduro events in the world with the best trails possible and exists to deliver the best racing, most relaxed atmosphere and rider-focused organization possible. The team behind the Enduro World Series has one goal – to globally develop and progress the discipline of enduro for the riders, the sport and the industry. With the shared experience of Italian Super Enduro, French Enduro Series, Crankworx and World Cup racing, the Enduro World Series will offer international competitions unlike any before it.
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