The Wildest Off-Road Motorcycle Race Around Turns 30 This Year. A Spectacle Is Coming
Hard Enduro stars, world champions, and electric motorcycles will take on the Iron Mountain of the Erzberg Rodeo this year, which celebrates the off-road motorcycle race's 30th anniversary.
When I worked as the Marketing Manager for Touratech-USA, we would take an annual trip from our office in Seattle, Washington, down to Long Beach, California, for the International Motorcycle Show. We had a booth at the IMS to display our latest round-the-world adventure motorcycle accessories, and the opportunity to connect with current and future customers made the trip worthwhile.
The drive to Long Beach took two days, sometimes three, with a Sprinter van loaded full of ADV machines, towing a trailer packed with promotional materials – namely Touratech’s massive catalog of parts and products. My colleague, Iain, would pilot the Sprinter, with an iPad on the dashboard streaming videos he’d saved of the Erzbergrodeo.
Wide-eyed and green to the world of Hard Enduro, I watched as David Knight and Taddy Blazusiak battled through Carl’s Diner. What was this madness, I wondered? Who are these maniacs?
What I didn’t know was that the Erzbergrodeo was nothing new, even back in 2011. This year, the ultimate Hard Enduro contest will celebrate its 30th anniversary in Eisenerz, Austria, from June 4-7. More than 1,100 riders are signed up to contest the “Iron Mountain” at an event now recognized as a World Xtreme Enduro Supreme in the new Hard Enduro World Ranking.
The rodeo will bring together riders from 41 countries and every continent, including Hard Enduro stars Manuel Lettenbichler and Trystan Hart, as well as 2025 Dakar Rally winner, Daniel Sanders, eight-time EnduroGP world champion, Andrea Verona, and the American “pit bike king,” Carson Brown, among many others.
One of the most exciting additions for the 2026 Erzbergrodeo will be the inclusion of electric motorcycles in all categories. In total, there will be 43 riders on electric motorcycles, with Stark Future representing more than 90% of the EV entries. Eddie Karlsson, Toby Martin, Cooper Abbott and two-time motocross world champion Sebastien Tortelli will represent the brand, competing against gas powered two-strokes on the Stark Varg.
There’s also a Twin-Cylinder category which will race during the Iron Road Prologue. In this class we can expect to see KTM, Yamaha, CFMOTO and KOVE battle it out for big bike glory. However, Pol Tarres and Kevin Gallas - racing on a pair of Yamaha Tenere 700s - are also planning to challenge the Iron Mountain during Sunday’s main race aboard their Big Enduro machines.
Because racing at Erzberg isn’t hard enough on an enduro bike?
To kick off the anniversary weekend, Red Bull is hosting the Erzbergrodeo Kessel Parade, where competitors and fans alike flood the streets of Eisenerz on their enduro machines – wheelies and burnouts optional.
If you’d like to watch the 2026 Erzbergrodeo, you can catch the livestream on ServusTV ON and Red Bull TV starting on June 4.
The Hardest of Enduros
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