MEC Canadian National Enduro Series Calendar & Registration Released
Welcome to the MEC Canadian National Enduro Series, presented by Intense Cycles
While everyone is busy posting gym selfies and some sort of walking/sliding/gliding on snow, we need to take a deep breath and remember that summer is just around the corner! For 2018, we're bringing 6 stops across Canada, 3 events in British Columbia, 1 event in Alberta, 1 in Ontario and 2 in Quebec! With this year's MEC Canadian National Enduro Series, we have the opportunity, to reach the most amount of riders across Canada. The series is specifically formulated to help reduce the burden of travelling cross-country, but still providing that incentive for very serious racers.
Also, hang-tight for the announcement of our 2018 Blueprint Canadian Enduro Development Team, we've enlisted the fastest male and female U21 riders in Canada!
The summer of 2018 should be the summer that you sell your soul to the devil, as the events this year are going to be rowdy, steep, fast and long, so call the devil right now, trade him for some added jazz in the legs and a bit more upper body strength. This is for fans of big-days on the bike, giving back to the local trail clubs, and travelling to check-out new places.
The summer of 2018 should be the summer that you sell your soul to the devil, as the events this year are going to be rowdy, steep, fast and long, so call the devil right now, trade him for some added jazz in the legs and a bit more upper body strength. This is for fans of big-days on the bike, giving back to the local trail clubs, and travelling to check-out new places.
Returning this year is our ever gracious title partner MEC, Canada's go-to place for outdoor gear, know-how and inspiration. Last year, together with MEC (they match our 10% trail donations) we raised more than $30,000 for local trail clubs across Canada. Now, we couldn't do that without the support of you, the riders, who over the last 5 years of the series have contributed to more than $70,000 in trail love! In each destination, we partner with the local trail association to not only bring a unique experience for the riders but to showcase the community - the efforts of trail-builders, planners, land-owners and shredders. If you missed our announcement on the restructuring of the BC Enduro Series, you can head over and read about it here (we're putting more focus into newer riders and the communities).
I'm super excited about the season, this is probably the most excited I've been for a season; we have pared the series down to the best stops and adding in a completely brand new venue (Panorama), you can expect this to be one of the wildest seasons yet. We've also enlisted some great sponsors who are providing some BIG prizes!
- Ted
Intense Cycles will be out at select events this year, this also means that you'll likely catch the Karver putting on a few cornering clinics!
MECHANIC STATION & DEMOS
Returning in 2018 to select stops, the MEC mechanic station will be ready to support any racers at stops across the country and don't forget to keep watch for the Intense Cycles demo fleet!
This year, MEC is offering their Club Night promotion to racers of the MEC Canadian National Enduro Series, these are promotional cards given out at the events that allow racers to access discounts at their local MEC.
REGISTRATION OPENS JANUARY 15TH
We'll be posting a registration link on January 15th through Pinkbike, our *NEW* website, and social media accounts. Online registration closes at 12:00 pm noon the day before each race, so save $10.00 by registering online in advance!
Pricing
Keep an eye out for an early season discount (hint, hint..):
• All categories for participants who are over the age of 21 = $110
• All categories for participants who are under 21 = $90
• All categories for participants who are under 15 = $85
Pricing Discounts
I'm happy to say that year we'll be bringing even more prizes, fun-games and most importantly, the most unique trails across the country, no event is a typical day at the trails!
1) INTENSE RIDER DISCOUNT — Own an Intense? Anyone who races on an Intense will be given 50% off, you can thank the big-dawgs at Intense, they're stoked to see people riding! Simply email admin@bcenduro.com, 10 days before an event, with your name and Intense Discount in the subject line and you'll be sent a coupon code for 50% off! *Not applicable with other offers*
2) MULTI-RACE DISCOUNT — Register for more than 3 races and you'll receive 10% off of every event. This is automatically added to your cart!
3) PAST PODIUM DISCOUNT
• If you placed 1st overall in the CNES for categories U21 men and women, U15 men and women, 21-29, 30-39, 40+, and open women, you will receive a $75 credit towards 2017.***
• If you placed 2nd overall in the CNES for categories U21 men and women, U15 men and women, 21-29, 30-39, 40+, and open women, you will receive a $50 credit towards 2017.***
• If you placed 3rd overall in the CNES for categories U21 men and women, U15 men and women, 21-29, 30-39, 40+, and open women, you will receive a $25 credit towards 2017.***
***Offer not available in conjunction with other discounts/promotions/sales of equal or higher value (however, this does work with the multi-race discount).***
**Excludes Pro categories**
*EMAIL admin@bcenduro.com after JANUARY 20TH to redeem.*
MEC CANADIAN NATIONAL ENDURO SERIES CALENDAR
May 13th — Fraser Valley, BC *EWS Qualifier
June 3rd — Kamloops, BC
June 17th — Panorama, BC *Canadian National Championships, EWS Qualifier
June 24th — Crowsnest Pass, AB
July 1st — Camp Fortune, QC
July 8th — Blue Mountain, ON *EWS Qualifier
July 15 — Bromont, QC
June 3rd — Kamloops, BC
June 17th — Panorama, BC *Canadian National Championships, EWS Qualifier
June 24th — Crowsnest Pass, AB
July 1st — Camp Fortune, QC
July 8th — Blue Mountain, ON *EWS Qualifier
July 15 — Bromont, QC
CHAMPIONSHIP - PANORAMA RESORT - JUNE 17th
This year's championship will be more of a typical cycling championship, where we will host a one-day championship race, to determine the National Champion. Many venues applied, in the end, Panorama Mountain Resort had taken the cake, with it's HUGE terrain and diverse trails!
We'll still be administering an overall winner for the series, but we wanted to make the Championship race an opportunity to be more accessible, so by having a one-day event we are hoping to encourage larger participation to this event, drawing a very competitive pool of talent to truly see: Who is Canada's fastest enduro rider?
We've chosen this location due to its relatively undiscovered riding scene, extremely varied terrain, some of which has never seen racing. Expect a massive day 2500m of climbing, 6 Stages, and everything from alpine singletrack to racing on the Canadian DH Course!
Also, this event will be an Enduro World Series Qualifier event, helping athletes achieve that next level! More information on the EWSQ events on our website.
New Timing System
We'll also be trialling a new timing system at this race - this system is a 'fly-by' timing system, so no more stopping to tag in and out!
If there is one event you're considering to do this year, this is the one...
Kazoom will also be unveiling a custom Canadian styled jersey for the champs to showcase across the globe!
ONTARIO & QUEBEC EVENTS
We're were grateful to work with Blue Mountain Resort and the MAAXX Events team last year for our Eastern rounds, that we went ahead and added a round! Camp Fortune will be the first event of the Eastern tour, Canada day nonetheless.
Blue Mountain Resort is also the only EWSQ stop for Eastern Canada, so if you're wanting to gain points to secure an entry in the Whistler EWS, be sure to register for that race on January 15th!
East vs. West Shoot-Out
Camp Fortune boasts a long and storied tradition of racing, dating back to Canadian DH Championships in 1999 & 2000. Over the next 15 years, this steep outcropping at the foot of the Canadian Shield has played host to dozens of Quebec and Ontario Cup Downhill and Cross Country races, testing thousands of racers on it's rough, rock-strewn trails.
In 2018, the MEC Canadian National Enduro Series is excited to be reviving this premier race venue, which has not hosted a Provincial level race since 2014. Located in Quebec, but only minutes from Ontario, a return to racing Camp Fortune means the revival of a local racing tradition: the 'East v.s. West Challenge', an ego-boosting side-bet competition for bragging rights as old as the new millennium. "The Challenge" pits all Eastern Canadians, the nation of Quebec included
, against their Western counterparts to crown the fastest cycling region in the country, on Canada Day no less!The rules are simple: entrants will be divided into East or West teams, depending on their province of Origin. The top 10 overall finishers from each region will contribute to their respective team's total points, using the same points system as CNES Overall. The team with the most points on Sunday wins endless bragging rights, and some rad surprise prizing.
Prepare for the party!
Here are the podium finishers from Bromont in 2017. Will they take home the bragging rights in the East vs. West Shoot-out?
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
A few changes in store for 2018, so fire-up those eyeballs and get those keyboards ready!
• At registration, you'll see a pop-up window verifying that your helmet was manufactured in the past three years. We recognize that most manufacturers recommend helmets be replaced every 2-5 years. Random helmet manufacturing date inspections will occur. We're doing this to help encourage you guys to take care of your head and if you're looking for more information on concussion baseline testing, give me a shout!
• Full Face helmets are mandatory for ALL riders at Fraser Valley, Panorama, Blue Mountain and Camp Fortune.
• Full Face Helmets are mandatory for U21 Riders at EVERY RACE (this includes U15).
• Rulebook - we will be publishing a rulebook for the first time ever, this will be published in mid-February, it will not be overbearing, rather a guideline of expectations for racers and also for the organizer.
• Cut-Off Times - This year all courses will close at 3:30 pm unless specifically scheduled otherwise. What this means is that at 3:30 pm riders not finished the race will be brought back to staging and not permitted to continue. This is for the riders safety, our volunteers, and all of you who have to make long drives home!
• Timing Tag Hand-In - Timing tags are now due at 3:30 pm (riders still on course have until 3:45). Any timing tags handed in - without notice - after 3:45 pm will be automatically disqualified.
• Timing System - We'll be utilizing a new timing system for the Panorama event (ONLY); for the first time we will be using a 'fly-by' timing system, we know you'll dig it!
• More Prizes - with fewer events this year, we'll have way more door prizes for you folks, so fill the Ford Aerostar with the cousins and come on out!
VOLUNTEERS
These events do not happen without our dedicated volunteers, every year I'm absolutely enthralled by the passion these people bring to the event. If you're interested in volunteering at some of our events, please reach out and let us know how we can make your summer exceptional!
We're always looking for the following:
• Course Sweep
• Course Clear (rides behind the sweep and cleans course marking)
• Food Station - likely the best gig!
• Course Marshals - second best gig, always in the action!
• Registration Table - Early start, early finish, interacting with the riders
• First-Aid - Must be comfortable with hiking/biking to your spot and be a minimum of WFR. We do offer paid positions.
• Finish Line Support - Hang out at the finish line
What we offer:
• Free sandwich and apres meal/beer on event day
• Free entry to any race this year! If redeeming for your kids/spouse you'll receive 75% off.
• Volunteer for more than two races and receive an additional free race!
• Free lift ticket for events based at resorts.
• Highschool Volunteer Hours for students!
• Event T-Shirt!
If you're keen, please send an email to admin@bcenduro.com with the event and role that you'd like to volunteer for, events are Fraser Valley, Kamloops, Panorama, Crowsnest Pass, Camp Fortune, Blue Mountain, Bromont. You will be emailed the Monday, Wednesday and Saturday leading up to the event to confirm and coordinate your position.
Thanks to all our volunteers, you are the backbone of the racing community!
A massive thanks to SMITH, they're really like a big volunteer, from helping with event setup/teardown, always ready to lend a hand, plus they keep us well protected and looking good!
Now get off the couch and start training!
A massive thank-you to this year's series sponsors and supporters
• MEC
• Intense Cycles
• Smith Optics / @SmithOptics
• Pinkbike
• Race Face Performance Products / @raceface
• Trail Quest
• Pinkbike
• We Are One Composites
• Tourism Kamloops
• Sun Peaks Resort
• Blueprint
• Spoke Bike & Ski
• Bicycle Cafe
• Swagman
• NRG / @N-R-G
• OneUp Components
• Fouriers
• Clif Bar
• MAAXX Events
• And anyone who Volunteered with us and anyone who helped with a shuttle, a beer or a spare tube!
Need something? More information?
• Website
• Athlete Inquires & Volunteer Information | Will Cadham admin@bcenduro.com
• All other inquiries | ted@bcenduro.com (Event Director)
Author Info:
Member since Mar 9, 2013
Must Read This Week
Sign Up for the Pinkbike Newsletter - All the Biggest, Most Interesting Stories in your Inbox
PB Newsletter Signup
There is only 1 BCES race currently scheduled (Canmore, July 9th), I have a few other applications in the Queue, most are waiting on permits. Talk to your club and see if they're interested.
Canmore is going to be sweet, and there will likely be another beginner focused enduro in Kamloops in September, just gotta work out the details!
helmets.org/up1505a.htm
Worth reading this. Mental mantra should be "only replace if you damage your helmet"
helmets.org/up1505a.htm
September is a bummer for sure, but with the Steve Smith Memorial event and a few others, like Revy Bike Fest, we decided we’d cool it off for a summer. Always next year!
Must be one of the BC stages.
Oh. And the helmet thing? Why is it that you'd replace a helmet every 2 years if it has been looked after (unless of course it starts to smell really bad)? I mean seriously, how often do people replace the seat belts in their cars that manage to sit in an extremely harsh environment for decades and still work.
5-7 years maybe.
The Island/Sea to Sky series you mention is a good idea, but there is a ton happening already in the sea to sky! Almost an event every week/weekend!
of concrete for breakfast...just kidding, it’ll be good to go!
We had to drop some events because 13 was really a lot, and not all races had enough participants.
Let me know if you’re keen to host one and we can bring the BC Series! Otherwise, book these stops in!
June 10th is the Gryphon...