[Haus Boss]

It seems that everyone and their mother is trying to fit a Super D race into their event now. Some of these definitely live up to the enduro name, while many more seem to fall short of what a true Super D or Enduro [downhill] race should be- a physically draining and quasi-abusive experience.

I know my view of what constitutes a Super D or Enduro race probably doesn't line up exactly with everyone else's idea of a Super D race. For me, a Super D race is a downhill race that goes beyond the initial adrenaline rush and requires lots and lots of stamina paired with downhill bike handling skills. A super d course should be brutal on the competitor- that could mean 12 miles of hard pedaling at high altitude on well manicured trails or a super technical 3 mile course that that really takes a toll on your bike and your body.

Now let's see a list of the toughest Super D / Enduro [DH] races in your neck of the woods!

Include:

- The course or event name (event website if one exists!)
- Location
- Length of course
- Elevation difference (subtract the finish line elevation from the starting line elevation)
- Elevation gain & descent
- short description of course

List of ass kicking Super D races:

======================================
OREGON

Oakridge Super D
www.oregonsuperd.com
Oakridge, Oregon
14 mile course
4700' of descent, 900' of climbing

Ashland Super D
Ashland, OR
www.ashmtnadv.com
12 mile course
4800' of descent, 550' climbing

Hood River Super D
Hood River, OR
www.oregonsuperd.com
7 mile course
3000' of descent, 515' climbing

=====================================
CALIFORNIA

Weaverville Super D - Gravity Day and La Grange Fall Classic
Weaverville, CA
http://www.teambigfoot.net/
7+ mile course insanely fast course
2210' of descent

Downieville Classic Downhill
Downieville, CA
www.downievilleclassic.com
17 mile course
5000' of descent, 700' climbing

====================================
UTAH

Flyin' Brian [Dark Hollow] Super D
Brian Head, UT
5.2 mile rock strewn course

====================================
NEW MEXICO

Cloudcroft Jackhammer Super D
Cloudcroft, NM
www.southwestgravity.com
12 mile course
4500' of descent, 600' of climbing

===================================
FRANCE

Mega Avalanche
Alpe d'Huez, France
www.avalanchecup.com
20 mile course
8500' of descent

Les Deux Alps - Mountain of Hell
Les Deux Alps, France
15 mile UNMARKED course
8200' of descent

 

[b-kul]

i think you can really distill super d to its essence like that because it is a relativly new format with so many variations.

 

[Lovin]

i think you can really distill super d to its essence like that because it is a relativly new format with so many variations.

No. You can and Oregon does it right.

Ashland's 12 mile SuperD is a great event.

 

[b-kul]

No. You can and Oregon does it right.

Ashland's 12 mile SuperD is a great event.

but think about it. just because you think ashland is right doesnt mean someone else will think its right. my point is that its just too new and there is so much course variation to say "this is how it should be done, thats wrong". its not like you can trace its roots and be like "this was how it was originally done" because super d is such a new advent.

 

[Lovin]

but think about it. just because you think ashland is right doesnt mean someone else will think its right. my point is that its just too new and there is so much course variation to say "this is how it should be done, thats wrong". its not like you can trace its roots and be like "this was how it was originally done" because super d is such a new advent.

This is why the "someone elses" should stop making SuperD courses. They're responsible for the confusion.

 

[Axe]

I do not like mass start - think Super-D should be individually timed, with limited passing.

Weaverville Super-D.

 

[Guy.Ford]

but think about it. just because you think ashland is right doesnt mean someone else will think its right. my point is that its just too new and there is so much course variation to say "this is how it should be done, thats wrong". its not like you can trace its roots and be like "this was how it was originally done" because super d is such a new advent.

Yeah but your same logic can be used for any race course - albeit Super D, XC, DH, etc. Not everyone is going to agree with what courses are great and what one s*ck. Believe me we go through this every few weeks here in SoCal with the Southridge racing courses.

If you want a great description of what Super D is, here is a fountain of knowledge from one of the biggest proponents of Super D... http://www.joelawwill.com/superd.php

here is a nice vid for you as well...

 

[Lovin]

I've raced on Eric Carter SD courses and will be racing a Lawill course on Saturday. These guys know how to design a proper SD course.

 

[Fix the Spade]

a true Super D or Enduro [downhill] race should be- a physically draining and quasi-abusive experience.

Serious question, what does the ~D in Super D actually stand for? I'm not being facetious or anything, in Euroland here what you would call Enduro/Super D we call either by event names or by a very general 'marathon downhill' tag, Super D doesn't exist here and it's kind of stumped me.

anyway.
Nearby:

Fort William DH Enduro (6hours).

Also known as the AAArrrgh my arse! race. Dude on a hardtail came third last year, that dude wasn't me. I was busy marvelling how the bruises on my feet had turned black already. A bit different from most as technically you go nowhere, but 6 hours of Fort Bill and a sprint climb at the start is hard.

Within a day's travel by train:

Either Les Deux Alps or the Megavalanche. Neither have clearly marked courses and people can, do and will get lost. But all in good fun.

More importantly, if it's not mass start it's not really racing.

 

[fotu]

If you want a great description of what Super D is, here is a fountain of knowledge from one of the biggest proponents of Super D... http://www.joelawwill.com/superd.php

Is that Mert's son?

 

[shiggy]

Serious question, what does the ~D in Super D actually stand for? I'm not being facetious or anything, in Euroland here what you would call Enduro/Super D we call either by event names or by a very general 'marathon downhill' tag, Super D doesn't exist here and it's kind of stumped me.

"D" = downhill. Sort of like the Super G in skiing being Super GIANT Slalom.

The name was coined by the promoters of races at Big Bear CA about ten years ago. They saw it as an "old school" type DH that was more accessible to riders and not requiring a special bike. Long course (more than ~15 minutes), mostly, but not all, downhill, not requiring jumping skills, FUN!

 

[mtb-ripper]

Is that Mert's son?

Yes.

The Megavalanche defines Super D. A true super-d should be impossible to win if you are high posting the whole time.

 

[Haus Boss]

Ok, I've seen some other races mentioned like Weaverville and some of Joe Lawwill's courses. But I need some more info to determine if these race courses are truly ass kickers. Why should a 6 minute course like Southridge make the list? Tell me the same for Weaverville or any other course for that matter!

You'll see that I started compiling info for these events in the very first post.

 

[Axe]

Ok, I've seen some other races mentioned like Weaverville and some of Joe Lawwill's courses. But I need some more info to determine if these race courses are truly ass kickers. Why should a 6 minute course like Southridge make the list? Tell me the same for Weaverville or any other course for that matter!

You'll see that I started compiling info for these events in the very first post.

I have mentioned Weaverville because I think it is the perfect size for a race on some awesome trails. I only rode the route by myself, pretty darn steep on top, and great trails to follow. Seems the finishing times are around half an hour. Need to make it to an actual race.

 

[Evan55]

You couldnt be more wrong. SuperD does not equal Enduro.

http://www.joelawwill.com/superd.php

To me, "Super D" defines mountain biking. It's the perfect mix of downhill and cross country racing packaged together into one fun 8-12 minute run

Go do a XC weenie race if you want to explode your lungs.
SuperD is for fast hilly tech and bike skills.

 

[Axe]

You couldnt be more wrong. SuperD does not equal Enduro.

http://www.joelawwill.com/superd.php

Go do a XC weenie race if you want to explode your lungs.
SuperD is for fast hilly tech and bike skills.

I have a slight suspicion that he is preaching the certain course length and elevation loss/gain as that is what is available in the area where he promotes.

Would not you expect the SuperD course time to be a few times longer then a good DH course? Somewhat like, minutes - DH, tens of minutes - SuperD, an hour - Enduro, couple hours - XC, several hours - endurance.

 

[NorwegianRepresentative]

- The course or event name
Flyin' Brian Super D
- Location
Brian Head Resort, Utah
- short description of course
some climbs with a long gnarly descent

- The course or event name
6-Hours of Wolf Creek Enduro
- Location
Wolf Creek Resort, Utah


utahdh.org
go-ride.com

 

[DLd]

I think a defining factor of a Super D is that besides being longer than a typical DH race, it also has enough climbing so that a rider can't dominate on a full downhill rig. I would definitely consider it a different category than Enduro DH, that being just a really long DH race, a Super D is more than just that. For example Red Bull Burner at Angel Fire would be an Enduro DH event, not a Super D. The way I understand it, Super D was born as a way to make racing more approachable and create a format that was fun for someone who wasn't necessarily a traditional racer, like a guy who loves to ride and has mad skills but would get his ass handed to him in a traditional XC race by a roadie with no tech skills. On a Super D course the tables might be turned but the uphills keep it from being dominated by the DH riders on $5000 8" travel DH rigs. It also created a new class of racing well-suited to AM bikes and hence would be able to garner some industry support as a way to help sell more bikes. Which isn't a bad thing, races with no sponsor support don't tend to last long. But back to the point, I don't think a Super D needs to be an hour or something like that to be a Super D. I just checked World Cup DH results, and most of those were under 2 minutes with races being decided by tenths or even hundredths of a second. I think most early Super D races were billed as being about 15-20 minutes, so you didn't need the fitness of a XC racer, and it could be more about your skills on the bike than just about endurance. On the other hand, the Oakridge Super D course looks like mad fun and I hope they keep doing it, but I think there's room for all sorts of courses, and you can pick the ones that suit you. I don't think there's a need to narrow down the definition of Super D to some strict little subset of courses, I like it being a broad definition, like the way Mountain Biking used to be before XC/TR/AM/FR/DH. Perhaps a good definition of Super D would be that it's a course that suits a well-rounded rider (and no, I don't mean rotund, before someone gets the smart idea of posting images of examples

 

[Haus Boss]

Need some more info on these events as I could not find it on the web:

Adding Weaverville to the list just because it uses 2/3 of the downhill course which is insanely fast from the youtube footage I've seen. Elevation change would help though!!!


Flyin Brian Super D: What's the length of the course and elevation change?


I'm going to keep this list to Super D/Enduro's that are from Point A to Point B. Won't be including chairlift assist-multiple run type of events in this thread.



Cmon- where's BC and Colorado at? I know there's some more Super Ds that need to be added to the list! Hawaii, Idaho???

 

[Axe]

Adding Weaverville to the list just because it uses 2/3 of the downhill course which is insanely fast from the youtube footage I've seen. Elevation change would help though!!!

2210 ft from start to finish, large portion of it in the first, fast, part.