FOUNTAINS ROAD RACE
(June, 16th)


For most people yesterday was a public holiday, but for cyclist it meant another opportunity to race.

The race was held at Rynfield church in Benoni with the main event being the 96km. Cyclist could also participate in the 56km fun ride.

The woman started separately with a time gap of 10min following the men.
Standing on the start line looking at my competitors I quickly realised that I was out numbered against team Nashua, who had 4 girls in the race.

Team Nashua used their numbers to their advantage by attacking continuously. I was the only one to react, but couldn’t respond to all their attacks. Ann-Li Pretorius (Nashua) was the first to eventually get away. Nashua just repeated their tactics and soon Joanna van de Winkel (Nashua) also got away. I tried counter attacking but with one, sometimes two, Nashua girls constantly sitting my wheel I weren’t able to do anything.

Plan B - I decided to let all the girls from Nashua ride away one by one, because they made it quite obvious that that was what they were planning on doing. Then I can get away from the group on my own and catch up to them to get at least a 5th place finish.

With the whole Nashua team riding solo following each other in the wind I knew I had an advantage over them as I was sitting the first part of the race in the bunch saving some energy. Luckily my plan succeeded as I first caught up to Sanet Small (Nashua) and then Altie Pienaar (Nashua) leaving them to chase me at the end. . Lying in 3rd position I continued pacing myself trying to get closer to the 2 Nashua girls still out in front.

I didn’t see them until I crossed the finish line to realize that Joanna (Nashua) took the wrong turn just before the finish line which moved me a position up finishing 2nd on the day.

1st An-Li Pretorius (Nashua)
2nd Yolandi du Toit (Konica Minolta)
3rd Altie Pienaar (Nashua)

INDUNA MTN MARATHON SERIES no. 3
(13 JUNE)

The 3rd leg of the MTN mountain bike marathon series was held at Induna adventures, just outside Hazyview.

I feared a wet and muddy course after all the rain that fell during the week leading up to the event. Luckily it cleared up on Friday, and I took the opportunity to go and train on parts of the course. The rain actually washed away most loose sand, which made the course compact with only a few wet forest sections.

At 8:00am Saturday morning the 75km (which I participated in) and 105km (newly added ultra marathon for elite men) were the first groups to start.

The Lowveld is well known for its climbs and the race route didn’t disappoint! As the neutral zone ended, we turned off on a dirt road and straight up a 4km climb with gradients of up to 12%.

I found myself struggling up the first hill and lost contact with the leading girls. I tried my best to get back to the leaders on the downhills, but with all the climbing in between, I started to lose motivation and just settled into a comfortable speed, pacing myself to the end.

Despite the fierce argument I had with myself on the climbs, I enjoyed the beautiful singletrack, and took the opportunity to work on my technical skills. This year I managed to ride all the technical sections and even rode smoothly over the hanging bridge! (I still had vivid memories from last year when I almost fell into the river, but luckily caught one of the cables to save myself!!!)
I am still new to the sport and it’s truly satisfying to see any little improvement from one race to the next.

It was evident that the team from Induna adventures put in a lot of effort designing the route. This year they added newly built bridges and interesting parts in the course taking the riders through some spectacular surroundings like the banana plantation etc.


I didn’t do as well as I wanted, but managed to finish as the 3rd elite lady and 5th overall on the day behind Ischen Stopforth and Samantha Oosthuizen (Garmin).
Yolande Speedy showed her class again by competing in the 105km event.

Rooiberg Echo Challenge
(6,7 June)

Rooiberg, a small settlement to the west of Bela Bela was the venue for a 2day MTB stage race held this past weekend.

On Friday I left Heidelberg just after lunch, hoping to miss traffic on the N1 but as unpredictable as the traffic can be, I drove straight into it. A normally 1hour drive took me more than 2hours. I felt relieved as I drove out of Pretoria leaving the busy city behind me heading out onto the open freeway towards the bushy landscape of Limpopo province.

As I left the freeway at Bela Bela off ramp, the road to Rooiberg was filled with game farms and I was even lucky enough to see a few different species of antelope.
I arrived well after dark at Etosha Nature reserve where I stayed for 2 nights. The lodge is situated deep in the bush, which gives you the opportunity to experience the sounds and beauty of nature.

Day 1, 70km
Etosha Nature reserve is a 30min drive from the race start. I left at 6:30am, just in time to see the sun rise!!!
The race started at 8:00am. I am always glad to get on my bike and start, it gives my nerves time to settle down and I can concentrate on the race.

On the first flat part of the race I worked my way into the leading position. We got to a very steep hill which forced us to get off our bikes and push. It was here were Samantha Oosthuizen (Garmin) came running past me while pushing her bike. On the downhill I tried to make up some lost time but on one of the corners I slipped and fell. Yolandi de Villiers( Cycle Lab) then made her way past me. I struggled to get into a rhythm again and lost a bit of confidence. Yolande Speedy caught me half way through the stage, and with her experience and technical skills I wasn’t able to follow.

The race had ± 60 km of single track, with some sections being really technical. We also had to cycle through a fire which had only just started when I came past. The marshals had to redirect the rest of the field behind me around the fire. I never manage to make up time on the 3 girls out front and finished in 4th place for the day.

Stage 2, 85km
I started my day with another beautiful sunrise, and this made it worthwhile getting up so early.

In a repeat of the previous day, we were off at 8am.
The first part of the course consisted of singletrack with river crossings and rocky climbing sections, where you had to carry or push your bike most of the time. I struggled to carry my bike and was laying 4th coming out of the “hike a bike” section.
Although the stage had less singletrack, it wasn’t any easier than day 1.
The first day’s technical singletrack was replaced by loose rocky descents and ascents, thick sand and river crossings, which required just as much skill and concentration.

The two stages were long and tough. After riding for almost 10hours in 2 days, I managed to get a podium place in the end by finishing 3rd overall in the ladies category.

Results
1st Yolande Speedy
2nd Samantha Oosthuizen
3rd Yolandi du Toit