FINAL WORD

Everyone wants a bit of Enduro racing; Cross country racers, downhillers, freeriders and weekend warriors. The discipline appeals to all simply because it is a true mountain bike event. This is what our bikes were conceived to be able to do – to pedal up and tear down mountains, to adventure a little and to access every mountain – we finally have a format that encompasses all that makes the sport great. It’s not brash, nor is it shiny, just an enjoyable weekend of racing in the hills and enjoying the sport for what it is. The event in Finale marked a turning point for the discipline; a landmark meeting of the industry, riders and the UCI and thankfully Enrico Guala and his team did a fantastic job of showcasing Enduro’s endless potential.

The race in Finale was only one event out of a long and competitive season for the sport’s newest and fastest growing discipline and the Super Enduro is only one from many series’ now being staged across the globe.

Finale’s race was a sign of the future; there were not only high–profile downhill and cross country racers in attendance, but also race organisers from abroad (including UK Gravity Enduro head man Steve Parr), the UCI (in the shape of technical delegate Chris Ball and newly appointed Will Ockelton) and many members of the MTB industry – surely everyone was testing the water for a future expansion of the Enduro format?

Chris Ball is a man with the aspirations and potential to move the discipline to a global level. I asked him for his views and ideas for the growth of Enduro racing:

Chris: Finale was a great event. The atmosphere in the town square, the proximity of the beach, the relaxed nature of the whole thing – it was really special. I wouldn’t have said it was too tough. Yes of course it was hard terrain and there were some monster climbs but I doubt anyone would have turned up expecting anything less. As long as there is a spectrum, with easier events available for people to try and harder ones that push the sport forward, there’s no need to dampen things down. The 450+ riders I saw seemed to be enjoying the trails anyway.

I wish I could have stayed longer but from the short time I was in Finale, I didn’t see a single person who didn’t have a smile on their face. The fact that everyone got the same attention at the start made it seem special for everyone – whether they were novice 40 year olds or young professional bike riders. The centralised start ramp really set the tone for what people were about to undertake.

After some contact with Enrico regarding Enduro and its future direction, I was invited to come out to Finale and meet them along with Tribe Event (the French Enduro series) organisers and the UK Gravity Enduro guys. We discussed the discipline’s past, how it currently works for each organiser and where they’d like it to go. Their opinions and experience are invaluable. I also wanted to get a feel for the event and to see what was going on. I packed my bike too – I had to ‘research’ the trails of course.

If you look at how any UCI event is run, it’s very uncommon to see one organising team take on a series. You’re right, there are some fundamental differences between how enduro events are run in different countries but in my opinion, that’s the appeal.

Maintaining the creativity and individualism of different events is central to how I would like to develop things. Of course some basics will have to be discussed and some fundamental parameters will have to be worked out but that won’t happen without the involvement and input from key individuals currently in the Enduro discipline.

I would like to have things on a centralised UCI calendar for 2013. A potential World Series will sit within that calendar – using existing events, selected because of the standard they operate at and how popular they are. That way current organisers will benefit and nothing will be taken away from the sport as it currently stands, only added.

I think it’s important to note that I wouldn’t like to see Enduro tied up in rules and manifest into a World Cup style format, whereby each round is run exactly the same way. That works for downhill but I would like to see Enduro developed for the riders and for mass participation in exciting, relaxed and creative races.

As long as we can define Enduro clearly so that the basics of the format remain the same throughout I’d like to leave the rest to the organisers and riders. The details of how the calendar will look is currently up for discussion but I would like to see as many events as possible all registered in one place – making it easy for riders to find events that are at a certain standard. A world series would also then allow riders to amass a world ranking across different events, linking it all together. Ultimately, an annual World Championships would be my ambition but that must come later, after the basics have been worked out and the roots of the sport have been planted. That approach will secure its development long term.

The addition of enduro to the UCI rulebook will also allow Commissaires to be trained, standards to be set and national federations to recognise it should they choose to.

I have formed an enduro working group including key organisers and riders that will sit down together for the first time early in 2012 in Aigle, Switzerland. That’s when the real work will begin!