Although Christian Textor is still a relatively new name in the international enduro circuit, the three times German enduro champion, who raced the complete Enduro World Series for the first time in 2019, has big plans for 2020. We took a closer look at his BULLS WILD CREED team race bike.
Who is Christian Textor?
Texi, as his friends call him, made his debut in the international enduro circuit in 2019, taking part as a pro rider in all races of the Enduro World Series. But first things first: after securing the German Enduro Championship title in 2016 and 2018 and the runner-up title in the German downhill championship, Texi decided to focus on enduro racing for the 2019 season. As a team- and test-rider at BULLS, he was actively involved in the development of his own enduro rig, the BULLS WILD CREED team. While he was still riding a prototype in the first few rounds of the EWS, in Whistler he rocked up with the brand new, final version of his BULLS. Texi is happily married and has a young son. As a family man he likes travelling with his loved ones, who followed him around the world to cheer him on at most EWS races. Successful: in 2019, Texi was able to defend his German Enduro Champion, making both his main sponsor BULLS and his home club MTB Siegerland very proud.
Christian Textor’s first EWS season – a quick overview
As far as results go, Texi’s EWS season only really started at the third race in Madeira, where he rode the BULLS WILD CREED team prototype for the first time, ranking 27th overall. At the previous races in Rotorua / New Zealand and Derby / Australia, Texi had to deal with some technical problems and only managed 44th and 42nd, respectively. After taking 31st place at the fourth EWS round in Val di Fassa, the fast German finished the race in Les Orres in the French Alps within striking distance of the top EWS champions, taking home a very gratifying 14th overall at the end of the second day – his best achievement yet. By placing 6th in stage 1 and 7th in stage 6, Texi proved his outstanding riding skills and put his name on the list of top international enduro racers. And once again, at the following EWS appointment in Whistler, Texi bared his teeth and showed the World what he’s made of, placing 14th in the overall ranking. In California he finished the race in 21st place. In the last EWS round of the 2019 season, the TRAILLOVE Alpine Mountainbike Festival in Zermatt, he only managed 27th. Texi ended his first EWS season with a respectable 21st place in the overall ranking.
When asked, which of the 2019 EWS races he’s most proud of, Texi hesitates at first, and then says: “All of them, really. Every EWS race was new to me, and apart from the Trophy of Nations in Finale Ligure, I didn’t know any of the tracks. Since my 14th place in Whilster was my best result, I guess it should be my personal highlight.”
Christian Textor’s BULLS WILD CREED team in detail
Texi played a major role in the development of the new BULLS WILD CREED and supported product developer Daniel Plath throughout the process. From an engineering point of view, the main question was: What does the rider want? Now, if you ask Texi, he was looking for a playful, confidence-inspiring and reliable bike – and he’s not a great fan of super-long bikes. The development team tried to fulfil all of his wishes, providing the frame with an integrated storage box for spares and tools, a bottle cage for a large bottle deeply integrated in the frame, a protection shield made of solid rubber on the down tube to protect the carbon frame and, of course, internal cable routing allover.
Standing at 183 cm, Texi rides a size L. The BULLS WILD CREED has a chainstay length of 435 mm and a reach of 470 mm. The head angle is 65.5° and the seat angle 75.5°.
Throughout the racing season, Texi only made minimal adjustments to his suspension set-up. He raced on a FOX 36 FLOAT GRIP2 fork with 80 psi (5.5 bar) and Float X2 shock with 145 psi. As far as tire pressures go, the TEAM BULLS racer was running 1.5 bar (22 psi) at the front and 1.75 bar (25 psi) at the rear in all races.
From spring 2020, the new BULLS WILD CREED will be available on the market in three sizes (M, L, XL) and in two different spec versions. The entry-level model should cost around € 3,000, while the top-end version should retail for around € 4,500.
Just in case – tools and spares on Texi’s BULLS WILD CREED team
Finally, we asked Texi to tell us about his 2020 goals
His answer was short and very clear: focusing on the Enduro World series and trying to get top 10 results. And of course, he will try to defend his German Enduro champ title.
We wish Texi all the best for the 2020 season!
If you want to keep up to date with Texi’s achievements, you can follow him on Instagram.
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Words: Manne Schmitt Photos: Manne Schmitt, Boris Bayer