The California Enduro Series Round 1 of the Golden Tour and fourth stop for the overall series pitted at the VP EnduroFest at China Peak Mountain Resort in Lakeshore this weekend. Temps were warm and trail conditions were loose and technical in many areas. A couple of the stages did offer some relief in the form of fast flow tree-surrounded singletrack. Here are some of the highlights from Friday's day of practice.
Riders were amped on the lift service for practice Friday, lining up as early as an hour in advance. Bikeco was well represented.
With the lift running, lines to jump on were pretty substantial shortly after the opening, but that still beat pedaling up to the peak.
Rachel Throop, Factory GT, was in attendance for the first round of the Golden Tour.
Anker Fanoe from Rabobank Marin on Stage 1 during practice looking smooth.
Brian Durling, 36, of Sacramento – a pro rider for the Mike's Bikes/Toyota/Equator team – floats through the soft dirt on stage 2 during practice.
Amy Morrison in the trees on stage 3 during practice Friday. She is currently leading the series. It will be exciting to see if she can continue the winning streak.
Dillon Santos, Factory Ibis Pro Rider, on stage 1, rails the loose corners. He has two podium finishes this year so far in the series. He looked great here during practice. Hopefully, that carries over for him on race day.
Ryan Gardner, Kona Norcal Cooperative rider, doing his best Captain Morgan while fellow pro, Evan Geankopolis, Rabobank Marin, photobombs the shot.
Steven "Skittles" Nadaskai managed to take time out of his busy schedule to come up to race junior expert. Nadaskai – who works part time at both the Path Bike shop and with Called to Creation as a graphic designer AND is attending college full time in the fall – will race Saturday and then go back to Orange County in time to race the Vail Lake Enduro Sunday.
Kona Norcal Cooperative rider, Derek Teel, sends it through a rocky section on stage 3. There is no shortage of techy rock segments at the VP EnduroFest at China Peak.
Zack Rustigeon, Bikeco expert rider in a more tame section of stage 3. You can certainly tell the trails were loose with that dust trailing behind him.
Rumor had it that Brian Lopes would be attending the first round of the Golden Tour and with good reason: the pro purse totals $8k per event. Would Lopes still have what it takes to compete against riders several years younger in the pro category? His Carbine 29 was dialed during practice and his lines were choice.
The swimming hole is always a popular spot after a long day of practice. Temps on Friday were in the mid 80's on the mountain, making a dip in the river essential.
Ashton Smith, from the Trail Head Cyclery team, waits in line for registration/packet pick up Friday after a long day of practice. The event was another sellout with nearly 400 riders in attendance.
The practice day finished with riders, beaten up a bit with bikes in the same condition. Flats on the sharp rocks were plentiful. It seemed if you could keep the bike intact on race day and not have any get-offs you'd be in good shape for a solid finish no matter what category you ran. Stay tuned for a full recap from race day, coming soon. And be sure to join us on July 16 for CES 2016 Round 5 – the Ashland Mountain Challenge at Lithia Park in Ashland!
Words and photos by
Called To Creation.
For more information on CES and its Golden Tour, visit
californiaenduroseries.com.
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