2014 Coronation Double Century

The Double Century was scheduled for 222 November. This year we made double sure we had an entry, ending up with two entries. Fortunately it was easy to cancel one.

Plan started in May and we had our first training ride on 9 August. The team members were fairly “flexible” in that we took our time filling the team up. Clive Kerr, who rode with us in 2011 managed to “draft” some strong men from Paarl. Sieg also managed to get a couple of hard riders from Metropolitan, who also agreed to provide tops. Hennie de Clercq decided at the second last training ride that he was not ready, but I managed to get Eugene van Niewenhuizen to join us on the same day and he replaced Hennie. Danie  Kotze injured his knee two months before the race and decided that 200 km will not be good for his knee, so he withdrew two weeks before the due date. During the next week one of the metropolitan guys, Nigel Shannon, was informed that he had to e bib Bangkok during the weekend of the DC. One of the Paarl guys managed to draft in Andries Duminy at short notice, but we could not find a replacement for Danie. During the last week Clive and Sieg withdrew due to illness. We therefore were due to start with only 9 riders.

Race day was a little chaotic with Eugene waiting for us at the start and the rest of us waiting for him in the Main Street! When we finally got together we realized that his number and top was still in the Main Street. He therefore had to go and fetch that before he could start, but we were due to be off in 2 minutes! We arrived at the start just in time for our starting time, but without Eugene. So all we could do was to cross the start line and wait for Eugene on the other side. While some guys sped off into the distance, Gert and myself waited for Eugene, who arrived 5 minutes later. At last we were off at a reasonable pace, hoping to catch up with the rest soon. This happened after about another 15 minutes and at last we were in one group.

The initial part of the course is fairly flat so it was easy to maintain a reasonable pace. By the time we reached the bottom of Tradouw Pass, our average speed was 30 kph, in spite of the fact that we started 5 minutes late! En route to Suurbraak we were caught by the team, which contained my brother’s two sons. Some interesting inter changes were exchanged while we were riding together. They started after us and we managed to pus away from them. Some of my team members were also concerned about my rear tyre being flat. My response was that it was not so flat that it was bumping through, so I decided to continue until it really became a problem

The weather was just about perfect and we really had a nice ride. It was misty with coolness in the air. The mist disappeared after the first hour. The temperature remained below 20 degrees Celsius for the first 2:46. By this time we were on top of On the Tradouw, where the first scheduled stop was. We agreed to give this stop a miss and carried straight on. Our average speed dropped to 25.2 by the time we went over the top. I did managed to work up quite a bit of heat going up the pass, with my heart rate going up to 101%. Once over the top, to undulations to Montague started.  With the good whether we were having, it was quite easy to maintain a good average speed. Teams were also working together helping one another resulting in an increase in average speed.

At 76 kilometers, Nelis had a flat. My rear tyre was holding out well, but I did take the opportunity to inflate it as well as the front. Both held to the end! Gert and myself decided to continue on while the others help to fix the flat. We were caught by the rest of the group in a short space of time and the pace increased again when everybody was together. Somewhere before Montague, Gert started picking up problems with cramps and Eugene and myself got separated from the group. Eugene decided to take it on himself to pace me and I had my work cut out to stay in his slipstream. We arrived at the neutral stop at Ashton 5 minutes after the rest of the group and after 117 km and 4:15. That gave us an average of just over 27.5 kph. The group spent 23 minutes at the stop, with Eugene and myself only using 18 minutes. The cramps got the better of Gert and he pulled out at Ashton.

The road to Robertson is fairly flat and the pace was hot. After about 5 km I decided that the pace was too hot for me. When the guys looked around for me, I indicated for them to maintain their pace and leave ne behind. That was the last time I saw them! I now had the prospect of another 80 km all on my own! We had a bit of breeze on our backs and I just maintained my pace. O turning left at Robertson, the wind turned to diagonally form the front. It was not too strong so it was not a serious problem. Some groups came past me, but by the time I realised that I should try to tag onto them, they were gone. After a while I managed to jump onto a group and kept up with them. This was happening all the way to the second neutral stop at Bonnievale. I was well pleased to see our seconding vehicle still waiting. The reaction form the ladies gave me the impression that they did not expect me! I had something to eat and filled my bottles, which were more that half full, with ice and was on my way after 10 minutes. It took me 1:45 to cover the 47 km, giving an average speed of 26.85 kph. According to the pace I was maintaining, I was going to come in at about 7:45, but anything can happen over the last number of hills, which can bring once average down quite a bit.

I managed to hang onto various groups as they came past up to the last water point at 177 km, covering the 14 km in 45 minutes. The terrain was getting hillier and it was reflected in my average speed. The balance of the route was more uphill than downhill and I prepared myself for a nice “grind” to the end. Just before we reached the R60, George Wienekus, who rode with me in June during the Freedom Challenge, came past. I did managed to keep up with his team for a while, but they dropped me on the second last hill. His team started 6 minutes after us. On one of the last hills towards Swellendam, I did notice some team members from my bother’s son’s team on the last hills into Swellendam. It transpired that they came in after our team, but before me in their overall time. From the top of the last hill a group formed and we worked together nicely up to the end.

The end does have a nasty sting in the tail with 34 meters of climbing over a distance of 800 meters. According to my timer I was going to finish in less than 8 hours! I gave it all up this last hill and crossed the line in 7:55! After taking the neutral stops into consideration that would probably come down to 7:30. Quite an achievement considering that we have not managed to break 8 hours since 2005! The composition of the team had a lot to do with that and we definitely had the strongest team this year.

The final time for the team was 7:05:13 and my time was 7:19:59.

Wine2Whales Day 3

Day 3 held the promise of moving from 300 meter above sea level to sea level, so there was the promise of more downhill than uphill. People started moving again at 05:00, so there was no point in trying to sleep any longer. After the usual breakfast, we got everything ready for the start at 07:20. We also had to pack our bags and deliver them to the DHL truck for collection in Onrus after the race.

We got going at 07:20 and like usual we started with some climbs, but today’s were very much gentler than the previous two days. None of then was as long either. While I was riding I felt an occasional spray over my back leg and realized that it must be tyre sealant coming out through the plug in my rear tyre!  A guy came past and wanted to know whether I knew that there was a problem with my rear tyre! I just ignored it and hoped and prayed for the best!

After some initial farm roads, which included a nasty mud pool, we were taken onto a single track, which ended as we went onto the old gravel Houwhoek Pass. This was quite rough and challenging, but exhilarating! The first water point was at the Botriver School, but we were first taken on a “senic” ride through the town before were arrived there! After a quick couple of Cokes and some eats, we were on our way again.

The next 15 kilometers was mostly downhill with the odd little hill in between and some nice single tracks. At 40 kilometers we took a left turn and started the day’s serious climbing. This started with a gentle climb, during which we gained 150 meters over the next 7 kilometers, followed by a kilometer downhill leading onto a 3 kilometer climb during which we gained 150 meters.  Some more gentle ups and downs took us through the second water point and onto water point three at Hamiton Russel Wine Farm. During the last couple of kilometers I started hearing a noise from the rear wheel, which I immediately identified as the ends of the plug tapping against the frame. That meant that the plug was busy coming out! I decided to ignore it and ride until I felt that the rear was getting to soft the carry on.

The Hamilton Russel water point was followed by the last climb of the race, 150 meter in 2 kilometers. Once over the top it was all downhill the finish, including some more wonderful single tracks down the Hemel en Aarde Valley and then onto the beach, where the track was marked with pallets over the sand, and onto the finish at the caravan park.

Total time 4:32:40; 75.86 km; 1,339 meters elevation gain; 1,631 meters elevation loss; average speed 16.7 k.p.h. We finished 165 out of 554 teams and fell back to 157 overall. We finished 9^th in the 50+ age group on the day and also moved up to 9^th overall.

Wine2Whales Day 2

Day 2 consisted of a 68 km circle route around Oak Valley. We were moved up to group C and our starting time was 07:20. We thought we will get up at 05:45, but the first people started moving at 05:10 and there was not much chance of sleeping after that! Breakfast was served from 05:30. Once again it was a wonderful spread. The only problem we had was to not eat too much! During the previous evening I felt that my rear tyre was not as hard as normal and I had to pump it.

Day 2 really is a “fun” day with about 70% single track including the exquisite Paul Cluver cycle park. We started off with a 70 meter climb during the first kilometer.  We lost that in the next 4 kilometers and then went on to a gentle climb, which took us onto the single tracks in the hills behind Oak Valley. This was the beginning of the “fun” part of Wine2Whales. For the next 25 kilometers we spent most of the time on single tracks. Farm roads connected some of these, but mostly the one led to the other. Some of them were single tracks that are used annually during the Dirtopia 24 hour race at oak Valley. This led us into the second water point. At one point I noticed that Mike Smit was not close to me anymore and had to wait for him. It transpired that his pedal hit a rock and he came down. Fortunately nothing serious was damaged, but he did have some minor problems with his gears after this mishap.

The magnificent Paul Cluver Cycle Park, with its wonderful single tracks and ingenuous bridges followed.

We really had  a wonderful time riding these tracks. Some farm and forestry roads up to the third water point followed this. I realized that my rear tyre was loosing air and I had to stop to pump it. After water point three we were back onto some forestry roads and then more singles tracks leading up to the final water pint at 56 kilometers.

A steady climb up some farm roads and more single tracks brought us to the Paul Cluver Packing shed. Here we were treated to some more ingenious tracks especially made for us amongst the packing crates. This included some nice berms and also a bridge, which took us above some of the tracks we road minutes earlier. On one of the berms, Mike lost his balance and toppled down the hill. Once again the bush came out worse than what mike did! When we came out the other side, I found that my rear tyre was fairly soft again. With only 8 kilometers left to the end, I went the pumping route again. From here it was also mostly downhill to the end. I very quickly realized that my rear tyre problem was more serious than I though, but I addressed it by spending more time standing up and not putting to much pressure on the rear wheel. The last three kilometers was Oak Valley single tracks again and riding with a flattish rear wheel was becoming a challenge, but it just help to the end and we crossed the finish line without any further incidents.

During the afternoon I plugged the offending tyre, taking care to cut the protruding pieces sticking out the sidewall down to a reasonable length. The problem was a cut in the sidewall, so the potential for more problems was very prevalent. I managed to get a pump from the Specialized boys and made sure that the tyre was inflated properly.

Total time 4:22:22; 67.85 km; 1,423 meters elevation gain; 1,4218meters elevation loss; average speed 15.5 k.p.h. We finished 214 out of 571 teams and fell back to 171 overall. We 14^th in the 50+ age group on the day and overall.

Wine2Whales Day 1

31 October to 2 November 2014 was time for the Wine2Whales MTB from Lourensford, Somerset West to Onrus next to Hermanus on the Southern Cape coast. Mike Smit and myself managed to get an entry again and were ready for this annual outing. We left Blouberg at 05:30 to ensure that we get to Lourensford in good time to sort out the vehicles transfer to Onrus and hand in our luggage for transfer to Oak Valley.

We were seeded in Group E and our starting time was 07:40. A light breakfast was provided and we had some yoghurt and fresh fruit to “pep” us up for the day. The first stage was from Lourensford via the foothills behind the farm, over the Gantouw Pass, which was used by the Voortrekkers 200 years ago, on to Oak Valley in the Elgin/Grabouw district.

In contrast to last year, the weather was just about perfect. We left on time and were immediately confronted with some serious climbing. In the first 5 km we climbed 347 meters. In the next 15 km, to the first water point, we lost a net 278 meters, but it did include some gentle climbing with a net additional gain of 159 meters. It took us 1:17 to complete this 20 km. This was followed by a 21 km stretch during which was gained 641 meters but also lost 486 meters, so we had our fair share on ups and downs.

The next stretch included Gantouw Pass, a compulsory portage section which is 1 km and took us 23 minutes to complete. I enclose some photos of the wagon tracks etched out in the rocks! It is amazing what those guys managed!

Once over the top, we were treated to the most amazing single tracks.

During the next 10 km we probably did not do more than 200 meters on either jeep tracks or district roads. The one single track led into the next one. It really was a joy to ride and that brought us to the last water table. The last section of 17 km included some more single tracks as well as some district roads and farm tracks, all in good condition with 332 meters of ascent and 481 meters of descent.

At the finish we were treated with a Spur Burger and had an opportunity to get our bikes washed and cleaned. After a warm shower the afternoon was spent relaxing in the FNB rider lounge.  Support was served from 17:30 and included the most amazingly well prepared steaks, Thai chicken, vegetables, salads and chocolate mouse. Faircape diaries provided the drinks, of which there was no shortage.  A bar was available for those who wanted something a little bit stronger. We retired to our tents at about 20:00.

Total time 5:08:00; 73.54 km; 2,028 meters elevation gain; 1,822 meters elevation loss; average speed 14.3 k.p.h. We finished 155 out of 609 teams and 13^th in the 50+ age group.

RASA 2014 Conclusion

So we have reached the end and a dream have been realized!

I must firstly thank the lord Jesus Christ for giving me the strength and determination to pull this through to the end. Without His guidance and protection, I would never have made it.

I must also thank my lovely wife Sue for allowing me to do this. She was diagnosed with breast cancer less than a month before I left and had two operations during the two weeks preceding my departure. Whether I was going to be able to leave her was touch and go, but once again by His great mercy and grace, she recovered to such an extend that I was comfortable in leaving her at home. We were also very fortunate in that the cancer was detected at a very early stage, but she is going for her first chemo treatment on Monday 7 July.

I must also thank my family and friends who I know carried me through this with their prayers. Without you spiritual support I would surely not have made it.

I must thank my sponsors: CABS Car Hire; Procraft Interiors; Linear Redd; Ampal Biltong; Pep Stores who all contribute financially to help cover the costs.

Cycle Direct for providing me with a Specialized Stumpjumper 29er, which performed faultlessly. I had to inflate the rear tyre with a CO2 bomb once after coming of a very rough ride down Aasvoelberg and added a little air twice along the way. I replaced the front brake pads at the beginning of the Baviaanskloof and oiled the chain daily. It ran perfectly all the way in spite of all the abuse caused by the rough terrain we went over.

I must thank George for sticking with me, especially after Coen and Con dropped me after Louterbron. It was a real pleasure to ride with you. We really applied the Afrikaans saying “eet ‘n sak sout saam op” to our experience. It even was a special experience to sleep out at the foot of the Osseberg.

Also to Coen who kept us company for those first 8 days and Con who joined us from Ongeluksnek. Thank you to Leon who formed part of the Oupa, Oom and Laaitjie threesome from the beginning of the Baviaanskloof to the end. A special thanks to Francois who joined us from Montague. You added a special dynamic to our team with your presence and clear mind.

Thank to David Waddilove and the Freedom Challenge staff for putting up such and awesome event. I stand in awe at where some of the tracks took us. It was an experience which I will not change for anything.

A great thank you to all the wonderful people at the support stations. We were fed very well. Some were better than others, but we never left hungry and we could get our washing done when required. We were also always welcome with open arms.

Total distance: 2,170.21 km; total riding time: 193:13:39; total ascent; 42,836 meters.

RASA Day 22

The end of an amazing experience is in sight, but the mighty Stettynskloof still has to concurred! The initial 10 km to the dam is easy cycling with a couple of fairly difficult climbs and then the difficult monster of Stettynskloof. We therefore decided not to start too early, as that would mean tackling it in the dark. We had the additional problem that the section of road from the manager’s house to the top of the dam wall, about 2 km, has been washed away. When we got there we were told it is best to follow the pipeline to the dam wall. That was also fine, but the pipeline ended about 50 meters below the dam wall and we had to carry our bikes up the side of the dam wall climbing 50 meters over a distance of 200 meters. Once at the top, we were nice and hot and it was time to start shedding some of the excess clothing.

The first two kilometers was reasonable terrain where we could easily push our bikes with the occasional requirement to carry it. That was until we reached the river. From here it was a case of carrying most of the time. We also had to cross the river a number of times and get through some dense reeds as we moved up the valley. We generally stayed on the right of the river and had to cross over a number of spurs as we moved along. I did this section with my bike in a recci in 2010, but I could not remember that there were so many spurs to cross. Every time I was convinced that we have cross the last spur, another appeared ahead. There was a footpath here and there, but most of the time we just had to find our way through the undergrowth, which was very rocky. To make matters worse, the rocks were mostly about as big as footballs and fairly loose. The result was a real burden on the feet and ankles. While going through one of the small ravines, George also managed to get a nasty scratch on his nose. It was bleeding quite badly and “doctor” Francois had to do some emergency patching up to stop the bleeding. Every now and then we also came up against some very dense reeds, but always managed to find where somebody had gone through before us.

We had a bit of a rest at the rocky outcrop where a plague has been erected in memory of the people who died in the 1960 Shackelton plane crash. From there down to the river was quite a scramble, but we made it. We then had to go over a rocky outcrop, up the river and out through the reeds to scale another number of spurs. After what felt like an age, we finally managed to get to the bottom of our final major obstacle of Stettyns, a nearly vertical climb over a distance of about 400 meters. 9 hours after we left Trouthaven, we finally reached the top of the climb.

We now had an 11.5 km ride, of which the first 2 km was not ridable, through the Elandspad plateau and past the Fisantekraal farm buildings down to the old Du Toitskloof tar road. This was followed by a 6.8 km climb up the old pass to the top. While cycling down the Elandspad, George picked up a mechanical problem. I though he just dropped a chain, but it turned out more serious. Francois stopped to help him while the old men, Leon and myself carried on cycling to make sure we do not hold up the “procession” up the climbs, which was still ahead of us. Along the way the Di Thomas and Richard Edwards passed us, but then we re-passed them again.

When I got to the tar road, I decided to cycle to top and wait there rather than keep the other guys up while going up this last climb. On reaching the top, I had to wait about 10 minutes for the rest to arrive. Once together, we stating enjoying the final descent to Diemersfontein. What a pleasurable 12 km it was! All downhill. I was filled with euphoria, because I know knew that I have lived one of my dreams, which has been in planning for 4 years. Just after we went through the Diemersfontein gate, we stopped to thank our lord Jesus Christ for being with us for three weeks, for providing us with the most amazing weather and to spare us from any serious injuries or mechanical breakdowns. We crossed the line together after 12:10:35 and a measly 54 km, but it was a hard 54 km! We were warmly welcomed by our families, friends and the Freedom Challenge organisers.

RASA Day 21

We left Montague a 05:30. Even though the ride was not too technical, we had to cover more then 160 km, so we had a long day ahead of us. Around the first corner we also picked up Francois du Toit, who had to sit out a 6-hour penalty I Rouxpos and only got in at 20:05 the previous evening.  I have ridden this section before and therefore knew the way, so I was setting the pace. We were quite surprised at the amount of traffic on the Montague/Ashton road at 05:30 in the morning.  Fortunately we had no “hairy” moments. From Ashton we went down the Zandfliet road and onto Bonnievale, where we took the Vrolikheid turnoff to MacGregor.  The weather was beautiful and we were blessed with the most beautiful sunrise.  In MacGregor we stopped for a coffee, and we had had “proper” espresso coffee for the first time on the trip. From there it was the “drag” out of MacGregor up the hill to the Coenies River portage. In the scheme of things on this adventure, this portage was “a piece of cake”.  Down the other side we had the new for 2014 section to Good Hope farm. We thought that this would go quickly, but was surprised to find that it involved quite a bit of technical riding. Where the old route via Kasra took about 30 minutes, the new route took us probably 90 minutes! When we got to Good Hope, we saw a sign indicating Freedom Riders, but at the dwelling there was only cake and coffee and nobody around. After scouting around, George did find the correct place where all the food and our 2-liter containers were. We stocked up quickly and were on our way as the Trappieskraal portage and more than 100 km to Trouthaven, still lay ahead. A still North Westerly wind was also picking up.

The Trappiekraal portage involves a fair bit of pushing and carrying due to the condition of the jeep track. It is also fairly long and it was past 14:00 by the time we started the descent on the other side. The wind was still a factor, but not quite as bad as we feared it would be. At the Doornrivier store we had some quick refreshments and we back on the road in no time. Over MacKay’s hill, past Stettyns Cellar and a short stretch on the Villiersdorp/Worcester tar road before we ventures of on the Klipbokkop turn off and from there past the Kwaggaskloof and Brandvlei Dams and through the Brandvlei Prison grounds. The roads were in good condition and we were making good time. The gradient was not to bad, but it was a bit of a “drag” to get the distance behind us. With 5 km to go we went past the Trouthaven gate and onto the last stretch for the day. We pulled into Trouthaven at 18:35.

Total distance: 163.48 km; total time: 12:56:27; Total ascent: 2,355 meters; total descent: 2,259 meters.

RASA Day 20

RASA Day 20
We all opted for a 05:30 breakfast and a 06:00 start for the ride go Montague. The first 30 odd kilometers was on farm roads, down a dry riverbed and finishing off with a jeep track. It took us 2:15 to complete this section, which took us onto a top quality district road. After a short while on this road, we entered the Anysberg Nature Reserve. The road through the reserve had sections which was excellent to some very rough and rocky sections. We had a 25 km ride to the office, where we were welcomed by Meisie, who had a meal and some coffee ready for us.

After a stop of about 35 minutes, we were on our way again. The road out the other side was very similar to the road in. Riding on these "twee spoor paadjies" is a real joy and I was enjoying myself. After 27 km we went through the Anysberg gate and onto another district road of top quality. Even though we were generally gaining altitude we managed to maintain a good average speed. We had a "refreshment" at the Die Hoek van die Berg junction.

We got going with a light breeze on our backs. The road took us to a T-junction after 3 km and that was followed by 9 km of real Karoo undulations, which ended at the top of Ouberg Pass. The descent down the Pass was "fast and furious". The rest of the ride into Montague was pleasant with more downhills than uphills and we arrived at Montague Country Hotel at 15:40.

Total distance: 123.03 km; total time: 9:30:48; total ascent: 1,433 meters; total descent: 1,839 meters

RASA Day 19

RASA Day 19
The bus got rolling at 04:45 after an excellent breakfast prepared by Ria. The first couple of kilometers was easy riding until we started Swartberg Pass. It was quite an interesting experience cycling up the pass in the dark. It probably is less intimidating than doing it in the day because you can not see what is still coming. It took me about 2 hours to cover the 17 km from Prince Albert to the top of the pass. We then had a gentle down hill to the Gamkaskloof turn off. At the turn there is a sign which reads "37 km but allow 2 hours for driving". This is because of the difficulty of the road! Initially the road is quite undulating and after a number of smallish climbs and some down hills, you start the last major climb after 21 km. This climb is about 7 km and is as difficult as the Swartberg Pass and this is followed by a difficult and scary descent into Gamkaskloof. I arrived at our midmorning stop at 10:15. Here we had a good meal, freshly backed bread and coffee. We got going again at 10:45.

A 15 km ride up the valley brought us to the foot of "die leer". This was the only route in and out of Gamkaskloof before the road was built in 1962. The people used donkey the bring goods in and take produce out. It is a virtual vertical path up the side of the mountain. It took me 70 minutes to cover the approximately 500 meters! Total ascent was 385 meters.

How strong are you? @Philipler conquers 'The Ladder' in 1:15 at age 65. pic.twitter.com/yDvlPBJUVb
— Leon Kruger (@PopsEL6) July 16, 2014

After we had a breather at the top, we had to first tackle the 10 jeep track which took us to the district road which goes past the entrance to Seweweekspoort. This jeep track is in such a poor state that it took us 90 minutes to cover the 10 km. the initial 7 km of the district road consisted of gradual climbs until we got to the top of what is called Horlosiekrans. This was followed by some wonderful downhills and sone more manageable climbs up to the Rouxpos turn off. The last 10 km to Rouxpos was also a number of gradual climbs followed by some minor downhills up to the last climb, which was a bit of a sting in the tail. From the top of this nasty little it wax all downhill to Rouxpos, where I arrived at 17:35.

Total distance: 123.94 km; total time: 12:51:18; total ascent: 3,385 meters: total: descent: 3,387 meters.

RASA Day 18

RASA Day 18
We decided to go for a 04:00 start again and actually managed to get going at 04:15. Willowmore was covered in mist, which made the first 10 km quite tricky, but it was not too cold. The road to the first turnoff was as straight as a dye and in a good condition. After 16 km we turned right to go through Leeukloof and onto Strydomvlei. It looked like a road that is not well used with mostly only two tracks being visible, but the surface was excellent and we were able to maintain a good pace. The next turnoff was after 45 km and we covered that in less than 2:45. Here we took a left turn for 7 km and then right for 41 km. Suddenly the temperature dropped to a minimum of -5.5, but it felt like -15! I have never in my life been this cold. Due to this our average speed also dropped because it was just too cold to go fast. At 08:00 the temperature was still at -4.8. By 09:00 it moved into positive territory. With that our average speed also picked up. We reached our halfway stop after 86 km at 10:20. Here we had a nice pasta dish and freshly backed "vetkoek". Total stoppage time was 51 minutes.

The balance of the day's ride to Prince Albert was over reasonably good roads with the odd patch of sand and a fair number corrugations.  We still managed a good pace and pulled into Dennehof Guest House at 14:55.

Total distance:162.4 km; total time: 10:39:55; elevation gain: 1,010 meters; elevation loss: 1,194 meters

RASA Day 17

RASA Day 17
We left Kudu Khaya at 04:00. It was not too cold and we had a clear sky. Leon Kruger joined George and myself. We were onto Combrink Pass very quickly and the other two pulled away from me. I did not try and chase them and went up at my own pace. When I got to Boplaas I stopped and got my music out. If I ride on my own, I may just as well listen to music! Go down the other side was fairly slow in the dark because the road surface is not very good. The sun rose as I was about halfway up Holgat Pass.

George and Leon were waiting there for me and we had sandwiches and coffee. Leon had a small flask which he filled up before we left this morning. Going down in day light was much quicker and I passed both of them on the way down after I lost sone time sorting my music out after our stop. The rest of the way to Dam se Drif, our halfway stop, was much easier, but we still had to master some climbs and undulations. We pulled in at Dam se Drif at 11:00 after 7 hours in the saddle. Here we treated to an early lunch consisting of mince and pasta covered with cheese, pumpkin, potato salad, spicy backed beans, jot bread rolls and Hestelle's famous chocolate pudding and custard. She also gave each of us 4 snackwiches. We spent 50 at the "lunch" stop.

The road from here to Willowmore is not that difficult but generally heads up, so we were spending a lot of time cycle roads with an incline of 2-4%, which is tiring and difficult to maintain a good average speed. After about 50 km we entered the Nuwekloof, which ends with the Nuwekloof Pass. The actual kloof is something out of this world and after riding through the kloof with vertical cliffs on both sides, it ends with the final climb up the pass and the turnoff to Willowmore. From here we had 34 km left, which was better riding but still had a number of hills to over come. We made good time and came to our last obstacle for the day. We had to climb over a 3 meter high fence. George and myself arrived there first, just as we managed to get our bikes across, Leon arrived and Francois Otto, who over shot the turnoff and to come back, also arrived, so we helped them as well to get over. The last 5 km from there to the Willows was N easy ride and we arrived on Willowmore at 16:50.

Total distance: 157.76 km; total time: 12:50:57; total ascent: 2,770 meters; total descent: 2,132 meters.

RASA Day 16

RASA Day 16

The night out in the bush was quite pleasant. I remarked to George that I had quite a good sleep and he remarked back"I could here that"! The sun woke us just before 07:00 and we got our things together and went to look for the track again. George then noticed the orange tape on one of the reeds and that was a sure sign that we were on the right track. I visit did some scouting and noticed that as I went down the stream last night, I should have just crossed the river. So, we were on our way. The old jeep track was clearly visible and we followed it until it disappeared again. After some scouting we found the track through the reeds and across the river. This carried for the next two hours until we reached the final climb out of the river. We stopped and put on our dry riding shoes again and dis some riding again. That was until we encountered the river again. We studied the maps and confirmed that we had to cross it again. Off we the shoes and this time I went through bare feet. The track appeared and disappeared on a regular basis. After about 2 hours 30 minutes, we finally reached the 3 meter high fence we had to get over. That done we were onto a reasonable jeep track until we got to the river again. Shoes off, through, dry feet with bicycle wash towel, shoes on and going. A little on and we finally got to the public road that would take us through to Kudu Khaya. After some discussion, we decided to remain there for the day so that we can recuperate for for the final push through to Diemersfontein.

We had last night supper for an early lunch, got washing done, showered, serviced bikes and "chilled" for the rest of the afternoon.

Total distance: 03:35:18; total distance: 15.19 km; total ascent: 402 meters; total descent: 357 meters.

RASA Day 15

RASA Day 15
We left Bucklands at 06:38 and had a very pleasant ride over farm roads for about 12 km after which we joined up with the district road which would take us through Hottentotspoort and onto the beginning of the Osseberg Pass. Along the way we stopped for coffee and "beskuit" at Hadlee. I also managed to book an entry for the 2015 Attakwas, which opened at the beginning of the week and was filling rapidly.

We road from Hadlee to the Grootriver currently is a bit of a construction site as they are busy laying a water pipe from the valley floor to Streylerville. We encountered lots of construction vehicles and in places the road turned into a powdery dust. Generally the surface was good and we had a good journey into the awesome Grootriver valley.

The scenes from the road made one aware of the might power of the Lord in creating this beautiful world. The ascent on the other side is mostly unridable for mere mortals like we and we pushed our bike up the hill. The work George did on his rear wheel at Bucklands was holding up well and he did not have to pump it again.

We stopped at a Nature Reserve dwelling just before the top of the watershed for some fresh water, but could not find any outside taps and the building was locked with no one at home. I managed to get water here when I recci-ed the route from Kleinpoort to Montague in 2010.

We reached the entrance to the Osseberg at 14:00 and had a little refreshment stop after we crossed the "No Entry" sign, which the beginning. The first couple of hundred meters was completely unridable, but as we moved along we encountered more and more ridable sections. We also had some scary down hills and George managed to "loose it" on one of these, fortunately with more injury to his pride than to the body!

It took us 3:00:53 to cover the 21.86 km to the old neglected camp site, which signaled the beginning off our river crossings.

From here the trail became a "hit and miss" affair with some of the trail clearly visible and the next it just disappears! We took off our riding shoes and put on shoe brought specially for this. I had my doubts about my R79,99 Pep Stores slip-ons and really cursed myself for mot opting for shoes with laces. The shoes did the job, but I had to retrieve them a number of times when they got stuck and my foot slipped out! The going was very difficult, but we were moving along reasonably well. Every now and then we picked up, what obviously was the right track just to come to a dead end again after a while. Nightfall was busy catching us, but we regularly picked up other cycle tracks and obvious thorough fares through the reeds. By about 20:00 we picked up a nice track, which was correct and made good progress again until we came to some reeds again. I went ahead and scouted the route and found what I thought was the correct path. At this point we were under the impression that we were further along the route than where actually were. This resulted in lots of discussions and more scoutings. After a long while, we agreed that we should go through the reeds, but this time I could not find the path I did previously! Back to the entry again! We had more discussions and more  scouts until we decided to call it a day and spend the night at the foot of the Osseberg. In the meantime a light drizzle started. We looked for some reasonable cover, got our space blankets out and settled in for the night. There were no cell phone reception so we could not let anybody know where we were. By now we realised that we were quite a bit further back in the trail than what we thought originally. We got to rest at 23:05. The weather was pleasant with the drizzle falling, but our space blankets was keeping us dry.

Total distance: 83.52 km; total time: 14:51:46; total ascent: 2,072 meters; total descent: 2,244 meters.

RASA Day 14

RASA Day 14
Toekomst to Bucklands. Today was a relatively easy day with no major obstacles. After some district roads we had go navigate our way around the Darlington Dam. There were number of "dicy" turns we had to find, but we got through without too much trouble.

This was followed by a journey down the Gwaas valley. The road started off as a good farm, then it became a rough jeep track and then it turned into a journey up a dry river bed. This was "spiced" with some very rough sections where one just went up the valley. We eventually reached a game fence, after which the road improved significantly. Most of the traveling was up hill and after the previous long day, we found this very energy sapping. George's rear tyre was still playing up and we had to stop every 20 km so that he could pump it.

The Gwaas valley linked up with the district road running through the Perdekloof and we enjoyed a nice downhill leading up to another uphill and the turnoff to Kleinpoort. At Kleinpoort we stopped at the shop for some refreshments. While sitting their, Patrick Gruer walking in. He is the landlord of the Kleinpoort over night stop. We did not even realise that there was an official stop with supplies for the riders! We declined as we have bought some refreshments all ready and needed go push on to Bucklands.

The journey to Bucklands was pleasant, being mostly down hill and we made good time into Bucklands, arriving there at 18:00.

After supper George resealed his rear wheel, putting in new tape and a patch were the broken spoke was.

For some reason my trip meter lost all the data for the day!

RASA Day 13

RASA Day 13
13 has a stigma of bad luck stuck to it and that applied to us on out 13th day. We did pretty well with the navigation and found all the right turn offs, but George's rear tyre probably cost between an hour and two hours. I will get back to that later.

We got the wheels rolling at 05:30. The first couple of kilometers was district roads and we found all the right turn offs in the dark to arrive at the Thatched gate of the game farm where our journey through the veld started. We initially had some difficulty find the right track because we went through the wrong gate. Once we found the right gate, and saw cycle tracks, we were going. We encountered a steam we had to cross. There was a number of boulders we could step on the get through without getting our feet wet, but there was a small gap so we proceeded to through some big rocks into the gap and managed to complete our "bridge". The temperature did go down to -3.5 From there we had a long "slog" up a jeep track to get over the mountain. Down the other side it was a reasonable ride until we got to the Stuishoek portage. Now this farmer is very supportive and have marked the route with white stones. The actual portage consists of moving down a gorge similar to Skeleton Gorge, but this one is 5.6 km long. This is real hard work. At the bottom we had an easy ride up to the Pearston tar road. From there we had a nice ride down a gravel road until we turned West and had to ride into a headwind. This took us to our halfway stop at Gegun.

After a quick lunch, we were back against the wind for about 7 km up to the Karoopoort turn off. Along the way this road, we were passed by Merle of Karoopoort. She invited us in for coffee and fresh water in our bottles. We then had to go over the mountain behind the farm house. While we were on this, two of the "racing snakes", Graham Bird and Glen Harrison came past.

We managed to get over the mountain and down the other side before it got dark, but with still 20 km to go, we were caught by the dark. The route down the valley was quite quick but fairly rough. Something which can be quite scary at night.

Our biggest problem for the whole day was that George's rear wheel had a slow puncture, with the result that he had to pump it every so often. Have way down this valley he decided he has had enough and put in a tube. This lasted for about 2 km before it was flat too! We tried another tube, which was brand new, but this was leaking even before we put it in. We then decided to go the tubeless option again. All of this must gave taken more than 45 minutes and on the end we only reached our destination for the day at 21:00. That was a long day in the saddle!

Total time: 15:24:18; 129.92 km; total ascent: 1,599 meters; total descent: 2,369 meters.

RASA Day 12

RASA Day 12
The distance for the day was scheduled to be more than 120 km, so we decided to go for a 05:00 start. In the end we managed to get going at 05:21.

The district road outside Elandsberg was the best we have encountered to date. Our average speed for the first hour was more than 20 kph and that was in the dark! The navigation through to Stuttgart, the halfway stop was fairly easy as long as one kept to the narratives and read them correctly. After the initial euphoria if the good road and high speed, we did encounter some hills and covered the 68.57 km to Stuttgart in    4:54:19. On the way there we passed the farm where my dad grew up. Our "lunch" stop lasted 48 minutes.

The first 17 km was reasonable district roads, but then we were back onto rough jeep tracks, which culminated in an unbelievable climb up Schurfteberg and an equally unbelievable descent on the other side.

Past the Schurteberg farmstead, we were on good farm tracks and district roads again until we got to the Grootdam turnoff. Yhe last 10 km was very rough jeep tracks through the Grootdam farm and game reserve where we had to go through 9 gates, four of which we had to climb over and one game reserve gate, which was 3 meters high, but fortunately had a special small gate on the middle specially made for cyclists to get our bikes through. We reached the overnight stop at 17:15, just before sunset.

Total riding time: 11:55:13; total distance: 132.15 km; total ascent: 1,838 meters; total descent: 2,012 meters.

RASA Day 11

RASA Day11
We managed to get going at 06:20. The previous evening the host showed us the track over his farm to link up with the district road. That was a great help. Like usual it was pretty cold and we did see -9.5 on thermometer. We checked our distances carefully, but did managed to miss a crucial turnoff after about 15 km. George said he did notice it, but ignored it because the distance was incorrect. Fortunately we had lots of people praying for us and the Lord sent an Angle in the form of Erhart from one of the local farms, to stop us and redirect us. Due to his diligence we were back on track without loosing any time. Once we linked up with the correct route, we started with the climb up Aasvoëlberg.

It took us 4:24 from leaving Romansfontein until we reached the farm road on the otherside. During this time we covered 30.47 km and ascended 641 meters and descended 930 meters. The ride from Romansfontein to the beginning of Aasvoëlberg was about 13 km which took us 45 minutes. The rest was spent on Aasvoëlberg. The descend, which down the route used for the annual 100 mile horse race, was something else. It was very rough and very steep, but we did managed to ride most of it.

We then joined the Tarkastad/Hofmeyr main road, and what a road. In some places it looked like a farm track! The other nasty bit about it was that the first 11 km was uphill. The incline was not much, but the constant grinding was energy sapping. Once over the top the road was more "reasonable" and we rolled into Hofmeyr at 13:45. We had some of Hofmeyr's legendary  pies and coffee. The "roosterkoek", which came with the pies was the best!

The 24 km was easy riding, but then we started the Elandsberg portage. The "road" was an old disused wagon trail, which later totally disappeared and was replaced by "hike a bike" through the veld, which eventually linked up with an obscure and faint jeep track. Our navigation did not let is down and we rolled into Elandsberg at 18:15.

Total riding time 11:52:58; total distance 115,96 km; total ascent 1,442 meters; total descent 1,895 meters.

RASA Day 10

RASA Day 10
George's dad brought him a new tyre from Queenstown and we managed to get it fitted properly on the second attempt. That was a great relieve for George.

The Stormberg area is well for low temperatures and were prepared for a cold start. We managed to get going at 06:20 and the first 20 km was on good district roads with mo major climbs. We covered this in 1:45 and measured a temperature of -11.5! We them turned onto some local farm tracks and had a wonderful time just enjoying the ride through the "veld" on good farm tracks. This was a really beautiful morning and we had a ball. This eventually led us to the track up to Stromberg, a site of one of the major Anglo/Boer War battles. We lost our way a little towards the top where the track disappears, but found our way to the block house where we arrived at 10:15.

From the block house we travelled through the actual area where the battle took place and then onto the R56 for a short while before getting onto another gravel road heading SW some farms to the farm De Rust, where we picked up s farm track again. On this road we encountered a most peculiar sight. At 12:34 in the afternoon there were icicles hanging from the fence and the surrounding bushes. This was because some sprayers were running and the water must have frozen when it came into contact with the fence and bushes. A most amazing sight.

From De Rust we travelled around some "koppies" before reaching a district road, which took us to our next support station at Romansfontein.

Total time: 8:23:47; total distance: 86.05 km; total climbing: 902 meters.

RASA Day 9

RASA Day 9
Moordenaarspoort to Brosterlea. We rose at 05:00, had breakfast at 05:30 and managed to get going at 06:20.

The road out of Moodenaarspoort to Kranzkop was all good district roads with a number of climbs and we covered the 38.63 km in 2:48. The temperature got down to -1.5 and we had quite a bit of cloud cover. We stopped at Kranzkop for a early lunch of soup, coffee and "beskuit". We also checked through the narratives for the next section. Total stoppage time was 47 minutes.

The 48 km to Brosterlea had quite a bit of tricky navigation, but nothing that could cause any serious problems as long as one read the narratives carefully and followed them. No portaging was involved either. We found our way through all the tricky bits and was on the Burgersdorp road in good time. We stopped along the road for a lunch bite and were on our way again. Om the meantime a north westerly was picking up. We were riding diagonally into it, but at this point it was manageable. We got to the final turn off at the old Gouevlei siding at about 14:00 with only 18 km left. The first 3 km was a steady climb and the top we turned into the wind, which had picked up some speed by now. The road surface was also very rough, which made the going even more difficult. The net result was that it took me 2:30 to cover the 18 km. i sure was glad when I reached the Brosterlea turnoff.

In the end we once again had a shortish day with mot too much difficult riding. We both agreed that it was a good idea to divide these two days into three. Tomorrow it is 82 km to Romansfontein.

Total time 9:12:59; total distance 89.73 km; 1,421 meters of climbing

RASA Day 8

RASA Day 8
Day 8 starts with two difficult navigation sections in the first 20 km. We therefore decided to start at 06:30 to ensure we could see where we were going. During the previous evening our hostess warned us that it could be very cold and that it is at the coldest just after sunrise, which was due at 07:06. She even warned us that all the water pipes could be frozen and for that reason she had buckets with water for general use.

When we got up, we found that the water was not frozen, but we all dressed for the expected cold and got going at 06:33. The lowest the temperature dropped to was 5.1!

The route took us over the mountain behind the farmhouse. Most of our progress during the first 2 hours consisted of pushing or carrying our bicycles. We managed to get over the mountain and down the other side in 2 hours covering just under 10 km. This was followed by a short section on a farm road and then we tackled the next mountain. This was longer and higher and the descent on the other side was very tricky. In total it took us 5:06 to cover 20.67 km and we ascended 1,005 meters and descended 940 meters. At the highest point we were at 2,150 meters above sea level!

This was followed by some good farm tracks and district roads. The only problem with district roads are that they go over hills and down valleys, not like modern high ways where all the hills are cut through and valleys filled up. The result is lots of fast down hills and some major climbs. We reach the town of Rossouw at 14:00. With 14 km left, I started contemplating the possibility of stopping of at Moordennaarspoort rather continue through to Kranzkop, which is 38 km further down the road. George's rear tyre was also giving him problems and he had to replace the tube.

Whereas struggling with all the climbing and carrying my bike up mountains, I suddenly started feeling stronger while George was not performing as well as during previous days. I came to the conclusion that I just do not perform that well above 1,800 meters and we now were down to below that level. About 3 km from Moordenaarspoort, George called me. His rear tyre was getting flat again. I suggested that he put some air in with a CO2 bomb. We also started discussing the possibility of stopping over at Moordenaarspoort so that he can attend to that tyre.

As we arrived at Moordenaarspoort, our two riding partners, who dropped us after the final climb, just left for Kranzkop. We were welcomed by Regina Schoeman, wife of Danie Schoeman who the eighth generation of Schoemans who have been living Moordenaarspoort. We were invited in for lunch which consisted of freshly baked "mosbolletjies" and butter nuts soup. Over lunch we mentioned to Regina that we would like to stay for the night and that was that.

We had a very relaxed lunch, cleaned our bikes and converted George's rear tyre back to tubeless with two plugs. The problem is that one of these is next to the beading, so we will have to see how well it works. Currently it is holding the air.

Our strategy from here is to go to Brosterlea tomorrow and Romansfontein the day there after. Two 80 km days with today's 58 km rather than a 90 and 130 km day. In the process we loose half a day, which we hope to make up somewhere along the way.

Total time 8:50; total distance 58.1 km; total climbing 1,924 meters.

RASA Day 7

RASA Day 7
We decided to opt for a 06:00 start and actually hot going at 06:10. The 68 km to Chesney Wold consisted of very undulated district roads and navigation was straight forward. The temperature went down to -9.8 Celsius. At one point it improved to 1.7, but then we went through a valley and within less than 200 meters it changed to -2.7!

Con and Coen really moved and left me and George behind. George was also making better progress than me and left me behind. He did wait for me at the first turn off, but there after decided that "Oupa" is just too slow and I only saw him again at Chesney Wold.

The scenery through which we were riding was awesome. Quite a bit of the route was down valleys with high mountains on either side. There also was some beautiful rock formations.

My three companions were just about  ready to leave when I arrived at Chesney Wold. George wanted to know if he should wait for me, but I declined. A while later he came back and said that he would wait for me. Something I am very grateful for.

We left Chesney Wold at 11:45 with 40 km left, but that included a difficult portage section after Kapokkraal. We took a short cut through the veld to link up with a dirt road, which took us to Kapokkraal. Once again we were riding up a valley with beautiful mountains on either side. The last section to Kapokkraal was very steep and we opted go push quite a large portion. Towards the top the road flattened and we managed to cycle to the beginning of the portage section. At this point we were over 2,000 meter above sea level. This thin air was getting me and I really struggled. It took us more than hour to cover the last 2 km. At the top we picked up an old wagon trail, which later became a jeep and then the path down to Slaapkranz. On one section with some loose gravel I decided to stop, before I managed to get off my bike I lost the front wheel and took a tumble. Fortunately there was no serious damaged and I got going again. In the meantime George was loosing air from his rear wheel. 2 km from Slaapkranz the seal broke and lost all the air. He had no option but to first repair it and we clocked in at 17:20.

Total time 11:20; total distance 102 km; 2,442 meters of climbing.

RASA Day 6

RASA Day 6
Vuvu to Rhodes is only just over 50 km and we all decided not to go for the option of pushing on to Cheswold but stay over in Rhodes and rest up a little, so we opted for a later start again and managed to get going at 06:09.

It took us 48 minutes to cover the 8 km to the beginning of the Lehana climb. The 10 km of Lehana took us 4:06! It was very tough and very tiring! In the first 1:12 we covered 2.7  km and ascended 443 meters. During the next 2:54 we cover 1.1 km and as ascended 895 meters! The weather was perfect and the views were out of this world, but this definately is the toughest physical thing I have ever done. I found this year more difficult than last year.

We stopped at Tinahead for coffee and then made our way to Rhodes, where I arrived at 14:25 with George, who was kind enough to wait for me along the way. Between Tinahead and Rhodes, a distance of 32 km there is one monster climb. The rest is mostly fantastic switchbacks and down hills. I must have lost 20 minutes on the other guys on this hill and was very grateful when I saw George waiting fir me at the top of one of the minor undulations into Rhodes.

Total time 8:13; distance 52 km; ascent 2,130 meters.