Norco Canadian Enduro Development Team Announced

PRESS RELEASE: Norco Canadian Enduro Development Team

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The CNES Development team was founded in 2016, after identifying a need for athlete development in the ever-growing junior category. Simply put, the team was created to help reduce the burden on aspiring athletes who showed a high-level of commitment to the sport of enduro racing and combined this relentless commitment with exceptional base skills.  

The CNES Development Team looked to turn good riders, into excellent riders, through reducing the barriers of participation, establishing a community culture of investing in athlete development and connecting individual racers from different regions. Ultimately, the result was to create high-performing athletes and open the culture of enduro racing to the next generation.

Over the last three years the team grew exponentially to a total of 12 riders and the team members have received podiums at pretty much every major mountain biking event in Canada. A large portion of the growth and success of the team was the partnership with Joel Harwood at Blueprint Athlete Development. Joel was able to provide the programming and structure these young athletes needed to make it to that ‘next step’. This was coupled to the logistics support and funding provided by the CNES.

To date the team has been solely funded by the CNES (that’s you, the racers), with a significant amount of volunteer time from Joel Harwood and Ted Morton as coaches and managers.  Support is paramount to the success of the athletes, as there is currently no funding or programming available to enduro specific athletes at this level within the traditional sporting sense. Luckily the riding community is a haven for finding help and building athletes.

This year the team focus has shifted and with great pleasure I would like to introduce the 2019 Norco Canadian Enduro Development team, supported by Live to Play Sports!

Be sure to follow the Norco Canadian Enduro Series and each of the athletes to keep up to date on their highs and lows throughout the season, not to mention their comedic value!

-Ted Morton // Team Manager

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In 2018, we consulted our athletes and previous partners to learn about their racing career programs; what were their gaps, weaknesses, opportunities and areas for improvement. Undoubtedly the unanimous gap and area for improvement was costs/expenses.

The 2018 team truly was a milestone year, and it culminated with a number of athletes moving on from our program, either to join another team, focus on larger events, return to school or to branch out on their own.  

Once we saw this trend we realized that the program was successful, we had provided a laddering program for young athletes to develop their skills (on/off bike), and create self-sustaining relationships and programs in the industry. Ultimately allowing them to pursue further development privately.

The trends we were seeing is what led to the reconfiguration of the traditional CNES team, and created the model for the 2019 Norco Canadian Enduro Development Team.

For 2019, we took a deep look at what and how we could continually develop Canada’s best Enduro athletes. This is when we realized that in Canada, we likely have more phenomenal riders per capita than any other country in the world. But why weren’t we seeing Canadians competing more internationally and across the country? Support is the answer.

We're excited to announce that our 2019 Norco Canadian Enduro Development Team will consist of only 4 riders. These 4 riders have been carefully selected as representatives for the sport of Enduro in Canada.

They were selected based on the following criteria:
• Commitment to the Canadian Enduro Series
• Dedication and activity in their communities
• Social license
• Previous race results
• Potential
• Life long mountain bikers

We solicited athletes by either directly contacting them - because we wanted to offer support - and by applications that were submitted from all over the country.
In the end, the riders that were selected are athletes that have exceeded all of the criteria and are looking to perform at the next level.

The 2019 Norco Canadian Enduro Development Team supported by Live To Play Sports is:

• Evan Wall
• Jacob Tooke
• Jo Peters
• Max Leyen

We’re also excited to announce that James Cattanach will be our team photographer and Ted Morton will continue as Team Manager. Keith Wilson (Pendrel Racing), Joel Harwood (Blueprint Athlete Development) and Ricky Federau will be athlete coaches.

For more information on the riders please checkout the team page.

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For 2019, expect to see the team at all of the Norco Canadian Enduro Series rounds, select Big Mountain Enduro Series rounds, and many of the Enduro World Series rounds, they’ll also be competing at select local events.

Athlete focuses are:

• Evan Wall - Norco Canadian Enduro Series, EWSQ and EWSC, BME, EWS Whistler/Northstar and winning practice.
• Jacob Tooke - Norco Canadian Enduro Series, EWS Australia/Tasmania/Whistler/Northstar/Switzerland, EWSQ and EWSC, BME, EWS Whistler/Northstar and Silver Star Events.
• Jo Peters - Norco Canadian Enduro Series, EWS Whistler/Northstar, Trans BC, Dialed In Cycling Women's camps and instruction
• Max Leyen - Norco Canadian Enduro Series, EWS (all rounds), EWSC, BME.

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In order to build on the team’s success from 2018, we recognized the need for support. Norco Bicycles is as Canadian as maple syrup, poutine and hockey. When we approached them with the idea of building a more focused development team beyond juniors, they didn't hesitate. Look for our athletes rocking the 2019 Norco Range, outfitted with aftermarket parts from Live To Play Sports brands like Spank Wheels, TRP Brakes, and Spank Components. The team will also be kitted out in partner brands like Five Ten shoes, iXS helmets/soft goods and SMITH goggles.

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For those of you that attend the Norco Canadian Enduro Series, every time you attend an event you are literally contributing to athlete development. Let’s face it! You’re these athletes' sponsors. At all the Norco Enduro races, 10% of your entry goes straight back to the trails, trails which provide a training ground for athletes. Without the racers attending the series, we wouldn't have venues or amazing partners to support this program. If you're looking to support the team further, you can make a donation to the team, by either reaching out to ted@bcenduro.com, or by clicking the donation link here. All donations will go towards helping riders make it to the events, through covering travel costs or additional race entries.

Thank you for your support!



Need something? More information?

• Visit our Website
• Athlete Inquires & Volunteer Information | admin@bcenduro.com
• All other inquiries | 1-250-899-0096 Ted Morton (Event Director)

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MENTIONS: @canadianenduro / @norcobicycles / @Spank-Ind / @TRPCyclingComponents / @LTP-Sports

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