The Grape Escape Day 1

The Grape Escape is taking place from 28 February until 2 March and the Argus MTB Challenge follows that on Sunday 3 March. I have committed to all four days, so it should be good preparation for the Ride to Rhodes in June.

My friends Mike Smit and Danie Kotze were also scheduled to ride and we agreed to pool travelling to and from the race. On Wednesday evening we loaded all three bikes onto Mike’s car and agreed to leave at 05:15 on Thursday morning for the start at Riebeek Kasteel.

We managed to get going by 05:20 and arrived in Riebeek Kasteel just after 05:25, in good time to unload the bikes and grab some eats for the breakfast that was available.

The race got going promptly at 07:00. The first kilometer was supposed to be a neutral zone, but the pace was anything but “neutral”. By the time we hit the gravel. Mike was gone, I was in the middle of the pack and Danie was towards the back. At 19 kilometers I had to stop to pick up my water bottle when I missed the bottle cage after taking a drink. To make matters worse, somebody rode over it and it, the top popped off and it was empty. Fortunately I had enough water in my backpack. The first 23 kilometers was on district and good farm roads with no major ups or downs, but then we took a right turn and the road suddenly started climbing! The first 3 kilometers was a gentle climb and then we started some serious elevation changes and most of it was going up! During the next 19 kilometers we climbed 554 meters and descended 558 meters. The most difficult ones was a climb of 143 meters in one kilometer and 116 meter in half a kilometer.

The next 14 kilometers were mostly district roads again and then we hit the slops of Groenberg, climbing from 94 to 360 over a distance of 11 kilometer. This also included some nice single tracks, some of it amongst blue gum trees. From then on it was downhill to the finish line, which I crossed after 4:39:51 and 78.47 kilometer and 1,556 meters of elevation gain. Mike finished in a time of 4:28:28 and Danie in 4:55:10. Mike was 3rd and I was 4th in our age group.

Tulbagh-Bloubergstrand (The last leg of Freedom Challenge's Bokkeveld route)

As part of my training for this year's Ride to Rhodes I decided to do the Tulbagh - Bloubergstrand leg of the Freedom Challenge's Bokkeveld route. I packed my bag on Saturday evening and arranged with my son to drop me in Tulbagh at 07:00 on Sunday morning.

My ride started at 06:59 at the Montpellier gate. The track up to the nek, being the beginning of the Oukloof Pass has been done over with excellent cement paving up to the radio masts. At the nek the Oukloof Pass goes off to the right and down the other side. It is obvious that the pass is not really being used anymore with the result that it is becoming quite overgrown and in some places just about non exsistent with lots of loose stones from erosion. In the first 5 km I gained 233 meters in altitude. This together with the bad state of the pass down towards the canal resulted in an average speed of less than 10 k.p.h.

Down in the valley I crossed the canal and cycled through La Bonne Esperanza and on to the Gouda/Piketberg tar road. From there it is down to Moredou and then parallel to the Berg Rivier to link up with a large public road to cross the Berg River.

While cycling, I suddenly heard something, which sounded like bicycles. I looked around and saw two other cyclist. We started chatting and it transpired that they also came from Tulbagh, but took the road through Nuwekloof Pass and were doing a circle route back to Tulbach for a distance of about 100 km for the day as part of there training for the Trans Karoo. They were maintaining a good pace and I upped my pace to stay with them. We cycled together for about 10 km when they went straight and I had to follow the narrative and turn right en route to the PPC factory at Riebeek West. At this point my average speed has increased to 16.2 k.p.h.

From there the route went around the right hand side of Kasteelberg down the Riebeecks River road towards Malmesbury, but half way down the Riebeek Kasteel/Malmesbury road, the route went left through some local public roads towards Perdeberg over another little nek onto the Welgemeend dairy farm. At the farm I had to go left, but once again passing right of Paardenberg. After the Wyngaadt farmstead I lost my way a little, but did get to the R304, but missed the part of the R302. From the maps I saw that I got onto the R304 too early and had to cycle an extra couple of kilometers on the tar road up to the Droevlei turnoff. At this stage was feeling pretty tired and my average speed dropped to 14.2 k.p.h. I forgot my gloves at home, with the result that my hands was taking a hammering. From there it was mostly public gravel roads through Wintervogel on to Bonnie Doon down some farm tracks and even a sheep track, over the Klipheuwel/Philadephia road, over some more wheat fields onto Adderley Road, incorrectly named the Malanshoogte road in the narratives. Just after the farm Altona the route went right into the farm Alexandria, over the Diep River and past Frederickskraal farmstead onto the Old Malmesbury road. I did pick up some problems finding the right route at the Alexandria farmstead and the crossing of the Diep River, but after doubling back twice, I got it right. In the meantime I recharged with some GU scatches.

The rest of the route was straight forward as it was all down roads I have ridden before. I was a little concerned about the wind because according to the direction of the grass it was South West, which meant that the last twenty kilometers would be against the wind! At this point my Garmin also indicated "low battery". Fortunately I was prepared for this. I stopped, took out my Power Monkey, connected this to my Garmin and "viola" it was charging. Once I crossed the N7, my pace increased. This was probably due to the GU scatches kicking in. I was pleasantly surprised when I reached Duynefonteinto find that the wind was a North Westerly, I therefore managed an excellent pace for the last stretch onto Bloubergstrand, increasing my average to 15.9 k.p.h.

Total distance for the day 152.71 km; total time 11:53:41; total riding time 9:34:34, which means that I spent 1 hours 20  minutes taking photos, sending SMS's, tweeting and studying the narratives and maps!

Attakwas (English)

On Friday 18 January Danie Kotze and myself hit the road to Oudtshoorn for the 2013 Attakwas. Danie was very excited as he took delivery of his new 29er on Thursday and was looking forward to putting it to test. We arrived in Oudtshoorn lust after 17:00 and made our way to the registration at Kleinplaas. There after it was quick visit to Pick n Pay to buy the necessary for supper and a well-deserved nights rest at NA Smit Resort. After a nice "braai" and listening to Lance Armstrong's confessions, we went to bed.

As the race was starting at 06:30, we decided to get there by 06:00 That meant we had to get up at 05:30 for a quick breakfast and off to Chandelier. Our "chauffeur" dropped us on Wednesday and we therefore decided to make use of the shuttle back from Groot Brak after the race. That meant that we had to leave some clean clothes and our tents with the bus. After I located the shuttle, it was back to the car to assemble bikes and make our way to the start area. 

The first group left at 06:00 sharp. We were in group B and left at 06:35. The grouping worked very well and eliminated most of the "bunching" during the first couple of kilometers. We made good progress and it was quite easy to pass or to get passed. The pace was good and I was feeling good. The veld was typical Karoo. Grayish but not arid dry. The Karoo has it own special "beauty". The first water point was brought closer to the start and I got there after 1:10. I garb a couple of glasses of Coke and half a banana and get going again. From here to water point 2 the terrain is fairly ruff with a number serious climbs. My new 29er is working well and I enjoy the hills and have little problem with the sandy patches. I also meet up with Fred van Zyl, who won my age group during the year when I did my first Attakwas.We chat a little, including commenting on his riding the Imana Wind Ride. Water point 2 comes just after the crossing of the Oudtshoorn /Mossel Bay road at the foot of Robertson Pass. I pick a bottle of USN, stop for a couple of glasses of Coke and something to eat. My time to here is 2:20. That is 15 minutes better than last year and I am on to finish between 7:15-7:30! From here to Bonnie dale we go through the famous Attakwas Kloof. The beauty of the nature is awesome, but the road is very rocky with some serious hills. Even though my new bike is climbing better than the old 26-inch wheels, there are still sections of two hills that necessitated some pushing. The big challenge is the downhill just before Bonniedale! It is not long and I get there. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, there is a slow rider in front of me and due to the fact that I can not get past, I am compelled to get of briefly. I managed to get past towards the bottom race down the hill towards the river on my way to water point 3. I hit the sandy hill on the approach in the wrong gear is once again have to dismount and push the last 30 meters. Water point 3 is known as the Spur stop because we get a Spur Burger. My bicycle get a quick rinse and oil while my water bottle is filled with Coke and I have a eat. Time to here is 4:01, 30 minutes better than 2012! A 20-25 Southeasterly wind awaits us on the last 50 km, so I expect to loose some of this advantage on my way to the finish. We now hit a 7 km climb during which we accent 206 meters. This takes 37 minutes, followed by some nice riding through some pine forests to water point 4. 

Here I fill my water bottle again with Coke, eat some of the delicacies they have and hit the road. The rout goes through the veld for about 2 km, through a river and up the other side to join up with a district road again. I come upon some grazing cattle that insist on walking where I am supposed to ride! After some careful navigation, I am through and through the river, which is about 20 meters wide but only about 4 mm deep with mostly solid rock banks to ride across. As I get out on the other side, I suddenly a "sloppy" feeling from my back tire. I stop and find that it needs some air. I take of my backpack, get one of my air canisters and connect it to the valve. First problem, the canister is empty! I get another one out, and put some air in the tire, but to my dismay I here the ominous sound of a tire deflating fairly fast. On inspection I notice a cut in the side of my tire. Fortunately it is not right through. I now have three options: take the wheel off and put a tube in; take the wheel off and patch the cut; try to plug the hole and hope it works. I get the necessary equipment out and plug the hole. I inflate this with my last air canister. It seems to work! I pack everything back in my rucksack and get going again. The whole I am worried that the plug is not going to hold because of the cut. This happened at 86 km after 5:33, about 31 minutes faster than last year. The exercise probably cost me 5-10 minutes. There are still 35 km left and if the tire does not hold, it could become a long day. We now tend to rid in groups, which have the benefit that I can ask for some help if my wheel goes flat again. The end of the plug now touches the frame every time the wheel rotates. This is more of an irritation than a problem. We form a group of three that works well together and make good time. I look at the wheel regularly, but cannot notice anything. It does feel as firm as it should be, but if seems to be holding out. I decide to "push” the wheel issue aside and concentrate on riding. All goes well and we get to water point 5. I fill my water bottle with Coke, get some eats and the chain oiled and hit the road again. The wheel slips my mind and I even forget to check the tire pressure. There is only 19 km left, with one serious hill and some wind to finish this off. It seems as though I will finish between 7:30-7:45. The South Easter is not too bad. In fact it helps with cooling things down. With some extra effort from our side we can maintain a good pace. At the top of the last hill I hook up with Sean and Liesbet Kristafor. They started 5 minutes after me and Sean is setting the pace. Only 2 km left. 7:30 is doable! Now it is downhill to the end. 1 km left. We get to the last turn and negotiate the cement road to the finish line. I finish in 7:29:51, 24 minutes better than last year. 234 out of 654 finishers and 4th in age group. A good result for a hard day’s’ cycling! Climbing 2,656 meter over 120 km. The winning time is 4:56 by Christof Sauser, who won the Cape Epic with Burry Sander last year!

Attakwas

Ek en Danie Kotze het op Vrydag 18  Januarie die pad Oudtshoorn toe gevat vir vanjaar se Attakwas. Danie het Donderdag sy 29er gekry en het besonder daarna uitgesien om sy nuwe fiets goed op die proef te stel. Ons net na 17:00 in Oudtshoorn aangekom en het heel eerste gaan registreer. Daarna het ons kos gekoop en aangemeld by NA Smit Verblyfoord. Na 'n lekker braai en 'n luister na Lance Armstrong se bekentenis, is ons bed toe. 

Aangesien die wedren 06:30 begin, besluit ons om te sien dat ons 06:00 daar is. Ons is dus 05:30 op om te eet en deur te ry Chandelier toe. Aangesien ons motorbestuurder ons Woensdag in die steek gelaat het, het ons besluit om van die "schuttle" gebruik te maak. Nadat ek hom opgespoor het en ons tente en skoonklere daar afgelaai het, het ons fietse aanmekaar gesit en na die wegspring area beweeg.

Die eerste groep het stiptelik 06:30 weggespring. Ons was in die B groep en spring dus 06:35 weg. Die reeling werk baie goed en die deelnemers is onmiddelik in groepe wat 'n goeie pas handhaaf. Ons vorder goed. Die veld is tiepies Klein Karoo, nie dor nie maar ook nie groen nie, tog sy eie "mooi". Die eerste waterpunt is nader aan die begin en ons bereik dit na 1:10. Van hier tot by waterpunt 2 is die terrein redelik "rof" met 'n paar kwaai bulte. Die 29er klim lekker en hanteer die terrein en sand baie goed. Ek loop ook vir Fred van Zyl, wat my ouderdomegroep tydens die eerste jasr wat ek deel geneem het, gewen het, raak. Ons ry 'n rukkie saam en gesels daaroor en ook oor sy Imana Wild Ride! Waterpunt  2 is net nadat ons die Oudtshoorn/Mosselbaai teerpad kruis. Hier kry ons 'n bottel USN. Ek stop vir 'n paar glassies Coke en ietsie om te eet. My tyd tot hier is 2:20. Dit is ongeveer 15 minute beter as verlede jaar. Ek is dus goed oppad na 'n 7:15-7:30.  Van hier tot by Bonniedale moet ons deur die Attakwaskloof. Die natuurskoon is baie besonders en alhoewel die pad baie klipperig is, maak ek goeie vordering. Die nuwe fiets klim beslis beter as die ou fiets, maar daar is nog altyd 'n paar plekke waar ek verplig is om af te klim en te stoot. Die groot uitdaging is die afdraend na Bonniedale. Dit is ook nie lank nie en ek is daar. Ongelukkig, of miskien "gelukkig" is daar iemand voor my wat nie kans sien vir die baie styl gedeeltes nie. Aangesien ek nie kan verby kom nie, moet ek op twee plekke afklim. Na die tweede afklim kom ek verby en dit is oopketel tot by die rivier en op na waterpunt 3. Die sand teen die laaste bult vang my en ek is verplig om die laaste 30 meter te stoot. Waterpunt 3 is bekend as die Spur stop, want hier kry jy 'n Spur Burger. Fiets word ook vinnig afgespuit en ketting ge-olie. Waterbottel word met Coke gevul en ek val weer in die pad. Tyd tot hier a 4:01. 30 minute beter as verlede jaar! Daar wag egter 'n 20-25 km Suidooste wind oor die laaste 50 km op ons, so ek verwag dat ek van my voordeel oor die laaste paar km sal verloor. 
Nou volg dasr 'n 7 km klim waar tydens ons 206 meter klim! Dit neem 37 minute. Dan volg 'n lekker stuk deur die denne plantasies tot by waterpunt 4.

Hier maak ek weer my waterbottel vol, eet 'n paar lekkernye en val in die pad. Die pad gaan hier vir ongeveer 2 km deur die veld, oor 'n rivier en sluit dan weer by 'n distrikspad aan. Ek kom 'n trop beeste tee wat net nie wil padgee nie, met die gevolg dat ek geduldig my weg tussen hulle moet deur vleg. Net nadat ek deur die rivier is, kom ek agter my agterband kort 'n bietjie lug. Ek hou stil, kry 'n ligbom uit my rugsak en pomp hom styf, maar o-wee ek hoor daardie onrusbsrende sus geluid van 'n band wat lek! Om sake te vererger blyk dit 'n sny op dit kant te wees. Gelukkig is die sny nie dwarsdeur nie! Wat nou gedoen? Ek kan 'n binneband insit of 'n "patch" aan die binnekant, maar alby vereis dat ek die band afhaal. Ek besluit om'n kans te waag en net die sny te "plug". Doen dit gou, pomp op met lugbom en hoop vir beste! Dit lyk of dit werk. Ek pak alles terug en spring weer in die pad, heeltyd met die agterwiel in my kop en 'n vrees dat hy weer pap gaan word. 'n Verdere probleem is dat my lugbom so te sê leeg is en ek het nie meer spaar bommetjies het nie! Dit het op 86 km gebeur na 5:13 se ry tyd, 31 minute vinniger as verlede jaar. Die episode het my seker 'n goeie 5-10 minute gekos. Daar is nog 35 km oor en indien die band nie hou nie, kan dit 'n lang dag word. Gelukkig is daar nou meer ander deelnemers rondom my en indien die wiel weer pap word kan ek darem hulp vra. Die punt van die "plug" wat by die sny uitsteek, is ook so lank dat dit teen die raam kap. Dit is egter nie 'n probleem nie, net 'n irritasie. Ek ry nou gereeld saam met ander deelnemers. Ons vorm 'n kern van drie wat lekker saamwerk. Die wiel bly in my kop. Ek kyk gereeld na hom, maar kan niks agterkom nie. Dit voel darem nie of hy te pap word om te ry nie en ek besluit om dit eenkant toe te skyf en my by die funksie van ry te bepaal. Alles hou tot by waterpunt 5. Ek maak weer my waterbottel vol Coke, eet 'n bietjie, laat my ketting olie en val weer in die pad. Ek vergeet skoon van die wiel! Daar is nou net een bult en 19 km oor. Dit lyk of ek so binne 7:30-7:45 gaan klaar maak. Die Suidooster is nie te erg nie. Dit is net sterk genoeg om die ergste hitte te verdryf en 'n klein bietjie ekstra "effort" van ons kant in te vereis om 'n goeie pas te handhaaf. Na die laaste bult sluit ek by Sean en Liesbet Kristafor aan. Sean is die een wat die pas aangee en ons maak goeie vordering. Die windjie druk, maar Sean druk harder! Nog 2 km oor. 7:30 lyk haalbaar. Dit is nou alles afdraand tot by die einde. 1 km oor. Hierdie die finale draai en ons is op die sementpad na die eindstreep toe. Ek maak klaar in 7:29:51. 24 minute vinniger as verlede jaar. 234 uit 654 en 4de in my ouderdomsgroep. 'n Goeie resultaat vir 'n hardedag se fietsry! Klim 2,656 meter oor 120 km. Totale ry tyd 7:00:39!

Oefening vir die Attakwas en jaar se oorsig

Hierdie is 'n aangename tyd van die jaar. Werk drukte is nie te erg nie en daar is heelwat vakansiedae, wat tot baie tyd in die saal aanleiding gee.

Vanaf 1-7 Desember het ek 17.56 uur, 298.34 km met 3,550 meter se klim in gekry; vanaf 10-17 Desember 19.44 uur, 363.81 km en 3,538 meter se klim; vanaf 18-24 Desember 17.89 uur, 306.03 km en 3,908 meter se klim en vanaf 26-31 Desember 9.48 uur, 203.5 km en 1,467 meter se klim gedoen.

Ons was onder andere van 14-17 Desember op Leeuwenboschfontein met drie dae se lekker rustige fietsry aksie. 11 ure se fietsry en 201 km met 2,551 meter se klim. Die weer was baie lekker en die geselskap ook!

Op 20/12 het ek my nuwe Specialized Stumpjumper gekry.

 Op 22/12 gaan kyk hoe lyk die wereld bo van Koebergkoppie af!

Op 24/12 het ek ook n goeie dag ingekry en 105 km gedoen wat Hillcrest, Contermanskloof, Meerendal, Hoogekraal en kliprug ingesluit het.

Die jaar eindig met 582.94 uur in die saal; 11,136.71 km gery en 93,304 meter geklim! Ons vertrou dat 2013 ook 'n goeie jaar gaan wees.

2012 Double Century

The 2012 Double Century was scheduled for 24 November. After the labour unrest in the Western Cape since early November, the running of the event was in question, but fortunately sanity prevailed and things quieten down sufficiently by end November for the event to go ahead. The event was also "challenged" by the local weather when a section of road got washed away during October. But in spite of these challenges it was all systems go and on 23 November we all headed out go Swellendam for the early start on Saturday.

Our pre race training went will with 6 new people and the return of 1 "old hand". 10 people turned up for the second training ride, which is a record!

The team pre-race meeting took place at the Swellengrebel  Hotel on Friday evening at 19:00. We agreed that we were going to try and finish in 8 hours as a complete team this year and qualify for the special medal. The weather forecast for the race was not very promising with a 70% change of rain and a 20-30kph NW wind. During Friday night the wind picked up and when we woke up on Saturday morning was blowing at a frisk pace, but we had the luxury of starting with the wind on our backs. The sky was clear with no clouds about, so the prospect of a dry race was good.

We were off at 05:45 and made good time to Tradouw Pass with the help of the wind. Once we got into the kloof, there was very little wind. We reached the first water point, where we received our free bottle of water, at the top of the pass after an hour and twenty minutes of cycling.

The sky was still clear and there was still no real wind on the other side and on the road from Barrydale to Op de Tradouw.

Support was changed this year with no support vehicles allowed from the start up to Ashton and also on the last section from where the road was washed away to the end. A free water bottle was provided at the top of Tradouw Pass and we were allowed to fill a bag with water/race drinks and some eats for the top of Op de Tradouw.

As soon as we left the "feeding station" at Op de Tradouw, we started to encounter bad weather. It started with a light drizzle, which then turned into a heavy down pour. The rain was hurting us as we cycled downhill. To make matters worse, we picked up our first puncture! Fortunately the rain stopped and the sun started to break through the clouds. Unfortunately that brought the wind, which, at this point, was blowing diagonally across us from the left. This did slow us down and tiered us out and slowed our progress. We reached the first support station at 110 km after 5:11! That is about an hour longer than what we aimed for! The new rules also allowed us to spend 30 minutes in the "transition area". We used 27 minutes.

When we hit the road to Robertson, which is only about 15 km, we encountered a strong NW straight into our faces. In previous years we easily maintain 26-28 kph on this section. We were now averaging 13-15 kph! It took us 45 minutes to do the 14 km to the turn-off!

We were all very relieved on turning left at Roberston and getting the wind onto our backs. Our speed immediately climbed to 30 kph. We had a quick stop at the Bonnievale turn-off to the red bridge for some refreshments and s comfort break for Andre, who had some stomach problems. On the next section of about 20 km we had two more punctures. A heavy rainstorm also greeted us at the Bonnievale Kelder turn. At the second puncture, the slower guys continued on, while three of us helped to fix the wheel.

Some of the guys waited for us at the Drew water point, while we caught up to the rest on our way to the first of the lady three hills into Swellendam.

The sky was not looking to good, but we hoped that we would be able to get by before the rain hit us. By the top of the second hill we were all together again. Just after the top we got to the compulsory portage section where the road was washed away. We were just getting into our rhythm, when the first raindrops hit us. At least it was down hill and we had the wind on our backs. Over the last hill a heading home. All together and racing for the end. 5 to go! Our time is 9:02. Deducting the 27 minutes at the feeding station, hive us 20 minutes to break 9 hours. 3 km to go! Hold it, Jaco picked up a puncture! He some slime in the tube and as it is only 3 km to go, we "bom" some air in and get going. That worked until we get to the top of the hill just before the end with 500 meters to go it is completely flat and we have to stop again to put in a new tube! The rain is now coming down in buckets and we are freezing! We cross the timing mat in 9:28! It was raining all the way to the finishing area. We even encounter problems with our breaks due to all the water! Most of us miss the ladies handing out finisher medals in the rain and have to turn back to get it. We all are very thankful for the meal and drink voucher. Some wanted a hot shower first and some wanted to fill their tummies. I decided to go for the latter and was pleasantly surprised by the warmness inside the hall. The pasta meal and drink went down very well. We were all glad in completing as a group and enjoyed the "camaraderie"!

When I got to my tent, I found that the wind and rain has caused havoc! It is lying flat, there were a number of small pools inside the tent and most of my close has some degree of wetness! Fortunately there were enough dry clothes and my towel was still useable!

What a grand experience. Thanks to all the guys and to our support crew. Our official time was 9:01:58 and we finished 188 out of 216 teams which completed the race.

Trans Baviaans 2012

Everything is ready for the Trans Baviaans this coming weekend, Saturday 18 August. According to reports it is all systems go for the use of the route through the Baviaans, although the water crossings is bound to be about knee high. With enough luck we should be able to cycle through without getting too wet.

We, Danie Kotze, Pierre van der Merwe and myself, had a meeting on 7 August to sort out the logistics for our adventure. Pierre informed us that he has a "deadline" for a job on which the Navy must sign off on Friday 17 August! All we could do was to hope that things would work out. I did phone the organisers and confirmed that we may change to a two-man team at registration, should Pierre not be able to make it. We kept the option open for Pierre to drive through on his own if he cannot get away on time. 

Pierre confirmed on Wednesday evening that it seems as though he will be able to get away on Friday, but he will not be able to get away before 10:00. Our plan was to leave between 09:00 and 10:00. On Thursday evening Pierre phoned to confirm that he is bring his bicyle to me so that we can load it. He confirmed that his meeting is scheduled for 08:30 and he should be able to get away by 10:00. We decided that we will travel with one vehicle, proved we can get away before 13:00. We also decided that we will meet Pierre in Goodwood at my brother's house, as that would reduce travelling time by between 30 and 45 minutes.

I picked Danie up at 09:40 on friday morning and we set off to my brothers place. There we waited patiently for Pierre to arrive. He phoned at about 10:45 to let us know that he was on his way. We managed to get going at 11:20. Due to the heavy rains and floading in Montagu the previous week, and also because it is a bout 40 km shorter to Willowmore via Prince Albert to use that route rather than the route via Oudtshoorn. We made good time and really enjoyed the beatiful scenery of the Hex River Valley and prince Albert Valley with beautiful snow capped mountains. We arrived in Willowmore just after 17:30. Registration went off without a hitch, we collected our three containers for checkpoint 2, 3 and 4 and we set off to the Marlu Geuast farm, where we were going to stay the night. Supper was at 19:00. In total there were 19 guests, who were either going to ride the Trans baviaans or support the riders. Supper was a feast. We got to bed at about 22:00, except for my brother and the host, who enjoyed a delightful evening over some bottles of wine discussing anything and everything, except politics! We all decided to put some dry clothes into the container for checkpoint 4 packed them before we went to bed. 

We had breakfeast at 07:00 and arrived in town in good time to deliver our containers, pick up our timing tokens and the listen to the rider's briefing at 09:45. The race got going promptly at 10:00.

The 50 km to the first control point included 573 meters on climbing and a total decent of 663 meter, which was mostly down Nuwekloof Pass and took us 2:07:05. 

We also encountered our first water crossing, although these were no more than a couple of centimeters deep. The  scenery through the Nuwekloof was breath taking!. The distance to control point two at vero's restaurant, a dostance of 52 km, took us 2:01:15. Climbing was limited to 216 meters but we descended another 656 meters. The water crossings became more frequent and also a little deeper. Initially we decicded that it is safer to walk through the deaper crossings, but after a while we realised that we can ride through as most of the water levels were only up to about bottom bracket level. Danie usually was the last one through the water hazards, but as we sent along he became more "bould" and started to take the lead. That was until we got to a fairly short stream, which had quite a serious "flow" towards the middle. Pierre was about to worn Danie about the possible "fource" of the waves of the flow, when Danie's wheels were taken out bay the water and he and bicycle started flowing down stream! Fortunately he regained his balance quickly and managed to catch his bicycle, not everything was wet! On the otherside of the steam he took out his cell phone to dry it as quickly as possible. He also took his top of off and dried that. As cycle gear dries quite quickly and it was still fairly hot, his clothes dried out within the next 15-20 minutes.

The scenery was still something to behold and the adventure of the last water crossing was forgotten quickly as we continued towards the next checkpoint at 122 km, which came a climb of 150 meters over a distance of 5 km. Theer we were treated with sosaties, wors, potatoes and some drinks. After a stop of about 15 minutes, we were on our way again, ready for one of the big water crossings after which came the Mother of all Climbs.

The water crossing was about 100-150 meters, with no fast flowing steams, but about thigh high deap, which meant walking in the water with shoes on and carrying your bike. I was wearing water tight Sealskin socks, which are good for keep water out, but once the water is in. it stays in! I therefore had to stop, take them off and dry them out as much as possible. After a 5-10 minute delay to do that we were on our way again. Next came the two Fangs. These were two short hills with about 50-70 meters of climbing in a kilometer each.There after came the Mother of all Climbs and the biggest climb of the Trans Baviaans really started. 481 meters of climbing over a distance of 10 kilometers. Danie was really going strong and left me and Pierre in his wake. At this stage Pierre was also managing a good pace with me bring up the rear. The road has been repaired with the bad patches filled up with cement. It definately was in a better state than two years ago when we came through with a vehicle. I think fatigue was setting because along the way my front wheel went off the cement strip and the loose gravel on the side caused me to make experiance a close encounter with mother earth. The only damage was a scratch on my finger and a dent in my ego! I was up in a flash and got going quickly again. Pierre was feeling the feeling the strain of the kilos done and desided to take a break. As I got to him he got going again and we carried on to the top. Shortly after reaching the top, we arrived at Bergplaas, checkpoint 4 where dry clothes awaited us. We first helped ourselves to something to eat, including some very welcome soup. We then put dry tops and socks. This was quite a lengthy stop and we got going again after about 20-30 minutes.

By now it was dark and the descent down Combrinck Pass was tackled with dew care. Most of the serious climbing was out of the way and we settled into a good rhythm as the  kilometers ticked by. The starts were out and it was not to cold. Road conditions were good, which made the riding pleasant. It was a bit of a shame that we could not see the beauty of the Grootriver Poort as we were cycling through it. Just befoer Hadleigh and the 5th checkpoint we were treated to some tarmack. We arrived at Hadleigh at about 20:20 where we were welcomed my some friendly people who gave us a chip roll and Steri Stumpies. Our stop lasted for about 20 minutes. On our way out Danie realised that he still had some dry socks in the backup vehicle, which added some extra time to our stop over.

Now there was still one serious water crossing and the "Never ending hill" between us and the end. We got to the water crossing, which was about 150 meters long, after about 15 minutes. As this was the last water crossing, we took the decision to take our shoes and socks off and walk trough bare foot. That was a good idea for staying dry, but not so good for soft bare feet over rocks and cement with stones. It probably took us 5 minutes cross plus another 5 minutes to take shoes off and put them on again. This was followed by a hill, which I though msut be the "Never ending hill" because it did not seem to end, but I did remember that there was another hill before the real long one! When we finally got to the famous "Never ending hill", I realised very quickly where the name came from. It never seems to end and it is not one long hill. Every so often there was a small down hill, just to head up hill again! In total the hill was 12 kilometer long with a total ascent of 490 meters. The unmaned checkpoint 6, where we had to check in on our own was at 196 kilometers and the final checkpoint at 203 kilometers. Refreshments consisted of mince filled jaffels and some drinks. At this point my GPS indicted that the battery was low. At this point I had no other option but to hope that it would last to the end.

The end was in sight and and we set off without much of a delay. But this time Danie was smelling the end and really started motoring. The route took a obviously hastely made detour to utilse and small bridge to cross under the Humansdorp/Kabeljauws River road, which gave us a tast of the only single track on the route. On the otherside we linked up with a gravel jeep track. The dreaning on this was not too good, with the result that we encountered some seriuos mud patches. Pierre had the unfortunate experience of a guy knocking him of his bike! The mus patches was not too serious and we quickly got into a goos rhythm. Jeffreys Bay's strated flashing in the distance, but we still had to get over a couple of smaller hills. Even though my energy level was not on par wuth my partners, I was able to peddle up all of them, passing some guys who opted to walk. The kilometers ticked by and it was not long before we turned right on tar, which was the old National road linking Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. With the help of my two team mates, who were setting the pace, we managed to real in a number of teams on our way to the finish. At 23:58 we stil had about 5 kilometers to go, so breaking 14 hours was out of the question. We were glad to see the second last right turn, a short up hill, turn left, a short down hill, right into the school grounds and another 200 meters to the end where we were met by some cheering ladies and a Spur finish hoop. My GPS finally stopped working about 400 meters before the end!

Toatal distance 226.96; total time 14:07:16; total riding time 11:23:56; 2,627 meter acsent; 3,432 meters descent; maximum speed 70.2 k.p.h; minimum tempreture 6 degrees Celcuis and maximum of 31. We finised 109 out of the 246 mens teams which completed the race and 137 out of 315 for all comers.