Canada left off Enduro World Cup qualifier calendar

Amateur racing is finally coming back to top-level enduro racing. It’s just not coming to Canada. At least not this year, probably.

Return of EWS100-style racing and qualifier events

Back when enduro racing was under the Enduro World Series banner, events held EWS 100 and EWS 80 races for amateurs.

EWS 100 and EWS 80 were part of what made EWS brilliant. At almost every stop, any average Joe or Jane could sign up to race the exact same course as the pro Enduro World Series athletes, just one day earlier. Just like the classic Bill Murray joke that “every Olympic event should include one average person competing for reference,” you could show up in Whistler and be absolutely humbled trying to survive what the top riders race week, in week out. Or, if you were actually fast, it was an opportunity to qualify for the main event for the following season.

How hard is Whistler’s Enduro World Series, really?

When UCI and Discovery took over the EWS, turning it into the World Cup (EDR), that ended. Organizers promised it would return, though. And, finally, it has.  Now called “open” racing, amateur events will be included in every Enduro World Cup round in 2024.

In addition, a series of qualifier events will be held outside the EDR World Cup rounds. These will be additional opportunities for riders not on trade teams to earn their way into the World Cup. Somewhat like how the XC and downhill World Cup require a certain number of UCI points, earned at UCI-sanctioned races, enduro racers will now have to attend sanctioned races to earn their way into the EDR events.

That’s the good news. The bad news is that there are no events scheduled in Canada.

Qualifier series is maple-free

EWS used to have a massive calendar of qualifier events. For the first year that route to the global stage returns, there will be a solid, but not spectacular 25 events spread across 21 countries. Unfortunately for the vast talent pool of aspiring Canadian enduro racers, none of those events are in Canada.

In fact, the only North American stop is in North Carolina. Ride Rock Creek Bike Park in Zirconia, N.C. will host U.S.A. national championships. The next closest events are in Puerto Rico or in Costa Rica. Neither of the latter two states are booming nations in the enduro scene, or at least not on the level of Canada’s current stature. That’s great for expanding the sport, but not for supporting the nations already committed to the discipline.

Several other national championships events are granted UCI qualifier status, as well as the open EDR World Cup events. That still doesn’t help Canadians, at least in 2024.

Canadian national championships were scheduled to return to Whistler but event organizers, Crankworx, are no longer hosting. Canadian Enduro League intends to take over hosting duties, though they do not appear to have official sanctioning just yet. If that comes through (which hopefully it will, the organizers have hosted nationals – sanctioned and unsanctioned – in the past), there is a possibility that that event could be added to the UCI’s calendar.

So, how can Canadians race the Enduro World Cup?

UCI outlines the four ways to qualify to race enduro World Cup events. They basically boil down to either being on a UCI-registered trade team or earning points on the qualifier series. A final clause, simply labelled “wildcard application,” also exists.

The UCI’s official list of qualifying conditions are listed in the 2024 Enduro rulebook. Here’s UCI’s summary:

• Member of an official UCI ENDURO or MIXED Team
• Accumulate the minimum required Global Ranking points by the end of 2023 (they will be automatically included in the 2024 Reserved List)
• Attained the minimum number of Global Ranking points necessary for upgrading throughout the season
• Wildcard application

If you’re looking to hunt for qualifying points this year, check out the World Cup’s complete list of enduro qualifier events. Find out more about qualifying via the UCI announcement.