Cycling: The last stop of the Specialized-SRAM Enduro Series 2014 was in Leogang/Saalbach-Hinterglemm at the weekend. Anneke Beerten set the fastest time for women, Tobias Reiser won for men. Anneke Beerten and Fabian Scholz were able to claim the series win.
After a great and long season, the participants of the Specialized Sram Enduro Series had to give their all one last time this weekend. In a breathtaking alpine setting, the 220 drivers fought their way through five exhausting stages at the final stop of the racing series. In addition to fun flow sections, rocky trails, numerous root fields and tricky steep sections made for a challenging race this weekend.
The 55 km extremely strenuous enduro tour with a high proportion of trails, also on the transfers, stretched from Saalfelden Leogang along a 2000 meter high mountain ridge to Saalbach Hinterglemm. The fantastic view of snow-capped peaks and craggy rock faces in the mostly bright sunshine was consistently inspiring. It didn't get boring in the context of the SSES either, as the race took place as part of the Biketember Festival. iXS European Downhill Cup, Scott Junior Trophy, rider party and a great supporting program attracted many bikers and visitors to Leogang/Saalbach Hinterglemm. Especially during the prologue the day before, a rousing moderation and numerous enthusiastically cheering spectators created a fantastic atmosphere.
After dust-dry trails could be ridden on the training day in lots of sunshine, a short but heavy rain shower in the afternoon soaked the routes and the participants who were still on the trails. The many, sometimes steep, root fields were even more difficult to master, which presented great challenges, especially for the amateurs who started later.
Stage 1, which only the riders in the Pro class had to ride for a time, went four kilometers over rough root fields without any significant gradient. The right distribution of strength and a clean driving technique were immensely important here, if you didn't want to have to take a forced break in the middle of the stage. Stage 2 followed the well-known X-Line, which was challenging with numerous berms and some natural rock jumps and drops. With the brakes open and a lot of speed, you could make up valuable seconds on the long, straight stretches. Stages 3 to 5 then got really technical. Again and again, very steep descents with slippery roots and high steps had to be mastered. On the last stage there were numerous winding bends and exposed wooden constructions.
Tobias Reiser (GER – Focus Trail Team) was the quickest to master the five demanding stages and needed a total of 33:48.15 minutes. Daniel Schemmel (AUT – Do-Biker Bruck) only needed a blink of an eye longer, who was only 15 hundredths behind in second place. Markus Reiser (GER – Focus Trail Team) was third, followed by James Shirley (GBR – Radon Factory Enduro) and Ludwig Döhl (GER – Cube Action Team).
It was less close in the Pro Women, where Anneke Beerten (NED - Specialized Racing) dominated with a time of 40:38.54 and thus a lead of around four minutes - mind you, despite a penalty time that she received in the prologue for accidentally leaving the track . But Birgit Braumann (AUT – Trek Gravity Girls) also drove a strong race and secured second place in front of Antje Kramer (GER – Giant Germany). Sofia Wiedenroth (GER – AMG Rotwild MTB Racing) followed closely, Laura Brethauer (GER – Cube Action Team) finished fifth.
In the Masters category, Remo Heutschi (SUI – gravityunion.ch) prevailed with a total time of 35:53.96 ahead of Benjamin Herold (GER – NRG-FOES Racing Factory) and Damiano Rossa (ITA – AS Dillentantistica). The fastest amateur men was Leonhard Putzenlechner (GER - ENVE Composites), who with a total time of 24:12.01 minutes relegated Daniel von Kossak (GER - Propain Factory Racing) to second place with a gap of a good 30 seconds. Ruben Torenbeek (NED – ENDURO-MTB.COM) finished third in his first enduro race. In the amateur women, Sabrina Wolf (AUT) set the fastest time.
The Pro Men's Fabian Scholz from the Focus Trail Team was able to win the series of six races this year. Scholz consistently placed well throughout the season, so that he did not jeopardize his lead even with 8th place in Leogang. Ludwig Döhl and Markus Reiser followed in second and third place. Petrick Brückner was fourth ahead of André Wagenknecht, who made it onto the podium after only three races.
In the Pro Women class, Anneke Beerten delivered a perfect season and thus achieved the maximum number of points. Raphaela Richter and Birgit Braumann followed in second and third place. Remo Heutschi won the master class in front of Benjamin Herold and Guido Wachter. With his day sight, Leonhard Putzenlechner secured victory in the amateur men category, just a few points ahead of Daniel von Kossak and Jannik Schlickel. Anja Düthmann prevailed in the amateur women, ahead of Stephanie Frankl and Manuela Drenska. Visit enduroseries.net for more information and full results.