For those in the fortunate position to have a bicycle, here are a few exciting events taking place this year.
24h Southern Skies
Mountain biking: This is a 24h relay event of 7km, starting at 12noon on the Saturday and ending 12noon on the Sunday of 16-17 April. It is all happening at Parys in the Free State and an ideal event for beginner cyclists. Most of you spinning here should be able to do a 7km lap.
Teams can be made up of up to 7 members per team, or less. The start is a Le Mans start meaning the team member will have to run to his/her bike, jump on and start cycling…. don’t worry it is a very short run of only about 50m. After every lap the baton (timing chip) will be handed over to the next team member to do the next lap. This is also a very nice event to find out what night riding is all about.
For the more serious there is also a 24h solo event.
Entry fees R950/team or R280/solo rider. This event can be turned into a whole family affair, as camping facilities are available. So get your team together, maybe family against family, or 6am class against the 6pm class, or just one Bulla team taking on all the other teams. If you would like to take part, please put your name down so we can put teams together.
More info on http://www.ride.co.za/Kremetart 4-stage race
Road cycling: This is a 4-stage road cycling event on Saturday 4 June at Makhado Louis Trichardt. The first stage starts in the center of town, climbing out on the Soutpansberg Mountain for about 11km. A very fast down is waiting on the other side of the mountain as well as two very dark tunnels where you would have to race through. After about 52km you arrive at the first stop where they provide breakfast.
At the start of Stage 2, everyone lines up for an exact replica of the start line-up of stage 1…see you’re scratching your head here. If you’ve started in Bunch A at Stage 1, you will start every stage in Bunch A, ok. After about 48km you will arrive at the lunch stop where you will be provided with lunch.
At the start of Stage 2, everyone lines up for an exact replica of the start line-up of stage 1…see you’re scratching your head here. If you’ve started in Bunch A at Stage 1, you will start every stage in Bunch A, ok. After about 48km you will arrive at the lunch stop where you will be provided with lunch.
Stage 3 starts after lunch at around 1’o clock. After about 53km you will arrive at the tea stop where you will be given a packet with sweets and cookies and other things nice.
Stage 4 starts around 4 o’clock and after about 22km you will be racing through the town towards the end. At the end waits a fantastic potjie and ice-cold beer.
This event is fantastically organised and is called the Argus of the north. Something else special about this event is that a spectator bus is organised which follows the cyclists all the way. So if you have family who would like to watch your progress, let them hop on the bus and meet you at the end of every stage. This is not a team event, and your accumulative times after every stage will be your final time for the event.
Entry fee R350 per rider for 175km and R160 for the shorter ride of 70km.
More info on http://www.kremetartcycling.co.za/ Just a word of warning. If you are planning to go, make sure you book accommodation well in advance, as space is always limited in small towns.
Trans Baviaans Marathon
Mountain biking: 240km of absolute fantastic scenery, going through the Baviaans Kloof. This is a team event of 2/3/or4 members per team. The event takes place on Saturday 13 August starting at 10:00 in the little karoo town of Willowmore and finishing at Jeffrey’s Bay. You have 24hours to complete the event, so night riding skills will be tested. At the different support stations, cyclists will be provided with food and drinks.
Entry fees: R2400 for 2-man team
R2800 for 3/ 4-man team.
Get your teams together and start training, as this is not for the faint hearted. Book accommodation early because space is very limited. Rodney is looking for a team member to do his 5th ride with, so please let me know if you want to ride.
