Kyle Warner, Ben Cruz, and Marco Osborne had a very strong showing at the Bidwell Bump Race this past weekend, netting 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place respectively in the All Mountain Challenge while Jerome Clementz sealed the deal for the Enduro World Series, accruing enough points for overall series winner while also taking first place at Val d'Isere.
Jerome Clementz, perched atop a Volt SLT saddle and hanging on for dear life, courtesy of Moto-X Clamp-On grips demonstrates his pin it to win it approach that has fared quite well for him. Jerome secured the overall win this past weekend with his first place finish at Val d'Isere, making him the first Enduro Wold Champion. Photo courtesy of Matt Wragg.
Kyle, Ben, and Marco faced dusty, lava rock-infested technical descents in the greater Chico, CA area while Jerome battled an all together different beast in France. What started out as dry weather in the first two stages quickly became a dynamic mess above treeline for Jerome and all others competing in EWS (Enduro World Series) Race #6
High alpine weather - when storms come in above treeline, they sit and there's no escape for those stuck up there. High elevations made for quickly changing and unpredictable conditions at Val d'Isere. Photo courtesy of Matt Wragg.
In the Alps this past weekend, races faced snow, a furious alpine storm, mud, and fog that was so thick that third and fourth place ranked Anneke Beerten and Ines Thoma got lost and failed to finish.
Lava rocks didn't slow down Kyle Warner. First place finish in the Super D making for a second overall for Kyle. His Vigilante 29" TCS tires loved the rocks and his Devo SLT saddle was the perfect shape for leaning into corners.
Bidwell Bump competitors faced the opposite - tyrannically hot conditions and hope-for-the-best dust left a battering ram of rocks in racers' paths.
Yet despite challenges facing them, WTB athletes rose to the occasion - internationally and stateside, netting podium finishes. Another great race weekend in the books.