Team leader, Robin Wallner returns for his third season on the Ibis team hoping to build on what he achieved this past season and finally score a podium and Top 10 overall ranking for the series. The 29 year old Swede had a breakout year in 2017 with four Top 10 results, including a steller 4th in Whistler.

Joining Robin at the head of the men’s field will be newcomer Lewis Buchanan of Scotland. 2017 was a comeback year for the 24 year old Scot, after suffering a serious injury that prematurely ended his 2016 campaign. His steady results in 2017 hinted that Lewis wasn’t far off the form that previously had him in the Top 10.

“I’m honestly over the moon to be with Ibis for the next 2 years. Their bikes are proven, and I am looking forward to a really successful upcoming season. Being able to work with Fox and Shimano again was a huge thing for me, as I have good relationships with those brands, and I’m excited to carry on and have a really good season with the whole team.”

Also, joining the team this year is Rebecca “Bex” Baraona. Another 24 year old, Bex has been one of the top privateers in the EWS over the past two seasons, scoring a host of top 10 placings without the support of a team. The native of the UK doesn’t do anything by halves. Shockingly, her first ride on a mountain bike was a rip down the DH track a Fort William. With a start like that, racing the EWS must seem easy by comparison. 

“It feels really crazy to have just signed my first pro contract! Pinch me! Meeting everyone at the Ibis factory in California was great! We had a good laugh, rode bikes and ate good food! Mum, I'm in safe hands for 2018! Looking forward to racing and traveling with the crew and making the most out of all the team support, as I step away from privateer racing to professional racing. 2 years as an EWS privateer got me to this point and I am ready for the next 2 years with the Ibis Cycles Enduro Team. Now let's go racing!” 

Only 21, and already a veteran of the Ibis squad, Dillon Santos returns to the team with his sights set on contesting the entire EWS season. Taken under the wing of Robin Wallner and the other more experienced riders on the team Dillon has been a willing apprentice. The California based rider hopes to prove that he has what it takes to compete with the world’s best.

Rounding out the roster will be Julie Duvert of France. Winner of the 2017 French Enduro Cup and a former EWS U21 race winner, Julie is hoping to break into the top 10 of the EWS for 2018.

2018 Ibis Cycles Enduro Team sponsors: POC, Maxxis, KS, Fox Factory, Shimano, Joystick, LizardSkins, Muc-Off, Feedback Sports, Industry Nine, Honey Stinger, One-Up.

Follow the adventures of the Ibis Cycles Enduro Team through all of the Ibis Cycles channels

Instagram: @ibiscycles Facebook: @IbisBikes

Web: www.ibiscycles.com

Nearly four and half years ago - around the time of the Sea Otter Classic, Ibis’s Swiss distributor alerted us to expect a visit from a couple of journalists. Given the proximity of Ibis’s headquarters in Santa Cruz, California to the Sea Otter race venue in Monterey these sort of visits are normal at that time of year, but this visit turned out to be anything but routine. The ‘journalists’ were two tall women who appeared to be mirror images of each other.

Months later when we were forming the Ibis Cycles Enduro Racing Team, and in the midst of the cat and mouse games that go on behind the scenes as teams try to sign riders and secure sponsors, Anita and Carolin were put forth as possible recruits. 

The impression they had left in our previous meeting made the decision a no brainer, and so it was that they became the first riders signed to the new team.

And now after three successful seasons with the team, it is time to say goodbye. 

Changes to team rosters are inevitable, and the whys are never as simple as they may seem. The reality is that a myriad of vagaries must ultimately conclude in a black and white decision. And so it is that only those most intimately involved can even hope to understand. 

It is best then to think of change as opportunity for both the riders and the team to chart a new course by which they both can achieve even greater success. And no salutation could be more heartfelt than for us to say that wish Anita and Carolin the best in everything they do.

Starting with the foundation formed by Anita and Carolin, the Ibis Cycles Enduro Race Team has evolved over these past three years to earn its place as the number one team in the Enduro World Series, and their contributions cannot be overstated. Whether it be the team’s first podium, the first stage win, or first series overall podium Anita and Carolin have authored the team’s most significant firsts. 

Perhaps most notable, however, has been their incredible perseverance. Through three seasons competing at the sharp end of the results they have finished every single EWS race. Incredible.

Along the way, there has been many other races, and many more notable victories - Trans-Provence, Italy’s Super Enduro Series, and the California Enduro Series. They’ve truly done it all. 

So as this year comes to end, and we go our separate ways, we would be remiss if we didn’t take a moment to say “thank you”. Your contributions will never be forgotten, and you will always be part of the Ibis family.

For more news regarding the Ibis Cycles Enduro Team, stay tuned to Facebook and Instagram. 

JOIN US!

The pictures above are just a few from the race weekend. 

@ibisracing
#mojohd4

Thanks and congratulations to our sponsors as well!
@pocsports #pocsports 
@ridefox #ridefox
@rideshimano #rideshimano
@maxxistires #maxxistires
@ridejoystick #ridejoystick
@lizard_skinscycling #lizardskinsgrips
@feedbacksports #feedbacksports
@honeystinger #honeystinger
@industrynine #industrynine
@fiveten_official #fiveten_official

In his latest video, Jeff finds some inspiration at a neighborhood garage sale with a handy guide book to riding Vancouver Island ("Get in the Van! Vancouver Island that is!" Insider tips to discover Canada's Second Most Populated Island After The Island of Montreal by Bike"). Fly in to the sunny shores, and check through the list of things to do, and best places to visit, in one of the most special places in British Columbia, Canada.

From July 27-30 (Thursday - Sunday) we'll be set up at Tahoe Donner which is adjacent to the town of Truckee. Specifically, we'll be set up at the beautiful Alder Creek Adventure Center, which serves as the nordic center in the winter and mountain bike center in the summer, AND it has a restaurant and bar on the grounds! There are plenty of fun trails of varying skill levels right from the parking lot. If you want to go try out a different trail, we'll be letting bikes out for longer periods and OVERNIGHT as well.

Alder Creek Adventure Center at Tahoe Donner
15275 Alder Creek Rd, Truckee, California, 96161

Reservations are not necessary but are encouraged if you want to be sure there's a bike available. To reserve a bike send an email to kirk@ibiscycles.com with the subject line with your first & last name Truckee demo 2017.  In the email include your name, phone number, bike model, size, & your ride weight. We will send a confirmation email but it may take time as Kirk our demo driver is often driving or at another demo. 

Each day we will have 3 time periods for demos: 10-1, 1-4, & 4p.m. checkout with next day return at 9:30a.m. Please allow time for bike setup for you & others. 

Lunch is available at the ACAC, and it's quite good excellent. There's also beer and wine for after your ride, and they open the bar on Friday from 4PM - 8PM and Saturday from 11AM - 8PM.

The demo is free, but we will be encouraging a $20 donation that will benefit the Truckee Donner Land Trust, who are doing great work preserving lands in the Truckee/Tahoe area.

GALLERY

For Californians from the Bay Area, it's alwasy a special trip to drive to 'Mendo', through the picturesque Anderson Valley, and then along the Navarro River and out to the coast. The race takes place deep in the redwood forest, and it's a gem, that sells out in no time. It's part of the California Enduro Series, so competition is fierce. 

Here's a couple pics and a quick story about the race. Glad you had a good time, Kate, and a huge shout out ot all the volunteers at Mendocino Coast Cyclists and Bike Sprite who worked tirelessly on this event. 

Catching a break during the transfer climb to Forest History with the HD4

Threading the bars through Mendo's dense forest trails, pinning it through exposed sections on Forest History and Manly, among others. The forest will swallow you whole if your tire wanders off the narrow trails.  This is, of course, what makes the Mendocino trails so dangerously fun for an enduro race.

Here is Nick from Bike Sprite during one of our Transfers. Nick and Amy did and excellent job of supporting the race, plenty of snacks, water stations, trails were well-marked.  It felt more like a self-guided tour of the stunning Mendocino Trails.

Blindly traversing the unsuspectingly punchy trails on Caspar North.

The HD4 helped me over 5,000ft of climbing in 35 miles of single track and fire road, about 85% of which I rode blind.  Even with its slacker wheelbase and 160mm of travel, the bike felt balanced on the switchbacks, punchy and stiff on the climbs and allowed me to focus on the trail ahead, ultimately ending in 5th overall for my Category.

Sunday, we rode to the famous Drive-Thru Tree and then descended down through Caspar North before departing Mendo.

Navarro Point, just south of Mendo. We stopped to admire the blue waves and stretch the legs, not quite ready to head home...

Last photo! Pit stop off Hwy 128, Anderson Valley Brewing Co. Here is the HD4 in front of some Wild Turkey Whiskey Barrels used to brew the Anderson Valley Wild Turkey Bourbon Stout.

Trails don't build themselves.

It takes a lot of hard work and dedication to build and maintain the trails we all ride, sometimes without thinking about how they got there and who has been maintaining them. Here's an opportunity for you to pay it forward and Ante Up For The Trails.

We are very happy today to announce a drawing to benefit building trails in Santa Cruz. For each $5 you ante up you will receive a chance to win the Ibis model of your choosing, spec’d to the nines. Better yet, every fist full of dollars you pitch in goes directly to trails in Santa Cruz.

Santa Cruz is a world-renowned mountain bike destination. The convergence of towering redwoods, verdant mountains, and the shimmering Pacific are attraction enough, but add A+ #1 trails to the mix and we have our land of milk and honey (not to mention Ibis Galactic HQ!). The great folks at Mountain Bikers of Santa Cruz are just getting started, they now have more opportunities to build new trails than ever before. They are working to develop new pump tracks and dirt jump spots, and are maintaining miles of trail at a feverish rate.

We are anteing up a bike, and hope you will ante up so that we can go all-in on making mountain biking in Santa Cruz even better.

Even if you don't live in Santa Cruz, why not donate a few bucks? You never know when you might end up on one of the trails here. The drawing is open worldwide. The last drawing we did was won by Sara in Switzerland. She's happy she donated!

The winner will get to choose any bike from the current IBIS line up decked out like so:

• Ibis Frameset, choice of Mojo 3, Ripley LS or , Mojo HD4
• FOX suspension (courtesy of Fox-thank you Fox)
• IBIS carbon wheels
• Build kit of your choice

DONATE HERE.