


While the search for an adventure can happen close to home, we found ourselves this time in a place most people may not know about. Located east of Madagascar and 175 km southwest of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean, Réunion Island is a mountainous and volcanic island, where you can find miles on miles of single-track that take you through deep green, lush and tropical rainforests.
Reunion Island has a diverse history. More recently the island has been surrounded by colonies of Bull and Tiger sharks. While the sharks have impacted tourism, mountain biking has been growing on the island giving locals and visitors something else to do. The trails are fun and the locals are friendly. We met up with David Delassus and Theo Booy to share with us the island they call home.
Shimano athletes Bryn Atkinson and Bas van Steenbergen experienced the adventure of Réunion as they took on the diverse trails with the help of their guides and new friends, David and Theo. Bryn and Bas both chose to run 1x11 drivetrains with our XT M8000 11-46t cassette to help tackle the steep and unpredictable terrains developed from years of volcanic activity on the Island. DEORE XT M8000 was the perfect drivetrain to tackle the diverse landscapes of Réunion Island. The brakes with Ice Technologies rotors provided the stopping power needed on the wet and steep terrain.
The beauty of an adventure is many things to different people, but we find common ground when we go riding new trails with friends in a location we had never been before… These simple things are truly The Components of Adventure.