Red Bull Romaniacs, explained for riders flying in from abroad
Every July, the best hard enduro riders in the world come to the hills around Sibiu, in Romania, for five days that most only ever watch on a screen. If you have followed Red Bull Romaniacs from home and wondered what it would be like to be there, on a motorcycle, you are closer than you think.
You can race it in your own name, on one of our motorcycles and with our team in the pit. Or you can leave the race number at home, ride the same hills with one of our guides, and still be there for the prologue and the final hill climb. Here is what the race is, how hard it really gets, and what you need to settle before you land.
What is Red Bull Romaniacs?
Red Bull Romaniacs is a widely recognised hard enduro rally held in Sibiu, in Transylvania, in the southern Carpathians. Martin Freinademetz founded it in 2004, and it has grown into one of the best-known events in the sport. It runs every summer at the end of July and takes five days: a prologue, which is an obstacle course beside the old town, followed by four off-road days, and those times are added together. The paddock is in town and the nights are usually spent in Sibiu. The dates of the next edition, together with our race-week packages, are on our Romaniacs page.
Every rider registers individually, in their own name. Red Bull Romaniacs keeps the rules and the running of the event, and we at EnduRomaniaTours do not sell that entry. Once your name is on the list, we can put a race-prepared motorcycle under you from our fleet, along with the race-week service, or provide the service package on a motorcycle you already own. On the organisers' supplier list, we are listed as Profi Moto.
How hard is Red Bull Romaniacs?
Very hard, and how hard depends on your class. The organisers bill it as "the world's toughest hard enduro rallye", yet they do not put one grade on the week, because the class decides which obstacles are on your track. Riders often compare it with Erzbergrodeo in Austria, a single race of about four hours; Romaniacs is a rally, so the test is to keep finishing, day after day, for five days.
Gold is the top of the enduro classes. On the organiser's class page it is "impossible to ride" except for the very best, and they put the number of riders who can finish it at about 50 in the world. Silver keeps sections nearly that technical, with less intensity and less time on them. Bronze is the class they call mainstream, and they still describe it as hard if the enduro you know is flat and fast. Iron leaves the toughest sections out and becomes four days of endurance on a shorter course. Atom is the way in, for a rider who already rides enduro well. On that page the motorcycle stays underneath you: the sections where riders throw the bike, or ride it like a trials bike, are left out.
Two classes can cover similar ground on a map and still be different days, because the obstacles on the track are not the same. Classic enduro races riders against the clock over long off-road routes; hard enduro, the discipline this rally belongs to, adds natural obstacles that riders often push, drag, or carry the bike through. Miss a time check and that day ends. Two days like that and you are out of the rally. The regulations set those checks so that at least 40 percent of the field finishes each day, which means a large share of the people who started can be timed out and the day still stands. Adventure bikes and electric bikes have their own classes beside this ladder, with their own ground. You can read more on the organiser's class page and in the event regulations.
If you aren't sure which class you can handle, you can book a tour with our professional guides on trails of different difficulties, and they can point you toward a class you can finish without a serious injury and still find very challenging. Just send us a message and we'll set things in motion.
What the race week in Sibiu looks like
The prologue runs on Corneliu Coposu boulevard. Your time there sets the order you leave on the first off-road morning, and it is added to the four days that follow, along with any penalties, so the minutes you lose in the city stay with you all the way to the finish.
Each off-road day has a start away from the asphalt, timed checks along the course, one service stop, and an off-road finish. In the evening the organiser loads the next day's track onto your GPS. Next day, you follow the tape on the ground, blue for the right line, and the GPS shows you when you have left it. At the end of each day you are back in town for the night.
What you arrange before you fly in
You register with Red Bull Romaniacs
Flying in on your own, you register the same way as everyone else, on the organisers' competitor pages. The entry is personal. You book the flight and bring your riding gear, a GPS unit, and insurance. Accommodation for the race week is usually arranged through Red Bull Romaniacs as part of the entry, so that is one less thing to line up once your name is on the list. We do not run race-week hotels; the hotel we include is for our guided tours, not the competition. If you want to fly in before the race, we can arrange a paid stay for those earlier days.
We look after your motorcycle
Once your entry is accepted, we can support you in two ways. If you are not bringing a bike to Romania, you can rent an enduro or an adventure motorcycle from our fleet. Most of them are new, current-year models, and you can also choose lightly used bikes with around 30-40 or 100 working hours, all carefully prepared for the race. On a rental, the race-week service is mandatory and priced as a separate line. If you are racing your own motorcycle, you book the same service on its own, and the work through the week is the same. The motorcycle and the service packages are found on the race-week pit service and bikes from Sibiu.
The organiser needs to know who is working on the bike. The name you add in the competitor account is Profi Moto. Our crew is in the competitor paddock at Aria, behind the Aria centre in Sibiu, with the other service teams.
The mechanics fuel the motorcycle before you roll out, wash it when you come in, check and repair it overnight, so the bike is fully prepared for the next morning's start. Fuel and water on the course come from the organiser's Tank Points, which are included in the entry fee. Food and drinks are at our service point. The repair work through the week is covered by the service package, so a broken lever or a torn guard only adds the cost of the part to your bill, and any parts needed will be supplied from our Profi Moto Shop, the largest enduro shop in Sibiu and the surrounding area, so they can be fitted in town the same evening.
Some riders like a few days on the bike before the prologue. We can arrange guided training days on the motorcycle you will race, as a paid extra added to your quote, so you line up for the start already used to it.
Can you experience Red Bull Romaniacs without racing?
Yes. There are two ways to experience Red Bull Romaniacs. You can enter the race with the organisers and compete, or you can ride the same hills with EnduRomaniaTours on a guided tour, without a race number. Our tours run on any dates in the riding season, race week included: that week our team splits in two, with one part running the pit and the rentals for the competitors and the other guiding tours, and for many riders this is the best week of the year.
The Short Romaniacs enduro tour is €1590 in the VIP package, and the Long Romaniacs enduro tour is €1990, and both keep the same price in race week. These tours use areas the competition is known for, Râul Sadului, Gura Râului, and Rășinari, and because the area changes each day, the difficulty and what you see change with it. They are not your only choice that week: all our signature tours stay open, and if you want something different, you can request a custom tour around your dates and the way you like to ride. A regular signature tour can cost slightly more during the race week, because accommodation in Sibiu is in high demand. You need a valid motorcycle licence, and you need to be someone who already rides. Sibiu has its own international airport, and the transfer from it is included on every tour.
Race week has a rhythm of its own, and a guided tour lets you follow it day by day. On Monday the nations parade rolls through Sibiu, with every competitor on the bike, the flags out, and the most famous riders in the world being interviewed on the boulevard. On Tuesday, you will attend the prologue, watching the competitors during qualifications in the morning, followed by the finals. From Wednesday to Friday you ride with your guide in a different area from the one the race uses that day, so you never get in the way of the competitors: if the race is around Gura Râului, we take you around Sadu. On Saturday we go to the final hill climb on Dealul Gușterița, the show that closes the race.
Our advice is to book early, because Sibiu fills up for this race, and to arrive a few days early. The top riders come to train in these hills before the start, so you may see them on the trails before you watch them at the prologue. On the off-road days, your tour also takes you to the spectator points along the course, and with the right timing you will see the world's best ride past you. At the prologue and the final hill climb, there is no timing to worry about: the top riders come past you one after another, right in front of the crowd.
Whether you are taking part in Red Bull Romaniacs or planning to ride the same hills with a guide, EnduRomaniaTours can help you plan it. Send us a message with your dates and whether you are coming for the race or for a guided tour, and we will take it from there.
Questions riders ask before they book
The entry fee is set by the organisers for each edition and paid to Red Bull Romaniacs, not to us, and you find it on their competitor pages. You also need the race card from the Romanian Motorcycling Federation, issued at sign-on. If you rent a motorcycle from us or book our race-week service, those prices are listed on our Romaniacs page.
No. Those stay with Red Bull Romaniacs. Once you are entered, we offer the pit service and, if you need it, the motorcycle.
Yes. The service is priced per motorcycle, whether you rent the bike from us or bring your own. You can also bring your own motorcycle on a guided tour if it is roadworthy, with the price agreed on request.
No. That cover is for our VIP guided enduro tours. It applies in normal riding conditions and does not cover reckless or extreme riding.
No. Watching Red Bull Romaniacs is free from every spectator point, all week: at the prologue in Sibiu, along the course on the off-road days, and at the final hill climb. If you want more comfort, the organisers sell optional VIP spectator packages: fixed spots with a slightly better view, and snacks in the VIP tents. Every spectator point and time is in their spectators planning guide, and on a guided tour with us, your guide takes you to the ones that fit your day.
No. You can request our tours on any dates in the riding season, including race week.