Orange mountain bikes last month announced the return of the Orange Factory Racing team, back for its third year with a reshuffled roster, and two new riders including the team's first female rider, Becky Cook.
The new riders Christo Gallagher and Becky Cook joined the self-proclaimed OG of the team, Tom Wilson at a team camp in Cwmcarn, South Wales to launch the 2023 season with a bang, with three days of the best enduro bike riding, bike setup, and team bonding in some classic-British weather conditions.
Tom is now in his seventh year riding Orange Bikes, and his third at Orange Factory Racing, and 2023 will see him race a mix of UCI Enduro World Cup and e-Enduro World Cup events.
With Becky Cook joining Orange after a storming 2022 season with high placings in EWS and a career-high top five at Sugarloaf and she is focusing squarely on achieving her best season to date at the new UCI Enduro World Cup.
Christo also joins Orange Factory Racing with a whole heap of EWS experience. The Scottish rider has career highlights including the overall elite title at the 2021 British National Enduro Series as well as second place at Ardrock, and third overall in the Scottish National Enduro Series.
The team camp kicked off with the big handover of the team’s Factory Racing Edition Orange Switch 7s, decked out with the team’s sponsored components and featuring that classic Orange logo. Tested, developed, refined, and proven by Orange Factory Racing, the Switch 7 will be Tom, Christo, and Becky’s go-to for race days around the world.
The Orange Switch 7 is brand new for Becky and Christo, so with Tom’s experience, the crew moved straight into dialing in suspension setups, while the riders also got to know each other. It was then on to the fun job of riding hard, with the Cwmcarn Downhill track providing a perfect test lab to see what the new team bikes could do.
The team will be supported by a dream line-up of sponsor brands with kit and components from Goodyear tires, Ohlins suspension, Hunt wheels, Hayes brakes, SDG Components saddles, and dropper seatposts, Burgtec controls, Granite Design tools, Rapid Racer Products mudguards and STRANGE components finishing kits.
The riders will be kitted head to toe in Leatt clothing and protection and supported by Better Bolts, CrankBrothers, and MRP. A brand new name to the roster is Motul, with its range of degreasers, cleaners, lubrication, and puncture protection that will keep the Switch 7 spotlessly clean, maintained and in perfect condition.
The team is now working on the final preparations for round one of the Enduro World Cup in Tasmania on the 25th and 26th of March. It will be the first racing for the new-look Orange Factory Racing setup and the team can't wait to get between the tapes. We hope to see them racing up close at the British National Enduro Series along with the other star of the show, the Orange Switch 7.
You can also check the team camp action in the short below, follow the OFR season on the Orange Instagram account and read more about the Switch 7 at www.orangebikes.com.
