The EzelEnduro: Enduro on the next level

I would advise against going up there by yourself - if you fall and get hurt, and realistically there's a mentionable chance of that, you will be in serious trouble.

Yeah absolutely. Raydek and I are planning a trip up there early next year together with some other mates. Would never ride up there alone. Just too remote. Plus it'd always be better with mates

I would advise against going up there by yourself - if you fall and get hurt, and realistically there's a mentionable chance of that, you will be in serious trouble. 

This is true. 

Besides, I'm not even sure those trails are open for riding otherwise (except maybe SS1?)

But if you want something similar but slower and shorter, Sanddrif has some nice tech rock.  Or you could do Contermanskloof's rock gardens blindfolded for proper simulation.

This is true.

 

Besides, I'm not even sure those trails are open for riding otherwise (except maybe SS1?)

 

But if you want something similar but slower and shorter, Sanddrif has some nice tech rock. Or you could do Contermanskloof's rock gardens blindfolded for proper simulation.

Hahaha! Cool. If they're not open then no problem. That area is littered with trails though. Spent a fair bit of time on Google earth just scoping it out.

And blindfolded... lol. Awesome. Sounds like fun!

 Or you could do Contermanskloof's rock gardens blindfolded for proper simulation.

Nah, I think that would still be too easy in comparison.

Nah, I think that would still be too easy in comparison.

I think you guys are all talking turd ........ it can't be more hectic that Meerendal 

Invite only format kept the field small and safe. Trails were superduper gnarly so we didn't want to have riders there with unknown skills. Sorry you were not invited but you can blame your friends for not doing so!

Judging by the high attrition rate I think you should keep it invite only.

Flippie!  Jy moet hom volgende jaar doen.  Di's jou kos daai ou maat!  Dan kry ons vir Kabous ook hier!

Judging by the high attrition rate I think you should keep it invite only.

It is a bit of an anomaly with photos and a good write-up of the event in the public domain, but with a disclaimer of being "invite only".

I like the concept as the trails are very typical of the Western Cape Landscape. I often ponder why we try to be more like BC and Europe with trail building opposed to going for trials more similar to Utah.

Places like the Cederberg and Matroosberg would be quite suited for more Utah-styled trail building.

It is a bit of an anomaly with photos and a good write-up of the event in the public domain, but with a disclaimer of being "invite only".

 

I like the concept as the trails are very typical of the Western Cape Landscape. I often ponder why we try to be more like BC and Europe with trail building opposed to going for trials more similar to Utah.

 

Places like the Cederberg and Matroosberg would be quite suited for more Utah-styled trail building.

It's invite only so as to manage the gnarl and rad levels. Open it up to the public and some oke wearing lycra and riding a 29er might pitch up. Imagine the shock and horror!

It is a bit of an anomaly with photos and a good write-up of the event in the public domain, but with a disclaimer of being "invite only".

 

I like the concept as the trails are very typical of the Western Cape Landscape. I often ponder why we try to be more like BC and Europe with trail building opposed to going for trials more similar to Utah.

 

Places like the Cederberg and Matroosberg would be quite suited for more Utah-styled trail building.

We need more rocky trails and less dumbed down trails in general. And less bridges over gnarly sections.

Sandrif trails are awesome.

It's invite only so as to manage the gnarl and rad levels. Open it up to the public and some oke wearing lycra and riding a 29er might pitch up. Imagine the shock and horror!

I get why it is invite only. All I am saying is that it can cause problems down the line if people assume that they can just go off and try and find these trails on their own. PS: We don't have to be a chop about it. Your comments earlier about the gear indicates to me that you have very little interest in the event and you are merely trying to stir things up a bit.

PPS: I ride a 29er and mostly lycra, so don't go put people in boxes, and stop being a box.

It's invite only so as to manage the gnarl and rad levels. Open it up to the public and some oke wearing lycra and riding a 29er might pitch up. Imagine the shock and horror!

pppssssttttt...there were a couple of decent trail / am 29'ers in those pics .... two of the chaps were guys we made friends with at the W2W this year .... fun guys and they like having fun and rode ST the same way our team did .....but they would have skipped the lycra part.

Flippie! Jy moet hom volgende jaar doen. Di's jou kos daai ou maat! Dan kry ons vir Kabous ook hier!

Reminds me of the Bo-Piketberg Trail Daze. But if it leads to higher entry volumes for the race it's probably effective.

 

We need more rocky trails and less dumbed down trails in general. And less bridges over gnarly sections.

 

Sandrif trails are awesome.

True to an extent, but if your aim is to get 3900 riders through a section of trail in 10 days, you will find that beyond a certain technical level the trail riding experience evaporates into a trail walking experience. I am not clear on what the optimal number of participants would be for the next Ezel.

I get why it is invite only. All I am saying is that it can cause problems down the line if people assume that they can just go off and try and find these trails on their own. PS: We don't have to be a chop about it. Your comments earlier about the gear indicates to me that you have very little interest in the event and you are merely trying to stir things up a bit.

PPS: I ride a 29er and mostly lycra, so don't go put people in boxes, and stop being a box.

Time to GTFO of this thread!

Nah, I'm just stirring. Some okes took it a bit personal.

The event looks like a hell of a lot of fun. Frankly, if the organisers want to keep it invite only, that's their business. Considering the technicality, opening it up to the public will probably cause chaos. There is probably reassurance in knowing that all of the participants can handle themselves over techy terrain. 

Kudos to the organisers.

True to an extent, but if your aim is to get 3900 riders through a section of trail in 10 days, you will find that beyond a certain technical level the trail riding experience evaporates into a trail walking experience. I am not clear on what the optimal number of participants would be for the next Ezel.

If we get more gnarly trails, more of the marathon crowd will ride the harder stuff, and that will lead to skill progression if they stick at it and not cry for a dumbed down trail because of "those life threatening rocks."

The onus us also on us to go explore more and find the gnarlier trails, and that is what Daniel is doing do well, and we need to honour him for that.

Also I won't be surprised if Meurant pulls a cracker of a trail out of his hat for an upcoming Enduro. The potential is there, and we all know that Klapmutskop has enough rocks.

I get why it is invite only. All I am saying is that it can cause problems down the line if people assume that they can just go off and try and find these trails on their own. PS: We don't have to be a chop about it. Your comments earlier about the gear indicates to me that you have very little interest in the event and you are merely trying to stir things up a bit.

PPS: I ride a 29er and mostly lycra, so don't go put people in boxes, and stop being a box.

Just for the record there was a participant in lycra on his niner without dropper.  He is still alive and no one gave him crap.

Niners in fact did very well given the rocky terrain.  I myself was very grateful for the extra rolling momentum offered by my wagon wheels.

Bottom line is, the organisers couldn't risk sending someone up there without any clue what his/her abilities were.  One bad accident and it's a near impossible extraction that regardless of disclaimers and "We told you so"'s completely ruins it for everyone and jeopordises the land owners willingness to let us do this again.

As for Piket-bo-berg I am among the grumpy bunch who also would love it not to be invite only, but the land owners posted their reasons and I respect them.  I'll just be sure to enter their events or kruip more gat with the iRide okes.

P.s. Chips on shoulders are so passé Odinson...

Ek kon gaan, maar ek dink my fiets is bietjie min.

Nee wat.  Dave Mercer het met sy Hardtail dit gesmash, en ek het oorleef met my relatiewe XC'erige Stumpy. 

Jy is meer as bekwaam.

I was in lycra o 130/120 travel 650 rocky . . No dropper but did take tumble on SS4. Must say walking/riding up I thought this isn't to bad, listening to guys on top, I became quiet, nervous a doubted myself a lot. But all was fine in th end. Did ding my rim pretty bad. Somewhere in in going to need replacing.

And still Dave whipped me on every stage on the hardtail.

I was in lycra o 130/120 travel 650 rocky . . No dropper but did take tumble on SS4. Must say walking/riding up I thought this isn't to bad, listening to guys on top, I became quiet, nervous a doubted myself a lot. But all was fine in th end. Did ding my rim pretty bad. Somewhere in in going to need replacing. And still Dave whipped me on every stage on the hardtail.

Nee wat, met daai hoë seat en maer tyres het jy baie guts gehad!  En die 3x setup - wat verbasend goed gedra het op al daai klippe. Well done!

It's invite only so as to manage the gnarl and rad levels. Open it up to the public and some oke wearing lycra and riding a 29er might pitch up. Imagine the shock and horror!

I tend to agree with GLuvs - its public but you only get to go if you know someone. Mmmm.  No guarantee of getting riders with skills on that basis either. In any event, if you bill an enduro as technically demanding many people stay away. Last WPGE race only had a 60 or so and was steep and fast by all accounts. Meurants last enduro at Simonsberg is the easiest course on the circuit and had over 100 entrants. People who ordinarily do these events know their limits.

Time to GTFO of this thread!

 

 

Nah, I'm just stirring. Some okes took it a bit personal.

 

The event looks like a hell of a lot of fun. Frankly, if the organisers want to keep it invite only, that's their business. Considering the technicality, opening it up to the public will probably cause chaos. There is probably reassurance in knowing that all of the participants can handle themselves over techy terrain. 

 

Kudos to the organisers.

No, its an enduro event and hardly any people pitch for those anyway. 

I tend to agree with GLuvs - its public but you only get to go if you know someone. Mmmm.  No guarantee of getting riders with skills on that basis either. In any event, if you bill an enduro as technically demanding many people stay away. Last WPGE race only had a 60 or so and was steep and fast by all accounts. Meurants last enduro at Simonsberg is the easiest course on the circuit and had over 100 entrants. People who ordinarily do these events know their limits.

What's public?  The event was created as a test run for the concept and level - completely unsupported other than medical staff at the Festival (600m vert down at Basecamp) and completely blind for 99% of the field - not exactly the opportunity to send 50 random people up and down the mountain risking the longevity of the event even before it's properly established. 

I'm hardly "in the know" with the organisers other than seeing them at events.  We never ride together (other than Morzine last year), so it's absolutely not a case of "baantjies vir boeties".  Some people were invited and encouraged to suggest riders' names that were left out if people reckoned they were capable of looking after themselves.  I asked that three people be added and after vouching for their abilities they were added and participated.

So perhaps as Dan said, you have only your friends to blame?

Don't confuse trails used for Enduro with trails used for stage races. If you use the same trail for both you will have a very watered down endurbro.

If we get more gnarly trails, more of the marathon crowd will ride the harder stuff, and that will lead to skill progression if they stick at it and not cry for a dumbed down trail because of "those life threatening rocks."

 

The onus us also on us to go explore more and find the gnarlier trails, and that is what Daniel is doing do well, and we need to honour him for that.

 

Also I won't be surprised if Meurant pulls a cracker of a trail out of his hat for an upcoming Enduro. The potential is there, and we all know that Klapmutskop has enough rocks.

Enduro (in SA) is probably in danger of becoming "too mainstream". This is a good way to rid the discipline from the posers as doing the type of trails that was on offer at Eselsfontein probably only would appeal to the top 10% of riders skills wise. Admittedly I am nowhere near that level yet, and the "easier" Enduro labelled events does hold some appeal for those who enjoy going down at speed more than 80km races with 2500m of climbing.

This type of event will probably not be a money spinner like stage races have become in SA, but it is no less important to improve the skillset of those who rate themselves in this discipline.

As I see it, this is a pilot event, even if it falls with the Ezels mtb festival and organizers has all the right in the world to do as they deem safe and feel that makes sense for the event.  It is also their brainchild and it worked really well.

Sure some guys would have wanted to go and could not and that's a bummer, but the trails and race format can handle a certain amount of riders (2 of the stages you're walking up a route that guys are already flying down on) and still be pleasurable. 

A race puts out a certain amount of entries and has some or other filter for entries, whether it be by age or whatever - also up to the organizers.  In this case it was good riders on the enduro stage, that can vouch for other good riders.

The relatively low volume was rad, no congestion or backing up on trails, and the riders could handle their bikes and where they ran out of skill, could roll with the punches on terrain where loads of very strong XC and trail riders may have struggled and gotten badly hurt, that's not that technically sorted.

This was also the first of its kind, and a test mule for a new timing system, new format and the first time these trails were used for bicycles.