Road cycling has the Tour de France, touring has the Transcontinental Race, Cyclocross has…well, Belgium, and mountain biking has the Enduro World Series. This eight round race series touches almost every continent on earth and draws the world’s very best mountain bikers. It’s a real spectacle and should, by rights, be added to your diary as essential viewing. If this video doesn’t get your heart racing, I don’t know what will.
Now that we’ve got the salivary glands working, let’s take a look at a few of the main reasons to get excited about the EWS, the riders, rounds and the bikes to watch out for.
What is the Enduro World Series?
Enduro is a discipline for the all-round mountain biker, surging up short climbs and shredding down technical descents. Like Grand Tours in road cycling, each of the eight rounds of the Enduro World Series are individual stages to compete for – with an overall winner with the fastest accumulated time crowned at the end.
It all kicks off with round one at Lo Barnechea in Chile on the weekend of the 24–25 March, very close to the bustling city of Santiago. But don’t be fooled by the venue’s proximity to Chile’s capital, the race takes place in the barren moonscape of the high Andes. It’ll be fast and loose – a real spectacle to kick off the season.
Every round promises to be epic, but if you’re looking for pure entertainment, make sure you tune into round 2 in Colombia on Easter weekend. The unique route celebrates the famous urban races of the area with an exciting prologue through downtown Manizales.
The last round in Finale Ligure, Italy, held on the last weekend of September, closes out the season with a stunning weekend of singletrack sandwiched between the mountains and the Mediterranean.
Bikes
A unique feature of the Enduro World Series is that racers are allowed just one bike and one set of wheels which means that tactics and equipment choices are more important than in any other discipline. So, what makes an enduro bike?
Enduro bikes, otherwise known as ‘all-mountain’ bikes, are a category that sits between trail and downhill, which makes sense seeing as enduro courses tend to incorporate technical descents and cross-country endurance features. With stability, responsiveness and controlled suspension of such high importance, enduro bikes are light with ample travel at front and back.
Katy Winton
One of many big name female riders at Trek Factory Racing is Scottish superstar, Katy Winton. Winton comes from a background in cross-country but has ridden with Trek since 2016, and her initiation into the pro ranks has been pretty spectacular. Winton pedalled her Trek Remedy to third place overall in last year’s Enduro World Series, and after a solid winter, she’s aiming even higher this season.
Jared Graves
Veteran mountain biker, Jared Graves, will return to the EWS yet again this year, riding his preferred S-Works Stumpjumper 29. 38-year-old Graves has a massive reputation and decades of experience in multiple disciplines. Look out for the charismatic Australian and the big red S when the racing gets underway later this month.
Excited much? The season is just about to get started. It’s going to be long. It’s going to be spectacular.
