“For me the winter is the best time to work on the bulk of your endurance. Getting in some long rides to build up your endurance is key. At the same time you can still be working on some skills and some strength work.”

Enduro races cover large distances and last whole days, and in some cases several days. You’ll need to be physically very fit to do this. Getting in plenty of base miles on a regular basis is critical, and for this it’s worth hopping on your road bike or turbo trainer to get your body used to pedalling for several hours at a time as well as regular MTB rides. Look to be doing rides of two or three hours ideally four times a week. You should also aim to do one long mountain bike ride of four to six hours.

Learning to pace yourself is also a key skill. On some longer rides, try to avoid stopping for long periods of time, and keep a steady speed on climbs. You are aiming to find a speed you can sustain for several hours that still leaves you enough energy to manage technical sections.