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I raced my first Enduro 2 weeks ago. Its a lot harder than I thought - no time to chill on the descents like you would on a marathon race, its flat out all the time on the dh, and riding back up for every stage kills you. Its more like racing an XC lap race - very intense.

Note how the wheel size is not mentioned ( that I saw) and in the only pic, even the 26 is obscured by the frame. Its a conspiracy I tell ya... That said, lovely bike, but waaaay too much of a monster truck for SA trails - in fact, probably a good DH race bike for us..

Must be those wheels - an inch is all that it takes to go from flop to flyin' :-)

We have a field of 500 plus and PB picks 24 bikes to show us - mostly from big name sponsored riders on bikes from big manufacturers. The industry is going for big wheels or at least slightly bigger wheels, but rest assured nobody is winning or losing because of the wheel size they rode... Look down the field and most people are probably still on sixers for now, but showing them wouldn't be showing us where the industry is going. Bring on the special stages Yeeehaaaaa.

My love of riding started as a kid and then a teen on an old racer with the bars turned the wrong way - we hopped pavements and generally rode like hooligans. I only started proper cycling and then mountain biking in my late twenties. I didnt have any encouragment or a fatherly roll (:-)) model to look up to on this front. I have tried to do things differently with my son and have involved him in all my interests. I have tried not to push him into anything though and he isnt the keenest bike rider out there by any means. He hates uphills (I tow him up steep jeeptrack with my bike) and isnt always that keen to go riding. Thats fine by me. He has seem what its about and if the bug bites or not, so be it. I think we have to accept our kids are individuals and will develop their own interests and passions. One day perhaps my son and I will share a passion he has chosen for himself. Its give and take. We don't own our kids - we are their role models, guides and mentors.

I dug seeing my new bike, the blue/black Reign being ridden in this vid, but I agree on the trail desecration. Not a great example to set.

It looks like a 2013 Reign 1 :-) Great sounding bike but not too common on these shores...

Amazing place and brilliant article. In SA we have a similar place - Knysna - forest, mountains (lower), a huge estuary, beaches and a busy holiday and logging town. It even has trails but nothing quite as special as Queenstown's tracks...

Amazing fliming and riding but I preferred his Kilowna video - better sountrack and energy and the cheers from the guys watching his last trick ended it nicely...

10 000 riders on an enduro course - that would be known as the endless race - as you wait your turn to take the descent with a decent gap... I hope it never gets that popular. I rode my first Enduro on 1 May - there were 70 odd riders and it took 4 hours for 20 mins of racing...