After parading around with the youngsters, students and Pro’s for a year with team RSAWEB, the new year meant new challenges and also a new team.

I signed for team Aurecon for 2012 and look forward to some excellent racing and hopefully some good results. I’m back to racing in the Subvet 30 plus age cat. Hopefully I can use my racing and experience over the last year to good effect to provide the team with some results.

It’s going to be a jam packed season with 7 race strong road league starting in January, interspersed with local classics and then onto SA TT Champs and SA Road Champs in March. Straight off the plane and into the fire for the Cape Epic 2012. Later in the year the main event, the Worlds Masters TT and having just made the cut, the road race as well!

Here’s to an excellent year ahead

Team Aurecon's new colours

We decided to drive up to to Bloemfontein, not because we loved each others constant company, but because flights were ridiculously expensive to the lush brown capital of SA. We split the trip into two parts to minimise fatigue and stayed overnight in Beaufort West. The three of us, Ed, Jos and then drove the remainder of the way through to Bloem the next day. We arrived around lunch time and set off to find out hotel and get sorted for a training ride around town. The Hotel was in the …um…business end of town, and we kept our stay there to a minimum, although the rooms were perfectly fine. After our ride we set about a wild goose chase for some Future life cereal for Ed and Carl, while I played taxi. Once we decided bloem had never heard of such a thing nor staying open beyond 5pm on the weekend that thousands of hungry cyclists turn up we headed home for a shower and change and then out to dinner. I wont elaborate again but see below to see who came to the rescue.

The start was very early, 5:30 am and we could ride to the start area from our hotel to warm up, for got up at 4 so had plenty of time to doodle around once we got there. The weather was great and I expected a fairly uneventful day as it was pretty flat aside form the two back to back 14% grades that would attempt to kill me later.

From the gun the race was very fast, averaging well over 40kmph we cruised along mostly in the gutter at the will of MTN who clearly had early flights home. The constant gutter split the field and saw us all in the tail end… we moved through to the front and gave chase. i tried to keep my work to a minimum but eventually had to lend a hand in the pacemaking. We caught.

We sat in for a while until the next fast gutter and managed to get split off again as dead wheels ahead couldn’t hold the pace, this time a much longer chase was needed and when we got back there was a break away from the lead group and they had all sat up. We chased with some other teams but in the end we couldn’t do it all and sat up and let someone else do the work for a change. The gap grew.

The kays has ticked along very fast and now the bunch was easing up in anticipation of the double climbs at 75km, I rolled to near the front and hammered it as we hit the climb but my legs had nothing, I just went backwards. Edward gave me a shove or three and tired himself out in the process, I went over in touch but the second roller did more damage and the field had been shattered. The 3 man breakaway was now joined by 2 more as they caught up over the climbs and a group of 20 or so gave chase. It was Carl’s turn now to pull me over and we went over with the team cars and tail of the pack in sight. We hammered it so hard for ages and were closing the gap between us, but we could only manage so long. We caught and passed riders as they fell off the lead pack, now still in the gutter. Jos was up ahead after making the split. Carl and I couldn’t get back in. The pack turned into the final stretch and we were into a headwind.  We relented and slowed to a manageable pace to finish.

In the End Jos got 18th place in a tough bunch sprint, and I was still the 1st SV 30+ man home but they didn’t cater for my category here. It was great hard and fast racing and all adds to the teams experience. Learning each course through the year will bring better results each time we revisit.

Ok I’m a bit behind on my blog right now, but it’s been flat out racing for the last two months, so it’s time for a bit of catchup.

This is a little back to front time wise but it actually works out perfectly, you’ll see why in a bit…

The team and I drove up to Bloem for OFM weekend, we scampered around town at dinner time and hoped to find a good pasta. We hadn’t eaten since breakfast on the drive and were now beside ourselves. We cruised into the Bloem waterfront, spotted Primi Piatti, and strolled in. It was packed to the rafters (understandably) and we decided to check out the competition nearby to get something sooner. This was perhaps the single biggest mistake of the whole weekend!

We sat down at another restaurant nearby, they advised they were kinda full but could have food out after a short wait. We waited, this was 7:20pm. After getting a round of waters, and an hour later there was still no food. We resorted to eating the biscotti off their closed coffee bar to satisfy the pangs and kept waiting… at just before 9pm we got a little upset, asked if our food was nearly done, but the disappearing waiter kept coming back empty handed – we couldn’t wait anymore (and they were running out of biscotti) so we left money on the table for the water and ninja bombed.

We climbed the stairs straight into Primi Piatti and sat right down at 9pm. Our friendly waitress advised they were close to shutting the kitchen but they could still help us if we ordered quick. We ordered four Recco Con Pollo’s in a heartbeat and got drinks in the short wait. The service was seriously fast and we were elbow deep in fettucini not even 10 minutes later. We realised soon we were going to hit rock bottom on the porcelain and ordered a large pizza to share in between mouthfuls. Another record delivery later and the twirling forks were exchanged for a hands on attack, as slice by slice disappeared.  Meanwhile the bill arrived and we could hightail it out of there to get some sleep before the 4am wake up.

In by 9pm, two main courses done and bill paid and in the car park by 9:30 – Now that was something to behold. Primi Piatti you rocked our worlds.

So… this leads to my next announcement (after realising we couldn’t race without them) that Team RSAWEB will be fuelled up by Primi Piatti for all races from now on, and we’ll never have to endure a culinary nightmare again. Not to mention those morning Primi breakfast rides and cups of coffee, I cant wait to get training!

And just so you know (because I didn’t know either until now) they have a great carbo loading menu and a sweet loyalty program for frequent flyers (that’s the elbows up at the table kind) check the menu out below and visit their website to find out about the Primi Loyalty Card

Winning becomes a habit, and the harder I ride the luckier I get!

I’d been off the bike for the whole week, after cramping in the Msundusi Road Race and pedalling through them, my legs were damaged, my tendons were inflamed and swollen and I couldn’t walk without pain. Monday was bad, Tuesday was worse but thankfully Wednesday brought some respite, I could walk more freely and I felt I could ride the crit without too much hassle. My Aim was to spin out my legs to loosen them up for the weekend.

It was windy, so I planned to hide in the pack and roll around doing as little as possible. Lap one put an end to that when a huge wind split opened up only half way around the track, I looked ahead and saw only top contenders in the race, not very good news and the flailing dudes on the front of my group weren’t bringing it any closer! I had to get across or it was game over.  I went…hard!

Into the wind my flat road TT style was closing the gap, with the wind I wasn’t making much inroads, but I could maintain what I’d brought back. It took a lap of effort to get across, dragging two Daikin riders with me but I made it, and without the main bunch. I had now joined the breakaway and it already contained my team mate Jos. We helped each other and worked the break into a sustainable gap, then the infighting started. Gutters and attacks came at will as the guys tried to shake each other down, the bunch of 11 was thinning lap after lap.

I would open gaps into the wind and made riders chase me down to tire them out, and the same came from other riders all round the course. In the final three laps I made a break and caused a major split and when David Garrett and Darren Lill joined forces to give chase, they broke away from the rest. I rode solo for a lap while they worked their way back to me. David rested behind Darren in the closing stages and I eased up on the pedals before they rejoined me to take a breather, it was now a three way dice. As I suspected DG attacked soon after closing me down. I jumped immediately not allowing a gap to open, Darren didn’t follow.

It was down to David and I with 1 lap to go. There was still a 6 man chasing bunch so we couldn’t ease up and start attacking each other just yet. We worked together somewhat until the final bend where David sat on my wheel and wouldn’t roll through. I knew he would and I kept the pace high so he couldn’t get a big leap if he jumped me. I rolled up to a place I was happy to open up the sprint. I knew I had a bigger kick, it was just a question of how much was left in the tank. I got it all right and DG followed and held my wheel but couldn’t come around once out of the slip, I held the power to the line and crossed with half a bike length. 2nd win for me in the series and I am now 2nd on the points ladder. Happy days!

Sprint Finish

The essence of this UCI World Cycling Tour event for those that do not know, is for amateur cyclists over 30 years old to compete against their own age category riders in order to qualify to race in the UWCT (Masters) World Championship. Ages are split in 5 year intervals up to 75 and I fall into the 30-34 age group. Qualification would mean that I would then race in the final event (there are various similar qualifiers worldwide for other countries) to be staged again in South Africa. Although anyone could enter and qualify in another country.

I entered both the Time Trial and the Road Race. (Road Race Update Below)

The TT:

Since I had no TT bike I converted my aero road bike for the job, with Zipp clip on TT bars and my trusty 404 firecrests. I slid the saddle forwards and mounted a shorter stem to bring the reach back enough. No revolution there. I had my Giro TT helmet still and I got hold of a skinsuit.

Rob Quinn and I flew up to Durban early Friday morning to make sure we have enough time to pre-ride the course. It was a bit rough, winding and certainly not flat. The advertised 34m of climbing swelled to 250m and the amount of potholes and debris meant choosing a line was going to be crucial. Our homework paid off, and we arrived on race day well prepared and managed to ride the route one more time on race day, this time without the afternoon breeze. It made a difference.

I was off third last, with Quinn two minutes back. I went out easy and I tried to make sure I didn’t fill up with lactic acid too early and burn the entire time. Time trialling is like walking over hot coals, whoever can walk the furthest wins. The early part of the course was flattish, and relatively smooth, slightly downhill to start, then the turnaround was a sketchy gravel corner, then back up to speed but not too hard on the rise, it was false flat back to the 1st left turn, tempting to go too hard again. I concentrated on staying aero and conserving energy.

The next section was technical, some bumpy sharp corners, short rises and included a long drag uphill, again I had to trade speed and try push hard but not overly so, I kept myself in check with my Quarq powermeter. I shot under the bridge, missing the dimly lit potholes and onto the last climb of the this sector. I could give it stick here as there was along recovery area to follow. I cornered well over the ruts and speed bumps and out onto the smoothest part of the circuit.  I was begging for a 54 blade that I could not source anywhere in Cape Town at the last minute over this highway section. It was open and fast and had a tailwind. I rolled easy conserving energy and using alternate muscle groups. The joy ends with a slight rise into Camperdown which was way shallower at full speed, another kicker slows you down but again there was sufficient recovery to follow so I kept my speed up at the expense of energy.

I was in the last sector now and it was just a case of holding on, putting out everything I could. The final 4km contained the biggest climb, it stung and it sapped speed which is very disheartening to see when speed is all you care about, it dragged on seemingly forever and then the flat on top felt much longer too… time stood still as I ground the pedals begging for the finish line, the last km was false flat again and almost a headwind. I held my power and just watched the watts finally the route broke into a downhill sweep to the line and I felt relief crossing the line in 40:28.

I didn’t time it, but I peered back down the finish area waiting for the danger men behind me. Agonisingly the proceedings took forever to get times out, but once I’d seen my name on the top of the list I was elated, relieved and happy. The pain was worth every second, I had won gold and will represent my country at the UWCT final. I’d also posted the third fastest time overall of the day, and the fastest on a road bike.

Now I need a full TT setup again, complete with disk, some time on the bike fine tuning my position and I’ll go even faster. Watch this space.

The Road Race:

After the elation of the TT I didnt really mind what happened in the road race, we drove the rent-a-racer around the course and the more I saw the less I wanted to see. It was a brutal course of huge rolling hills with little flat and wide open spaces for the wind to hit you. What made it worse was it started with a big 7km climb and finished over the same in reverse. Ouch.

My legs felt pretty good but the TT effort had clearly taken the sting out of them, I had big ITB problems off the bike, but on the bike I wasn’t in any pain. The race was 126km long and thankfully the bunch respected this stat and took the first climb pretty mildly, I was still at 95% HR but I wasn’t built to go up hills. The bunch rolled over with Cobbett off the front in a ballsy move that saw him away the whole day.

The bunch remained together but climb after climb was taking its silent toll as I rolled up on front and slide backwards each time. This was the ploy and it was working until 48km in when DGarrett launched on a long roller, the last of the big ones on the way out. I kicked but i was out of luck and there was nothing left in my legs to up the pace, I maintained my speed in the hope they would fade and i would catch up, but there was no help, the attack shattered the bunch and I could not claw my way back through the field.

I rolled up the Chris Botha and Luke Hardiman, two strongmen that could help my efforts in chasing and I towed them up the hill in the wind, shetlering them so they could recover and help. We picked up a few more survivors and worked feverishly to regain the next group ahead. The crosswinds were not helping us, and to make matters worse the roads were rough, it was hot and dry. I gritted my teeth and kept pressing forwards. We were slowly catching up and this encouraged me to drive harder, even though the rest of the bunch had all but given up. Eventually we caught up, after a solid 15km of chasing.

The bunch was the second group chasing the split ahead, the time gap was significant and no-one was interested in chasing. We all rode in the gutter. From here on it was a long haul, we still had a huge roller to conquer and then it was a great section of downhill. We drove through the climb but crack were developing, I fought off cramps and ate and drank all I could. The other guys were suffering too. Rob Quinn had shot off earlier and rode solo for a good few kilometers, but eventually came back to the bunch.

As we neared the final climb riders took on last drinks and now with the wind, we baked in the heat of the day. On the early slopes the gradient was a bit steeper and riders that still had some energy attacked the bunch, the surges saw me dropped, but again I stuck it out in my TT style and clawed my way back in the big blade while they took turns hurting each other, thankfully I didnt have to deal with accelerations and the gradient was shallow enough for me to work alone. I caught up again nearing the final 2 kays of the hill and could hold a wheel and spin out of the wind. I fought off more cramps, but managed to hang on until the descent.

The downhill renewed my energy and the breeze helped cool me down, riders attacked one by one trying to force a gap, including me this time as going down hills is more my thing! It was all in vain as we cruised through the town section together and set up for a sprint. I knew my legs were not going to go round very fast and I tried to be smart about it, but in the end I got swallowed by the sprinters left with more punch.

I finished 13th in my age category, and 20th overall in the SV’s. As yet, I am still unsure if this is enough to qualify but I can only hope I get to ride again in the Worlds road race. I’m sure by then I will be leaner and meaner and can specifically train to suit the course.

Lets hope!

I have never really been in a position to “Dedicate a Win” but just recently I had some good form and broke the TT record around my neighbourhood. I followed that up with an outright win at Killarney in the night series criterium, this win I dedicate to one man.

Italian – Grinta -n. grit, bravery, endurance, determination

I started riding a few years ago, I was overweight, slow and inexperienced, but I loved riding my bike. I was aggressive and brave and had no fear for falling off (which I did a lot) and I learned quickly. I had a thirst for knowledge about riding and taught myself all I could. I was training for the Cape Epic, riding 10 hours a week and eating like a small army to replace the energy spent so I could train more. I rode and rode and didn’t lose a single gram, I got fit but not fast. So bad that my local coffee ride group I hooked up with dropped me like a stone on the shallowest of grades. I’d lose sight of them as they would round a corner and I wouldn’t know which way they rode. I would pick a direction and chase like mad, sometimes only catching them on their way back… so it went in the lead-up to the Big Race. One of the fast guys laughed and said I would never complete the epic in this shape. This only fuelled my fire.

My Epic partner had done some research on nutrition and found this man, Andy Lambert who I and many friends call by his nickname; Grinta. He met with  me and wrote me a program, he was the most enthusiastic guy I’d ever met, no bullshit, yet gentle. He had this way of making you want to do something perfectly every time. I counted calories, I learned more and more about nutrition and what I was doing. My body changed. I went from 94kg to 85kg by the time I started Epic in just three months. I raced the race and rode strong every day, it was long and hot and brutal but I knew I could make it and I did. Andy was proud as a father, and congratulated me greatly. We set new goals.

I used my MTB fitness and bought a road bike, I rode in the PPA races to better my seeding and went from Q to D Group in three rides. I now qualified to race elites, which I did for the first time in the Burger Sanlam Race. OK I got dropped on my ass on the first hill, but I was well accustomed to chasing. I went from strength to strength to where I am now.

It was Andy that told me about Killarney crits on a Wednesday evening, he’d give me advice and tips on how to manage it and encourage me to hang on for dear life. He’d tell stories of his experience and how the races went, the tactics and sprints, about burning matches, who to watch and racing in general, and for this I thank him today. This one exercise has helped shape my riding and I dedicate this win to him.

The sad thing is I never got to ride there with him, he was a busy guy but I’d go see him afterwards and tell him all about it and stand on the scale for  my weigh in.

I can honestly say this one guy changed my life, for the better. He willed me to be better, I worked hard and had great results. Over three years of riding and racing, I have not just ridden with the best in the country and sometimes the world, but I have been competitive, not a fly on the wall.

In my lowest weight I was 75kg for Giro 2010, I have gained 3kg of muscle since and nett a loss of 16kg from where I started. It means all the difference, and I’m only getting better…

Andy – I hope you read this and stay the positive, lively, enthusiastic guy with a massive zest for life and willingness to help. You are a true inspiration and I owe you everything. I hope these bad times for you pass swiftly and your recovery is way beyond expectation. You deserve better.

See that look on my face - that's Grinta!

Team RSAWEB sent a crew of 5 riders up to Durban for the 25th edition of the Amashova. The weather was great the day of arrival in Durban, but after we’d got our bikes unpacked and assembled it had turned rather grey. We kitted up and went for a short spin to clear the legs and the rain was already coming down before we left the estate. We cruised through it and rode for about an hour, feelings were good and the guys looked positive.

A super early 4:30am wake up call only brought more gloom as the rain and mist had persisted through the night, it was still raining and by the time we hit the start line we were all soaked through he shoes. I relished the conditions, and decided to make a go of it. I enjoy the tricky cornering and descents and looked forward to some speed.

Rainy Days

Out the blocks the pace was high and I was soon hitting the limit in the bunch, the first 15km ticked over very quickly. A break went at 10km or so but I wasn’t in a position to follow. I bided my time and waited for the intial climbs to let up. As we crested the final hill, I went.

The descent was fast and long and perfect for me as the bunch nervously gathered speed, I pulled out some time quickly and set after the group ahead. I was in no man’s land but going strong, there were plenty of rollers, and not as technical as I had hoped but still I rode on in the hope the break slowed for me to join. I went off the front for 28km averaging 41.4kmph but it wasn’t enough. as the rollers turned to climbs the 5 man Bonitas train set up on front reeled me in.

I rejoined the bunch and still felt strong, the climbing hurt, but I was managing it and again making up an lost ground on the drops. Then, just as we were about to go over the final climb, my front tire hissed. Ugh… I sighed and slowed to see if it would seal. We had no backup car and I was a long way from home. It stopped, for a little while, hissed some more and finally settled at about 5 bars. The delay in those 30 seconds cost everything though and the bunch dropped over the other side without me.

Rob had bought a plot somewhere behind me and he rolled up as I was ready to get moving again. He’d ended up in a ditch after trying to avoid another riders crash and clipped a wheel. The tow of us set about a chase but we were both poked. We caught a few other dropped riders and joined forces, riding in a 5 man TT towards home. The downhill was nowhere near tricky enough to allow us to catch a slowing peloton, they were gone.

We cracked on in the driving rain all the way home, only seeing dry tarmac as we entered the final 5km. The race was riddled with pucntures and bad luck, but we still had a lot of positives to take away. Hopefully I caught some TV time in the time I was clear

Ed, Jos and Carl lead out the final pack and closed down the break of the day, but didn’t have the sprint firepower to end up on a high… We’ll be back, and we’ll be better

My rest week ended on Wednesday where I spun out the acids from the weekend and looked forward to Killarney and the Wednesday night crit. I tried to remain hidden and relax a bit around the course on the night, but when the legs warmed up I couldn’t  help myself than to follow a few moves in attempt to get a good break. it didn’t go my way and the sprint was a dog show, so not a good night all in all, but my legs felt better afterwards for sure.

The following night I planned to ride the TT course in Bervliet with Ed Greene and the UCT guys. I set up my Venge with TT bars and rolled out on my 404 Firecrest wheels and Giro TT helmet. I need to get used to all this gear and find a good position ahead of the TT at Msundusi later this month.

I was feeling pretty comfortable and just left my saddle in the same position as I have it for road racing. Out on my first lap my legs felt cold and the effort stung my thighs, my breathing was elevated and I didn’t  feel strong. My upper body was comfy though. I could tell I needed to slide the saddle forwards though and needed minor adjustments on the bars. I rode a 9:20, 40 secs faster than my 1st ever attempt, and 21 seconds off the long standing course record. While I waited for the others I tuned my bars, saddle and discovered my rear wheel had gone out of true causing the pads to rub generously on the rear pads. I was a little miff, but released the cable tension to open the blocks. I had to give it another go.

I was warmer this time and felt more comfortable, I didn’t go out as hard as before, and also had to narrowly miss a scooter at the 1st set of lights. I was cruising down the back end of the course and watched the time splits working out where I needed to be at certain intervals (while simultaneously killing myself) I was ahead. I again came up on a tricky situation, I had to brake again as some runners and a car forced me almost into the curb at the circle. I was still up and gunned it up the false flat home to end up in 8:52. A new course record. I’ll take that thank you very much

My TT converted S-Works Venge

My lead up week to this race was less than ideal, my daughter got sick, followed by my wife, and I knew what was coming. I developed symptoms on Wednesday night and by Thursday morning my tonsils were inflamed. I got to a pharmacy…quick. I bought anti virals, immune boosters and anti inflammatories, litres of orange juice and vitamin C boosters. I’m pretty sure I quadrupled my RDA on everything, including food. I chowed like it was my last week on earth. My head was stuffy and nose was blocked and I ran a mild fever by Friday. Luckily it seemed to break around lunch time and the high from the meds was making me feel pretty invincible. By saturday monring I could ride again, I spun, my nose burned but I had one more day recovery.

On race day I felt OK, not great but rideable, the weather was perfect and I was looking forward to the race. Bonitas had arrived but luckily no-other Pro teams came down. In my current state that would have been tickets.

The race towards the climb of Bothmaskloof was uneventful, some attacks but nothing too hard. I attacked hoping to get away before the climb, I was shut down, followed by Jos who got closed down quickly too. The David Garrett capitalised on the speed lull and slipped away alone at the turn. Nobody chased as the pack mellowed to recover a little before the onslaught of the hill to come.

The initial slopes of the climb were not too hard, I sat 2nd wheel hoping to be close to the front before the fireworks. I managed OK until the 1st attacks came from Bonitas. I held on and maintained a position in the back of the bunch as it began to string out on the steeper slopes. I couldnt hang on for long, my power was down and I was fading, I ground outthe rest of the hill to go over near the back of a bunch. Ed Greene had a painfully timed puncture on the crest after staying with the lead bunch, I arrived in time to help him descend back into the bunch ahead.

The work started there and never ceased, 4 RSAWEB riders now joined forces in the bunch we caught, Rob, Peter Ed and I rotated turns like a TTT, with little interspersed help from the rest of the riders getting sucked along behind us. We were chasing another well oiled machine including two RSAWEB riders Carl and Jos, who were feverishly working to catch the Bonitas train and DG ahead. there was precious little time, 30-40 sec at most but the pace of each group meant closing the gap was impossible.

Bonitas ended up taking the honours, Carl and Jos managing high positions in the chase group. Rob and I took the sprint in our group for a solid days work, but not what we wanted to be spending energy on. I had to be content with my ride after the illness robbed a lot of power.

R&R for the week ahead of Amashova to come.

The much anticipated start of Roadie season kicked off with the Orbit Tour De Worcester on Sunday. It’s a far drive from home so the night before was spent packing, and the alarm went off at 4:25am to get up and going to make the start. The morning was clear and calm and looked like awesome conditions to race in, it wasn’t even that cold and I lined up in summer gear with no warmers needed.

Line Up

The route was mostly flat, and without wind to shake things up. The course had been revised and although it kept to the same loop almost, the climb was now very early on, at least I didn’t have to hit it after some hard miles. This was perfect for me as most people were still cold, and no-one would want to spend all day off the front.

We rolled up to the rise nice and easy and then expectedly the attacks shot off the front, Ed Greene covered everything, the man’s in top form and danced over to whoever was firing off the front. Once we hit the descent and twisties through town I was in my element and jumped a few times to make sure everyone was still attentive.

Through the flatlands Ed, Jos, Peter and I took turns attacking at will in random intervals. The bunch was very alert and didn’t let us have an inch to spare. Ed was relentless in his effort and I ground out some hard yards on front to try and break the tether…In the end though it was Jos that escaped after a hard effort from me and followed by Ed, which allowed to Jos get away with Theuns, Alistair Davies, Leonardo and a few others. We allowed it to go clear and gave them a long leash. Most teams were represented and the break stuck.

Intellibus were not in the break, but instead of bringing it back they tried to cross over with a lone rider. This didn’t work and several hard kilometres later he faded back into the pack. The bunch was now nearing the gravel and we wound our way along the lead-up. Nervous overtaking ensued as usual as riders tried to position themselves well before hitting the crunchy stuff. My legs had mysteriously given up their get up and go they had in the early stages and I was feeling decidedly slow, like the brakes were on…I checked, they weren’t

I hoped against hope that I could regain some strength and I sat mid pack to rest…that didn’t do much good either. Then we hit the final climbs before the gravel, attacks came and I slipped back allowing myself to drift and not consume too much energy. On the dirt proper the pace leapt up as expected and my lungs and legs were getting incinerated. I could not hold the pace and I faded to almost out the back. I had a great smooth line up the right, but everyone else was on the left and I had no wind protection. Gav Rossouw, a fellow MTBiker followed me and we took turns helping each other to use the line. It worked well as we popped off the gravel in the second bunch and chased back fairly easily to rejoin the attacking bunch in time to go over the following rollers together.

I moved back up to the front of the pack, where an interesting dynamic had changed the race. Alistair had punctured. He was a firm favourite to win the sprint in the breakaway bunch and this now left Jos with better odds. We let it hang. Daikin now did the chasing and I did the policing. My legs had re-fired and I felt strong again. I rode just behind the rotating riders as they gave chase, ready to go with anyone trying to cross. Herman Fouché chased with Erik Kleinhans and David Garett, but they fell short by about 30 seconds still left to haul in when we approached the final 2km.

Rob Quinn was moving up and I saw him take my rear wheel, I was perfectly positioned for a leadout and I held the left hand line through the last bend and up to the 800m mark. I lone rider jumped away but I didn’t panic and he faded back to us at 500m, I was almost at full steam, and the sprint was hotting up behind me, Rob heard some gears clicking away behind him and he launched at 350m to go up my left hand side. I was fading and the riders blew past me but Rob hugged the left and no-one could get by, in the end winning the bunch sprint by 10m for 5th. Jos has been outgunned by track riders to sprint him into third place after trying to wear them down in the last 5km left him without enough kick to break free.

Final Dash

3rd and 5th was good enough to hand us the lead in the Team Competition of the league and we hope to maintain and extend it going into the double this weekend.

Jos on the 3rd Step