Racers were back in France, this time in Loudenvielle, for the end of the 2024 Enduro World Cup season and the penultimate round of Downhill, and they were not disappointed by the ensuing action-packed days of competition. The EDR and E-EDR athletes took to their courses first, while the Downhill was held over the weekend. 

One thing’s for sure: Loudenvielle is a muddy place to race bikes. EDR racers battled through four sloppy stages to crown the last winners of the year. The U21 Men’s podium included Maxxis athletes such as JT Fisher (Yeti Cycles) and Sascha Kim (Giant Factory Off-Road Team), both wrapping up very solid seasons. Elite Women’s Ella Conolly (Cannondale Bikes) ended her year in third place, placing just outside the top three in overall points. In the Elite Men’s race, Martin Maes (Orbea Enduro Team) won his first EDR World Cup, fifteen seconds ahead of Richie Rude (Yeti Cycles) in second place. However, with yet another podium finish, Richie became the EDR Elite Men’s Overall Champion for the second year in a row – a huge accomplishment for the American rider! 

The E-EDR was also full send-in-the-wet-conditions with Flo Espiñeira (Orbea Enduro Team) taking another podium and earning the Overall Champion title for the third straight year in the Women’s.  

With the enduro racing completed, the downhill was on for the second-to-last round of 2024. Tyler Waite (Yeti Cycles) and Christian Hauser (UNION) started Maxxis off on the right foot with second and fourth-place finishes in Junior Men. The Elite races were some of the slickest in recent memory. Nina Hoffmann (Santa Cruz Syndicate) and Marine Cabirou (Scott Factory DH) took podium positions in the Elite Women’s with fourth and fifth place, while Ronan Dunne (Mondraker Factory Racing) held onto fifth in Elite Men’s with a crash (still only 3.7 sec off the winning pace!).  

Even with the chaos that the rain brought in Loudenvielle, Maxxis athletes prevailed with more World Cup wins and championships added to the collection. We’ll see everyone in MSA for the final round of the DH World Cup!