2015 Crankworx Enduro – Results, Photo, Story
The 2015 Whistler World Enduro did not disappoint. After the 2014 ‘Crank-Zilla,’ the 2015 event presented new challenges with several technical stages, including stage 2 which past E.W.S. Whistler winner Jared Graves dubbed the hardest Whistler Stage in history.
The 2015 Whistler World Enduro did not disappoint. After the 2014 ‘Crank-Zilla,’ the 2015 event presented new challenges with several technical stages, including stage 2 which past E.W.S. Whistler winner Jared Graves dubbed the hardest Whistler Stage in history. There was significant rainfall the day prior to the race and this made for an interesting combination of great soil and wet roots.
Stage 1 on ‘Hey Bud’ saw Tracy Moseley, Isabeau Courdurier and Cecile Ravanel made early statements that they would be the ladies to beat. For the men overall, leader Justin Leov crashed and abandoned the race early with a separated shoulder. Josh Carlson stepped up to take the men’s lead as wet roots and ‘hero-dirt’ made predicting traction difficult. American Cody Phillips opted to ride flat pedals to let him get his foot down quicker in the technical terrain.
Stage 2 featured the very technical, very high and very scenic ‘Top of The World’. For an idea of the saw Ravanel winning, taking back time on Moseley. Carlson again dominated the men followed closely by eventual overall winner, Richie Rude.
Stage 3 took riders down away from the main ski resort on Highside and Hi-Hi leaving riders in Function Junction area 4km down the Hwy 99 from Stage 4 start in Creekside. Mosely claimed the stage win followed by Ravenel and Courdurier while Nico Lau took his first win of the day with Rude following closely behind.
Stage 4 was a complete reversal of the previous stage’s podium as Courdurier took the win followed by Ravenel and Mosely. The stage was on the newly opened Creekside lift up and then descended multiple rocky steeps and several rooty sections on ‘Dusty’s DH’ and ‘B.C.’s Trail’ back into Creekside. For the men, Fabien Barel added more variety to the list of stage winners and Yoann Barelli grabbed a second.
The 5th Stage finished back into the Whistler Village where thousands of spectators were on hand to cheer from the patios and village streets as racers GLC drop. The women’s stage confirmed the overall with Mosely claiming the stage and the overall win followed again by Ravanel and Courdurier. For the men, the well-metered efforts over the day paid off for Ritchie Rude as he claimed his first stage win on the day, gaining just enough time to win the overall as Josh Carlson lost significant time due to a rear flat.
Tracey Mosely and Richie Rude earned the overall wins at the 2015 Whistler Open Enduro after 56 and 49.5 min of respective total stage racing time over the ~8 hour cumulative day of riding the trails at Whistler, British Columbia.
Notable Canadian results include Miranda Miller, the 2015 National Downhill Champion, who took 6th in the overall in her first enduro race. She was feeling fresh and having a great time at the end of stage 4, and was excited for the 5th stage because it was more park-oriented.
Catch up on the 2015 World Enduro Series Results here and check out the amazing photos from the previous stops on the World Enduro Series here. You can watch the final stage  at Crankworx.com.
If you have not been to Crankworx, start planning your trip for 2016 but for this year, enjoy coverage via Canadian Cycling Magazine here on the Website, Twitter and on Instagram. Watch for coverage of the Whip-Off this week and the Canada Cup XC Finals and Giant Air DH next Friday August 14th.
