Pros line up for MTB race
● Riders preparing for huge battle upfront
Some of SA’s top mountain bikers will gather at Crossway Farm Village outside Gqeberha to fight for honours in the Prudential PE PLETT starting this morning.
The multistage, four-day mountain bike race takes competitors through picturesque scenery as they make their way to Nature’s Valley rest camp near Plettenburg Bay, where the winner will be crowned.
With the popular Absa Cape Epic postponed to October, and competitive racing a rarity in the midst of the Covid19 pandemic, the race, with a field capped at 200 riders, would see the biggest ever professional turnout in the event’s nine-year history, organisers Red Cherry Adventures said.
“The pros include the likes of Matt Beers, HB [Hendrik] Kruger, Philip Buys and ShaunNick Bester, to name just a few,” Red Cherry Adventures’ Mike Glover said.
“We should see a huge battle up front as they pit their skills against the country’s best,” Glover said.
The Tough and Lite routes have been combined for this year’s event, with both categories racing on the same course.
Distances covered on average a day will be about 75km, with no more than 1,500m in elevation gain on any of the four race days.
Stage one sees the group tackle an 82km route from Crossways to the Jeffreys Bay bike park, before ending the day in between the poles of the Humansdorp Rugby Club.
The 63km second stage sees the riders head out through the J-Bay bike park and enter the Tsitsikamma mountain range.
Riders will experience beautiful farmlands along the way, heading through the Churchill Dam area and Krom River Valley, where the Prudential Investment Managers King and Queen of the mountain awaits.
Once at the summit, a few more farms are to be traversed as they make their way to the Assegaaibosch Hotel for the conclusion of stage two.
Stage three takes the group on a 64km journey through lush forests in the Tsitsikamma range, and enjoying some contour single track.
Riders will then make their way to the Regyne Protea Farm before heading back into the forest, down the Robbehoek Coast with its stunning sea views, as well as the Cape Pine Forestry trails, before ending the day at the Tsitsikamma Lodge and Spa.
The final day covers 69km and the pack will have to navigate both the Storms River and Thomas Baines’ Bloukrans passes.
Between the two passes, the race shows off the stunning Witteklip indigenous forests and trails, and once ascending the Bloukrans, where the KOM awaits, riders pass through the Covey Settlement and down Pig’s Head and the Otters Trail to the finish on the beach at Nature’s Valley.
“Red Cherry, the event organisers, and Prudential, the title sponsor have gone all out to ensure it is a Covid-free event, with all riders and crew undergoing rapid antigen testing before they are allowed to access the race village and register for PE PLETT,” Glover said.
While no spectators were allowed at the event, Glover said fans could follow the race as it unfolded on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.