BC Enduro Series - Race No. 1

The first race of the BC Enduro Series kicked off the season in Penticton, BC on May 17^th & 18^th.  We showed up on the Friday evening and set up camp and hit the trails for some shuttle action to see what the courses would be like. I had never ridden in Penticton before so I was excited to see what the terrain and trails would be like. Trails were marked well enough to find our way to hit up several of the stages for the race. We were able to get a taste of what sort of pedalling would be involved and also what kind technical trails Penticton had to offer. After doing a few stages I was excited for the race. I was ready to roll and stoked to sport our new team jerseys and try out some of our new team gear. My Smith Optics goggles, Bell Super helmet and Alpinestars shorts and gloves. Feeling very ENDURO!!!

The first day was up and out of camp fairly early for the riders meeting and getting set up with our timing devices. Options to shuttle to access the first stage was allowed, don’t mind if I do. Pedalling from the staging area would have added whole lot more KM to the day! Not feeling 100% this morning with stomach issues, stage one kicked my ass! It was a tough stage to start without much of a warm-up. I had nothing to give, I even considered stopping for a bathroom break mid stage. Little did I know at the time I would be returning home with the flu.

Chris Van Luven was on course taking rad shots like this of the racers!

Stage two had a bit more downhill flow which got me excited, but there was a challenging rock wall mid stage I barely made then got a bit zesty and OTB’d on one of the flowy faster sections. Basically stage 2 was a write off! With the biggest climb back to the top for the rest of the stages still to come I was ready to just enjoy the riding and forget the trying to race part. The single track to the top was amazing! Nice flowy trails with great views along the way. It was then that team mate Veronika and I decided we were definitely not cut out to be professional endurance athletes in this life! Maybe we should go back to DH? After picking up some random stray dogs that joined us on our trek and getting to the feed station to refuel we were ready to tackle the remaining stages to the finish.

The second day was up and out of camp a bit earlier than the day before, with a lovely breakfast on the beach. Three stages remained, being described as a shorter day with a shorter climb than the previous day. Well, not sure I agreed with the shorter climb. Being the second day of the race I was feeling the legs at this point. It’s not “ENDURO” if you don’t complain about the climbs, right? The next stages proved to have more downhill sections which were awesome fun but definitely not the kind of terrain you would want to cash on. Riding some stages blind I was definitely riding conservatively to keep from flatting or crashing on the loose shale rocks. I kept it clean and finished without suffering a mechanical. Unfortunately, Veronika my team mate wasn't so lucky.  The course lived up to its billing and was surprisingly technical with lots of loose shale rock sections which caused trouble for a couple ladies in my category. The after party was held on the back lawn of Misconduct Winery where everyone enjoyed the sunshine, local beer and wine and stunning views. When the names were called for the podiums, I was shocked  to learn I’d finished in 3^rd place Open Women and won a cash prize of $100. The cash allowed me to buy a few tacos to pay back the event organizer, Megan Rose, after my puppy accidentally ate hers! Oops!

Over all, great event and wicked fun trails. This race opened my thoughts on Enduro racing. It’s not necessarily the fastest riders that picks the fastest lines that will finish on top. It’s the riders that can ride any type of trail consistently,  stay on the bike and keep it together.  It’s about managing your energy and staying in the zone. This first race has left me looking forward to race #2 in the BC Enduro Series.  Race Recap on Pinkbike.com