JURGEN BENEKE

I started racing bikes in Germany in 1984. Road, Cyclocross and Track were all equally exciting to me and I quickly moved my way up in all the disciplines. When I turned sixteen I had to focus on one of the three events for me to join the National Team. For the love of mud and off-road riding, I chose Cyclo Cross. Eventually in the early nineties Mountain Biking became popular in Europe and I started racing Downhill. The skills from cyclocross racing combined with the strength and speed from racing for a semi pro road team ended up a perfect combination for early nineties downhill racing. After surprising everyone at the 1992 European championship with a 4th place finish I signed a pro contract the following year which led me to a long career in MTB racing. 1993 I won multiple world cup races and the overall. I ended up finishing second in the overall WorldCup in 1994 and 97, other highlights were Gold and Bronze at the X-games, Winner of the Kamikaze,  Silver at the European Championships, Norba National Champion, etc… 

Now that I am not racing for a living anymore, my priorities have changed a bit. I don’t participate in Gravity events anymore as I am still capable of going fast, but after breaking two vertebrae at the Mega Avalanche in Alpe d’huez (FRA)  I realize that I have become a bit more fragile:)

I have limited my racing to XC, gravel and road cycling since then. Gravel racing has found a special place in my heart, it reminds me of the early MTB XC racing days, where the bikes were good, but riders made the difference. Gravel bikes allow you to ride everything pretty well, but nothing too well as it is always a compromise. Road, XC and CycloCross. I finally get to race all three disciplines at once at the same time on the same bike  🙂 I love my Renegade Gravel bike. 

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