In 2016 five events of this mountain bike discipline are planned in the Western Cape, and on Sunday 3rd of April, the home of Dirtopia trails near Stellenbosch at Delvera will be the host.
The Enduro events are geared for mountain bikers that enjoy singletrack and are fit enough to ride uphills, but more importantly like riding downhills fast! Therefore more adrenalin junkies like downhillers enjoy this discipline of the sport but the lady participation is growing and more young riders are taking part too. Anyone can try this discipline and course designer, Meurant Botha loves taking part himself!
Riders are only timed on certain stages, which are mostly downhill singletrack. The routes are not that technical, but when done at fast speeds, do get tricky… There are normally on average four special stages in a day of the event, and riders go to the start of the next stage in ‘neutral’ or ‘liaison’ sections. This creates a social atmosphere and gatherings at the refreshment station, as no-one are in a hurry.
The Delvera trails are more than 10 years old and routes are being improved by the trail team especially for the event. First stage will start at the top of Klapmutskop with 360 views of Table Mountain & the winelands. Although there are prizes for the top males & females and medals for all, the event is about pure mountain bike riding. Dirtopia has organised eleven Enduro events since 2012.
Pre-entries only are taken, so visit www.dirtopia.co.za to enter online.
The total distances do not matter, as the anaerobic exercise you get is enough to tire the fittest of riders. Timing is done with Amarider Trail Tags and times are immediately live on raceday.
Fees start at R275 per rider and you can call the Trail Centre at 0218844752 for any queries or mail info@dirtopia.co.za. The other Enduro events planned for 2016 are scheduled at various venues from Wellington to Simonsberg.
AMPED! And yes, first time in more than a year that I'm doing an Enduro event. Probably finish last, but hey...