Enduro Jura by Julbo 2018
© Benjamin Becker
Vélo
Wednesday, 13 June 2018

Enduro Jura by Julbo 2018

What do you get when you combine top EWS riders, French baguettes, a tiny bike competition and blind racing? The Fourth Annual Enduro Jura. Tucked away in the beautiful Jura Mountains of France are some of the most rugged and unique enduro trails in the world. And who better to organize, design and build these trails than none other than top EWS rider and Jura local François Bailly-Maitre. What can riders expect? Tough and demanding trails. If you've tuned into any of the French EWS stops, this year especially, you're aware of the technical terrain France offers. But don't get scared away, what they offer in tech, they also offer in fun but also unique and beautiful terrain.

 

Friday June 8th  

It was in Lamoura, Jura, that the riders had an appointment. Each participant was given a welcome pack with a Julbo cap as a gift specially designed for the event. They also received a bottle of "La Turbine" beer brewed locally in Jura and a piece of comté, cheese local pride. Some came whith muddy legs, cause the organization had allowed recognition of two stages. A total of 84kms and 5,470m of negative elevation (stages and shuttles combined) awaited the riders. An intense program!

© Benjamin Becker


© Benjamin Becker


© Benjamin Becker


Saturday June 9th : 47 kms, 2800m D- / 1600m D+

All riders were ready to start their Enduro Jura journey today. They got their time tracker and the competition can began. The Special stage 0 was the warm up of the day. The competitors started from the hotel location to the start of the first stage and get a taste of what would be ahead today.

Stage 1: 1,7 kms / 450 m D-

Yesterday’s storm in the Jura Mountains made the first stage tricky and muddy. One of the most technical trails of the weekend was very challenging for everyone. The first part was real fun with some off camber sections that were pretty hazardous when wet. Riders had to keep their head up and look ahead to avoid the traps on the trail and the very technical corners.



Stage 2: 2,2 km / 480 m D-

After the SP1 into the woods, the second start of the day took Enduro Jura riders to the next stage with less mud and many more rocks. A classic track but renewed this year with more berms, or just some banket to get a bit of grip. Lots of rhythm in that one, pretty steep as well.



Stage 3: 1,4 km / 300 m D-
Short stage, but a lot of fun. Not too much to say except that everyone enjoyed it. A few blind jumps, with no real danger, so everyone could send it.



Stage 4: 3,2 km / 540 m D-
A must do here, everyone loved this stage! It was very flowy, and fun to ride. It could be very fast sometimes and then pretty narrow. The trail also started to dry a bit with the coming sun and riders were able to manage more speed.


Special food and beer station:
Brasserie du Lizon
Between the 4th and the 5th stage riders stopped in “Brasserie du Lizon” to have a snack with local cheese and beer. A well deserved rest moment at the food station that everyone enjoyed.  

Stage 5: 2,2 km / 400 m D-
New trail to end the day on something fresh and fun! A succession of flowy turns offered some great speed, then a short pedally section lead riders to a more off-camber section, where riders needed to manage thier speed to make sure they could turn. 

At the end of the first day riders must rest a bit to get ready for the two long stages of tomorrow. Competitors have to now clean their bikes, make some fixes and finally enjoy a local food dinner until sunday morning!

© Benjamin Becker


© Benjamin Becker


© Benjamin Becker

Sunday June 10th : 37 kms, 2670m D- / 500m D+

Sunday was the second and last day of competition for the 2018 Enduro Jura by Julbo. A sunny day with the three long stages.



Stage 6: 3,9 km / 680 m D-

The first stage of the day began with a 10 kilometer shuttle ride with breathtaking views at the top of this stage. Everyone can see all the way to the end of the valley as far as the eye can see. The start was on an open ridge which get steeper and steeper, so riders had to stay in control and try and not ride too crazy. After a section in the woods they joined a traverse which dropped them to a fast pedaly section. After a quick road ride with a neutralized section, this was the second part of the stage, one of the most rocky of the event.



Stage 7: 4 km / 715 m D-

Same stage as 2017 with some improvements to make it easier and more fun. For the second stage of the day, riders had to ride a narrow trail above massive cliffs down to river crossing and arrive at most the physical section, one minute to a minute and a half of hard pedaling. Then they crossed a small wood bridge and finally arrived to a sequence of tight, sometimes slippery pins. We’ve seen lot of mechanical issues on this stage with four broken chains!



 Stage 8: 5,7 km / 780 m D-

The stage of the day here in the Jura, everyone loved these trails! At the top of the trail it was fast and open, then you ride into a more technical trail, a long traverse that leads you to a short but steep and difficult climb. The hardest part was a flat section just above the climb that joined a nice section of single track in the pine trees. Then a lot a different terrain leads you to the river where the finish line waited for riders to come in. End of timing was at the beginning of the bridge across the river.



On the finish line riders congratulated each other and had a local beer distributed as a reward. Well deserved! Some riders enjoyed the river to celebrate the end of this 4th Enduro Jura by Julbo edition! It was a great weekend with fast racing all the way to the end. We can't wait until next year!

 © Benjamin Becker


 

 © Benjamin Becker


 © Benjamin Becker



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