The Dodzy Memorial Enduro Tribute
The Dodzy Memorial Enduro is a once a year event honouring legendary trail builder and identity James Dodds, where MTBers get to ride the private trails that he designed and built in the Wairoa Gorge near Nelson, in the south island. The trails are rowdy as hell and people clamour to get an entry every year as it’s the only time to ride them. We just heard that entries sold out in just over a minute this year! A fine tribute.
“For a few lucky souls, the Dodzy Memorial Enduro was one day longer. On the Friday before, the park was opened to a handful of people who provided the talent in the short video above. This clip was shown at Sunday’s afterparty and brought racers together for a classy conclusion to a top weekend.
It was a special group of ex-employees who were given the chance to come and soak up the magic of the Wairoa Gorge. The crew who were working in Chile when Jamie Nicoll had a serious accident came together to catch up, spin some yarns and remember the experiences they shared. It also served as acknowledgement of a very hard and unexpected event that has had a huge impact on all of their lives.
Spoke Magazine’s long-time cohort Ross Mackay created the video, which captures the essence of riding at the Gorge. More importantly, it provides deeper insight into just what New Zealand Trail Solutions (NZTS) was, how Dodzy fitted into the picture, and what made him significant to so many New Zealand mountain bikers. If you don’t know, NZTS was the company responsible for providing the labour that built the Wairoa and several other private pieces of mountain bike paradise around the world. Working for NZTS was a formative experience which allowed lots of NZ bike riders to get out and experience the world, while opening their eyes to the possibility of making a living by following their passion. Dodzy was the heart of NZTS, but of course he was much more than that as well. It’s great to see a different side to the story from this years video.
Watch out for more of this story in Issue 66 of Spoke.”
