The Beginning
In the beginning, there were boxes… Actually, that isn’t true at all, there wasn’t anything, this team was just an idea. I’m really proud of what we were able to pull together in a relatively short time, and I can’t wait to get out to the races.
There’s some bikes in here somewhere
I was approached about this opportunity by Duncan at Maxxis and Dave Mac from the Clif program; with the Clif team dissolving, they were discussing some ideas to channel some of that team’s legacy, experience, and connections into a new program. I was immediately interested in being a part of it. Working with Duncan and Dave, we were able to gather some incredible team partners, and some exceptional athletes to make this team a reality. I owe both of them a lot of thanks. Duncan was a driving force at Maxxis to be our title sponsor and helped tie in a number of other great partners. Dave used his years building relationships at Clif/Luna to help find partners and make connections for this new program. From the bottom of my heart, thank you to both of you.
In addition to those great partners and sponsors, we have an outstanding group of athletes. On the Endurance side, Andrew L’Esperance and Haley Smith are stepping outside of their comfort zone to take on some of the largest and longest events in the country. They both have many years of competing against the world’s best on the World Cup circuit, but both were searching for a change. We’ll still be doing some World Cup racing, but both Haley and Andrew were accepted into the LifeTime Grand Prix and are excited for that challenge. We also have two young rising racers in the enduro scene, Cole Peterson and Sophie Allen. Cole and Sophie have both been racing well and make regular appearances in the top-10. They will be focused on the Big Mountain Enduro series, with a few other events sprinkled into their schedules, including the domestic EWS stops. I look forward to both of them growing as athletes and hunting podiums.
Haley Smith and her new Exie
It’s difficult for me to express how excited I am for this team to hit the ground running. I will admit, it hasn’t been without its challenges; the bicycle industry is still struggling to overcome a strained supply chain and parts are hard to come by. With that, I’ll sign off and go back to crossing my fingers and hoping for deliveries.
-Drew