Bell Santa Cruz Super Enduro celebrates spirit of Enduro!
Mountain Bikers of Santa Cruz (MBoSC) is pleased to announce a successful weekend celebrating the spirit of enduro and is excited to present official results from the BELL 2013 Santa Cruz Super Enduro.
190 racers took to the physically and technically demanding course at Soquel Demonstration State Forest (SDSF aka “Demo”) this past Saturday, October 12 for the second ever Santa Cruz Super Enduro, a type of mountain bike race that is billed as racing your typical “all mountain” ride with your buddies. An increased field limit (up from the 2012 inaugural race limit of 50) allowed for a wider range of participation, with athletes hailing from as far away as Ohio and Alabama competing in pro, expert, sport, beginner and junior categories. This highly anticipated race – which sold out in just over two hours – elicited an extraordinary level of excitement from riders as they blazed into the finish with high fives flying between competitors.
Event Director Steve Gemelos enthuses, “We were very excited to have this event at Demo Forest in Santa Cruz – the second ever Santa Cruz Super Enduro and the finale for the inaugural year of the California Enduro Series. We wanted to go big… we wanted to make it more than just a race… we wanted each rider to feel like they were hanging out and riding with their friends on some awesome trails… we wanted everyone to go home feeling this was their best weekend on two wheels all year. Based on the smiles throughout the weekend and the positive Facebook posts and other feedback since, it’s clear we nailed it!”
Gemelos furthers states, “This year’s course was very challenging – over 4700 feet of climbing in 19 miles – hitting some of the best trails in Santa Cruz. The planning committee spent a lot of time riding in the Demo forest tuning the route. One of my favorite aspects of this year’s course was the addition of Corral Trail which surprised even local riders, some whom have never ridden Corral before. The excitement and cheering at the bottom of Corral was amazing. It was great to add a stage that was a blast to ride and also offered a fun twist for the locals.”
The 2013 California Enduro Series final race was part of a weekend-long celebration of the spirit of enduro and included camping, meals, entertainment, fun rides and other activities to enjoy with fellow enduro enthusiasts. Over the weekend – which boasted ideal sunny weather – Camp Loma was home to 150 campers including racers, their friends and family, spectators and volunteers, and sponsor booths in the center field.
After kicking off race day with a sumptuous home-cooked breakfast, riders left base camp in waves to tackle the long pedal to the start of special stage 1. From there, racers took on three technically demanding timed downhill stages, with two arduous transfer stages in between and one last extended climb back out from the finish. Along the course, riders refueled at a feed station sponsored by Sports Basement, GU Energy and Clif Bar, as well as the motivating camaraderie inherent in enduro racing.
Upon completing all stages, riders returned to camp where they enjoyed beer provided by Ninkasi Brewing as they shared the day’s race experiences with each other, browsed vendor booths, and enjoyed a hearty dinner while waiting for results. With podium shots taken and prizes handed out, racers and campers settled down for an outdoor double-feature screening of Not Bad (Anthill Films) and Arrival (SecondBase Films) compliments of Trail Head Cyclery, followed by live honky-tonk pop from Coffee Zombie Collective at the BELL booth.
Race day was followed by Sunday morning breakfast and a Play Day that included bike demos, pro-led rides and shuttled trail work. Marin, Norco, Santa Cruz, Specialized, Trek (Epicenter Cycling) showcased their enduro-specific and all mountain bikes ideally suited for the trails at Demo, while Pivot Cycles pro cross country and enduro rider Macky Franklin led riders out on course trails, sharing his riding tips and race experiences. In addition, a group of dedicated riders participated in trailwork led by MBoSC Trails Officer Drew Perkins and were rewarded with an Ibis swag raffle and free shuttle rides afterwards courtesy Shuttle Smith Adventures.
RACE RESULTS
Updated results can be found at: www.webscorer.com/race?raceid=14375
Pro Men Podium
John Hauer (Santa Cruz, CA)
Jeff Kendall-Weed (Santa Cruz, CA)
Marco Osborne (Novato, CA)
Pro Women Podium
Margaret Gregory (Redlands, CA)
Kathy Pruitt (Santa Cruz, CA)
Tiffany Allmandinger (Goleta, CA)
Regarding the results update, Gemelos explains, “We endeavored to provide the most accurate timing – we really wanted to ensure we got it right. We experienced some glitches on race day and tried to address the issues and post the results that evening, and we thought we had it. But after further reviewing the timing data the last few days, we realized we had one more issue to address and have subsequently updated the results. For those who moved up in the standings, congratulations. For those who moved down, I apologize and assure you it was not for lack of effort or desire to get it right. We learned from these mistakes and continue to strive to do better.”
The mission of the Santa Cruz Super Enduro is to support the demand for quality enduro race opportunities in California, to promote the world class mountain biking trails in Santa Cruz County and to bring awareness to the Santa Cruz community at large about mountain biking and the positive role it can play economically, socially and environmentally.
Enjoy this short video recap courtesy of David A. Smith and VitalMTB that truly captures the spirit of enduro, and the vision and essence of the Santa Cruz Super Enduro:
More informations: Website | facebook
Words: SantaCruzSuperEnduro PR | Photos: Bruce Dorman, Alex Parker
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