Cape Epic draws strongest field of women riders ever
THE strongest women’s field ever, top professional male riders and a proud number of prominent personalities make this year’s Absa Cape Epic a sporting highlight in the Western Cape and the mountain bike discipline.
There are “many aspects of the race that are very exciting this year”, race founder Kevin Vermaak said yesterday. The Epic begins on Sunday and continues until March 22.
“We have legends of the sport such as Norway’s Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjå, Switzerland’s Esther Süss, England’s Sally Bigham and the 2014 winning team of Ariane Kleinhans, also Swiss, and Annika Langvad of Denmark in the race.
“The men’s elite field is also very strong and includes two four-time winners in Christoph Sauser of Switzerland, this year racing with Olympic gold medallist Jaroslav Kulhavy of the Czech Republic, and German’s Karl Platt with Swiss Urs Huber and then a host of current and former world champions,” Vermaak added. Also among this year’s participants are a host of former Springbok rugby players including John Smit, Joel Stransky, Butch James and Marius Hurter, former Welsh loose forward Colin Charvis, distinguished multi-sport athlete Josef Ajram from Spain, ex-Premier League footballer Gordon Gilbert, American Tour de France cyclist Alex Stieda and famous South African rally racer Gugu Zulu.
Renowned explorer Riaan Manser, sailing star Vasti Geldenhuys and TV personality Jan Braai will also be pedalling hard.
IT’S HERE. The Cape Epic circus is in town. No hiding now. While I shifted between bouts of delight and nausea at the thought of tackling my ninth Cape Epic I glanced around the room. We were at the V& A Waterfont yesterday for the traditional pro press conference. An opportunity to see who the contenders were for the coveted zebra-striped race leaders’ jerseys in all the categories – Men, Women, Mixed, Masters and Grand Masters.
Some of the pros were agitated and twitchy, others serene. A few more chose humour as their disguise, over stating the punchline or laughing at their own jokes. Whatever the veneer, butterflies were evident everywhere – inevitable, mostly unavoidable. The key is going to be getting them to fly in formation on race day, this Sunday. I found tangible comfort in knowing that pre-race nerves are the same for everyone. We are all in the same boat. The only differ- ence being how fast that boat negotiates the tricky passage from start to finish line each day.
The Cape Epic is really two races. And that’s part of its magical attraction.
On the front line of the starting grid are the world’s best mountain bikers paired up, all eager to claim a share of the R1,6 million prize purse on offer. These are hardened professional riders whose training calendar and racing commitments are carefully composed each year, with the Epic an important feature early in their seasons. The biggest stage race on the planet, with valuable exposure for their sponsors. 739km around the Western Cape. Covering over twice the vertical ascent of Mount Ever- est in the process.
Behind the high-tech bikes and matching socks of the pros are the rest of us.
Over 1100 excited amateurs, who have found a willing partner and made sacrifices to face eight tough days in the saddle. We have dragged our tired bodies into the hills before sunrise and shoehorned training sessions into our humble routines. We have had countless discussions about training techniques, skills improvement and equipment choice.
Part of the inspiration to endure this daily torture for months comes from understanding what a rare privilege it is to cover the same challenging terrain as our cycling heroes. And we want to prepare ourselves to at least enjoy the experience.
Another motivator is more closely aligned to those of the pro field. We are keen to do our sponsors proud – the work colleagues, wives, husbands, children and friends that have made the journey to a Cape Epic, and through it, possible.
Sunday’s opening stage of the 2015 Cape Epic will be a fantastic showcase of Cape Town’s hospitality and rugged beauty. The 20km Prologue course will be furious for the top teams, and a chance to ease into the race for those with more modest ambitions.
From UCT we will climb to the base of Devils Peak, traverse across to Deer Park, head up to Tafelberg Road and drop back down from Kings Blockhouse to UCT again via some fast and flowing single track trails. The route offers plenty of places to share a piece of the action.
Follow Nic Lamond’s daily Absa Cape Epic column in the Cape Times, as he and his riding partner, Carl Pasio tackle the grueling race as Team RSAWEB-Biogen.
Follow @niclamond, carlpasio and @TeamRSAWEB on twitter