There was a 鈥楩ire in the Mountains鈥� of West 琉璃神社 over the weekend, and it was epic.

Over 160 riders took part in the May 15 enduro race at and despite the rainy weather, pro mountain biker Andrew Pickard said 鈥渋t was a great atmosphere.鈥�

The event was organized by the to raise money for , , and the .

The enduro-style event uses a 鈥渞ally format,鈥� said Pickard. Racers pedal up the unrelenting mountain without being timed and are then timed on their descent. Of the four stages of descent Pickard said MotoBomba was his favourite.

鈥淐onditions were bomb,鈥� he said.

The rider with the fastest combined time from the four stages, Motobomba, Santa鈥檚 Revenge, FOMO, and Travelling Man, is crowned the champion.

Pickard placed tenth in the pro men鈥檚 category, despite being a local rider who is not used to riding in wet and slick conditions.

He said that the trails got slippery towards the end of the day but he 鈥渉eld it together,鈥� and had no big crashes.

He was riding the popular Trek Slash, which boasts 160 mm of travel.

Pickard is looking forward to picking up speed this season at the rest of his planned races in the Canadian Enduro Series and downhill races at the B.C. Cup.

Jacqueline.Gelineau@kelownacapnews.com
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