Superenduro PRO 4: Madesimo, Friday Practice
This is a big weekend for Superenduro. Not only is it the Italian national championships of enduro, but it's the first high mountain race of the year, our first time back up in the alps this year. And it feels good to be this high again. After a great first race here in Madesimo last year, it was always going to be back on the calendar again and the little mountain town, nestling at the base of Valchiavena, has opened its arms to the series again. Waiting for riders in the forests above the town is the one thing we all search for: loam. Soft, brown mud that sprays the back of your ankles as you churn it up. Unfortunately the rain came in heavily yesterday with no less than three big thunderstorms battering the valley...
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 When we say big mountains, this is what we mean. Valchiavena. Way down at the bottom there you can see Madesimo, which in itself is 1,500m above sea-level, some of the peaks above reach well over 3,000m (that's 9,000ft for anyone on the other side of the Atlantic). |
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| This is Madesimo. The bottom end of the town is cut off from the rest of the world and you have to enter through a tunnel. Through the rabbit hole, as it were. |
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| There were a lot of nervous glances up towards those slopes this morning. Nobody was quite sure what they held in store after the storms yesterday and the morning conversation came back to tyre choice time and time again. |
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| This had to be in here. It's Toby Pantling's birthday today. Bless him, his mother packed him some presents and a card so, even though he's been on the road for more than a month now, he had something to open today. Happy birthday pro! |
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| This is what we're talking about! Chairlifts. It's been far too long since we last rode on one of these as the cold, unending winter here in Europe has kept most of the resorts on lockdown. |
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| God bless Italy, we don't think you'd be allowed to hijack the lift control office for the sake of a photo in many other countries. |
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| We're not sure what Fox would say about this kind of improvisation, but when you get up into the alps a bigger fork is definitely welcome, although there didn't seem to be much in the way of mud clearance. We've heard rumours that some riders are asking Fox to make a legit 650B version of the 36, which is something we'd love to see. |
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| The first part of stage one runs down the side of the valley above the lift station, following the course of the stream. |
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| Even if it's not the most technical terrain, there's always something deeply satisfying about tearing up soft soil and fresh grass. |
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| Davide Sottocornola was out training with Chiara Pastore today. Last year he took the champions' title and will be looking to defend it this weekend. |
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| This bridge is awkward as hell. Coming into it are a steep, slippery set of steps and then you have this step and 90 degree corner onto the woodwork. You are then straight into a brutal, lung-destroying 30-second climb to the small village above before you start to descend again. |
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| After the climb, riders tear down through the meadow towards the forest. |
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| High speed, open meadows are perfect for playing around with blurry panning shots, if nothing else (1/10). |
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| Lars Sternberg is here representing the USA this weekend. It'll be interesting to see how he gets on this weekend as he was looking quick in practice. |
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| This is one thing that wasn't missed about the alps: anthills. They are usually just in the place where you want to set up for your shot too... |
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| The woods section on stage one is quite bikepark-y, with some nice big berms to really press into your suspension. Here's Sam Flanagan using all six inches. |
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| Madesimo sits right on the Swiss border, so we're expecting a good Swiss turnout this weekend. Norco's Michael Schaerer, pinned through the woods. |
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| This is a lot of things we like in one go. Big berms, even bigger mountains, epic light and ugly cornering. Sam Flanagan gets on the pipe. |
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| Although it didn't always work out quite so well for him... |
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| The Superenduro crew have been hard at work with the tape this week, there'll be no cutting, that's for sure. |
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| The chairlift means lots of laps, which soon take their toll on your body. Manuel Ducci stretches out before he stops for lunch. |
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| This is what will be on the mind of all the Italians tonight... The podium. Sottocornola, the defending champion, has had a mixed season so far, Alex Lupato can't seem to find any luck in his race runs, Manuel Ducci is riding high off a win at the last round in Gemona, Andrea Bruno is still suffering from his shoulder injury and Vittorio Gambirasio is hunting for his first ever PRO win... Or will an outsider shock everyone? |
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