Yeti Cycles Going Full Enduro For 2014
For the 2014 racing season, Yeti Cycles will focus their international race efforts solely on the Enduro World Series with a fully supported team that includes 2013 EWS 2nd Place Overall and DH World Championship Bronze medalist Jared Graves and 2013 Junior DH World Champion Richie Rude. In addition to the EWS World Cup team, Yeti will support a number of select athletes via their US National team and regional Racing Ambassadors who will race primarily in the Big Mountain Enduro Series, Oregon Enduro Series, and select EWS events.
“Racing has been the cornerstone of our product development for over twenty-five years,” said Yeti President and co-owner Chris Conroy. “We are excited about enduro racing and have athletes that are uniquely suited to the discipline. Focusing on enduro racing will allow us to concentrate our marketing and product resources exactly where enthusiasm is growing from our sponsors, supporters, and customers.”
Yeti Cycles Enduro Team
EWS World Cup Team:
• Jared Graves
• Richie Rude
US National Team:
• Mike West
• Chris Heath
Racing Ambassadors:
• Joey Schusler
• Nate Hills
• Alex Petidemange
• Sarah Rawley
Reflecting this shift in international race resources, Yeti Cycles will no longer race a World Cup DH schedule. Cam Cole will continue to race a World Cup calendar, but will not be a part of Yeti’s race program. “Cam is a great athlete and we were proud to have him on our team. While it’s sad to see Cam move on, we wish him luck.”
“World Cup DH racing isn’t done for Yeti Cycles, but our focus in the near-term is on enduro racing,” said Conroy.
Yeti Cycles 2014 Sponsors: Fox Racing Shox, Maxxis, Shimano, DT Swiss, Giro, Renthal, Pedro’s, WTB, E Thirteen, Thomson, ODI, Chris King, Feedback Sports, Stages Cycling.
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Is Yeti looking at this a business/exposure decision? I'm guessing that Yeti sells a hellava lot more 6 inch travel bikes than full on DH rigs. Makes total business sense to me.............although I'll miss seeing the team on the WC circuit..
I vote Yeti as #1 brand of 2013 for there sb66 and Graves incredible season.
but it's stocked with sb75 which seem unfortunate due to this opinion: www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWMgTHHAglw
so if the rumors are true, then demand for good 27,5" is killing superbike 26". Hype anybody?
I mean, just look at the kid, he is clearly made for downhill racing, don't make him race in a sport where skinny Euros dominate.
We'll never know what RR would habe achieved in DH. If you compare him to previous junior killers like Brosnan or Bruni, those guys made top ten and i think even podiumed in there last junior season. Still none got a win. I don't think Richie cale close to a 15th spot. Might be a smart move after all. Good luck to him anyway.
As fir the rest I was just teasing you. Dunno about your patriotism, but I clearly see your limited sense of humour. Have a nice day.
being a privateer on the dh scene rockin jr rainbow stripes is waaaaaaaaaaaaaay cooler than being a factory trail rider, ...sorrry, i mean enduro racer.
like the guy said below...........
do not drink the kool aid!!!
although it seems it may be too late for yeti, it looks like they may have a purple mustache already.
how was the kool aid yeti? pennies a glass?
so sad.
i made a comment, that is all.
and the end of the day, as a fan of dh racing, its a loss to the dh race scene, both richie and yeti leaving the wc scene fulltime.
as far as racing goes....dh is just cooler than enduro............no 'hate' on enduro............just a view, a comment, thats all.
i'm old enough to remember a time before the word enduro had anything to do with mtb racing...it was called riding your bike, and yes i did participate in off road riding a 26 inch bicycle with gears and knobby tires. from 1988 to 1992. 4 years of 'enduro' for this kid.
riding your bike is all about fun...........no doubt about it..love it. goodtimes and definately more than just 'a sport'.
racing? well thats another matter...................
as a world jr champ, i can't imagine enduro was richies first choice for 2014 and onward.
will he still be with yeti and the enduro world in 2015?
check back in 12 months from now, we will see whats up.
If it said he was racing Enduro on a SB75, it would have been too much to handle, and may have induced a seizure in half the commentators here.
John Tomac, Colin Bailey, Jimmy Deaton, Missy Giove, Myles Rockwell, Crolyn Curl, Kirt Voreis, Joe Lawill, April Lawyer, Monkey Vasquez, Marla Streb, Nathan Rennie, Tara Llanes, Trent Lowe, Jared Graves, Jill Kintner, Ross Milan, Justin Leov, Sam Blenkinsop, Aaron Gwin, Eliot Jackson, Richie Rude.
Seeing Yeti leave DH world scene, it makes me wonder about the future of DH, comparing to the mainstream Enduro. I've read over here somewhere the saying: "Enduro - the place where DH riders go to die".
With all these 29'ers, weekend warior's soap operas of enduro... the future looks bright. I wonder why they forbidden Lycra. It would be great these days, along with Sam Hill on clipless in Punta Ala...
Sad day for some of us...
Cheers
always a big underground DH scene, possibly better without all the fuss. let the bozos drop huge coin on Enduro bike/outfit/openface helmet and goggle combo
meanwhile, I'll be mountain biking
this enduro thing sounds far too organized and official to me
Amazing how capable these trail bikes are currently.
I come from a moto/dh only background, and I'm so excited for the progression of mountain biking. Amazing that people are talking bad about it. What don't you guys understand? Legit enduro races are multiple runs on DH TRAILS... just on shorter travel bikes. Really gnarly!
How are you going to pedal to the top to ride a DH trail on a trail bike that will punish you even more when you get older and beat up? Ain't gonna happen.
Older adrenaline junkies and really good skill level older riders continue to ride DH, because their bodies can't handle the climbs and fitness it takes to be an enduro racer. Nothing wrong with that at all, super cool actually to see these older guys shredding a DH trail.... but don't kid yourself on a legit enduro race. Look at the BME and EWS.
Riding aggressively on xc trails is completely different. Enduro is a race format. I think that's where the confusion and misconceptions come from. Keep shredding and riding DH man!
Please check out Andrew at Yetifan.com and on Facebook.
1) The switch from Yeti's main focus at WC downhill to Enduro world series must have been a tough call to make?
>> It was a very difficult call to make. The difficulty came when the EWS became a truly international event and the racing spanned the globe like DH. This effectively meant we would have to run two word cup caliber programs. While that intrigues us, we are simply too small and don't have the resources to make that happen. We also were working on signing Jared for two more years. As you can imagine, his stock went up substantially after his EWS and World Champs success... We knew we wanted to keep Jared on the program so signed him and proposed an Enduro only schedule to our racers. Jared and Richie were very excited about moving in this direction. Jared has been a strong mentor for Richie and they enjoy racing together. Cam was intrigued by racing Enduro, but felt he still had some unfinished business in DH. We wanted what was best for Cam, so we asked him to see if there was any option to race DH on another team. He found a good option and will be moving on for 2014. I have nothing but great things to say about Cam - he's fast, committed as a racer, and a really good person. Though he is no longer on the team, he remains a friend of Yeti.
>> Enduro is an exciting format and it embodies what we love about the sport. It takes a combination of skills, fitness and mental toughness. The bikes they use are also in categories where we sell most of our product. Our team will be integral in development of new models and we are very excited about what we have in the hopper... Many people have asked if I think WC DH is going away and my answer is simple -- no. WC DH is thriving and having partners like Red Bull will push the sport even further. The exciting thing is all these disciplines and co-exist and thrive.
3) Richie will be doing the EWS too, its easy to overlook that he did really well at one last year, do you think that like Jared he could be a multi discipline winner in Cycling too?
>> Richie is an amazing athlete and incredibly strong. We feel very good about Jared training with and mentoring him. The sky's the limit with Richie... yes, he could excel in multiple disciplines.
4) Will the team be starting the season on the SB66 ? Or anything up your sleeves for them to test?
>> We'll start the season on the SB66c. And, yes, they will be testing new product throughout the season.
5) Is the DH World Champs still a target?
>> Not this year, but maybe in the future."
Did Richie Rude have the ability to exit his current Yeti contract (without penalty and loss of income) and move to a dedicated World Cup DH team with a similar pay scale and level of race support he is used to?
I believe the frustration being exhibited in comments is from people under the impression (through implication of the press release) that Rude is under contract with Yeti and since the press release is so late, he had no better option with another team to be able to pursue a World Cup DH career at this time.
The press release and short answers make it "appear" that if Rude wants a decent salary and to keep a ride (since most all World Cup DH teams budgets are done and gone), his only choice is to pursue Enduro until a better option comes up.
I think the only thing to satisfy the masses would be a direct statement from Richie saying "I had the option to jump to another World Cup DH team, but I thought I'd try this because it is interesting to me and I really want to try it as opposed to DH and strike while the iron is hot."
Love ya JohnP. Come to Asheville again. Miss your honesty ( and epic man stories).
no 303 hey well I guess it is your loss if you choose to be influenced by advertising, marketing and sponsorship. or you could avoid being a sheeple and make up your own mind and ride a goddamn amazing bike. no worries - scarcity is purity - means I will enjoy riding my 303 this summer and have interesting chats with fellow riders who see a rare bike on the trails and want some casual bike talk over a beer
Pinksheeple!
I now have a timeless classic, and it will last me 3-4 seasons. rides amazing, looks stunning, good price. what am I going to want to beat that? can't go any faster right now, I am maxed out for my ability
I don't care about what the sheeple are doing when they demand the new trendiest wheelset. or new colour way 2015 carbon edition with a 2016 proto-shock and purple forks
I got my ride for 2014, don't need the carbon frame. no buyers remorse for me
ride/ON
Orange bikes over here in the UK said they were absolutely discontinuing their DH production line, only for a few months later go back on that and say they're actually offer them as a frame only option...
As fun as it may be, the appeal of watching enduro racing = ZERO. Not on TV, and not live.
On the other hand, watching Danny Hart vs Sam Hill vs Steve Smith on a rooty, rocky mudslide of a track, on a state-of-the-art downhill beast, and on the edge of what is humanly possible on two wheels (with a slightly insane Rob Warner screaming and spitting into the microphone)... now THAT is exciting. Not just for people who ride bikes, but for your average semi-fat person on the couch. Agree or disagree, but downhill is the pinnacle of the sport in many ways, just like Formula 1 in car racing. All the 'serious' brands are there. Trek, Giant, Specialized, Scott, Santa Cruz, GT. Speaking of GT- it's fair to say they've made a pretty solid comeback in mountain biking the last season or two, with world championships, overalls, bike of the year or whatever, bla bla bla. And how did they do it? DH !!!!!!
Ps. YETI- you can bet your asses it's not only DH bikes they're selling out of now!
If yes guys please make it with a steeper seat angle (for real 160 mm fork).
If you feel you are being priced out, take a step back and realize that you don't need to have the best gear to have fun or get better. Disregarding inflation, I don't think comparable bikes have gotten more expensive, they've just gotten better across the board. I'd take deore hydraulic brakes over xt v brakes any day.
Finally, you guys in the UK are lucky to have a vibrant 26" trail hardtail segment still. I'm jealous. What could be more democratic and less trend whoring? US riders seem so obsessed with new stuff making them better.
Enduro has none of this appeal, its very hard to have even basic coverage, the majority of which is someone sweating their ass off slugging it up a hill which is incredibly boring to watch, the downhill aspect isn't even as good to watch either - Enduro [ahem... trail riding] is something that is fun to do, but will never be as mainstream or exciting as downhill riding. Downhill will out-live this Enduro trend and Yeti will no longer have a respectable presence in the downhill market when everyone realises they've been tricked and that Enduro riding is basically just plain old normal 'riding' just like everyone who enjoys the downhill part of a trail ride does anyway and goes back to being a fan of downhill...