2014 Enduro World Series
Rd 1, Nevados de Chillan, Chile
With the downhill World Cup kicking off in Pietermaritzburg last weekend, and now the first round of the 2014 Enduro World Series taking place in Nevados de Chillan, Chile, this weekend, we are being spoilt with a right smorgasbord of top level racing action.
This year the EWS comprises of seven rounds, and they are as follows…
After recently heading out to the Andes Pacifico Enduro and witnessing the riding that Chile has to offer we think this first race is going to kick off the season in style, but if you’re lacking in geography skills and are wondering where on Earth Chile is (literally) then wonder no more…
And closer in it definitely looks like an amazing setting for an enduro race.
The volcanic resort of Nevados de Chillan is where the event will be based and the two days of racing will feature everything from sulphuric, volcanic ash to lush forest singletrack. There might even be some snow on one of the six stages. A mixture of chairlifts and hiking will take riders on to high ridges and the start of each stage.
Talking of stages, this is a map of the stages on day one of racing…
And here’s the map of day two’s stages…
And finally these are what the two days look like combined…
Special stage six, the final one of the weekend, looks like it could be an absolute corker. It starts way up at high altitude on the open volcano, with possible snow in places, and then descends down to the valley floor via some epic wooded singletrack.
Schedule wise the event is looking like this…
The format of Enduro World Series races varies from event to event, particularly in regards to what practice is allowed, but as you can see from the schedule above in this race competitors will be allowed two days of practice. No track walks can be done before this though, and each of the practice days is limited to just three stages.
Last year several riders fell foul of the rule book and found themselves being handed out big time penalties and the like, so this year I’m sure they’ll all be going through the rules with a fine-tooth comb. If you’re a rider who hasn’t yet done so then we suggest you take a read of them below…
We like the introduction of the ‘no disposable tear-offs’ rule, I mean the last thing you want is for stunning locations like this to be littered with piles of goggle shaped plastic.
The weather looks pretty much perfect for the race, but I’d imagine the top of stage six may be a little on the chilly side (pardon the pun).
And finally, because this is the first big enduro race held at this venue we don’t have any previous footage, but there’s a bike bike at Nevados de Chillan, and from what I can tell from looking at various maps it looks like some of the tracks being used this weekend could well be some of those from the bike park, and so to give you a little flavour of what the riders might be faced with here’s the bike park’s promotional video…
Of course we will be at this race filming away like mad men to bring you all the action, so keep your eyes peeled to the Dirt website for those edits. Below is our 2013 Enduro World Series recap video.
In the meantime, who’s your money on for this race? Is Jerome Clementz going to continue to be the man to beat, or will we see Jared Graves having some better luck this season? Who knows, but regardless of the result we are going to be treated to some incredible racing this weekend. Oh, and if you haven’t already, then get you Enduro Fantasy League entries in here. It’s free to enter and you could win yourself a rad bike.
