My first Enduro race, by Janea

A few months ago, I had never heard of an Enduro.  Someone suggested I try it.  "Lots of downhill," he said.  "You'll love it."  Sure, I thought, I can do a twenty-something mile downhill race.  How hard could it be?  Now I know:  really, really, really hard.  How fun could it be?  As fun as bike racing gets!  Last weekend I tried out the Kennebec Pass Enduro, the second event in the Big Mountain Enduro Series.  Thank goodness a local dude in a Durago bikeshop told me to go with Nomad instead of the Tallboy.  The two big climbs were untimed, leaving two downhill timed stages.  I was stuck in a no-man's land of physical exertion.  The race sections were shorter than sustained-pace cross country races but longer than five-minute, all-out sprint downhill races.  I had no choice but to just go for it on a "downhill" trail I had never seen. Thirty minutes each of phenomenal riding.  Thirty minutes each of sheer craziness and pain.  Anyone who says downhill is easy isn't trying hard enough.  I'm pretty sure that race might have been more difficult than most cross country races.  I sprinted up all of small climbs with a desperately low saddle, and held on with screaming triceps on the descents.  I patted my bike every couple of minutes and thanked her for not flatting.  Despite two really big crashes (thank you SixSixOne for keeping my knees and elbows intact and Rudy Project for protecting my head), I learned at the after-party of my victory.  Next up....perhaps The Whole Enchilada?  That sounds seriously intense and incredibly fun.