British Extreme Enduro Series
I get this question a lot - WHY?
Why did I choose to start participating in the British Extreme Enduro Series? Why fly all the way from Cyprus? Why spend money for races in the UK? Why even bother?
To me the WHY has always been self-explanatory, but I’ll tell you anyway,
A little background on how I made it to the UK for the British Extreme Enduro Series…
In the summer of 2017, Richard from Exclaim Enduro Tours invited me for an enduro ride with a complete stranger. Little did I know that this ‘stranger’ would become one of my closest friends today. Nick Whitehead came to Cyprus to ride. To be challenged by new terrain, and to be honest to enjoy the beach a little bit (who could blame him? Cyprus is amazing all year round).
Flash-forward to August 2017 and my first race in the British Extreme Enduro Series…
I was on a plane to Manchester about to take on one of the most challenging experiences of my life - a Fast Eddy race. There were many things that I was anxious about - the different terrain, the quality of riders, the sheer difficulty of the race - all were rushing through my mind as I was as just making my first steps out of my comfort zone and really challenging my own abilities.
So WHY do I go out of my way to do the British Extreme Enduro series…?
I decided to start participating cause I wanted to grow. Simple as that. As a previous National Sailing Champion, who raced all around the world - I really did see the numerous benefits of pushing yourself out of your comfort zone. I knew that if I never left the island to ride, I would never get better. I could not have been more right about that.
Was it a hassle? Yup! Dropping everything to go traipsing around in the UK does take a lot out of you. Sleep deprivation, sore muscles, the lot. Yet, I’m lucky to have an amazing support system back home: my family and Sayious Adventure Rides, who have always believed in me.
Why spend so much money? We spend so much money on our educations - think about it. Schools, tutors, university, the lot. We realise that to learn we need to invest in that knowledge. And not just a monetary investment but time investment as well. In order for me to grow, I need to invest in myself and get the right tools to become better. The problem is that with riding, which has such a practical approach to it, many believe that just by riding more they will improve. Will they? Yes - eventually. Sometimes you just have to see give yourself a little bump. No man is an island - we all need a little help sometimes. So when you have the opportunity to invest in your hobby -do it!
What was my first race like?
Well first of all it was exhausting!! I had never done something like that before but at the end of the 2.5 hours I was quite proud of my self for 50th out of 95 competitors. I can’t say I was satisfied with the results (I’m quite the perfectionist) but was an unbelievable experience. And none of it would have happened had I not met Nick Whitehead for a ride 3 years ago…
What I took away for my experience:
I learnt so much from two and a half hours on that track that would have taken me years to learn!
Riding in other countries is riding in a different mentality. It’s great to get out of your comfort zone and see how other people approach hard enduro as a sport - especially in the UK where hard enduro is massive and most of the world’s top riders all hail from the UK
I got to meet the world’s best riders - Graham Jarvis, Johnny Walker, Billy Bolt, Paul Bolton, all were there and I got to see them in action, overtaking me twice per lap, If this is not motivation enough for you to get to the UK, I don’t know what is.
If you’re thinking about taking part in a British Extreme Enduro Series race, stay tuned for my tips on how to participate.
Ride hard
Nik