Dirt Diaries

We recently caught up with WTR supported rider, Robert "Cosi" Hofman chatting about his year so far in 2019, with dreams of qualifying for the 2020 EWS season, here's how things have gone so far.

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WTR: Cosi! It has been a good 6 months since we have checked in to see how the year (2019) is going..how's life in Wollongong, happy with your year of bikes so far?
Cosi: Life in Wollongong has been rad! Just finished my Engineering Degree so now I have way more time to ride bikes and train for the coming year.  This has been a good year with plenty of riding and racing.  A few other adventures over winter as well, managing a few snow trips an some surfing down the coast.

Photo // Outerimage Aus: Cosi Racing 2019 Cannonball MTB Festival - All mountain assault.

WTR: You've have had a busy Race Schedule this year - where have you visited so far, Talk us through some of your travels..
Cosi: This year has been a bit hectic with the amount of racing and finishing uni.  Started the year off strong heading to the first round of the EWS100 in Rotorua, NZ, in March. 

That was my first major race overseas, and although only the EWS100, it was great to get the feel for an EWS event. That was followed a week later by the EWS100 in Derby; probably my favourite race I have ever competed in with the tracks being unbelievable.

Since then I have made my way around Australia from Perth to Atherton (Cairns) racing in EWS qualifier events as well as a number of smaller club enduro and downhill races.

WTR: You have had some great results this year with the National enduro EWS Qualifiers - are you happy with the year so far?
Cosi: Overall I am happy with the results I have achieved this year.  Managing an 11^th in Rotorua was rad with a 4^th on the last stage which I was stoked about. I managed to take the top step of the podium at The King and Queen of the Mountain Enduro in Atherton and second at the Tamrookum Enduro Festival.

Beyond the results it has been unreal travelling around the country getting meet new people and ride spots I wouldn’t get to otherwise.

WTR: At the start of 2019 your goal was to try your luck at Qualification for the 2020 Enduro World Series - a little birdie told us you have qualified for 2020..?
Cosi: I am super stoked that I have managed to achieve my goal for the year. Managing to get to a number of different qualifying races and taking the top step in Atherton secured me in the top 150 ranked riders globally giving me reserved entry to race the 2020 EWS season.

WTR: Congratulations, That's awesome!! Good to see the hard work paying off. What does EWS Qualification mean for you? will you do select events in 2020 or try and make it to as many as possible?
Cosi: My current plan is to start the season with the 3^rd EWS round in Olargues, France. From there I will be moving to Whistler and racing the Burke Mountain EWS and of course the big one Whistler EWS. If possible I will get to another round or else some races in Canada and the US.

Photo // Outerimage Aus: Cosi 2019 Cannonball MTB Festival - Whip wars

WTR: Awesome, For any young Guys or Girls out there dreaming of doing the same, is it pretty clear what you need to do to qualify for the EWS?
Cosi: The biggest point is commitment, put in the hours on the bike, get to the qualifying races, and you will qualify.

Find out more about EWS Qualification here - https://www.enduroworldseries.com/ews-entry-overview/how-qualifying-works/

WTR: Cheers for the Catch up, if anyone wants to get in touch to see if they can fit into your 2020 program, what is the best way to contact you?
Cosi: Thanks for the continued support throughout the year, any support behind you makes a huge difference and always having a fresh race kit can’t be beaten. Easiest way is through my Instagram, bit of fiend for it so always online.

You can Keep up with Cosi @Cosihofman (instagram) or find him up cutting laps of Mt Keira.

Supported by:
http://www.giantwollongong.com.au/au
https://wetheriders.com.au/

 

WTR: Hey Shane! Welcome home, that looked like a really epic trip mate..Tell us a bit about it, what was the plan, where did you go exactly, how did you get around?
Shane: Thanks mate! Yeah was definitely an epic trip, I’d say the best holiday I’ve ever had! Basically the plan was to land in Seattle jump in my buddies van and road trip down to Utah for rampage, stopping at a bunch of freeride sites along the way.



WTR: Sounds epic. We saw you rode some pretty famous gnar in Utah.. Places like Tippies Rock, Green river and some old rampage sites to name a few - What was the stand out for you?
Shane: Man that’s hard to say! Everything I rode was a stand out to me haha, probably the freeride chutes in green river or King Kong trail.



WTR: Pictures wouldn't do some of the trails justice, how much did you push yourself over there? any sketchy moments?
Shane: Definitely not, easily the wildest riding I’ve ever done! To be honest the some of the sketchiest moments were hiking up the mountains with the bike on your shoulders and having basically no traction on your feet due to how steep it all was. Pushed myself a lot mainly mentally just to drop into a chute or to hit a huge drop ect. Oh man the feeling of riding a crazy chute is basically a drug that you keep chasing haha.



WTR: How is the access to some of the Chutes, did you park at the bottom and hike most of it?
Shane: Basically just camping in a area and just looking from the bottom and picking a line you want to ride then you have to hike up. It’s not easy and once you committed to your line there’s no going back haha.



WTR: You and your Buddy Aric camped in the van right? how is it over there - can you just camp at the trail head or camp grounds? whats the setup like for anyone who wants to do something similar in Utah?
Shane: Yeah so all of North America is so set up for the van life. There is heaps of people doing similar trips - You basically can camp anywhere it’s so rad and cheap, highly recommended.

WTR: With Rampage the finale of your trip - were you pretty mind blown with the Event and the terrain they were riding?
Shane: Yes definitely! The riding and trail building is so insane! It’s just felt like a big party at the bottom of the mountain. Was so damn awesome to see how big there actually going in real life! Absolutely mind blowing! If you thought about going to one just do it, you won’t be disappointed.

We recently received a kids MTB seat from the team at Kids Ride Shotgun. This is how it went down…

My daughter and I open up the delivered package and the excitement in the room starts to build. My 3-year daughter has already caught on to what she is opening and is super excited to hit the trails.

Once we open up the packaging, you can immediately tell that this is a quality product with no expense spared, finished with perfect paint, super plush seat and quality tools for installation.

Installation

Fitting the seat was very easy and first setup took no longer than 30 minutes. I highly recommend reading through the detailed instructions to avoid any damage to your frame and setting the seat at the correct angles for your toddler. I was a bit worried about setting up the seat on my frame due to my bike OCD, but the heavy-duty rubber coverings on the seat frame keep your bike safe from any damage.
One thing I didn’t consider and recommend, would be adding a few PSI to your front fork to allow for the extra KGs upfront to reduce that OTB feeling.

Let’s hit the dirt

I lift my 3-year daughter up to take her seat, she is excited to hit the single trail. I take her along a green trail first up to see how she will handle the terrain and more importantly how I will cope with the extra weight upfront. The first downhill section we rolled had to be repeated multiple times as it was “so much fun”. After a few practice runs on the green loop, we hit a blue trail and the little one handles it like a pro and continually asks to go faster.

Surprisingly, apart from having to lockout my front and rear shock and having a small person between my legs, I can hardly tell the difference with the handling of the bike. Obviously there are weight imbalances but I found I quickly adjusted too.

The experience

This product is truly a game changer. Having the ability for your little one to sit upfront and fully experience mountain biking first hand, was such a great way for me to connect with my daughter. We had an awesome time on the trails, and I was able to explain to her a few techniques on the bike which hopefully she can transfer to her own bike. Most importantly, it’s a great way to get your kids out of the house and away from the TV.

Icon - Petrol Blue Tee

Pros

• Great experience for both parent and child.
• Quality product, easy to install and remove within 5 minutes.

Cons

• Say goodbye to your solo weekend rip.

You can grab yourself a Shotgun Kid's MTB Seat for $220.00AUD from a few select local retailers or online at kidsrideshotgun.com.

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