Mud adds extra fun to North American Enduro Cup
KELLOGG — Returning for its sixth year at Silver Mountain, racers from across the country descended upon beautiful, scenic Kellogg this weekend for the North American Enduro Cup (NAEC).
Held on the world-class trails at Silver Mountain Resort, hundreds of pro riders competed in All Pro, Expert, Jr. Expert, Hardtail, and E-bike categories for the chance to win some cash.
The NAEC is an Enduro World Series qualifier. Enduro is a type of mountain bike racing where the downhill runs are timed, and the uphills are mandatory but not timed.
The local two-day event featured more than 13,500 feet of descent with a $12,000 grand prize being split evenly between men and women, who placed first through fifth. First and fifth place were separated by 30 seconds, which showed the intensity of the race.
First place in the Pro Women’s division went to Jill Kinter of Bellingham, Wash., with the time of 47:56.88. First place in the Pro Men’s division went to Jake Keller of Granite Bay, Calif., with a time of 42:00.30. Two local men competed in the race, with Alex Anderson of Kellogg placing 53 in the Pro Men division with a time of 49:03.83, and Forrest Taylor placing seventh in the expert men 21-34 division with a time of 49:23.87.
Day one consisted of a 36-mile intermediate race route which included 14 trails in five stages. Riders began on Spooky Woods, the first top-to-bottom downhill trail ever built at Silver Mountain, that stretches to the top of Wide Open Road and past the Radio Brewing Speed Trap. Riders then continued on through the different stages and quickly flew down the muddy trails until ending up at Slaughterhouse Gulch Road, where those competing in the sports class could free ride back down and be finished for the day.
Radio Brewing gave out growlers and gift certificates to the three fastest men and women regardless of category Saturday night. Those competing in the Pro and Expert class stayed for a fifth stage on the trail “Monday Tuesday.”
Day two is a 9-mile expert race that included six trails in one stage and has a hard overall physical rating. Racers started the day at Mountain House on top of Silver Mountain, beginning at El Burro Loco then finishing out at Frog Trees.
Silver Mountain is once again set to host another Enduro event this coming weekend, June 18-19, with the Silver Kings Hard Enduro race. For more information on events at Silver Mountain, visit https://www.silvermt.com/index.php/events/calendar.
