October 04th, 2021

When was the last time you did Something new?
For me - Every weekend the past month!

Photo by Kike Albelleria

As the 2021 racing season came to an end, I wanted to Challenge myself and get out of my Comfort zone. So I pulled out the Enduro- and the E-bike from the garage, and signed up for a bunch of races.

I know my profession is to race bikes, but It’s actually a little scary to race events that’s not within your normal race arena. Like, allowing myself to be bad at someting and show it to the World is not as easy as it might seem. It’s so intimidating to show/share with everyone. Like my brain wants to protect my ego. But I wanted to challenge myself and get out of the comfort zone, right?
Time to jump in the deep end! ​

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Enduro World Series
First, I did the Enduro World Series in Finale Ligure. It’s like our UCI World Cup just for enduro. The race weekend was happening over 3 days, practice day, race day 1, race day 2. I had support from the Orbea Enduro team, and I felt very fortunate that they wanted to bring me in and share advices and so on. I practiced the stages with them, it seemed like the focus was finding flow and speed. For them it was the second to last race of the year, so they were in such a routine. Cool to see. They knew how they wanted their bikes and how they wanted to tackle the tracks. Primoz, the team manager, told me that racing Enduro is kind of a mix of DH and Cross Country racing, almost the base of mtb. But to be honest, I felt like it was it’s own beast. A very different kind of racing. Long days on the bike, having the stages spread out over the day, pushing the riders to find, that focus, multiple times. To me it’s a skill in itself!
I left very impressed of the riders skills and race mindset. ​

Focus on Fast
The team were riding the new Rallon, which is a new Enduro bike that Orbea has developed. I only had the opportunity to ride it around on the parking lot (when the pro riders went up to the accommodation to rest, I stayed at the pits to sneak around haha), but for them it was a game changer. They were so stoked about the new improvements, and it made me excited to have it one day! When I asked, this was what they told me; It's made for racing in 2021, the race tracks have evolved and so has the new Rallon. They get a 'slacker' bike, which fits the steep conditions better. They can get lower on the bike as the dropper post can go further down (Which I don't fully understand the meaning of, as an xc rider ;-) ). It can be turned into a mullet with 2 rear wheel choices. The size choices are more flexbile (because of the low standover) and much more - Plenty I didn't understand - but it sounded great - and as the pro riders they are, I believe in them, haha.   
You can check it out : www.orbea.com/dk-en/bicycles/mountain/rallon

Photo by Kike

Garmin supported my trip, and it was such an awesome tool (edge 830) while racing Enduro in the hills.

Sea Otter Europe 
I left Finale Ligure and headed towards Girona, Spain. The town hosted Europe’s biggest bike festival, Sea Otter Europe. And I was taking part. It was a first time for me, and it was honestly a really cool event. Great atmosphere and so many bike enthusiastic people like me! Beside all the brands, that were represented, at the venue, there were also loads of events happening. I was on the out-of-comfort-zone mission, so of course I signed up for the E-Bike World Cup on the Friday. With absolutely no experience, again, in this kind of bike or racing, I felt like a complete noob. But I manges to grab the second place in the final, even tho I had to race quite some time in a lower battery level, because that I, as the noob I was, didn’t recharge fully after the morning practice… ooopppps. BUT, it was good fun. It felt a bit like a xc race, because of the format, but then again not really, the engine makes the name of the game so different, and track was steeper and shorter.
E-bike racing is, To be continued..!

I was on the out-of-comfort-zone mission, so of course I signed up for the E-Bike World Cup on the Friday. With absolutely no experience, again, in this kind of bike or racing, I felt like a complete noob.

Less than 24 hours later I was standing on a new start line, this time on familiar territory, XC racing! I came in 4th and I was pretty stoked about this result! Plenty of spectators who ended their day at Sea Otter with watching some bike racing and enjoying cold beer. See you next year. ​

Photo by Agm.Photography

Campo
After the Sea Otter Europe experience, I left the e-bike (Wild) and the xc (OIZ) bike in Spain and went to France, mandelieu, with my Enduro bike. The bike felt almost familiar after the week in Italy! Here I participated in a Redbull event by Loic and Myriam. It was mass start with Loic and Myriam hunting us down from behind. Pretty damn fun and scary!! ​

Which I don't fully understand the meaning of, as an xc rider 

Photo by Photos_cr

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Now, I’m flying back to Copenhagen. Did I achieve my goal? Well I definitely left my ego behind and went on to do bike racing as a novice, which was a lovely humbeling experience. I’m definitely keen to ride my Enduro bike more this fall, and push my limits. Because even tho I tried, I think I was more mentally out of my comfort zone, than actually riding outside my comfort zone (if that makes sense?). Something inside of me was scared to get hurt in these ‘just for fun’ events.
In danish we say that you got blood on the tooth, it means that you are eager to do more, you feel hungry to learn. And I think that’s were I’m at.


So with blood on the tooth, let’s challenge our limits!

Cheers to the off season
xoxo​