Seeing her “local heroes” take on the Enduro World Series overseas ultimately inspired Nelson’s Rae Morrison to give it a go herself. Now, she is one of the world’s top 10 EWS riders, a member of Liv Racing Collective and an ambassador for We Are One.
We caught up with Rae to find out how she got her start in Enduro, the thrill of working with We Are One, and the importance of building up confidence and skills for female riders.
Nelson to the world
Rae’s journey to Enduro racing started with XC – she started competing nationally and always got amped for the descents – “they were my favourite part,” Rae says.
So she found her way to Enduro and Super-D and discovered she was really good at it, despite competing in many races on her XC hardtail or on a borrowed bike.
Once she hit the EWS circuit, Rae quickly caught the attention of French team, Lapierre.
“I saved money, fundraised, sold almost everything I owned to be able to afford a full season overseas,” Rae explains. “I started out in the UK buying a cheap, old commercial van and lived most of the season out of it on a super tight budget.”
“I was lucky enough to have some great results at the last two races, two fifth places, and I was picked up by Lapierre for the following year, which was an incredible experience.”
“After that year I was offered a contract with Liv, a women’s brand dedicated to getting more women on bikes and promoting women’s racing. I have been racing and riding for them ever since.”
Lending support
Empowering and supporting female riders is a big driver for Rae, and she wants to pass on the lessons she learnt as a young rider.
“When I first started mountain biking I was the only female in my club, and in my town, who rode. Although everyone was super supportive early on, for me there were still many hurdles, difficulties and discouragements that came with being a female who was part of a male-dominated sport.”
In early 2022, Rae partnered with Earshots to host a mountain biking event solely for women. The event focused on forks and shocks, providing the right tools for attendees to set up their bikes, and equipping them with the knowledge to know how to change their settings if they needed to.
When time in her schedule allows, Rae would love to get to planning another women’s-only event.
Support for female riders is growing, but there is still room for improvement.
“Things are definitely changing in a big way but there still is a way to go. I love being able to contribute to this change, to align myself with brands who feel the same way and to encourage more women to start biking no matter their age. I’m also really excited to help female riders who want to take their racing overseas.”
We Are One sponsorship
Brand alignment doesn’t get much better than Rae’s sponsorship from We Are One. She has been sponsored by the Canadian carbon rims manufacturer for the last two years, heading into a third. Just like Rae – a determined athlete who rides hard, loves the sport, and builds others up – We Are One is known for its commitment to quality and pride and passion for what they do.
“I absolutely love the We Are One team and was stoked to get the opportunity to visit them in Kamloops this year.”
“It was amazing to see the factory up close and see the process of how they make their wheels, frames, and components in-house.”
“I have huge respect for what they do – the detail, thought and passion that goes into each We Are One product is next level. This season it has been cool to be a part of their rider testing process with their prototype wheels.”
We Are One’s new prototype wheelsets have made a big impact on Rae – although they’re under wraps for now.
“The new wheels are a pretty cool piece of equipment. I’m not sure how much I can say but they have been the best wheels I’ve ever ridden.”
10/10 for the 1/1 hubs
While the prototype isn’t yet ready for market, what Rae can talk about are the Industry Nine hubs in her wheels.
“I have been racing on the 1/1 hubs all year and have found them to be as durable and free-spinning as all the best offerings on the market.”
“I’m still on the original set of bearings despite racing in some horrible conditions with the bike getting washed a lot, the hubs haven’t skipped a beat.”
Taking chances
As one of the top riders in the world, we asked Rae what the best advice was she’d ever been given. Not surprisingly, she said it was to take chances.
“To always take the safe option does tend to lead itself to life feeling unfulfilled and stagnant,” she says.
“Taking leaps of faith and making decisions that scare and excite you often has huge rewards. It can open so many doors, gives you a lot more excitement and zest for life and also makes you grow as a person.”
“I think everyone should scare themselves once in a while!”
With that in mind, we can’t wait to see where Rae’s leap of faith takes her next.