Urge has confirmed the attendance of two amateur riders, Doro Lindtke (Rocky Mountain Brake Authority) and Samuel Normand (Lol Racing - Yeti). Inside are the details on these Urge event rookies...
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Source: URGE
Samuel Normand (Lol Racing - Yeti) - France: Officially confirmed!
Hi Samuel. Last October you took part in the Urge Training Camp and you won it! Whats your state of mind few weeks before the departure to Cape Verde?
S.N: Im really looking forward to it and I'm very excited to be traveling in such a beautiful country and to ride those cool mountains for a good cause with top riders; its a dream!
Tell us a bit more about yourself.
S.N: Im from Besançon and live in the Haut-Doubs area, married with 2 adopted daughters. Im a big fan of outdoor activities, after years of competing in canoeing, I passed a sports instructor diploma which allowed me to work in different areas: ski, kayak, climbing and MTB. Im now learning to be a carpenter. All my free time is dedicated to bikes, telemarking, canoeing, snowkites and walks with the family, it all depends on the conditions and the feeling.
What do you expect from this Urge Cape Verde experience?
S.N: itll be for me a unique opportunity to ride with top-class riders on very exotic trails, but especially Id like to keep in mind that every effort made is to help those kids who werent born as lucky as us! They need it everywhere on the planet.
Dorothea and yourself will be in a way the ambassadors of the amateur riders. Are you happy that amateur riders have been included this year?
S.N: First I want to thank Fabien for this Urge Training Camp and for me the icing on the cake, the final selection. With Doro well have a special thought for all the other riders who took part in the selections and with whom we spent a brilliant week-end. Taking amateurs aboard an Urge Event gives another dimension to the humanitarian action because it gives everyone the possibility to dream of taking part and then to bid in the auctions. We are honored to be the first amateurs to face the pro-riders, therell probably be few surprises! Ill keep my eyes wide open, you can learn so much every day from the others, locals or riders. So have a go and dont forget that you need to provoke the good luck!
Do you feel ready for the big start? Have you had a specific training program?
S.N: No specific program but I keep having fun with sports, every day if possible. At the moment theres too much snow to ride the bike so the program is cross-country skiing and backcountry skiing. But its freezing so I cant wait to be in Cape Verde with 25 degrees!
Doro Lindtke (Rocky Mountain Brake Authority) - Switzerland: Officially confirmed!
Hi Dorothea, last October, you came to the Urge Training Camp and you won along with Sam! How do you feel a few weeks before the departure to Cabo Verde?
D.L : I'm really excited about this great opportunity to go to such an interesting place! I'm curious about how everything will be at a place completely different from Middle Europe together with people from very different countries.
Can you just introduce yourself quickly ?
D.L : My name is Doro Lindtke, I'm 30 years old, I'm living in a very small village in Switzerland close to Lake Geneva and close to the mountains.
What do you expect from this experience of Urge Cabo Verde?
D.L : I think it will be a great experience to go with a bunch of people all excited about mountain biking to a place where this sport is rather uncommon and to explore the great nature of the islands! I've never been that far south, and I think it will be an interesting experience to go from the winter in Switzerland directly into the summer in Cabo Verde.
You and Samuel will be ambassadors of non-pro riders in this Urge Event. It's the first year that it is possible. Do you think it's a good change?
D.L : Sure! I mean, there are so many non-pro riders for whom mountain biking is really part of their life. I think there is no difference in the spirit of people in being pro or non-pro. I'm really grateful to be chosen to participate, and I hope I will be able to keep up with the pros, at least a bit!
Do you feel ready?
D.L : Yes, I feel ready! I could go tomorrow! I haven't done any special training, I'm just doing a lot of sports as usual; actually a lot of skiing to keep the endurance and indoor-climbing to get power, not so much biking because of the snow and cold temperatures here.
