Big Mountain Enduro comes to Crested Butte

Top enduro riders in the world are in town to shred

by Than Acuff 

ast year the Big Mountain Enduro (BME) bike racing circuit came to Crested Butte in September, putting the wood to both local and visiting riders with five days of non-stop action. This Friday through Sunday, July 31-August 2, the BME returns to Crested Butte and the stakes are a little higher.

Not only is Crested Butte one of four stops on the Big Mountain Enduro circuit, it was also picked as the only U.S. stop of the 2015 Enduro World Series that takes competitors to eight different countries throughout the racing season.

“It was some time in the making,” says BME race director Brandon Ontiveros. “I had been going back and forth with them two or three years and last year I brought them out here to show them the trails and our town.”

 

As a result, the caliber of athlete descending our local trails is beyond compare and includes world cup champions and Olympic champions from cross country, enduro and downhill racing from more than 20 different countries.

“The highest caliber racing legends of the sport are here racing,” says Ontiveros. “It’s just a different breed.”

Team gO athlete Janae Pritchett, who placed third at last year’s enduro, has been out on the trails and noticed the difference.

“It’s cool—you’re out on the trails and no one is speaking English,” says Pritchett. “It’s amazing how fast they are riding things.”

Enduro racing is a mix of cross country and downhill riding, forcing athletes to have a fitness level high enough for uphill travel while having the skills and fitness to ride long technical downhills at speed.

Typically, enduro racers are timed on their descents with non-timed climbs in between. And while some enduro races involve ski area lifts to move racers from stage to stage, the racecourses in and around Crested Butte demand riders pedal from the bottom of one downhill stage up to the top of the next for many of the stages.

This year, the enduro is blending both backcountry trails and lift-accessed riding and condensing more into each of the three days. Riders can expect big days on the bike, averaging 23 miles per day with close to 6,000 feet of descending each day and reaching elevations surpassing 12,500 feet, including some exploratory hike-a-bike climbs.

“We’re encapsulating more into each day,” says Ontiveros. “We’re putting some interesting new twists in this year and will try to show the best descents.”

While the actual courses were not announced until Wednesday, Ontiveros expects the Crested Butte event to include several local classic rides including Roaring Judy and Doctors Park on Friday, trails in the Star Pass area on Saturday and then another couple of backcountry stages before hitting the Evolution Bike Park and finishing with Upper Loop and Tony’s Trail on Sunday.

“The surprise bike park stages and in-town finish will be really cool for the community and the fans,” says Ontiveros.

Jerome Clementz is a French rider and is part of the Cannondale pro team, riding professionally since 2010. He won the 2013 Enduro World Series and is currently in fifth place on the 2015 World Series circuit, including winning the opening race. Clementz first came to town to race at the CB Ultra Enduro last year and found the altitude rough but incredible riding on the way down.

“It’s beautiful, the landscape is just amazing and the trails are really flowy and fun to ride, although with the altitude it makes them tough to ride up,” says Clementz.

He arrived in Crested Butte with the Cannondale team on Saturday to prepare, getting in two full days of riding before taking a day off on Tuesday.

“I went to do the trails I really liked last year, like Teocalli Ridge or Star Pass,” says Clementz.

Clementz applauds the challenge and backcountry set-up of Crested Butte when compared to other stops on the World Series tour.

“It’s a bit different. Usually they are not so spread out and much shorter,” explains Clementz. “Here you ride in the middle of nowhere, in a paradisiac area, so it’s harder to focus only on the trail. It’s gonna make a great race for sure, as there are some really technical ones, some long and physical, which create a good mix.”

As for the local contingent, a handful of riders have been competing on the BME circuit this season and, as of press time, 11 locals are jumping into the enduro fray in Crested Butte.

The weekend of racing comes to a close with the awards ceremony at the sponsor village and vendor expo in Town Park on Sunday at 5 p.m., followed by live music until 10 p.m. The sponsor village and vendor expo in Town Park will be open each day, all day, during the races and fans can check out live results while perusing the latest in mountain bike technology.

“There will be a lot of fun stuff going on,” says Ontiveros.