Rude, Ravanel win Whistler Enduro World Series races
You wouldn’t know it, but Rude has a puncture in this photo. He continued to ride aggressively all the way to the finish and then fixed it. Photo courtesy Enduro World Series
Richie Rude (Yeti Fox Shox) and Cecile Ravanel (Commencal Vallnord Enduro Team) each staged incredible comebacks after their days got off to a bad start at this past weekend’s Enduro World Series stop in Whistler, British Columbia.
Rude knows every second counts when dealing with a puncture. Photo courtesy Enduro World Series
Ravanel suffered mechanicals on stages 1 and 2, while Rude had to contend with a flat tire on stage 2. This put both of them at a disadvantage going into the next stages – with Ravanel barley making her stage three start time.
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Ravanel had a mechanical with her drivetrain and a flat on the second stage, yet battled on to take the win. Photo courtesy Enduro World Series
That meant everything hinged on the epic stage 5, Whistler’s famous Top of the World trail. Isabeau Courdurier (Sunn) led the women’s race all the way to the stage 5, but a blistering time from Ravanel was enough for the series leader to clinch the win.
Local rider Jesse Melamed smashed stage 2 and nearly won the event. Photo courtesy Enduro World Series
It was a similar story in the men’s race. Whistler local Jesse Melamed (Rocky Mountain Urge bp) was on course for his first EWS win, but Rude’s stunning run on stage 5 gave him both the stage and race wins. Josh Carlson (Giant Factory Off Road Team) and Casey Brown (Trek Factory Racing) both occupied the third step of the podium.
For complete results head over to the Enduro World Series results page. Updated series rankings are here.
Melamed could not watch at the end. Photo courtesy Enduro World Series
In the Under 21 Men’s race Adrien Dailly (Lapierre Gravity Republic) smashed the field once again to win, with Sebastien Claquin (Rocky Mountain Urge bp) in second and Rhys Verner in third. In the U21 Women Canadian Jennifer McTavish led out Martha Gill (Marin Stan’s).
Michael Broderick maintains the masters series overall lead with his second place. Photo courtesy Enduro World Series
In the master’s race it was Brian Lopes who romped to victory, with Michael Broderick in second and master’s world champion Woody Hole (Hope) in third.
In the team competition Rocky Mountain Urge bp were team of the day, with Giant Off Road Factory Team in second and Ibis Cycles Enduro Race in third.
Damien Oton moved in front of Jerome Clementz in the series overall after the Whistler stop. Photo courtesy Enduro World Series
The EWS now heads back to Europe for the last two rounds of the year, first to Valberg-Guillaumes in France, before the 2016 world champions are crowned in Finale, Italy.
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