Multi Stage Enduro Races

rideit · Jul 25, 2022

The trans Sierra Norte is a fair value, I think. It’s small, for one thing. And $1600 got me all transportation to/from the airport, accommodations, most meals, race entry, guides for a day or two before, a hoodie, and other swag. Using the same dudes for a private tour this last March was $2100 for three days. (But MUCH nicer hotels).
Which was fun, but could have been more fun with other people.

sethimus · Jul 25, 2022

3 days of riding for 2100$? the desperate things you do in a country that only offers you 2 weeks of holidays/year

slyfink · Jul 25, 2022

sethimus said:
rideit said:

The trans Sierra Norte is a fair value, I think. It’s small, for one thing. And $1600 got me all transportation to/from the airport, accommodations, most meals, race entry, guides for a day or two before, a hoodie, and other swag. Using the same dudes for a private tour this last March was $2100 for three days. (But MUCH nicer hotels).
Which was fun, but could have been more fun with other people.

Click to expand...

3 days of riding for 2100$? the desperate things you do in a country that only offers you 2 weeks of holidays/year

no shit. wow. I'd always wondered who signs up for those sacred ride trips. I looked into them a few times, but always found it would be MUCH cheaper to hire a guide, and do our own logistics. I guess travelling solo changes things a bit, but still... those trips are big money....

rideit · Jul 25, 2022

For my last trip, if I hadn't of hired a guide, there is no freaking way in hell I would have found three days worth of downhill trails, been allowed to ride them, or put together the shuttling logistics. (Some of the trails are on private land) I definitely did not use Sacred rides, I hired the organizers of the Trans Sierra Norte.

Oh, and it was for two, and included two days of surfing lessons and rentals for my kiddo. Yes, it was absurdly expensive, but pretty excellent.

Gary · Jul 25, 2022

Despite the increasing amount of of paid guiding companies around these days I still find hooking up (or simply just chatting) with locals to still be the best way to find trails.
I imagine UK/Europe might be kinda different to the US in that respect though

sethimus · Jul 25, 2022

guides < strava heat map

rideit · Jul 25, 2022

Private property with gated roads= trouble

Gary, we are talking about Mexico (and this is the way in Perú as well)

Gary · Jul 25, 2022

Ah. Fair enough.

Yeah. in that case a guide does sound like money well spent

rideit · Jul 25, 2022

A curious dynamic in Peru is that the trails are ancient foot/burro paths, used by the local campesinos daily for transportation. They often go right through campesinos yards, etc. This often causes resentment and sometimes conflicts. Often the guides work with the local campesino collectives to pay a bit for the right to be asshole mountain bikers. It is an informal relationship, and quite delicate. The legit guides know who to talk to in each community if there is trouble. They also help with some trail work, etc.

Rides in the jungle/ coca country can also be a little tricky to navigate. Even if I lived full time in Lima for the last 20 years, I would not go explore trail networks I found on Strava without a local guide/rider of some sort.

There are also class, political, and race conflicts to deal with that would be initially invisible. The terrain we rode on in Mexico is near some cartel growing areas, so things could change quickly in terms of welcomeness to riders.
I have had rocks thrown at me for being a Gringo (this was in 2003, though).

toodles · Jul 25, 2022

Yeah I'm all for exploring trails on my own and I do that most places that are rideable. But eff doing that in Mexico. Also, the shuttled or guided tours are often a good bang for the buck when trails are spread out or require shuttles to do properly. I wouldn't bother with a guide for a trail centre or park visit or general riding around anywhere pretty safe.

rideit · Jul 25, 2022

I complained a little at first about the price of the three day tour. But after I got down there and saw what went into it, and some of the risk they manage, it made much more sense. I was paying for some security as well as trails, and security costs money.
Kind of like riding on Rez land, you just don't go and explore on your own without some kinda name-drop. Some sketchy places are getting more chill as they see the economic benefits, for sure. But you just don't know.

sethimus · Jul 25, 2022

just don’t ride in shithole countries?

Gary · Jul 25, 2022

rideit · Jul 25, 2022

Sorry, I live in one, I have to ride here.

toodles · Jul 25, 2022

sethimus said:
just don’t ride in shithole countries?

I just ride wherever I can afford to go and the trails look good. It's still cheaper to do multi day enduro race event in Mexico than it is to ride in Europe

sethimus · Jul 25, 2022

Gary said:

he sounds a bit like you

Gary · Jul 25, 2022

Nah. My accent is fairly close to the accent Ewan McGregor should have had in that Film.
But Ewan McGreggor is shite at accents and can's even pull off a convincing Scottish accent.

I know you're messin' but if you've seen the film Spud and Tommy have the closest to the accent they should have. Sickboy's accent is also terrible as Johnny Lee Miller is English.

If you haven't seen the Film. Don't. Read the book first. it's way way better. But a difficult read for someone not familiar with an Edinburgh (Leith to be precise) accent as Irvine Welsh wrote the dialogue phonetically.

sethimus · Jul 25, 2022

only spun

toodles · Aug 9, 2022

Trans Savoie Aims to Go Out with a Bang.

Trans Savoie will bow out in 2022 with its tenth anniversary event taking in the best that the French Alps has to offer over six days.

www.wideopenmountainbike.com

Now or never if that one was on your list...

sethimus · Aug 10, 2022

ride still not wrapped…

Gary · Aug 10, 2022

I think I can smell the smoke from the keys of the keyboard of excuses from here.

Westy · Aug 10, 2022

Gary said:
Nah. My accent is fairly close to the accent Ewan McGregor should have had in that Film.
But Ewan McGreggor is shite at accents and can's even pull off a convincing Scottish accent.

I know you're messin' but if you've seen the film Spud and Tommy have the closest to the accent they should have. Sickboy's accent is also terrible as Johnny Lee Miller is English.

If you haven't seen the Film. Don't. Read the book first. it's way way better. But a difficult read for someone not familiar with an Edinburgh (Leith to be precise) accent as Irvine Welsh wrote the dialogue phonetically.

At a trade show a coworker introduced me to two very drunk dudes from Glasgow that he used to work with. They talked loudly at me for two hours. Didn't understand a word they said and wasn't sure if they were angry at me. It was pretty terrifying until when they left they bought me a beer and hugged me.

Gary · Aug 10, 2022

Standard issue Weegies (Glas"Weege"ans)

toodles · Aug 10, 2022

Westy said:
At a trade show a coworker introduced me to two very drunk dudes from Glasgow that he used to work with. They talked loudly at me for two hours. Didn't understand a word they said and wasn't sure if they were angry at me. It was pretty terrifying until when they left they bought me a beer and hugged me.

One of my old riding crew is from Glasgow I think? Chris (tho everyone calls him "Jimmy" as that's some Scottish term for a mechanic or something). Face-to-face I can sorta understand him unless he's drinking, but if he rings I just hang up and get him to text me.

Westy · Aug 10, 2022

toodles said:
One of my old riding crew is from Glasgow I think? Chris (tho everyone calls him "Jimmy" as that's some Scottish term for a mechanic or something). Face-to-face I can sorta understand him unless he's drinking, but if he rings I just hang up and get him to text me.

I had a coworker from Birmingham. I could understand him just fine, he had been living in the states for decades. But when his wife would call him and I overheard him on the phone it was like he was speaking a completely different language and couldn't understand a work he said, and I grew up with an English mother and had an English accent until I first went to school.

toodles · Aug 29, 2022

There's also this one - https://www.trans-ne.com/

Dunno how much it costs, but another option in N. America aside from Trans Cascadia and Trans BC.

Gary · Aug 30, 2022

UK Accents change through the country. So much so that accent and vocabulary can be really quite different between two small towns right next to each other or different parts of the same city.

@toodles. Whereabouts are you? And do you know Chris' last name? The (central) Scottish mtb community a is quite close nit. Racing community even more so.

toodles · Aug 30, 2022

Gary said:
UK Accents change through the country. So much so that accent and vocabulary can be really quite different between two small towns right next to each other or different parts of the same city.

@toodles. Whereabouts are you? And do you know Chris' last name? The (central) Scottish mtb community a is quite close nit. Racing community even more so.

PM'ed you his name.

Cheeky fucker by the way. When I rode for his shop DH team, we bet a carton (box) of beers on who would come out with the most points at the end of the season. He was a pinch ahead of me in points coming into the second last race, but crashed and hurt him knee and DNF'ed. Couldn't even race the last round so I won the bet. But then he brought the box of beers - cold, and gave them to me in the middle of the team tent after the final race while i was surrounded by thirsty downhillers. I think I managed to get 3 of them before they were gone.

Gary · Aug 30, 2022

3 COLD beers in the middle of a field is still a WIN in my book.

toodles · Oct 30, 2022

good little recap of Trans Madeira.

rideit · Oct 30, 2022

So, as you know, just got back from Trans Sierra Norte. It was an incredible experience, but I don’t think I will do a multi day race again. Painful, a bit chaotic, and tons and tons of testosterone and ego. Met some super-cool people, though. I would go back in a heartbeat with friends, and just take the trails in a social fashion. Would be MUCH more fun just chillin’.

I am actually supposed to hook up with Marcelo Gutierrez in Colombia next March, he is a good friend of a friend. I might decline riding with him, but he’s going help me get a bike and stuff like that.

toodles · Oct 30, 2022

rideit said:
So, as you know, just got back from Trans Sierra Norte. It was an incredible experience, but I don’t think I will do a multi day race again. Painful, a bit chaotic, and tons and tons of testosterone and ego. Met some super-cool people, though. I would go back in a heartbeat with friends, and just take the trails in a social fashion. Would be MUCH more fun just chillin’.

What was the Sierra Norte event like? Its hard to get info on that one. I was considering that one for 2024, but might just do a couple weeks of riding in Squamish instead to save money and catch up with mates.

FWIW, of the events I've done - the Trans NZ is probably the easiest and most laid back of them. Kiwi/Aussie participants and less bravado, more chilled atmostphere. The Trans Madeira is easily the most impressive from a scenery perspective and the tracks aren't super tech, just crazy slippery. Trans BC is hard, both up and down and tough to relax on unless you're pretty fit and switched on.

toodles · Oct 30, 2022

norbar said:
I'm surprised you say the tracks aren't super tech as Freeride Madeira guys did take me to some steep trails and I thought I've seen a helmet cam from a trail I recognized while hiking (which was "you will not stop for the next 200m even if you want steep") but maybe I'm wrong and it was a different trail. Then again good to hear since knowing me I'd crash if it was too tech.

Ah yeah, there's some decent steep bits in Madeira and slippery as hell (there's definitely bits you're doing because you can't physically stop and opt out) but not quite as root and rock infested as Trans BC did on a couple of days. BC involved some of the BC Cup DH tracks, done blind if thats any idea. That was back in 2018 though, I see next year they're doing the Sea-to-Sky corridor which would be bloody awesome. I'm assuming days in Squamish, Whistler and Pemby. I would love if they did Vancouver island as I've never been.

toodles · Oct 30, 2022

25 riders? Definitely sounds more like a tour thingy hey. I'd still give it a go, if I could afford to I'd do a couple of these multi day adventure things a year. I've done them with a partner, a group of mates and with just one riding buddy for two of them and they've all been good fun. The pricing has crept up a lot from the first ones I did though so its starting to get hard to do them all. I'm doing Trans Tasmania (https://www.transtasmaniamtb.com/) in February as a volunteer marshal/course sweeper which should be awesome. Be good to help out and ride my bike too.

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