Knysna Oyster Festival

I don't eat oysters but the annual Knysna Oyster Festival has ample more to offer drawing me back year after year, in particular the cycling races...

The mountain bike race is one of those races similar to the Cape Argus Pick 'n Pay mountain bike race (2010 and 2011) in which I don't have a very good track record. I had a decent race back in 2009 when I was new to mountain biking, then in 2010 I punctured a few times to put me out of contention and then missed out last year due to my injury. Never the less I'm always game for setting the record straight.

The weather seemed to be holding out for us much to everyone's delight especially Jayde who was taking part in the 50km event. I was taking part in the 75km marathon event that takes one on a magnificent route deep into the indigenous Knysna forest incorporating some decent climbing and descending, cold temperatures and muddy tracks.

Only about 5km into the race we head up the infamous Simola climb. It is a tar road in which the combination of a steep gradient and Darren Lill (Team Bonitas) setting the pace on the front results in some serious suffering and splintering of the bunch. From here you drop down for a brief period at speeds in excess of 50km/hr on a winding forest gravel road into the valley before crossing a river and coming up face to face with a "wall-of-a-climb" to head back out the valley. I say this because immediately the gradient kicks up so steep at the base of the climb that you almost come to a complete stand-still from a speed of 50km/hr within the space of about 2 seconds and looking ahead you see the other riders only a few meters not in front of you but on top of you!

I started to get into a good rhythm and felt quite strong as the race then started to take shape. We had formed a solid chase group consisting of 5 riders (my team mate Ruan du Toit and I from Blend Property, Renay Goustra of RSA-web, Kevin Evans of 360Life and Louis-Bresler Knipe of Contego Giant) and we had the leading 4 riders (Waylon Woolcock and Niel Macdonald of RECM, Darren Lill of Bonitas and James Reid of 360Life) in sight. I thought if we work hard together we'll be able to catch them, however, this was not to be. Darren Lill managed to power away from the leading group to take the win. Our group split up a few times on some of the climbs but came back together each time. With about 5km to go to the finish just about where the race was initially decided going up the Simola hill it was once again where the race was finally decided between our group. Differing from previous years where we simply descended the tar road from Simola we were directed off to the side of the road onto a grassy track. We hit this at great speed and I almost lost control over the bumpy grass. After regaining my composure I was left behind by the other 3 riders from our group. Known for his downhill skills, Louis managed to open up a gap once at the bottom and we were all split up and left to individual time trail over the remaining 3km into Knysna. This meant I ended up coming 8th in the end (2hr52min) with only a few seconds separating us from 5th to 8th place.

In the end I was happy with a top 10 position with a rather strong field of riders present and I felt good in comparison to the last 2 weeks. I'm beginning to regain a bit of form after some time off and getting back into solid training again, so things look like they are on track as I build up towards the second half of the years races. Nothing better than racing your way back into shape...

I must mention how Jayde managed to come 11th out of 153 ladies in the 50km event! An awesome result which seems like all the mountain biking is definitely beginning to show. Next year bring on the 75km race...

USSA Student mtb champs Garmin file

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/195627916

USSA Student mountain bike champs

"What are you doing here? You not a student..."

That was the reaction I got from many of the guys at the opening function at Primi in Paarl on Monday night making me feel very old at the age of 27. Just because I managed to find myself a beautiful woman and get married to her doesn't mean I'm old! I'm a registered full-time student at the University of Cape Town (UCT) in my second and final year of completing a Masters Degree in Atmospheric Science. Currently I'm in the think of writing up 18 months worth of research on extreme rainfall synoptics in South Africa into one big thesis that is due on 10 September!

Anyways, enough of the academic talk, which brings me to my topic of this blog, the USSA Student cycling champs. Surprisingly this would be my first (and most likely last) time competing in this annual event. This has been due to my focus on triathlon racing in the past years as a student. So I wasn't going to let anything get in the way of this opportunity especially as it was taking place on local soil in Wellington.

The mountain bike race takes on a cross-country style mountain bike race. For those who aren't familiar with mountain biking there are a few forms of mountain bike racing in which the more common two forms are marathon racing and cross-country racing. Marathon racing is what I mostly (well always) compete in consisting of a longer race normally anything from 70 odd kilometers to well over 120km (thats about 4 to 5+ hours of racing) as well as multi-stage events such as the Cape Epic and joBerg2c. Cross-country racing is the official Olympic format that consists of racing laps around a circuit with each lap normally being about 5-7km long depending on the technicality of the circuit resulting in a race aimed to last about 1hr30min to 1hr45min. Therefore one can see that cross-country racing is shorter and as a result very fast and intense throughout, while marathon racing is a real test of endurance.

We were treated to a 6.2km lap around the awesome trails of Walvanpas at the base of Bains Kloof Pass for this event. The start of the race was fast as normal for such a race in order to get into a good position as you enter the first section of single track. I managed to be positioned in 4th place, however, about half way through the first lap I wasn't able to keep up the speed and fell off the pace a bit and back into 5th place by the end of the first lap. My lungs, legs and eyes were burning with the intensity and I couldn't bear to think that I still had 5 laps to go!

Having said this I started warming up... and by the end of the second lap I had moved my way back into 4th place. At this stage I really started enjoying the course and was able to push myself very hard but 3rd place wasn't in sight.

With two laps to go I really started to turn on the gas and said to myself that I wasn't going to come 4th! As I started the 6th and final lap I caught a glimpse of Heiko Redecker from Marties up ahead. I had one lap to make or break it! I managed to catch up to and pass Heiko thus moving into 3rd place. Just as I did this I saw that Adrian Louw from CPUT was only about 100m ahead! I pushed hard to get a small gap over Heiko as he kept up a fight and at the same time with about 2km to go Adrian glanced back on one of the single track switch backs to see me and really put the hammer down to make sure I didn't catch up to him before the finish, while my Blend Property team mate Charles Keey racing for CPUT was ahead and claimed the victory.

But the race wasn't over until the finish line was crossed! With only a small gap I had on Heiko for the last bit of rocky technical single track, while trying to keep it together and not make a mistake causing me to loose my 3rd place he managed to catch up to me without me realizing and thus resulting in a spectacular finish as he tried to sprint past me in the last few meters only to miss-judge the bend and side-swiping me sending us both crashing into the finishing gazebo just short of the line! With natural instinct and a quick reaction I managed to bounce back up, pick my bike up and step over the line to claim a much fought after 3rd place! I was very happy to get onto the podium for a very memorable 2012 student champs!

This is what I managed to get hold of from the photographer:

Down we went...

All that was needed was a quick recovery and step over the finish line

Results:
1. Charles Keey (CPUT, Blend Property)
2. Adrian Louw (CPUT, Contego Giant)
3. Dave Morison (UCT, Blend Property)

Knysna RECM200 3-day mtb stage race

Jayde hooking it up a steep climb! And yes thats me the weekend warrior with a camelbak-full of supplies (tools and tubes for both bikes, food and jackets) to make sure the princess was light and comfortable under any circumstances...

June is a quite month on the racing calendar and in my case fortunately so, as it is a vital month of the year to regain composure after the busy first half of the year and before getting back into some serious training leading up to the second half of the year. Thus what better opportunity to head to Knysna and take part in the RECM200 3-day mountain bike stage race with Jayde!

This would be the first time we would be competing together as a team in a mountain biking stage race. The past couple of months leading up to this event I had her training on her mountain bike more often than before and her mountain biking capabilities improved in a big way! With a few rides up to the mast and down the single tracks her mountain biking capabilities significantly improved along with her confidence!

Beautiful farm lands as well as the weather playing its part

Stage 1: 73km, 1400m climbing
We started out from the Knysna Elephant Park and by not going flat box from the gun, as usual for me in a race, I got to see one of the mighty animals. At one stage riding nicely along an open stretch of road I happened to glance behind to see if Jayde was on my wheel and saw that not only Jayde was there but a huge peleton of riders! I am a little reluctant to mention that it was also at this stage my mind slipped into a little dream world as I was enjoying myself so much that I missed a turn and lead the entire bunch of about 30 people wrong! Fortunately we encountered a closed gate soon afterwards and were only a couple 100m off course so the consequences weren't too bad! The vibe was fantastic amongst the riders in the bunch all out there for a good time, with a bit of racing on the side. Much to Jaydes amusement while riding along a stretch of grassy jeep-track I was chatting to one guy who all of a sudden got a tree branch wedged into his front wheel causing him to be catapulted over his handle bars and his bike to fling over knocking me on my back and off into the bushes! Later in the stage Jayde took a bit of a tumble on a very slippery wooden bridge that rattled her nerves a bit, however, toughening up to be a true mountain biker all was good and we finished the day in a time of 4hr03min, 4th mixed team and 19th overall.

Crossing the finish line of stage 2

Stage 2: 66km, 1500m climbing
Any mountain biking race with 1500m of climbing is definitely not going to be a walk in the park. And this stage prove just that with some awesome climbing in the mountains behind Knysna. Jaydes naturally competitive spirit and always wanting to push her limits and do well resulted in me giving her a bit of a push here and there up some of the climbs. This was great for me too as I got to ride a bit harder and test my one-handed riding up 16% slippery gradients. We finished the stage in a time of 3hr35min coming in 4th mixed team again and 15th overall.

Cashing back hard after fixing a broken chain on stage 3

Stage 3: 59km, 1100m climbing
The final stage treated us to the magnificent Harkerville trails. Having done a training ride here in November last year (while away on our first wedding anniversary!) we were familiar with what lay ahead. Unfortunately my bike didn't seem to be enjoying the riding as much as I was and my chain decided to break early in the stage! A quick fix and we were back on our way to play a bit of catch up. This just added a bit of excitement to the race for us as we chased and caught up to and passed fellow riders. In the end we rode onto Thesen Island to cross the finish line in a time of 3hr08min, 4th mixed team again and 22nd overall.

All fun and laughter in the end

It was a great event for us and especially for Jayde as her first mountain biking stage race as we experienced the dynamics a mountain biking stage race has to offer. On the riding side it traversed awesome scenery with a great variety of terrain, a wipeout (as a mountain biking stage race doesn't come without a crash!) and a mechanical to fix resulting in a hard chase back. Off the bike we got to be apart of the unique vibe a mountain biking stage race possesses in the form of the post days riding congregation over great food sharing the days war stories amongst everyone.

Our total time for the 3 days, about 200km of riding and 4000m of climbing was 10hr59min. We were the 4th mixed team and the 18th team overall (out of 59 finishing teams)! It was also a treat to have my parents supporting for the 3 days, helping with logistics and being on the finish line to welcome us in each day!

Husband and wife combination

Mid-year reflection

Hilton hill top with Roan Exelby. Photo Cherie Vale

The first half of the year and one of the busiest racing seasons I've ever had has come to an end. After having a much needed week holiday away with Jayde (without taking any bikes along) training has begun. Being back on the bike I've had so time now to reflect back on the season as so many race memories flash though my mind along with the highs and lows.

Some quite stats: (season starting mid-January 2012)

• Out of 19 weekends I raced on 17 of them, some of them both Saturday and Sunday as well as multi-stage races 
• 35 total days of racing! That means just over a month of pure racing in a 4 and a half month period!
• Total of 3111km in a time of 127hr14min raced (average of 91km and 3hr44min per race)
• 32 mountain bike races and only 3 were road races
• Included are 4 multi-stage mountain bike races (two 3-day races and two 8/9-day races)
• 11 of the weekends involved traveling away for the weekend either by flying or car (5 by flying and 6 by car)

MTN National Ultra-marathon series:
The first race of the series back in January was Barbeton. It was a good start to the series for me having a very consistent race and placing in the top ten. The second leg of the series took place in Tulbagh a little closer to home. A tough ride with a result I wasn't too overly excited with being just outside the top ten, however, at least being relatively consistent. Sabie was the 3rd national on the calendar and was also a World Cup event forming part of the 8-race world series that takes place around the world throughout the year. This meant that it was also a World Champs qualifier. This is always an event I look forward to having enjoyed it and done well in the past, however, this time it was my biggest disappointment of the season having crashed out. I had to miss out on the 4th event in Clarens due to the clash with joBerg2c, but then raced the 5th event in Mabalingwe. Having completed the 9-day joBerg2c only a week before I was content with a 10th place finish. This puts me currently in 10th place on the national rankings.

The first race of the season deserves a mention because being the first race you are not normally in peak racing shape at this early stage and ironically it is also one of the hardest and most grueling mountain bike races on the calendar, the Attakwas! Never-the-less it is one I enjoy taking place over a magnificent route and this year I managed to come 5th.

My birthday in PE at the Herald mtb

The craziest idea of the season was driving to PE for the weekend (from Cape Town) for the Herald mountain bike and road race in the beginning of February, especially seeing that it had been raining heavily there for quite a few days before and on the Saturday for the Mountain bike race. This came as my worst birthday present ever being forced to withdraw from the mountain bike race after wiping out in the mud and then spending the rest of the day going to the hospital in PE.

A highlight race definitely had to be the Ride the Rock 3-day stage race in Cederberg. Awesome organization in a beautiful part of the world with a stage win thrown in on stage 2 and lots of good wine made for a great experience!

Another 3-day stage race on home soil was the Grape Escape which came as a warm-up to the big daddy-the Cape Epic. Here Charles and I riding as a team for our sponsor Blend Property managed to come 4th overall and be the first all South African team. My 20th consecutive Cape Argus Pick 'n Pay Cycle Tour followed shortly, which I finished in a time of 2hr37min. Then it was the final build up to the Cape Epic and the first free (none-racing) weekend since I started in the middle of January.

ABSA Cape Epic

The Cape Epic then had to be the biggest race of the season (and one of the biggest ever). The whole race and the hype around it makes it truly awesome and special. Also having Jayde there supporting by my side the entire time made it even more amazing. After a few solid days and lying in 13th position overall, a day of hypothermia gave me quite a knock that resulted in some of the hardest and most testing days I've ever experienced on the bike before. We (Charles and I of Blend Property) managed to finish 18th overall and 5th all South Africa team.

Coolest trophy ever, Tokai Mast Challenge

A highlight and a bit of a relief was then being able to retain my Tokai Mast Challenge title. I say relief due to my condition post Cape Epic as I had taken a few days off to recover as well as carrying a couple of extra kilo's in body weight (in which a race such as this plays a huge role).

Then came a big highlight of the season, the Old Mutual joBerg2c 9-day mountain bike stage race. Yet again, brilliant organization and an amazing race all the way from Joberg to Scottburgh this race is very special and one that I recommend for everyone to do! Riding in a team with Louis-Bresler Knip for Itec-Connect we managed to come 3rd overall, a result we were very pleased with!

The season was then coming to an end and especially after a 9-day stage race like joBerg2c I needed to take some time off. However, I had the RECM 100 miler towards the end of May. Having to push my body beyond its call for me to slow down a bit I must say I don't think I was in the best of shape for a 160km mountain bike race!

A big thank you has to go to my sponsor Blend Property for making this all possible! It was clearly a very busy season and another big thanks has to go to Jayde for her amazing support throughout all of it! With so many races it is difficult to fit in some proper training and stay on top form at a competitive level for all and therefore highs and lows are customary throughout such a time. Now it is time for some proper training again to build up towards the second half of the year AND some Masters thesis writing!

Next race... a fun 3-day mountain bike stage race (RECM 200) down in Knysna in which I will be riding with Jayde!

My beautiful wife and I at the finish of the ABSA Cape Epic

MTN National ultra-marathon #5 Mabalingwe

Only 7 days ago I rode across the finishline on Scottburgh beach to complete the 9 day, 900km journey of a race from Heidelberg known as the joBerg2c. Racing a National ultra-marathon a week later without much time for recovery was going to be interesting and not something I wouldn't normally do. However, I needed it for the series points due to missing the previous one in Clarens that took place during joBerg2c as well as crashing out of the Sabie one.

The setting for the fifth national ultra-marathon event on the calendar was a race through the bushveld. Yet again this year, Mabalingwe would be another first time event for me. Although the race was new to me the area was not completely new to me as 18-months ago I was spending some very special time there with my number one supporter and wife Jayde, on our honeymoon. I seemed to recall that there weren't any major hills or mountains in the area and was therefore expecting a rather flat undulating route. However, driving around the reserve on game drives in a 4x4 must have given me this distorted impression and when the route information said 110km and 2000m of climbing it got me thinking as to where that was all going to come from!

The course turned out to be one of the toughest on the circuit thus far! The first ramp in gradient came and although it was seriously steep I pushed super hard to go with the pace set up front by some of the guys. My impression of the area changed almost immediately as we climbed around a few corners and the path continued upwards without any respite in lung-busting gradient. I then accepted my prior ignorance regarding the landscape of the Mabalingwe reserve and at the same time began to fall off the pace.

Once over the top of the climb and safely down some treacherously rocky descending I took on new water bottles and some food from my number one supporter Jayde at the first feed/tech zone (who in the process had some difficulty in navigating her way through the reserve to get there for us, but as usual she was doing a superb job). Soon afterwards we encountered the next big climb and yet again it turned out to be never ending. I think this was the case because you would go so slow up the climb as you battled to find traction on the very rough, loose rocky paths. My hardtail (no rear suspension) bike didn't seem to handle the section on top of this climb and descending the other side, or should I rather say my body didn't quite handle my hardtail bike as I got bounced and battered while struggling to keep forward momentum.

I managed to find a bit of a rythem and continued to push hard chasing back as many positions as possible. With 12km to go I caught sight of my team mate from Blend Property Charles Keey ahead. Hoping to be able to ride a bit together and keep each other going in the latter stages of the race this was not to be as he was completely blown and not in a happy place. So I pushed on weaving my way through the back markers of the shorter distance route which we had now rejoined back onto. In the end I managed to cross the line in 10th place, happy with another top 10 (just) in a national event, however, a little off the pace as to what I would ideally like.

The biggest highlight of the race took place quite soon after the start. While riding up close alongside the lion enclosure fence out the corner of my eye I saw a lioness charge out the bush and come after us! Fortunately for us there was a big electric-fence between the lioness and us but it definitely raised heart rates as well as the pace in the bunch because straight away things split up completely. Other than that I didn't really see much game apart from a few buck, however, the experience of riding through the reserve was a tough but exciting one as it was different to the mountain biking I'm used to coming from Cape Town.

Jayde's friend came to ask for a drink of water

Old Mutual joBerg2c

Most people are aware of the fact that the city of Johannesburg is a long way from the coast line. For the large population of South Africans living the high-speed lifestyle customary to the city of Johannesburg know the N3 highway that delivers them to their annual holiday destinations usually somewhere in sight of the sea in Durban. Hence the trip through the millie fields and the single stop at the Harrismith Wimpy goes by very quickly and often noticed.

I got a chance to enjoy a different and more interesting approach to this journey, which took 9-days (opposed to 5hrs...) and involved a few more stops, eating lots of traditional koeksisters, meeting new people and of course racing my guts out through some of the most beautiful scenery our country has to offer. This came in the form of the Old Mutual joBerg2c mountain bike stage race.

As the name implies you start just outside Joberg near the town of Heidelberg on the Friday and head south to finish on the beach in Scottburgh 9 days later. This was my second time participating in this event after thoroughly enjoying it last year! A lot happens in just one day of racing so one can imagine how much takes place in 9 days! I thought about trying to touch only on some of the highlights of the race/event, however, this proved to be difficult as in this case everything was a highlight!

Stage 1 was a non-race day due to the dragon boat crossing of the Vaal Dam being the only, yet fun means of getting across this large body of water. It is, however, a nice way of easing the legs into the 8 days of racing ahead and still involved covering a lengthy 114km of riding to get us to the first over night stop in the town of Frankfort. This would also be the first time riding with (and not against) my partner for the 9 days, Louis Bresler Knipe from the Contego Giant Team. Myself being from the Blend Property Team, we had been given an opportunity and formed a coalition as the Itec Connect-Vodacom Team to take on the Old Mutual joBerg2c. The racing would begin the following day and I'll also get a taste as to how my legs have recovered since finishing the ABSA Cape Epic only 4 weeks ago!

The clever structure of the prize money available for each day made the racing fierce every day! The first racing day being stage 2, was a mere 93km with 1000m of climbing taking us from Frankfort to Reitz. Clearly this prize money structure made all the guys forget that there was 7 days of racing still to come after this stage as the pace was so fast and intense! We finished the stage with an average speed of 30.4km/hr and the top 5 teams crossing the finish within 2min of each other! We managed to take 4th position, knowing that that incredibly sort after podium is not going to come easy over the next 7 days!

The next day was a solid 126km ride through the millie fields and I think after the furious pace set in yesterdays stage the sting had been removed from many of the guys legs. After the initial split up of the field soon after leaving the town of Reitz the front bunch remained together until things heated up with about 30km to the finish on the waters edge of Sterkfontein Dam. An amazing 4km stretch along the mighty Sterkfontein Dam wall lead us to stage 3's finish line after 4hr24min with yet another 4th place.

The 121km (1600m climbing) stage 4 from Sterkfontein Dam to the little town of Winterton is one of the most amazing routes in the country! Some single tracks mixed with some steep undulations soon takes you to the "Great Wall My China" as it is known as. Basically this is a stretch of single track running along the very top edge of the escarpment. Without much between you and a couple hundred meters sheer drop and an amazing endless view to the right, one important rule was enforced and that was strictly NO overtaking on the right! The route also took in a brutally steep climb up to the top of Spionkop which is known for the Battle of Spionkop that took place on 24 January 1900 during the Anglo Boer War. After a long hard 4hr55min we had to settle with 5th place for the stage.

Stage 5 took on 101km and with the Drakensberg Mountains in the vicinity some uphill riding was instal. The stage profile looked like it was only an uphill ride between Winterton and Kamberg with only 900 meters of descent compared to the 1400 meters of climbing! The first part of the route was relatively flat and easy going resulting in the bunch remaining together for quite some time. As soon as the major climbing began things split up and we once again found ourselves lying in 4th position only seconds behind 3rd! We chased hard, however, today wasn't meant to be our day... With about 20km left in the stage Louis seat clamp broke causing his saddle to come off completely! In true South African words "'n Boer maak 'n plan" and we managed to thread wire through the saddle and around the seat post to stabilize it. This obviously cost us precious time and was still not ideal but at least with 20km to go we could limit our losses. We ended up 8th on the stage and dropped one position in the overall standings to be lying in 5th.

We awoke the following day opening our tent flap overlooking the river at the picturesque Glen Garry Resort. Fortunately the body was tied at this stage of the race as if we were to have exited our tent with a little too much energy we would have gone straight into the river with the edge being only about a meter from our tent door! Stage 6 was one for the mountain goats as it was only 91km in length but involved over 1700 meters of climbing with the highest point reaching 1800 meters in altitude and finishing in Underberg. Today was finally our day and we managed to crack that podium to finish in 3rd place as well as to move up into 3rd overall! Kevin Evans and David George of Team 360Life also stamped their authority on the race today by gaining huge chunks of time over the rest of the field.

3 days is what was left between us and the finish on Scottburgh beach and these weren't just an ordinary 3 days... The route from Underberg followed the famous trails of the Sani2c mountain bike race taking in the endless flowing single tracks and of course for our non-swimmers out there, the famous floating bridge! Today's stage 7 saw us racing as a group consisting of the three top teams for most of the way and then battling it out up the final sting in the tail to finish at Mackenzie Club 80km and 2hr53min later. Now that the podium ice had been broken the day before we yet again managed a 3rd place finish.

The penultimate day saw the arrival of the much anticipated Umkomaas River Valley soon after the start, which involved a 17km stretch of downhill single track. Not forgetting the 100km total distance over hard mountain biking terrain and 1500m of climbing stage 8 had to offer making it a real tough day in the saddle especially after the previous 7 days! Team 360Life had got a substantial lead quite early in the stage while we were left fighting it out between 3 teams. With about 30km to go things split up between us and Team RE:CM of Neil MacDonald and Waylon Woolcock managed to get the upper edge on us while we left Paul Cordes and Arno du Toit of the Transact Team trailing closely behind. This is what it came down to at the finish in Jolivet Farm thus claiming another 3rd place.

The fast and furious dash through the sugar cane fields is what characterizes the final day taking us from Jolivet Farm onto the beach in Scottburgh. The stage is only 73km long with double the amount of descending to climbing (800m to 1600m respectively). But that's not to say its an easy walk in the park especially trying to go all out after 8 long hard days of racing! We found ourselves fighting for 3rd place about 2min behind the leading two teams of 360Life and RE:CM with the Transact team who were even more hungry for just one podium position! It was a great battle and without much opportunity to get away and gain time on each other, about 10km to go to the finish we put in a huge effort and made a deciding break to have a nice run into the finish to claim 3rd place for the 4th stage in a row.

This meant that Louis and I took 3rd overall after the 9 days of racing 898km, 11261 meters of climbing, 12816 meters of descending in a total time of 33hrs29min. This behind a well deserved win by Team 360Life and second going to the defending champions Team RECM. It was very rewarding to claim that step on the podium especially being next to those two teams of that caliber! Thanks to Itec Connect-Vodacom for making it possible for us to race and friends and family for going out of their way to helps us out! And lastly to the organizers Glen, Gary, Wappo and their crew for creating this a truly special and "PROPER" (insider joke for those who rode...) mountain biking event!

So from Johannesberg city life through the Freestate millie fields, wolf sanctuaries, river crossings, bridge crossings, mountain passes, forest plantations, single tracks and through the lush sugar cane fields of Kwazulu Natal onto the beach sand of Scottburgh, to those who completed it-well done! The joBerg2c 9-day mountain bike stage race is a fantastic N3 for mountain bikers!

Fun local racing

I always look for any excuse to head out to the Franschhoek valley and this time it was very easy with a race being staged at the Solms Delta Estate! There was also little convincing my wife Jayde with the mention of a nice post-race Sunday lunch in Franschhoek.

It was great to have my team mate from Blend Property, Charles Keey also on the start line to throw in a bit of team tactics in this very fast 3x20km lap race around the wine farms.

After the initial split in the field it was only 6 guys left up front. Charles didn't waste much time and before the end of the first lap had managed to get away with one of the other guys and opened up a lead of about 1min over the rest of us in the group. This meant that I was able to get a free ride in the group along the 4km stretch of road into the wind waiting for the right moment to pounce. This I did about half way through the second lap and managed to get away from the others and then chased hard. In the mean time Charles had managed to shake off the guy that had initially got away with him whom I then caught up to and passed about half way through the third and final lap. All that was left was to hold until the finish and cross the line in 2nd place behind Charles. A great effort from Charles and a good first and second for Team Blend Property!

Showing how far her mountain biking has come along, Jayde also completed the full 60km route (no more shorter/middle distance mountain bike races for her...). Lunch was therefore enjoyed as a good reward in which I, in true South African style, indulged in a superb beef potjie and some red wine.

Next up, that 9-day stage race from Joberg to Scottburgh beach starting on Friday!

Tokai Mast Challenge

A one-way race towards the heavens would always be dreaded by most people, however, the number of participants on the start line for the First Ascent Tokai Mast Challenge seem to grow every year! There's something about us human beings when it comes to physical punishment and a good challenge...

I definitely fall into this category of being up to a challenge and pushing my body to its physical limit. Defying gravity is never an easy task whether it be running or on a bicycle and often it becomes more of a mental challenge. Every gram takes its toll and you find yourself cursing those extra calories you've been indulging in especially in my case over the past few weeks after the ABSA Cape Epic. I was therefore a little nervous this time round as I had a title to defend and not feeling in as good shape as I was on the start line at the foot of the mountain a year ago.

I was pushed quite hard by some of the other riders in the first few kilometers until I heard no heavy breathing or changing gears behind me and I knew I was on my own. I got to the start of the tar road in a fairly decent time only a few seconds slower than last year. But then the race is truly decided in the final 5km as the gradient kicks in and the legs start screaming at you. Here I took some strain and had to push hard to finish in a time of 42m04s a long way off last years 40m26s. However, it was enough to lift the trophy once again and I was delighted and very relieved to regain the title! Next year hopefully I will achieve my goal of breaking 40min...

ABSA Cape Epic in pictures

Photos by Jayde Morison and Marsel Roos

It all begins... TT style

Alpe d'Huez of mountain biking, Meerendale prologue

Stage 1 start, Robertson

Hot, dry, dusty Klein Karoo

Water point/tech zone scurry

One of many refreshing river crossings on a long hot stage 3

Giving it horns!

River crossing number...

Quick chain lube on a cold, wet and muddy stage 5

Oh dear, not good... crossing the finish line in Oak Valley on stage 5

Even worse... thawing out in the medical tent after stage 5

Beautiful Grabouw region with some evidence of the previous days rain

The "Champs-Elysees" of mountain biking, the grand finish in Lourensford - quite something riding through a crowd as big as this!

ABSA Cape Epic

The Cape Epic doesn't need much introduction apart from those who may not know that it is the highest profile mountain biking stage race in the world, hence being referred to as the "Tour de France" of mountain biking. For every mountain biker it is a must do similar to what the Argus Cycle Tour is to road riding. However, the Cape Epic is a much more costly affair and therefore in most cases not possible for many people to participate in. I on the other hand are one of those fortunate ones to have the backing of some amazing sponsors, Blend Property, Gu South Africa and Omnico who made it possible for me to race the ultimate race I've been longing to do since my first one back in 2006.

Basic stage stats: (dist./climbing/time/stage position/GC position)
Prologue: 27km, 873m, 1h22m, 18th, 18th
Stage 1: 113km, 2212m, 4h56m, 19th, 18th
Stage 2: 121km, 1634m, 4h28m, 17th, 17th
Stage 3: 140km, 2647m, 5h56m, 14th, 15th
Stage 4: 101km, 2507m, 5h08m, 14th, 13th
Stage 5: 115km, 1853m, 6h12m, 25th, 16th
Stage 6: 82km, 2165m, 4h43m, 39th, 16th
Stage 7: 62km, 1310m, 3h01m, 22nd, 18th
Total: 761km, 15201m, 35h46m, 18th
(full results)

The prologue on day 1 got of to a good start with my partner Charles Keey being in his element from being a forma multiple TT champion on the road... we set off at a rapid pace! The highlight, which definitely ranks as one of the top throughout the 8 days (although it was lung busting intensity) was riding up the switch-back climb of the hill top finish through the enormous crowd of spectators! Makes you aware of how big this race really is! After peeing in a cup for doping control we were on our way to Robertson for the start of stage-1 the following morning in 18th place on GC (General Classification).

Stage 1 was a real good introduction to what lay ahead over the next few days! Everyone has fresh and excited legs that are raring to race! There was plenty of hike-a-bike sections that were so steep it was difficult to even walk up them let along drag your bike up too. After what seemed to be a very long day and three punctures later we were finished stage-1 remaining in 18th position on GC, which we intended on hopefully improving as the days went on.

Stage 2 involved some true Klein Karoo rocky jeep track riding amongst the dry bossies as well as some visits through the vineyards of the local wine farms. The competition in this race is phenomenal with all best local South African athletes as well as a very strong international contingent of athletes thrown into the field to mix things up! We managed to take one step up on GC after the stage to be in 17th overall before the queen stage the following day.

Stage 3 was the longest in Cape Epic history covering over 140km from Robertson to Caledon. We did well to remain amongst the main bunch for most of the way. The dry heat experienced throughout the long stage made some of the river crossings very refreshing as they were too deep to ride through. After another consistent ride we had moved up to 15th on GC overall.

After a long hot day 4 the approaching storm was starting to bear its teeth as we headed out for a loop around the Caledon farm lands. With some very nice steep climbs and descents we were having a very solid day. However, after doing well to get up the last major climb and down the treacherous descent safely holding a good position we unfortunately lost some time from missing a marker before water point 2. It didn't end there as a little later on while riding with another two teams grinding our way back into a monster of a North Westerly head wind towards Caledon through the endless rolling farm hills we missed yet another turn. The wind seemed to be playing a bit of havoc with the markers... This resulted in us doing some extra riding up a sizable hill and losing some more precious time! After keeping the moral up, which wasn’t easy in those windy conditions and having gone wrong twice we climbed another two spots on GC to now be lying 13th overall! Things were looking up... until day 6 where there is no other way to describe it other than when the sh*%t-hit-the-fan...

The traditional Cape winter cold front was upon us as we made our way from Caledon up and into the mountains of the Houwhoek, Elgin, Grabouw region to finish on the flowing single tracks of Oak Valley. With about 40km left still to the end of the stage while up in the mountains the rain came down in bucket loads. With no extra warm or protected clothing and a sub 5% body fat content hypothermia began to set in! I’ve been cold plenty of times before and in my mind this simply seemed to be one of those occasions, however, my body reacted in a way I’ve never experienced before! I lost all orientation making it very difficult to ride the single tracks of Oak Valley in the last 10km of the stage. I kept riding off the path and struggled to stay on two wheels. The last incident was within 500m from the finish where I fell down into a little river and was stuck up-side-down in the water with my bike on top of me and all I remember hearing was Charles shouting “HURRY-UP-DAVE!!!” After crossing the finish line things were rather blurry and I can’t remember too much. The medic that took control of me was fantastic and such an awesome guy, I wish I could have remembered his name... After about 2hrs of finishing, a hot shower and coffee and being wrapped in blankets sitting millimeters from a heater my body temperature was still only 34 degrees! It would have been interesting to know what it was when I had just finished! Eventually after some more cups of hot chocolate my temperature was back up to 36 and I was discharged from the medical tent ready to fight another day...

Unfortunately the fighting that was to take place the following day (day-7) was not a matter of competition and gaining time or positions, it was a matter of survival and trying to limit the damages as much as possible! My body had nothing in it (literally due to the post effects of hypothermia) and I struggled to simply turn the pedals! This made it a real fight to make it through the stage and was one of the worst and longest days on the bike for me (also for Charles who could do nothing but just ride frustratingly slowly while I slogged away).

The previous two days happenings had caused us to drop further down on the overall GC from 13th after day-5 to 16th after day-7 and with my recovery still on the back foot the final day was looming. Yet another battle began as we left Oak Valley under perfect conditions en-route to Lourensford. I felt better than the previous day, however, still nowhere near being fully recovered from the knock my body took and thus still struggled. I gave it everything I possible could while Charles pushed and pulled me where ever he could and we managed to finish the stage in 22nd place and limit our losses as much as possible once again, however, unfortunately dropping another 2 places on GC to finish the 8 days in 18th overall.

 A very special mention has to be made for my wife, Jayde. As with all races it is all about the racing and that time spent on the bike, however, in a race like the Cape Epic, any stage race for that matter there is so much that goes on during those hours off the bike between stages. It becomes a routine from day to day and there is so much to organize between stages and preparation for what lies ahead the following day. Being the rider you are often so tied without enough energy to even think straight and the time off the bike can also be considered the most important part of the race in which you need to do as little as possible to recover as much as possible and regain focus! This is where you’ll hear of the word soigneur more commonly heard in the professional European racing scene like the Tour de France. Basically this is a cyclist's personal assistant who is assign to the riders to help them with everything that needs to be done. Jayde fulfilled this role during the 8 grueling days for me in an incredible way! She was always the first person I saw at the finish of each day with everything I possibly needed from carrying a big bag with all my stuff to a cold recovery drink to loving support. She was unbelievable and now she is not only my number-one-supporter but also my super-soigneur! I would also like to thank everybody else for the support, my parents for coming out and watching along the way and all the encouraging messages!

My 20th Cape Argus Pick 'n Pay Cycle Tour

Where's Wally... with a little help from the added circle there's me in the bunch on the front cover of the bumper 35-year edition of the Cape Argus Pick 'n Pay Cycle Tour magazine (along with the other 20 guys haha).

The 35th year of the Cape Argus Pick 'n Pay Cycle Tour also marked my 20th consecutive one! Yes, I'm 27 years old now and that means I did my first one when I was a mere 8 years old and never missed finishing one since. A lot has changed since then and now I'm racing competitively in the elite bunch.

This elite bunch is rather large (I'd say too large for professional road racing consisting of over 200 participants and judging by the time gaps amongst the entire group at the finish) and I normally try and stay out of trouble for the first half of the race avoiding the inevitable crashes (which did happen in a big way at the bottom of the infamous early fast descent of "hospital bend"!). Without doing much road racing this season I found it difficult to hold a decent position in the bunch as handlebars and bums touched while guys squeezed through gaps all at 50km/hr to get closer to the front of the bunch and the big name teams controlled the pace.

I stayed patient until just before Chapmans Peak where I put in some extra efforts and squeezed my way through the bunch to get a bit closer to the front. The pace until this point was slower than the previous year so I knew a bit of tactics amongst the big teams might have been the reason for this and therefore there would be some strong legs in the bunch to really up the tempo over Chappies and Suikebossie to the finish!

Chappies was exactly that as the intensity increased as we neared the top and then continued on the descent as a small break away bunch of about 10 guys had a gap. I found myself hanging onto the back of the main chasing peloton as we swooped around the corners at 60km/hr. It seemed like a blink of an eye and we were already standing up pedaling over little Suikebossie. The main Suikebossie climb was just a blur. I always enjoy climbing, however, this kind of climbing in a road race is very different to the climbing in a mountain bike race, especially having done very little road racing recently! Here they are short lasting only about 5min in which you have to stand up and push out huge watts for the duration, while in mountain biking you are normally forced to stay seated and use more technique and endurance pedaling for a longer time to get you up the climb efficiently.

So, I managed to stay in the main chasing peloton over Suikebossie while the small break away bunch were still a couple of seconds ahead of us. This was to remain until the finish, which at least relieves the pressure off the bunch to sprint for the win at the end (although some of the guys do still sprint for 12th place...) and I was able to cruise over the line to finish my 20th Cycle Tour satisfied with another top elite bunch finish in a time of 2h37m (slower than last year...).

Dissapointing times, MTN National #3 Sabie, UCI World Cup Event

Sabie is one of my favorite stops on the MTN National marathon mountain biking series. The course suites me with its endlessly long climbs. With the excellent work put into organizing these National Series events by the Advendurance crew paying off, this race was incorporated into the UCI World Cup marathon mountain biking series and therefore UCI points and a spot on the start line at the World Marathon Championships in France later this year were all up for grabs! This also attracted some international riders such as the Bulls team none other than Karl Platt and Stefan Sahm together 3x winners of the ABSA Cape Epic!

Having said this the race started at a relatively steady pace unlike the previous few races frantic scuffle in the beginning. I think this is because as you start here in Sabie you also start to climb the monstrous climbs! About 10km into the race on a steady ascent Kevin Evans decided the pace was too easy for him and picked it up. Only his team mate David George and two others were able to follow him. I then found myself in a decent position in the chase bunch of about 7 guys with my team mate from Blend Property Charles and the Bulls guys. We settled into a solid rhythm and slogged our way up the 8km infamous mamba switchbacks climb. As we went over the top at about 25km I felt good and comfortable, however, not for long as all was about to change...

The recent rainfall had wreaked havoc with the steep mountain tracks and were nicely eroded with lots of loose sharp rocks. I came to realize this very quickly as I went round the one corner at quite a speed (it was a steep downhill...) and lost control. It was a bit of a blur to me at the time but I got back up (nothing seemed broken!) and straightened out a few things on my bike and continued riding. However, I started realizing that I was hurting quite a bit and my bike wasn't working quite so well. I managed to fix my cleats that were loose from having ripped the screws out from under my shoes somehow from my crash. Otherwise I had fallen far back in the field by the time we started the second half-marathon part of the route and I just continued rather slowly to limp over the finish line a long time after the winner Kevin Evans who put on a phenomenal performance!

It was obviously very disappointing for me as it was a big race with a lot at stake in which I was doing well at the time! I suppose that's the way the sport goes and I just got to mend myself both physically and mentally to look forward to the next race.

I had my number one supporter Jayde there with me throughout the race and helping me with everything afterwards as I was a bit immobile until, the doctor started stitching up my arm and she started feeling dizzy and had to leave the room before she passed out, hehe.

MTN National #2 - Tulbagh

Finally a "home" race, apart from the 1hr30min drive and a one-night stay over on the Friday before the race, this weekend was personally well anticipated after the endless traveling over the past month and because it was also the second leg of the National mountain biking series. This would be my first time racing in Tulbagh of which I've heard endless mountain biking stories about. There is something about racing in the winelands that I really enjoy. I'm not sure if it because I simply feel like I'm on home soil or if its the privilege of riding on some of the most beautiful landscapes in the world amongst the fine wine producing vineyards.

The start was as usual for the National series events jam packed with the whose who of South African mountain biking and everyone was possibly a little more at ease after the racing season had already began a few weeks ago MTN National #1 Barbeton. Although there was a former world champion and Olympian, Burry Stander in the mix to shake things up!

Hence things got out of hand early into the race and the first King of the Mountains (KOM) climb saw the race split up. The almost "vertical" gradient composed of loose rocks made the riders look like we'd all enjoyed one too many bottles of the regions fine wine before the start as everyone swerved back and forth across the path trying to find traction to stay upright. At this point my chain unfortunately slipped off and got stuck between my cassette and spokes forcing me to hop off and put it back on. However, the steep gradient made it difficult for me to get back on the saddle and peddling again and I was left to run most of the way up. There after it was tough going with the constant change in pace navigating all the tight corners through the vineyards coupled with the short sharp change in gradients. The rough terrain was as unforgiving on the bike as to the body. A number of riders experienced mechanicals through this section before the first tech zone and unfortunately my Blend Property team mate Charles crashed out. I was welcomed to the first tech zone by my number one supporter to refuel positioned just outside the top ten.

Later in the race soon after the second tech zone in which I had roughly held my position and time gap to the leaders I then had to stop twice to inflate my front tyre. From here on the conditions became even harder as the heat became an additional factor to this already grueling race and the time gaps began to multiply. I had finished all my drinks and was desperately looking forward to the next oasis of tech zone 3. These ultras are all about pushing through various physical and emotional stages to get to the finish and this is what I did as we encountered some tough climbing in the last 30km. I saw quite a few riders ahead of me and managed to slowly overtake a few and by the time I reached the third and final tech zone to receive a much needed water bottle from Jayde I had worked my way back into the top ten. Unfortunately that wasn't to last as my body had given in within the last 5km and I experienced some leg seizing cramps and had to watch as our new Blend Property team mate, Ruan and Waylon Woolcock (RE CM) rode past me with 2km to go to the finish resulting in me crossing the finish line in 12th place.

Burry Stander (Specialized) managed to just overcome Kevin Evans (360Life) by a wheel length in the finishing sprint to take the win in an exciting fashion clearly displaying the healthy state of South African mountain biking at the moment. This is also due to the awesome work the Advendurance crew do in putting on these events for us to compete against each other in.

Next up its some worth while traveling to the other side of the country to Sabie, one of my favorite stops on the National calendar for the third round of the National series doubling as the first leg of the World Marathon mountain biking series. Expect some big names and even more exciting racing!

Ride the Rock 3-day MTB stage race, Cederberg

I was super excited to be able to venture deep in the beautiful remote Cederberg mountain range to take part in the inaugural 3-day mountain bike stage race, Ride the Rock. No cell phone reception meant for some much needed relaxation and down time, however, unfortunately my wife wasn't able to come along for the trip so we had to revert back to the good old days and make use of a phone-card phone. The event was based in the shady camp site of Sandrif and the organizers, Stillwater Sports put together an awesome race village!

With some decent training and some races in the legs by now this would prove to be a good test over a multi-stage event. As this was the first staging of the event there was a relatively small field of participates, however, there was certainly no shortage of decent riders on the start line to mix it up front over the 3 days. This made the racing a lot harder than I had anticipated and there was generally a solid bunch of about 8 to 10 guys fighting it out up front.

Day 1, 82km:
David George and Kevin Evans of 360Life set a hard pace from the start and made it difficult for the bunch to stick together once the climbing began about 18km into the race. I just got tailed off the back of the 360Life duo towards the top of the climb and after a short while of descending I was joined by Nico Pfitzenmaier (Robert Daniels), Erik Kleinhans (Contego) and my team mate from Blend Property, Charles. Unfortunately shortly after settling together the extremely rocky terrain got the better of my tyres and I got a puncture. In the meantime Erik had also punctured leaving the race completely split up again. After fixing it up I was back on two wheels in pursuit with no-one in sight behind or in front of me. We had to negotiate a crazy descent that was very steep and composed of very loose razor sharp rocks down into the valley to a small town called Wuperthal before climbing out the valley on the other side. I managed to put in a big effort and catch back up to my team mate Charles from which we rode a solid pace to finish the day together in 4th and 5th a couple minutes back from the winner Kevin.

Day 2, 60km:
With the usual bunch forming after the initial kilometers of the stage we experienced a bit of chaos as expected when we encountered a ladder fence crossing. Now as usual when such obstacles come up you have to get there within at least the first 3 guys of the bunch, however, everyone has the same intentions making it all the more difficult. Having said this I wasn't one of those first 3 and after getting to the other side and crossing a river I found myself chasing frantically to try catch back up to the front again. Soon after we began the major climbing of the stage and I was about 45sec behind the leading group of 6 riders. The 360Life duo rode a hard pace from the beginning of the climb causing the bunch to split up. I felt strong and managed to work my way up the climb and catch up to 3 guys in the chasing group. Not long afterwards we encountered yet another awesome climb and I was feeling good and could see the leading pair of Kevin and David up ahead. I rode a hard pace leaving the group behind. Erik managed to catch onto me just before descending the other side, which was great as we worked well together and made the junction to the leading 360Life pair with about 15km still left in the stage. Unfortunately for Erik he punctured which left just 3 of us in the lead. I worked hard with Kevin and David to try and gain time on some of the others and in the end managed to also cross the finish line in front to take the stage win!

Day 3, 45km:
Being the shortest day, however, the most technical of the 3 days with some amazing stretches of the rockiest single track imaginable, I knew it was going to be difficult to make up time to try get onto the overall podium as I was in 4th place by 1min30sec. With this in mind I still went hard from the start line as the only real climb of the day started about 200 meters into the stage. This resulted in a group consisting of the top 5 guys overall making the initial front bunch of the day. Soon afterwards we entered a long very technical single track, which further split up the bunch. Too much training on the road bike of late has clearly left my technical mountain biking ability almost non-existent and I found myself chasing from then on. Fortunately I had Dan Hugo along side me and we worked nicely together to catch up to my team mate Charles. It was great to be racing next to Dan again bringing back some memories of the past when we raced triathlons against each other as juniors. With a bit more climbing and some awesome jeep track descents in the last 15km, Charles and I rode at a rapid pace not easing up at all until the finish to cross the line together in 4th and 5th again.

After the 3 days of magnificent racing in the Cederberg I had to settle with 4th place overall. A bit disappointing to just miss out on the podium, however, I was very happy with my form over the 3 days and obviously the highlight was winning the second stage! Apart from the great racing, the whole event was extremely well organized with incredible food and nice finishing touches that always make a difference. The award winning Cederberg winery and David Nieuwoudt the generous wine maker, supplied some fantastic prizes as well as an interesting wine tasting experience! A great vibe was maintained throughout the whole event (night and day...) and also thanks to Bokomo, I now have a kitchen cupboard stocked with breakfast goodies!