[Event] Howick MTB Club Enduro

[Griffin]

Stage 3 to me is what Enduro is about,some guys were complaining along stage 3 that this is suppose to be downhill and I told them this is exactly what enduro is about ups and downs. This is why enduro is growing so quickly,it beats doing a marathon or Classic and all the people are chilled and not so stuck up like with the other forms of racing.

Hey Bizkit031

 

Exactly right. Thanks for enlightening those who commented. Enduro is not DH..nor is it XCO...nor is it Marathon...its Enduro! Enduro is not all downhill. It includes climbs (and no shuttling), it includes pedalling in Stages and it includes technical sections. 

 

To quote Wikipedia..."Enduro is a form of Mountain bike racing in which there is a greater proportion of downhill sections, which are timed, to uphill and cross country sections. This aims to test rider's technical bike handling skills as well as providing endurance and climbing."

 

Will agree the vibe is pretty awesome  

[NotSoBigBen]

Stage 3 to me is what Enduro is about,some guys were complaining along stage 3 that this is suppose to be downhill and I told them this is exactly what enduro is about ups and downs. This is why enduro is growing so quickly,it beats doing a marathon or Classic and all the people are chilled and not so stuck up like with the other forms of racing.

 

Sometimes I read stuff and I just shake my head 

 

#enduro riders complaining sacre bleu   and the generalization in that last bit .... exactly why the us and them cycling thing is becoming more and more prevalent but hey I'm sure most people had fun on their bikes whatever they were doing this weekend 

[Aicorner]

Stage 3 was my favourite as well. 

 

I think the results show what is needed for a good enduro rider : the top guys are super fit and very skilful.

 

I didn't hear any complaining & the various groups I rode with were all chats & jokes on the way up (as it should be).  One of the features of endures for me is socialising between runs, which one doesn't really get in other forms.

 

Looking forward to the next one !

 

[MphatiPyga]

The more I read about this the sadder I feel for missing it, oh well next one!!

[Super_mil]

Thanks so much to the Howick MTB club for putting this event on. It really was awesome.

The trails were extremely tricky and caught a number of riders (perhaps all the riders?) out at some point. My shoulder knows what the ground on the 1st corner in the forest on Stage #1 feels like.

Good times 

[Maniac Merv]

So my thoughts ...

 

I've basically done the KK , St Ives , Cascades, Howick and all the Hakahana enduro's this year so got a good idea in my opinion what I enjoy and like.

 

All have been super rad with the Howick one pretty high up there and was awesome with more of a natural trail feel and flowy sections.

 

The climb was really nothing to moan about and as always the vibe and banter makes time go by

My favourite was stage 2 but all 3 stages were perfect , I would even try make 1 and 2 a bit longer like stage 3 to be honest -  I travelled from Jhb and love riding so the more / longer I can ride the better and makes it all worth it  in the end.

 

We actually came down on Tuesday and rode Holla on wed , Giba on Thursday , Karkloof on Friday and then Howick on Saturday.  legs were fooked but would rather have that than just one day of riding in Kzn

 

The timing system worked well I think

 

Anyways - only complaint I have was for the spectators , the wife came down and could not watch / enjoy as had no idea where to go or how to get there  , and had to go to town to buy us beers and food for after the ride.

 

Hakahana do very well with after the race vibe ,the  guys/girls  have beers , get lunch , talk about the trails ect ect and have a jol waiting for prize giving

think it will be even better with the 2 day even that will have in November

 

Anyways - was super rad , just need to fine tune a few more things and I would def be back for more !!!

[Griffin]

The more I read about this the sadder I feel for missing it, oh well next one!!

Tentatively planned for 5 March 2016...followed by the Howick Classic (20km/40km) on 6 March...so a weekend of riding  

[Griffin]

Thanks so much to the Howick MTB club for putting this event on. It really was awesome.

The trails were extremely tricky and caught a number of riders (perhaps all the riders?) out at some point. My shoulder knows what the ground on the 1st corner in the forest on Stage #1 feels like.

Good times 

 

Of all the places I thought riders would bail..that one was not on the list The bit of rain def made it different and changed some tactics/lines

 

What some people don't realise it just how involved Super_mil is in the riding that goes on in the greater Midlands area. His inputs and hard work behind the scenes is largely un-noticed but very appreciated

[Griffin]

So my thoughts ...

 

I've basically done the KK , St Ives , Cascades, Howick and all the Hakahana enduro's this year so got a good idea in my opinion what I enjoy and like.

 

All have been super rad with the Howick one pretty high up there and was awesome with more of a natural trail feel and flowy sections.

 

The climb was really nothing to moan about and as always the vibe and banter makes time go by

My favourite was stage 2 but all 3 stages were perfect , I would even try make 1 and 2 a bit longer like stage 3 to be honest -  I travelled from Jhb and love riding so the more / longer I can ride the better and makes it all worth it  in the end.

 

We actually came down on Tuesday and rode Holla on wed , Giba on Thursday , Karkloof on Friday and then Howick on Saturday.  legs were fooked but would rather have that than just one day of riding in Kzn

 

The timing system worked well I think

 

Anyways - only complaint I have was for the spectators , the wife came down and could not watch / enjoy as had no idea where to go or how to get there  , and had to go to town to buy us beers and food for after the ride.

 

Hakahana do very well with after the race vibe ,the  guys/girls  have beers , get lunch , talk about the trails ect ect and have a jol waiting for prize giving

think it will be even better with the 2 day even that will have in November

 

Anyways - was super rad , just need to fine tune a few more things and I would def be back for more !!!

 

Thanks for the kudo's Merv. Its really good to hear that the event compared well to the others. This really was planned as  "tester" to see if we as a club (and the trails) could host an Enduro... and we are very happy to say we can

 

Its always difficult to find a balance between whats to hard and whats to easy   . As this was not a Series/Provincial/National or any other kind of high profile/points applicable event, as well as our first dab into the Enduro scene, we thought it would be better to keep the stages shorter but challenging. We also have some challenges with elevation ... but there are solutions for that (just wait till next year !).  

 

Really appreciate the effort made to come from the Big Smoke. Its a long way to come but doing it like you did and getting a few days of riding in is a winner!

 

We also found that the finish/after event activities is one of the things we need to work on. In no way is this an excuse but getting vendors to attend was actually pretty difficult. It was the first time we have used the Farmers market as a start venue and we need to convince the stall holders to stick around. We also need to get catering/beer vendors to commit to attending. Being a commercial venue it does make it challenging when trying to keep the stall holders happy and also have on-the-day vendors present but thats something we will be sorting out. 

 

Late entries on the day almost doubled the amount of riders we were expecting and as much as that is awesome it also threw us a curve ball. We are a very small club with limited resources but we are determined to make this the best Enduro in the province. 

 

Spectator wise...thats a catch 22. We want people out there and watching. Thats what gives us, and the sponsors, the exposure needed. However, we also have to respect the Sappi regulations that are in place as its their land. Safe access into the forests and evacuation from the forests from both a Sappi perspective as well as a rider safety perspective is paramount and will always take priority. The nature of Enduro usually means that the riders go into remote areas that are not easily accessible by spectators but we will be throwing some ideas and suggestions around with Sappi so that we can come to some solution

[Maniac Merv]

Thanks for the kudo's Merv. Its really good to hear that the event compared well to the others. This really was planned as  "tester" to see if we as a club (and the trails) could host an Enduro... and we are very happy to say we can

 

Its always difficult to find a balance between whats to hard and whats to easy   . As this was not a Series/Provincial/National or any other kind of high profile/points applicable event, as well as our first dab into the Enduro scene, we thought it would be better to keep the stages shorter but challenging. We also have some challenges with elevation ... but there are solutions for that (just wait till next year !).  

 

Really appreciate the effort made to come from the Big Smoke. Its a long way to come but doing it like you did and getting a few days of riding in is a winner!

 

We also found that the finish/after event activities is one of the things we need to work on. In no way is this an excuse but getting vendors to attend was actually pretty difficult. It was the first time we have used the Farmers market as a start venue and we need to convince the stall holders to stick around. We also need to get catering/beer vendors to commit to attending. Being a commercial venue it does make it challenging when trying to keep the stall holders happy and also have on-the-day vendors present but thats something we will be sorting out. 

 

Late entries on the day almost doubled the amount of riders we were expecting and as much as that is awesome it also through us a curve ball. We are a very small club with limited resources but we are determined to make this the best Enduro in the province. 

 

Spectator wise...thats a catch 22. We want people out there and watching. Thats what gives us, and the sponsors, the exposure needed. However, we also have to respect the Sappi regulations that are in place as its their land. Safe access into the forests and evacuation from the forests from both a Sappi perspective as well as a rider safety perspective is paramount and will always take priority. The nature of Enduro usually means that the riders go into remote areas that are not easily accessible by spectators but we will be throwing some ideas and suggestions around with Sappi so that we can come to some solution

Awesome - Thanks for response and much appreciated

[Super_mil]

Of all the places I thought riders would bail..that one was not on the list The bit of rain def made it different and changed some tactics/lines

 

What some people don't realise it just how involved Super_mil is in the riding that goes on in the greater Midlands area. His inputs and hard work behind the scenes is largely un-noticed but very appreciated

Thanks Gav, but I'm hardly super involved. I do bits and pieces to help where I can. There are plenty other individuals working to keep trails open, maintained, put on events, develop new trails, etc, etc, etc. It really does require a team and like minded people who are psyched on riding.

KZN in general seems to have really good momentum at the moment. 

[El Guapo]

Are there any pictures from the day out there...? There was a few posted on the Howick club FB page but nothing I can find yet of the masses that attended... I did spot a photographer en route so thought there might be more...?

[Griffin]

Are there any pictures from the day out there...? There was a few posted on the Howick club FB page but nothing I can find yet of the masses that attended... I did spot a photographer en route so thought there might be more...?

 

Hey El Guapo

 

Only pics I know of are the couple posted on the FB group. 

 

Might be some others from people there on the day ?

 

There was no official photog out there (would usually have been me but I had my Howick MTB Club hat on that day lol)

[Griffin]

Thanks Gav, but I'm hardly super involved. I do bits and pieces to help where I can. There are plenty other individuals working to keep trails open, maintained, put on events, develop new trails, etc, etc, etc. It really does require a team and like minded people who are psyched on riding.

KZN in general seems to have really good momentum at the moment. 

Mark is right..it does take a whole lot of planning and work behind the scenes.

 

Mark is one of those. 

 

as is blondeonabike

 

and many others

[El Guapo]

I was lucky enough to win a Praxisworks chainring at the Howick Enduro. 

 

Took delivery on Friday of a 34t narrow wide chainring.

 

Thanks to Rushsports and the event organisers for the prize and to Good2Go for facilitating delivery.

 

Time to upgrade the hardtail drivetrain!