Connecting the disconnect: The EWS launches new Continental Series
The Enduro World Series changed the way we perceive our sport, having a global competitive platform has supercharged innovation and showcased some of the most incredible riding destinations to world. It’s fair to say that the EWS took a giant leap when everyone else was preparing for small steps, and the flip side of the coin means that with the ambitious scope of the EWS, it has become harder and harder financially for privateers and smaller brands to compete on a world level. The EWS team listened, and have just released the new Continental Series, connecting the disconnect between national enduro and international racing.
The new Continental Series will bring together the best national events, eventually crowning a champion of North America, Europe and the Asia Pacific region, with plans for expansion to South America and Africa (now wouldn’t that be a thing). The series will connect the dots, bridging the gulf between the Qualifier events and the premium Enduro World Series circus. The Continental Series also creates new goal posts for riders and brands who cannot commit to a full season of international racing, but still want to be visible on the racing scene. We sat down with EWS director Chris Ball to find out more about what the series entails and how it can reach its aims. The racing calendars are already pretty full, so when faced with the question if there is sufficient demand, Chris confirmed “If we had launched 12 new events on top of our existing 8, we would be damaging the rider pool, the rider pool is not growing as fast as good events are popping up. As such, all of the rounds feature a current national level event, it’s basically a model of the Enduro World Series in season one. It’s a way of putting a spotlight on a continent without taking riders away from national level events, this benefits both the rider and the organisers and is a good way of giving riders and brands a new focus to aim for.“
For certain the main focus of the new Continental Series is to provide a platform for more riders and brands to showcase their skills and potential. Chris Ball continues, “everyone at the EWS is really excited about the potential of the Continental Series. There’s an ever-growing field of talented riders out there and we’re glad to be able to offer them more chances to earn spots in the World Series. We recognise that most amateurs and privateers can’t afford to fly around the world to compete, but the new continental series allows them a platform closer to home to hone their skills and show what they can do. For the first year of the Continental series we’re working with select partners we already have a relationship with, but next year we’ll be accepting new bids and really hope to see Continental events in South America and Africa as well. It’s great to see the evolution and globalisation of the sport and it’s good to see a new title for racers to aspire to – we look forward to crowning our North American, Asia-Pacific and European Champions later this year.”
No one can question that the EWS has taken race promotion to a whole new level, and for the Continental Series to be successful participants and organisers need to know that they will gain some great exposure. We probed Chris to find out how the Continental Series would be communicated. “The events will have access to all our communications toolkits, to allow local organisers to reach a high level of communication, and a representative from the EWS organisation will be on hand to help. The organisers will be able to upload media output to our sites and through our communication, we can draw focus onto the Series. We will also create three new rule books and make the rules open to the Continental Series and qualifier events.”
With the sport of enduro reaching critical mass, with more events than ever before, the new Continental Series should prove to be the glue that solidifies the sports future development, using the best national series events to help the sport to grow while simplifying it at the same time. The EWS team closes with “For the first year of the Continental series we’re working with select partners we already have a relationship with, but next year we’ll be accepting new bids and really hope to see Continental events in South America and Africa as well. It’s great to see the evolution and globalisation of the sport and it’s good to see a new title for racers to aspire to – we look forward to crowning our North American, Asia-Pacific and European Champions later this year.”
For more information check out the new Continental Series website.