My 10th stage race of the year and my final race
of the season was the Cape Trek Pioneer, a race I have always recommended
riders do before attempting the Epic.
It has always delivered similar testing terrain, potentially very hot
days and often some rain adding to the challenge. But, unlike the Epic, the days are not as long, the starts
not as stressful, the field smaller and everyone seems happier and
friendlier. Dryland, the race
organisers always deliver on a slick operation of everything from perfect race
markings, hot showers, cleans toilets and a week of huge amounts of ostrich
meat. The event also moves every
day and supports the host schools along the way resulting in many very friendly
and helpful volunteers. It was to
be my 5th time here and, as every year, there were changes in the
route including a new start venue in Mossel Bay so I was excited to see what
was in store over the next 7 days.
I arrived to Mossel Bay the day before the prologue and met
Esther Suss, my last minute partner, at our hotel. Esther has done the race before
and, having lost her partner for the Swiss Epic was looking for a ride instead
at the Pioneer. With Sasol
providing us an entry as well as massages, our own mechanic and guest houses so
we could compete to our best ability, and Dryland offering to help with some of
the logistics, plans were put in place and we were signed up together. For me it was an exciting opportunity
to ride with one of the best mountain bikers in the world. Esther is one of few riders who have
won major World and European titles in both Marathon and Cross Country so one
thing was for sure, I was in for a pretty hard week!!
Prologue
Mossel Bay
15km, 416m climb
The previous day once I had arrived from Stellenbosch we
rode the route starting at the Point. It was an interesting course, a steep climb to start
onto a hiking trail along the coastline with some beautiful views, a descent
then an ‘urban’ loop along the sea front dodging beach goers and hoping to and
fro over the railway line. Around noon we started. I was fine on the climb and single track but battled over
the 2nd half and made small errors resulting at one point a roll
down a grassy hill having clipped out of one foot and falling the other side. We lost 1min30 to the leading pair of
Jennie Stanerhag and Robyn de Groot. Despite been a UCI event there was only 4 girls teams lining
up, however though low on quantity, the quality was there and we knew we were
in for a competitive week of tight racing with the two Ascendis riders.
Day two
Mossel Bay to George
110km, 2232m climb
Unfortunately the tide was half in so we couldn’t start the
race along the beach. Instead we rode very slowly out of town behind the car
and finally got going on the concrete path next to the beach. I immediately felt like I had good
legs, a rare feeling so early in a stage race but I went with it and we both
rode hard, Esther giving me a push up and over the road drags until we got away
from the other team. We kept
riding hard as we headed inland towards the Outeniqua Mountains and I really
enjoyed the whole day. It was
tough going through the indigenous forest trails with some steep climbs but
compared to riding many hours alone on the long climbs in India we covered
ground quickly and I really appreciated company. We were with a small group who climbed faster than me but
Esther would have to just give me one or two pushes and I’d get my head down
and jump back on the wheels and the day turned into one of the best mountain
bike days I’ve ever had. I also
love George as it reminds me of staying and training so I still felt strong
round the dam and into the finish.
We took the win and also the pink jersey with a small lead of a few
minutes.
Day three
George to Oudtshoorn
84km, 1536m climb
Another slow neutral zone out of town was the calm before
the storm as, once out, the flag was dropped right at the bottom of Montagu
Pass. As I expected, it felt flat
out up the first climb but we got over with the other ladies team in a fairly
big group. On the real pass the
pace settled down and gradually I recovered and was able to move through. The group disintegrated and over the
top we tagged onto three or four strong men who’s momentum down the hill to Herold
was way quicker than we could have gone.
It felt fast but after a small single track section another group joined
us and for a while we were one big peleton. The fast roads give a false sense of predicted time to the
end and with 30km we turned off onto a bumpy jeep track now firmly in the Klein
Karoo towards Chandelier Game Reserve.
It felt like a hot slog but eventually we came out at the last feed
where Esther finally got the ostrich meat she’d been waiting for and I got some
much needed coke. Into town and
the finish we were very happy with another win and even happier with our
accommodation for the night. A
luxury guesthouse 10km out of town with double beds, filter coffee, a pool, a
Jacuzzi bath, a huge garden and air con.
Since most of my stage races are in tents with my fleece as a pillow and
baby wipes as a wash this was very special. What with the accommodation our mechanic taking our bikes at
the finish line and having them shiny clean and in perfect working order the
next day as well as been able to get a 45 minute massage every day, I can see
how important and beneficial these extra things are for recovery, piece of mind
and as a result, performance.
Day Four
Oudtshoorn to De Rust
84km, 1766m climb
The down side to staying in the greenest part of Oudtshoorn
was that I think ever bird in the area was gathered in the tree outside my
window and they wake extremely early in these parts! I lay awake ages listening to them, finally I got up, had
breakfast and we drove back to the start.
The day was damp but still mild, perfect riding conditions for the Kammanassie
Reserve and, once we were off the main dirt rode and onto the climbs the racing
between us and Asendas Health was full on. We stayed together a long while over the first steep climbs
until we finally got a few meters got a gap. After the 2nd water point we turned again onto
very rough terrain of the Kammanassie Mountain. Though we had been promised it was all ridable, after the
heavy rains plus the race quad bikes going across there, the ground was churned
up and the rocks loose and there was a lot of walking for most of us. Later jokes would be made that this
section had been promoted as a trail never been ridden before and Gerald de
Kock, the race MC made a quick remark that it still has never been ridden! I made another mental note that a 1x11
is not for me on these stage races where one minute you are spinning out
hanging onto the men and the next grinding up a steep climb with about
30RPM! Still, we were pulling back
a few other riders and going well when Esther got a sidewall cut. We plugged and bombed and pumped it up
too at which point the other girls rode past us. A few kays on it went flat
again. We then put a tube in that
lasted all of another few kays before getting a thorn and going flat
again. Our last tube was used and
from then we had a rocky descent down, the bushes at the sides full of thorns
too.
She rode carefully and
managed to not get another flat. Finally we were on the flat run in to the
finish and just jumped onto a small group when I lost my chain leaving us alone
to battle to the end. We went from
an 11 minute lead to 8 minutes behind but that’s mountain biking and in this
terrain anything can happen. The
Jeep team had the same issue in the men’s category, going from leading the race
today to losing around 20 minutes.
However, it was a great day for the Sasol mixed team of Dalene and Igna who
came in 2nd and are now just a couple of minutes of jumping upto 2nd
on GC.
Day Five
De Rust to Swartberg Pass
69km, 2149m climb
With an open rolling road right up to the first water point
at 20 odd km I struggled again with the speed to get over the bumps and did
blow caution to wind on the descents to get ‘slippage space’. I also find the KTM rolls downhill very
fast as long as I don’t brake so for a while I was one of those annoying riders
who overtakes downhill, cuts in then drops the wheels on the climbs. Oh well, needs must sometimes! Finally the speed dropped and I
recovered, sat nearer the back and took in the views and have a chat.
Once the terrain started changing, I got a good position
turning into a single-track climb near the Cango Caves and over the top focused
on a fast descent. Coming out I
did see we got a gap and pushed hard to get into a group for the next tar
section including a surreal moment passing a group/flock (?) of camels which
only me and Esther seemed to notice.
Before long we were on the next single track climb and from the top of
that found ourselves alone. Esther
paced us quickly along the flats and downs before a nasty unexpected climb
before the 11km Swartberg Pass. Esther made me laugh calling it our ‘warm up’ as I heaved and
puffed my way up and was very glad to get to the third water table where I got
a bottle of coke and had a jel while Esther rode away with some chunks of
ostrich meat. Onto the pass we
knew it was all or nothing. Now 8
minutes behind on GC if we had any chance of taking the jersey back we had to
finish a good few minutes at least in front today. Fuelled with caffeine and sugar I focused on Esther’s wheel
along the bottom sections and let her set the pace. As the pass got steeper I was aware I was starting to drop
off and battle so Esther rode behind giving me a push whenever she could. On the flatter bits she again came
through and took the wind. This is
how we continued for the next 40 minutes.
The last km we rode as hard as we could, Esther even told me to grab her
pocket while she towed me for some bits.
I am pretty sure I’ll never climb Swartberg as fast as that ever again,
and I’m not sure I want to but it was worth it to see the results later showing
we’d actually managed to finish 10 minutes ahead and so are back in the
jerseys.
Once finished we rode down to the Karoo town of Prince
Albert where, after an ostrich burger, headed to a lovely quaint guest house
where I found the fluffiest white dressing gown to lie around in, and proceeded
to cover it in cinnamon sugar from the delicious pancakes we get every
day!
Stage Six
Prince Albert to Calitzdorp
13km, 2262m climb
What I hadn’t looked at in advance was the stages and I was
pretty surprised to find the Queen Stage was this one. After the huge effort up Swartberg I
had to hope the legs would play ball again! The day started with Swartberg again, this time on the
northern slopes, a longer and steeper climb. Plus there was a cash prize for first woman and man up
the mountain. So the competition
was open for all categories there was no pushing or pulling to be allowed and
so once on the climb itself, Esther sat in front and led the way. Her pace was perfect and we crossed the
line a few minutes ahead of Fienie Barnard then, Jennie and Robyn. Down the other side we were joined by
development riders: Phillimon and Jan and two young kids from ABSA. We were all lighties and down the tar
road it wasn’t surprising a group with the other girls had caught us by the
next off road section. The ride
was then split into 3 tough, slow going sections up steep single-track climbs
and rocky descents. I felt good as
we settled into my Himalayas pace, a tempo I could hold over there for 4 or 5
hours just out of the ‘red’ zone.
We continued riding a lot of the day with Phillimon and Jan who were
great company and other than them we didn’t see another soul all the way down
to Claritzdorp. We’d ridden
through stacks of thorn bushes and sharp tire cutting rocks yet once on the
gravel road Esther had a flat. It
was luckily a slow one and with 6 km to go we bombed it and it just about held
out by the finish line where we crossed 1st with a 4-minute gap. It was certainly my 2nd
favorite day out there, the views and challenging terrain with some easy gravel
road section in between were spot on and with only one relatively short day
left the vibe round camp was buzzing. Dalene who had found some of the accommodation came up
with a cracker in Calitzdorp. A
whole house to ourselves that could have been an Indian museum. It was full of Indian paintings,
photos, tapestries, and statues and lots of different Chai teas.
Stage Seven
Calitzdorp – Oudtshoorn
65km, 959m climb
The last day of a stage race is never easy despite how the
profile looks. A short, flattish
race into Oudtshoorn meant it would be a fast, hang on wheels kind of day and
though you want to finish in one piece it does mean some risky fast riding
close to wheels on jeep tracks.
Fully expecting this though I kept near the front of our group as we
turned off the main road and was able to ride the loose rocky climb and the
following brand new, smooth single track at Redstone Hills without any hold ups
leaving us alone in a group of 6 or so.
The team driving the group was either terrible at pacing and helping
each other or had the intention of riding Esther and me off their wheels as the
pace was so erratic. However,
feeling strong again and knowing Esther was also fine we hung on and got
dragged along before the next jeep track.
The pace then suddenly slowed much to my relief so I could for the last
time take in the Karoo at one of its best times of year, its much greener than
other times of the year and so many bight flowers all over, plus we added a
tortoise to our collection of sightings.
Jennie and Robyn came back to us and we rode the rest of the race
together. It was looking like a
sprint finish so I was happy to find a couple of climbs near the end allowing
us to get a gap and then spin like fury on the slight downhill to the
finish. We crossed the line 1st
and celebrated with a bottle of Fairview bubbles. It been a UCI event I was
then escorted to yet another drug test.
(My 10th to be precise including 4 blood tests and 6 urine samples)
before relaxing in the heat by the pool at our a four star guest house,
watching South Africa get kicked out of the Rugby World Champs and resting up
for Stage 8 later that night!!
Final results:
1st Catherine Williamson and Esther Suss – Sasol
Racing 24:51 (17th overall)
2nd Jennie Stenerhag and Robyn de Groot –
Ascendis Health 24:58
3rd Marlene Lourens and Desiree Loubser – Fair
Cape 31:16
The Sasol Mixed Team of Dalene and Igna came 2nd
Yet again I have had a week to remember and for all the good
reasons. I felt so privileged
and in awe riding with one of the world’s best mountain bikers and it gave me a
huge boost of confidence. I’m
chuffed that the trip to India at altitude worked as I hoped it would and I
think the fast three days with Johan Labuschagne at Berg and Bush helped get
some speed back and I felt stronger than I have felt all year. It was a week of good suffering which
I’m sure every rider can relate to and there were odd occasions near the end where
I could even contribute and drag us along even though I’m not ashamed to admit
a lot of the time I was following Esther’s lines, gritting my teeth or been
given a push. She knows the score
working in a team and I never felt pressure and more importantly she, like me,
doesn’t stress when it wasn’t smooth sailing. We got the balance between racing
hard and also enjoying the ride, the company and the journey just about right.
Thanks for Sasol and Rubena for all the help and support,
and for anyone wanting to know the equipment that gets you through 10 stage
races without issues here’s what I have been using:
KTM Scarp Prestige with Shimano XTR and Rock Shock RS 1
forks: a duel suspension is a must for getting through the year of stage races
without injuries and mechanicals.
Rubena Kratos tyres: grippy, fast rolling and with extra protection walls
Squirt Lube
Zero Rh + glasses and helmet
Biogen products
One very patient husband
Two now very tired legs and lungs
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