JOE BARNES

JOE BARNES IS A MAN OF CONTRADICTIONS: A SERIOUS RACER, AND A FRIVOLOUS LOON. A LOOSEY GOOSEY RIDER WHO KNOWS EXACTLY WHERE HE’S PLACING HIS TYRES; A POPULAR MOUNTAIN BIKE FILMMAKER WHO THEN RUINS ALL OF THEM BY SINGING ALONG. PETE SCULLION INVESTIGATES.

WORDS AND PICTURES BY PETE SCULLION

It only seems like yesterday that Joe Barnes was stepping off his bright pink Orange Five and onto a bike considerably more Teutonic. In fact, it’s been three years since Fort William’s fastest export started his Enduro World Series campaign with Canyon. Time flies when you’re having fun. In that time, Joe has found himself, in his own inimitable fashion, as the UK’s top-ranked Enduro World Series male. Despite solidifying himself as a top-ten regular and constant podium threat on the world stage, internet rumours, courting the press, and the usual off-bike demands of professional rider life don’t seem to factor that highly in his daily routine. Heading into 2016, the Enduro World Series will be Joe’s main focus. Admittedly there will be odd Scottish Enduro Series races slotted into the calendar where time allows, but an overall Scottish win is not the end goal. Though he might tell me differently, young Master Barnes is quietly living the dream, a dream very much moulded by his own hand with a focus and determination that not a lot of people see, and even fewer fully appreciate.

We three.

A fly on the wall might tell you that there are three – not just two – Joe Barneses. The most instantly recognisable is the bum-slapping, van-driving, corner-hoofing lunatic that makes up one third of The Dudes of Hazzard, enjoying the title of ‘Top Chief’, being very much at the helm of the creative aspect. While the earlier efforts lacked polish, which was much of the appeal, that doesn’t give credit to the time and thought put into creating them. As Joe’s focus turns toward the goal of winning EWS rounds and the series itself, the Dudes have pared the quantity but upped the scale and quality of their output.