The post-Sani2c racing season

A mistake I made in 2012, that I will attempt to correct in 2013, is that I had no big goals after Sani2c. Instead, I had to focus on a number of small races to keep the motivation up and the training going. I am under no illusions that my training was sub-par compared to before Sani2c, however, I still kept the wheels turning and the legs burning from time to time.

My first race after Sani2c was the a[s]g Night Rider. A 21km long night race hosted by the a[s]g Rosemary Hill MTB Park. I rode this race earlier in the year and immediately fell in love with the idea of night riding. It brought a new aspect to mountain biking that made it even more exciting and even more fun. The 21km race soon turned into a mid-week threshold session where I pushed myself to the limit and stayed there for 21 kilometres. As I realised early in the year, I could actually run at close to 100% for the entire race, due to the fact that it was such a short race. If I remember correctly; my average heart rate for the first race, where I ended 16^th, was 192 beats per minute. That is very close to my maximum and this was my average over 50 odd minutes. So, as my first race after Sani2C I was confident that I could do well and at least retain my top 20 spot of the previous race. I ended up finishing 7^th in a time of 54 minutes. My first ever top 10 finish. Despite the fact that it wasn’t a large field for this mid-winter race, I was still stoked. It felt good.

My training meandered on as I aimed at my first marathon of the winter that would take place on the 14^th of July in Cullinan. Traditionally the Nissan Diamond Rush has been a really good race with some beautiful scenery and really great riding and as I recalled, it wasn’t overly tough. Going into the race I still felt in good form and I aimed at sub 3:30. As it turned out I once again underestimated the race as the sand, very windy conditions and a couple of new climbs made the race significantly harder than I expected. It wasn’t the toughest day on a mountain bike, but my expectation made it so much harder than it was. I finished in a time of 3 hours and 55 minutes, which was quite respectable given the conditions. Again, despite being a bit harder than expected, the riding was once again top notch with the trail taking us through a host of game farms and even a cave.

 

Early days in the Nissan Diamond Rush race

On the 3^rd of August I returned to Rosemary Hill for the a[s]g Night Rider where I finished in a time of 1 hour dead (pun intended). Despite hearing the announcer say “Dawie Esterhuizen rounding out the top 10” it actually turned out that I had finished 11^th. For this race the organisers added an additional section to the course which accounted for the additional time being spent out. Still, 11^th place was more than acceptable and I was satisfied with the result. August also meant that the temperatures started to rise and the fields got bigger. Most races were about the experience wihle out riding and time wasn't of great significance, however, these night rides were all out racing! Going full tilt from start to finish.

On the 1^st of September we entered spring with the arrival of the Nissan Down & Dirty in Irene.  We were greeted with blue skies and beautiful weather and I knew that this was going to be a fast one. A flat race with hardly a climb to speak of meant that going fast would require a constant hard effort for 70km with no real downhills for some recovery. I started in batch C which was where I started all the Nissan races in 2012. I knew that the course was very open and that if it was windy, which it usually is, it would be very tough. As was expected, the wind came out to play which meant finding wheels and sticking to them was the main strategy of the day. I went out hard right from the get go, knowing that I’d be able to suffer home for the last couple of km’s if I went too hard early on. I flew from wheel to wheel, hanging on to small groups and some fast riders for as long as I could. It worked, I was flying, but started to pay the price towards the end of the race. My speedometer decided to take a break on that day so I was riding blind and never knew how far I still had to go. I stopped at the last waterpoint to grab some Coke and a cramp block pill, at this stage my legs were screaming at me, and also needed to ask how far I still had to go. With less than 3 hours having passed since I set off I expected to hear that there was more than 10 km’s still to go, but to my surprise was told that I was only 4 km’s out. If I had known that I wouldn’t even had stopped! Pulling the last bit of energy out of my legs I pushed as hard as I could to the end. But then, disaster struck. A quad bike had attempted to cross one of the hand built bridges crossing a stream and in doing so broke the bridge. We were stuck in a singletrack waiting in line to cross the stream on foot. I was right on riding one of my best times ever, but then… the one thing every cyclist hate… congestion. I was stuck in the congestion for roughly 20 minutes, maybe more, and ended up finishing in a time of 3 hours and 29 minutes. Despite the little hick up at the end this was still a good day out with hard but extremely enjoyable racing being the order of the day. Little was I to know that this was also the last time that I would share a course with the late Burry Stander. A true hero and ambassador for the sport and South Africa that we will never forget. What an honour to have shared the trails with a real legend.

Going over a bridge in the latter part of the Nissan Down & Dirty

I entered the Vori-berg race on the 6^th of October. I hadn't done this race in a year so were looking forward to getting back out there. This is not the toughest race around, but certainly one not to be taken lightly. It has its fair share of testing sections. This is another one that I keep on underestimating... However, the week before the race I came down with a fever. Feeling better by the weekend I wasn’t sure whether I was ready to ride or not but wanted to get on my bike so decided to go. Not long into the race I started to realise that I wasn’t feeling all that good and that riding probably wasn’t a great idea. Luckily the race is a two lapper and I decided to call it a day after the first lap. No one likes a DNF, but continuing would’ve done more damage than good.

Nissan Hakahana was a new race on the calendar in November 2012 and one that created quite allot of excitement. Hosted in an area that was anything but flat this one was never going to be easy. A fact that was confirmed when the route profiles were published. 1400m of vertical ascent, of which most was in the latter part of the race, meant that it was going to be hard as nails. And, once again, it lived up to its reputation. Hard as nails was an understatement! Long lung busting climbs with some cement climbs so steep that it was just not rideable. So, there were some pushing, which I haven’t really done in a while. During the latter part of the race the trail roved through the 4x4 track of Gerotek, Armscor’s military vehicle testing facility. This was a brutal section with allot of short and very steep uphills to negotiate absolutely killing your legs. Again, I started cramping. Something I don’t really struggle with, but I’ve accepted it now as a sign that I’ve ridden hard enough (read: too hard). I’m lucky that I don’t cramp to the extent that I have to get off my bike, but I am greeted with a sharp stinging pain in my legs every time that I have to exert excessive pressure on the pedals, as on a short steep climb. This was the toughest day I’ve spent on a bike since Day 2 of Sani2c. It was cruel, but the superb trail that the route builders put together matched with the breath-taking views made it an awesome day out on the bike. I limped home in a time of 4 hours and 24 minutes. A bonus of the great day out was that I was snapped by the official race photographer with the photo of me appearing in the official race album. An awesome photo serving as reminder of a superb day out on my bike.

A photo of me in the official race album

The Wednesday before the 94.7 Road race a colleague of mine withdrew from the race due to illness. As he was riding for a charity he needed someone to replace him and I decided to give it a go. I really wanted to ride the 94.7 anyway but didn’t want to do it on a mountain bike. The road racing experience just wouldn’t be the same on a mountain bike. However, as luck would have it I was in a position to borrow my boss’ old bike which was quite a decent Scott road bike. The bike was a tad too big for me but after fitting a shorter stem I was ready to take on my first ever road race. Not having done a road race before I wasn’t quite sure what to expect and starting in the charity bunches meant that I would be starting late with heat and congested roads being my main challenges. I was told beforehand that starting so late meant that a fast time wasn’t really possible as the roads are very full and there aren’t bunches working together so far back in the field. I realised that a sub 3 hour time was probably not on without the help of an organised bunch working together, but I still wanted to go as close to 3 hours as possible. However, by the sound of things I would be looking at a time closer to 4 hours if I rode well. In the starting chute I made sure that I kept to the front of my batch looking for people who looked like they were looking to race. I knew that even if I could find just 3 or 4 people to work with it could make a huge difference. The first kilometre or so of the race, before you get to the N1 highway, is on a narrow 2 lane road with thousands of cyclists in front of you making their way on this 94 km expedition. The congested roads meant that I lost the 3 guys who looked like they were (and turned out to be) fast very early and I hit the N1 highway by myself looking for wheels to grab on to. Throughout the race I found some people here and there to ride with, at times I did the pulling and other times sat on the wheel of a fast rider passing by, but for the most of the race I was riding alone. I was used to this due to my mountain biking background, but knew that sitting in a bunch or on the wheel of another rider would give me a significant advantage. A highlight of the day was out on the N14 when I heard a group of riders approaching. Again, at this stage I was riding alone and when I heard the small group coming saw an opportunity to get some help to get through the N14 section by grabbing onto a wheel. As soon as they passed I swung off and put some effort in to grab onto the wheel. As I looked up I saw the South African Champion’s Garmin-Sharp jersey. It was indeed Robbie Hunter, the national champ, coming through. Many of the pro-riders ride a second lap of the 94 km race for charity and I caught Robbie coming past on his second lap. They were taking it easy but still going at a more than decent pace. I sat on Robbie’s wheel until they pulled off at a water table. They later passed me again on the last uphill section of the N14. Again, they were on a Sunday afternoon stroll but still flew by, but by that time I just didn’t have enough in the tank to stick with them. I finished the race  in a time of 3 hours and 17 minutes. A time of which I am very proud considering I was riding by myself for the most part of the race. I thoroughly enjoyed my first ever road race. This race just drove the realisation home that I love riding my bike, whether it’s on the road or on the gravel. 2 pedals and 2 wheels is all you need to have some fun.

On my way up the climb just before the N14.

The week after the 94.7 saw the arrival of one of the toughest races on the mountain biking calendar. The Cradle Quest at Van Gaalens. A race that kept us busy for almost 6 hours in 2011. When I woke up that morning it sounded like I was in a World War II movie as the rain drops were assaulting our roof. From the start the outlook were bleak, but we decided to go through to Van Gaalens and make the call there. On our way there it started raining harder and harder and as we got closer it just got worse. After a long deliberation at Van Gaalens we decided to throw in the towel before we even began. It just wouldn’t have been worth it to try and ride. Wimpy became our only quest for the day.

Looking back it seems as if our season really took off towards the end of the year as our next race was the very next weekend. Again, this was a first for all of us as we took on the Bicycling 24 Hour MTB Race at Van Gaalens. We didn’t know what to expect, but 24 hours of fun was definitely on the cards.  We ended up doing a total of 26 8km long laps with me completing 8 laps, Kalla 7, Lou 6 and Gerry 5 for a total of 312 km’s in 24 hours. We did take a 5 hour break overnight, but still a great weekend of riding our bikes, despite the horrible rainy weather. We’ll definitely be back in 2013.

Kalla finishing a lap at the 24 hour

The week after the 24 hour I was supposed to do Vori-berg but again was struck down with a fever the week before the race. Exactly what happened 2 months earlier when I didn’t finish the race, except that this time I decided not to race as I was still not feeling well by the weekend. I’ve definitely got a bone to pick with this race in 2013.

At least I got to do the last a[s]g Night Rider of the year and ended with a fifth place. My first ever top 5! I was super stoked.

It was at this time that it felt like my body started fighting me. I came down with fever from time to time and just didn’t have any energy. Whether it was my wisdom teeth causing some problems or just signs of a long and exciting year, I don’t know, but my health was taking a bit of a knock and so did my form. Even though I wasn’t sick I could feel that my system took a bit of a knock. Still, I needed to end of the year and after my plan to do that at Vori-berg failed, there was only one option left… Babbas Lodge on the 16^th of December. The race started out fast and I completed the first lap in an hour and 25 minutes. I wanted to go under three hours and this was certainly on the cards, however, on the second lap the effects of me not feeling well took it’s toll and I struggled through the final part of a very easy race. I eventually finished in 3 hours and 11 minutes, testament to how low I was on lap 2. The course had changed significantly since the last time I rode the race in April 2011, but it was still a fun and fast course with plenty of sand and even a small technical climb.

2012 was a successful year on the bike, highlighted by my first Sani2c, but also because I rode faster and farther than I ever did before. A big contributing factor was the amount of weight I lost; when I was at my lightest in 2012 I was close to 19kg lighter than I was when I was at my heaviest in 2011. Nothing beats dropping weight for making you go faster and this is something I can attest to. I rode great trails and spent great times on my bike with good mates. 2013 is looking up to be a great year!