Team DnA at the Pick n Pay Cape Argus MTB Challenge – 6 March 2011

Our newest tradition is this – our annual trip down to the fair Cape for the Pick n Pay Cape Argus MTB Challenge. Whilst the ride is actually but a small part of all the carousing of a weeklong stay down in Cape Town, the Argus still remains our reason for going. This is what all our preparation early in the year leads up to and our first holiday since Mozambique September last year!

The Argus is an extravaganza of scenery and very different to what we get to experience back home where we are used to stunning bushveld rides. This race has a completely different appeal as we trade our beloved bushveld for vineyards and mountain passes of the beautiful Boland. That, together with the lively vibe of this race, will make me go back year after year.

The Boschendal vineyards

The race was on Sunday, 6 March 2011, and while most of the party went to Newlands for the yawn-fest between the Stormers and the Cheetahs the night before, we decided to relax in and around Betty’s Bay, where we were staying for the week of the Argus. It turned out to be a good decision not to go to the rugby, not because of the mind numbing tedium on Newlands that saw nothing but a total of 12 penalties, but due to some last minute damage control that needed to be done on my bike. During the rides we did throughout the week in Bettys I started to feel the gears slipping when putting pressure on the pedals. The small irritation of the Wednesday morning turned into a crisis by Saturday morning and I soon realised that this was not something that I would be able to fix myself. After trying my luck with a “bike mechanic” in Kleinmond (note inverted commas!) I had to rush to Hermanus to get to a cycle shop before they closed. I was referred to Proficient Cycles and was treated with some awesome service! Thanks to a last minute crank rebuild I was ready to roll! We had dinner at the Hangklip Hotel in Pringle Bay (highly recommended if you like the small-town-local-little-hotel feel) and called it an early night to be ready for race day’s early morning.

After the scorcher we experienced in 2010, where the mercury was raised to 47°C, we expected the worst! The whole week preceding the race had been warm and we were getting more and more worried as the race drew closer. We were ecstatic when we woke up to cloudy and misty conditions the morning before the race. Officially, the first time in my life that I was happy to not see the sun.

HIT IT MTB

Adel, Ernst, Gerry and I arrived at an overcast and chilly Boschendal Wine Estate early on Sunday morning ready for our start scheduled for 8h00. After the normal pre-race “rituals” we were ready to go. The start of the race was a neutral zone where you were not allowed to race and, for that specific reason, Ernst’s biggest challenge. Once through the neutral section the racing started and we took on the first couple of uphill drags. There were no big climbs (yet) but you were constantly reminded by a numbness in your cold legs that the road was not flat. We soon hit the first climb and except for some traffic I made it to the top without a problem. Adel was starting to feel the effects of the week of training that she lost due to her Poland trip but boldly struggled to the top. This wasn’t an extremely steep climb but long and rocky which made it challenging. What also made it difficult was that it was very early in the race and the legs hadn’t quite warmed up yet. Still, I was grateful. Last year this time I was already halfway up heatstroke hill.

Atop the first climb

The second climb was also quite uneventful, except for a crash right in front of me causing me to stop. All of this was done well inside the first 10kms. After this climb we headed down towards the vineyards again and I soon had a close encounter with a vine when my brakes failed for the first time. Less than 2kms later I had to stop for the third time as now I had no brakes whatsoever. My front bakes gave problems even before the race but I figured that’s a “luxury” I would be able to do without but without my rear brakes I would not be able to finish the race. One of the marshals came over to help me and after a lengthy stop, of close to 20 minutes, I could ride again with just enough brakes to keep me from killing myself. When I stopped the last time Adel continued on as I wasn’t sure whether I would be able to continue, so from here on in I was completely alone. More than 2000 riders started that day and I couldn’t see a single one. There were long stretches of farm roads where as far as I could see there were no one in front of me and no one behind me. It felt as if I had Boschendal all to myself.

Empty!

Meanwhile Adel had continued but stopped at the second water point to wait for me. After a 5 minute long wait she realised that I might have had to quit and she started to press on again. At this stage I was also starting to doubt whether I was going to see her again before the finish line and continued to keep a steady pace. At last I started seeing and passing some riders again but it wasn’t until roughly the 20km mark when I saw a familiar silhouette in the distance. It was indeed Adel! Man, was I happy to see her! She was greeted with frantically waving arms and a loud yell of “Bokkie!!!”.

Adel and the Simonsberg

Up to this point we’ve lost a lot of time and throwing the hammer down was pointless. One of our biggest races of the year had just turned into a fun ride... Well, as fun as it could be under the circumstances. My brakes were working again but I’ve lost my speed censor and my rear wheel had buckled. Still, I was on my bike in the Cape wine lands and wasn’t going to let it spoil my fun. We kept a steady pace to the end of the race where we even got a mention by name when we crossed the finish line.

Adel on her way to the finish line

We finished with a time of 2 hours 51 minutes, but after my run of bad luck during the race this was purely academic. Gerald finished with a time of 2:22 and Ernst 2:07. Another Argus gone and another medal in the bag. What a privilege it was to ride through the Boschendal vineyards in the shadow of the mighty Simonsberg. We’ve been humbled by this magnificent place and equally remarkable showcase of the splendour of the Boland that is the Pick n Pay Cape Argus MTB Challenge. Already etched in the calendar for 2012!

The medal

Our next big race is the closest thing to a “home game” that we can have. Our first race ever was this one in 2009 – coming up on 14 May is the 2011 Mabalingwe Lion Man.      

Hou by die Blou,

DnA