Next stop: SOUTH AUSTRALIA
ONLINE ENTRY FOR FOX CREEK AUSTRALIAN GRAVITY ENDURO SERIES ROUND 3 IS NOW OPEN!!! Head to
www.entryzone.com.au and click on the Fox Creek link in the top left hand corner to secure your entry.
From our racing friends and partners Inside Line:
The next round at Fox Creek in SA is not far from kicking off and entry will be open soon.
However - I keep getting asked “Why are Inside Line running an Enduro?”.
It’s actually quite simple. With 20 years of getting fast and loose on pushbikes, when the opportunity presented for SA’s downhill club to show off the best bits of awesome trail at Fox Creek, and race them in Australia’s freshest and most progressive National series, with professional timing and the backing of Rocky Trail Entertainment and Alpine Gravity, it sounded like too much fun to resist.
How long is your memory? Perhaps you remember racing Fox steep? Sadly it is no longer suitable for a DH race, because of erosion and transport issues, however with some re-routes it is now part of one of the finest All Mountain tracks in the country.
The new kid on the block is Green Smoothie. IMBA Australia’s Nic Bowman has shown what all his experience can garner, with a smooth, flowing trails that just gets faster and looser with every run. A fantastic example of the “Flow Trail” genre – it suits riders of all experience levels – but offers continual challenges and options as you up the pace. Getting to the bottom without a grin on your face has so far proven impossible.
We haven’t forgotten the love of truly skinny trail – with a couple of tight, hand dug, natural gems. They will give the precise rider the chance to shine, and no time to take in the stunning view!
Those amazing views, and diversity of trail and landscape will be able to be appreciated on the transport stages, with trails that take in the best of what Fox Creek has to offer – a truly awesome venue that is part of a Trail master plan that will see 100km of single track developed over the next few years.
All up, 4 stages of amazing trail, some fantastic transport stages, and a day on the bike that will remain fixed in the memory for years to come. The competitive stages will reward the bike handler as much as the fit rider, those who can rail a berm as equally as those who can hold an off camber line. 26, 29er or 650b – we have trail to show your strengths and those to test you.
We’re ready to have a ball, are you?
Event Location –
Fox Creek Road, Cudlee Creek, South Australia.
Stage List –
The day will comprise of four stages, two in the morning, two in the afternoon.
The day will start with a climb up Middle Earth, followed by Stage 1 – a tight, narrow section of very natural trail. Only short, but time gaps will show up as it penalises inaccuracy, while rewarding those who can hold a line and stay off the brakes. A transport stage will have follow back across the ridge, taking in some of the sweeter gems at Fox Ceek including the perennial favourite – Immaculate Compaction – before getting onto F.A.M.E. The Fox All Mountain Experience, sure it’s a silly name, but who said riding bikes was meant to be serious? And hearing grown men sing “Fame, I’m gunna live forever...” in their best falsetto is an experience that encapsulates “What has been seen, can’t be unseen”!
Stage 2, starting with some old school (like 90’s old school) DH track drops through tight, rocky, gravelly turns before opening up into some more modern, but still quit narrow, flowing trail littered with jumps that are penalty free at almost any speed, but offer a speed advantage for the truly brave. A short fire trail section sends you from the bottom of “Steep” to the start of “Boardwalk”. A goat track that works its way across the side of a hill, leaving no room to run wide. Affectionately nicknamed “Indiana Jones” it is often overgrown, leaving you with poor sight lines and needing to trust yourself and your bike as you feel like you are flying blind as you dodge overhanging vegetation.
This stage finishes back at race village – where the finest coffee in Adelaide, courtesy of Let there be coffee, will be waiting for you, as well as a hot dog or baked potato for those needing something more substantial in the tank.
After a lunch break it will be time to climb back up Middle Earth, and then onto Stage 3. Now we have decided to be a bit sneaky, and give visiting riders a more even chance by not releasing details of Stage 3 until closer to the event. But rest assured, more trail that will show the diversity of terrain that we have at Fox Creek! There will be a climb to get back out, after Stage 3, but the jewel in the crown will reward the effort.
Stage 4, Green Smoothie! Ok, we’ve all ridden “Flow Trail” of some description, but this is a roller coaster of epic proportions, and truly allows you to travel through some amazing terrain at a pace that leaves the scenery blurry. Think Star Wars, think a speeder on the Forest of Endor, think I’m a bit of a nerd, whatever..... Get to the bottom without leaving anything on the track and you will be breathing out of your eyes, with a grin on your face that just won’t quit. Might be quicker to bypass the log ride, but on a quieter day there are some groovy options to be had on this trail.
This will drop you back to event village, after an epic day on the bike and ready for a cold lemonade and presentations!
Other info –
We will have some GPS Data available soon, but plan on a route that is achievable for just about anyone, with plenty of opportunity for a variety of skill bases to shine.
What sort of bike should you bring? Really doesn’t matter – probably leave the full rigid, singlespeed 29er, or the dh bike at home, but anything in between will have sections of trail where it is the perfect option, and others where it will be a compromise. We are going to be enforcing the “one bike, all day” rule, and there won’t be any shuttles on race day. It’s going to be a great day on the bike – but you’ll be earning your turns the old fashioned way.
Should you bring a full face helmet? If you are planning to hit up some shuttles on the Saturday before then definitely, there is no doubt that you will end up riding some of the other dh tracks (Fox has 7 shuttleable descents), for the race it will be up to the individual – but Steep is probably the trail with most risk, so that should provide a good guide – many riders will be happy in an open face, but certainly there will be others looking for more protection.
