Anyway - getting back into running, which feels completely unnatural after so much cycling, as well as some swimming... preparation for the next challenges... triathlons! I've always been keen to give these a bash and I suppose there's no time like now to start, given that my next big goal is to do an Ironman.
Coming up?
27th May - New Balance Duathlon at Gansbaai
this time round I'm not underestimating just how difficult it can be!
3rd June - Robertson Winery Wacky Wine Weekend MTB Challenge
(phew... that's a mouthful) - PPA event but what the hell... gonna be at the wine fest anyway!
7th-14th July - Good ol' Knysna Oyster Festival!
A return to my favourite town and will be doing both the mountain bike and the marathon - both awesome, awesome times (check in the archives for my previous experiences).
After that, who knows?]]>
Hell and Back: lived up to the hype and vibe from 2005's outing.... Do yourself a favour and get an entry to this year's event! It's a fantastic 2 days and the descents are insanely fast....!
24 Hours of Wiesenhof: My first experience of 24 hour riding and night-riding and boy, was it fun! We entered a 4-person mixed-team and did damn well while still having a blast in the process. Helluva tiring but a great vibe - definitely to be repeated.
Boschendal MTB: An awesome route but this was one crap ride for me - had no strength, bonked badly towards the end and to top it all, bent my derailleur hanger with 25kms to go... eugh. Muddy as hell which at least made things a little more fun!
Cape Argus: My first big road ride since the shitty Tour d' Winelands and it was an absolute hoot. Nick and I rode together (well... he rode, I held him back!) and we spent the morning cruising at a great pace. Issues with his chainring saw Nick going up Suikerbossie in his big gear and it wasn't fun trying to keep up...
And now... the big Grand Daddy of them all is coming up... The ABSA Cape Epic! Yep, Nick and I are in the final stages of preparing for this. 10 days to go and I'm not exaggerating when I say I'm nervous as hell. It's been a long, hard 4 months of training with countless hours of lost sleep and early sunrises on the mountains. Follow the race progress at http://www.cape-epic.com!
We haven't really given much thought to life post-Epic, but the Knysna Oyster fest - both the marathon and the MTB - are on the cards. Be patient.... We might even get around to updating the site!]]>
At the other end of the spectrum lies the just-completed 24 Hours of Wiesenhof. 7.5km of some of the most awesome singletrack, ridden hard by a campsite packed full of adrenaline junkies makes for one fantastic weekend - report coming soon! (that's a promise)
In other news, Nick and I have been training full-time for the upcoming Sani2C classic, as well as the Cape Epic (although still looking for entries for this!). It's been a lot of early mornings and accordingly, the social life has all but disappeared (along with budget). No complaints though - part of our preparation involved great riding in the Summerveld area up in Natal, as well as a fantastic two days in the Cathedral Peak region of the Drakensberg along with Ruth, another Epic trainee.
Amazing scenery, fantastic times... truly taking it to the max!
Who: Inky, Rich, Nick
Why: Good question. Who really cares about an Argus seeding??
The final seeding race for next year's Cape Argus, Tour d' Winelands is coming up... but the question is: do we really care? I ain't a roadie, dammit! The route is "approximately" 112km (just goes to confirm my beliefs on PPA and it's organisational abilities...) Still, it should be a fun ride and be a good opportunity to get some base riding in... and hit a wine farm or two on the way home...
More info: http://www.pnptourdwinelands.co.za/]]>
Where: Starts at De Hoek, near Outdshoorn and the Cango Caves
When: 11 & 12 November 2006
Who: Inky, Rich, Thamar
Why: Cos we're suckers for punishment...!
Check out last year's race writeup here.
Details can be found on the EcoBound.co.za website.]]>
This could be describing a fabulous day on the beach in Cape Town. But no, this is my summary of three fabulous days of Mountain Biking in the Cederberg.
Good Vibrations? Well, perhaps not quite. At race briefing on Thursday evening, Martin Horn, Race Director, said “Those guys who are riding hardtails will still be bouncing up and down for 3 weeks to come.” I am one of those unfortunate souls on a hardtail, and we did cover a fair distance on rather corrugated gravel roads. So, ‘Good Vibrations’ weren’t really that great after all...
Pics in the gallery!]]>
I've been on a mission recently to get my first full marathon under my belt and chose the Voet because it was the first one coming up. Only after I entered did I hear how tough it is, and then I saw the route profile...
