‘Enduro’ bikers to test their skills on Whole Enchilada trail
by Charli Engelhorn
contributing writer
Sep 27, 2012 | 1001 views | 0 0 comments | 3 3 recommendations | email to a friend | print
Rider Joey Schusler competes in a recent Big Mountain Enduro Series race. The race series comes to Moab this weekend at the Whole Enchilada bike trail north of town. Photo by Yeti Cycles
Rider Joey Schusler competes in a recent Big Mountain Enduro Series race. The race series comes to Moab this weekend at the Whole Enchilada bike trail north of town. Photo by Yeti Cycles
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For the first time, the popular single-track mountain biking trail The Whole Enchilada will serve as the course for a national race series. On Sunday, Sept. 30, Bigfoot Productions will hold the Moab portion of the Big Mountain Enduro Series, a three-race event in Colorado and Utah.

The race series is intended to increase interest and bring more attention to Enduro racing, a style of racing that combines both cross-country and downhill riding together already popular in Europe, according to Sarah Rawley, director of communications and marketing for Bigfoot Productions.

The series started in July in Steamboat Springs, Colo., and went to Durango, Colo., at the beginning of September. The Whole Enchilada is the final leg in the series.

“The Whole Enchilada is a great course for this race because it is almost a 6,000-foot descent, which is one of the major elements of Enduro racing,” Rawley said. “Many people already know about the trail because Moab is such a destination place. We thought it would be perfect for the series.”

Rawley said Bigfoot has been working with the local branches of the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service for two years to attain the permit for The Whole Enchilada. After announcing the course location, the race sold out in eight minutes, she said.

“A lot of people knew we were looking at this course and were waiting to register. We can only allow 150 to register on our permit, so space went quickly,” Rawley said.

Racers will be coming in from all over, including Pennsylvania, Washington, and Canada. Rawley said they made sure that there were spaces for local racers to be able to participate on their home turf.

The Enduro race will begin at 8:30 a.m. Sunday morning at Geyser Pass as a group start. After reaching the top of Burro Pass, the racers will be staggered at one-minute intervals down the course. The race will wind down Burro Pass and end a few miles above the Colorado River off of State route 128 on the Porcupine Rim trail, said Rawley.

According to the race website, the Whole Enchilada course should take the average rider approximately five hours to complete; however, race organizers expect the winner to finish in just under two hours. Spectators are welcome to attend.

More information on the Big Mountain Enduro Series and the Whole Enchilada race is available online at www.bigmountainenduro.com.
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