Pete Ballin, better known as ‘Pedro’ for inexplicable reasons, is the staple of all Morzine/Les Gets staples. Having been a regular for over a decade, he’s fully integrated and lived half way between the French and ‘Other’ camps. Working in a prominent local shop has exposed him to nearly every piece of kit that comes into town and has given him as good an idea of the morphing of the general rider’s mountain bike as any. A downhiller at heart, Pedro loves an adventure more than the next man and modern bikes have recently opened his mind… blown it perhaps. The DH bike was left to gather dust during summer 2013 and so it was that Pedro became an ‘enduro’ rider…

“I first went out to Morzine 13 years ago and have been there every year since. Initially when I started visiting the Alps, the big attraction was pinning it down the wide, fast alpine trails on the big DH bikes and then cruising back up on the lifts.

I have mainly ridden DH bikes since then, and summer 2013 was the first time I had the opportunity to ride a decent enduro bike in the Alps. I think the fact that those bikes have become a lot lighter and stronger, combined with better components and geometry, has really made them extremely versatile. Having a bike like this has really given me the opportunity to see a whole new side to the Alps that I never knew existed, and as it is adventure that we’re all after I can see that the same will appeal to the masses.

I’ve worked in bike shops in the Morzine area for the last eight years and I have of course seen the bikes change dramatically in that time, the key area for me being that of the components such as brakes and suspension technology all becoming a lot stronger and more reliable. It is of course these improvements that have created a bike that is light enough to pedal up, but still more than capable for any descent. This in turn has created the obvious trend toward enduro bikes that is starting to tip the scales on downhill bikes in Morzine – even the young riders are on them.

Having said that, I think DH bikes will always have their place in the MTB world, but enduro bikes are definitely enabling people to have a lot more freedom and not be refined to solely chairlift and uplift riding. Morzine itself hasn’t really adapted to the changes in MTB as it still caters mainly for the downhill riders, most of the good trail riding is hidden away and you don’t really know about it unless you know the area well.

The thing is, and this is where the sport has changed since I started visiting the Alps, riding these new bikes gives you the freedom to ride places that aren’t accessible through uplift and they can take you places a DH bike simply wouldn’t be able to go. Even after 13 years of riding out in the Alps, swapping to an enduro bike has opened my eyes to the limitless potential of unknown trails. I’m getting the same buzz as I had all those years ago riding lifts in Morzine, but as the area hasn’t changed a huge amount I can notice myself increasingly riding elsewhere.

A couple of years ago I was living in a remote inlet just off the Sunshine coast in British Columbia, where I was working as a mountain bike trail builder. Out there I only had a GT Force trail bike, which was adequate for anything the North Shore had to throw at me, and after summer 2013 I’ve really seen that modern ‘enduro’ bikes are where it’s at, even for someone with a downhill mind–set like me. For me having one bike that ‘can do it all’ is really important, especially when travelling on a budget, and these days that really is becoming a possibility.

I think eventually the changing trend in the bikes will encourage people to go and explore more exotic destinations. But I do think people will always enjoy the luxury of a chairlift in the Alps, and the social aspect of riding in Morzine. Nothing quite beats smashing out endless chairlift runs on a sunny day with friends then having a beer at a busy bar in town.

I think the town would be stupid not to adapt (although they often need a little ‘prompting’ with these things). If Morzine focused a bit more on enduro they could attract riders long after the lifts had closed for summer and keep the bike season going on longer. Personally, Morzine is my home, and I can’t imagine I will ever stop returning to the town, so perhaps all British riders will feel a little of that connection and always ride there?”

I’ll let this introduction (long I know) serve as a warm–up before we get acquainted with three more of the Alps’ regulars and well and truly tucked–in to the subject and debate of the ‘enduro’ bike and where it is taking the sport. It’s not simply a fad, it’s serious, and so resorts and destinations need to adapt or die. For people like Paul and Pedro (normal riders) the convenience of having only one bike, most likely 160mm travel, will be the ultimate driving force behind the sport’s direction. Combine this with the EWS race series showing just how much these bikes are capable of and pushing the industry to also adapt, and certain classic destinations could become lost in history.