Cape Pioneer Trek, South Africa, October 2015

My 10^th 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 5^th 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 2^nd 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 2^nd 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 2^nd and are now just a couple of minutes of jumping upto 2^nd 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 2^nd 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 1^st 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:

1^st Catherine Williamson and Esther Suss – Sasol Racing 24:51 (17^th overall)

2^nd Jennie Stenerhag and Robyn de Groot – Ascendis Health 24:58

3^rd Marlene Lourens and Desiree Loubser – Fair Cape 31:16

The Sasol Mixed Team of Dalene and Igna came 2^nd

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

Berg and Bush Descent Presented by Grindrod

9^th – 11^th October

5 days after Hero Himalaya finished and 28 travelling hours later I wasn’t expecting to feel overly sprightly in the three day Berg and Bush but I also wasn’t expecting a highly competitive race.  Berg and Bush has always been a race I fancied doing but it has often been on the same time at the Cape Pioneer or has been very close to.  I was racing mixed with Johan Labuschagne and was looking forward to racing with one of the best riders in the mixed category.

We registered at Winterton the night before and drove out to accommodation with Yolande, Michael and Melt.  Winterton isn’t a big place by any means but Yolande managed to book us within 4 km of the start, a pretty rustic self catering house but perfect for us as we warmed up a cottage pie in the oven she had brought and sat outside chatting with tea and rusks.  By 8pm we were all in bed and I felt like I’d had a full night sleep by the time the alarms went off at 4.30. 

Stage One

96km

At 6.20 we were on the start line at the Border Post on top of the Drakensberg Mountains and I was feeling very nervous about how my legs would respond having done nothing but a 30 minute spin since finishing last Sunday in India.  As it was I had every right to be nervous as what followed was 4 hours of pure pain!  Setting off I felt fine for the 2 km descent but once on the flat it felt like I was sprinting but going no where.  I couldn’t hang on wheels, had massive lactic pains in my legs and was breathing like crazy.  Johan sat behind me thankfully and pushed me to help hang on wheels.  I knew it was bad when I had the thought that at least if I crashed I could lie down and not have to pedal any more!  It’s a bad sign when you think crashing is a less painful option!!!  Soon we started the climb onto the escarpment and I had no option but to find my easiest gear and try to spin out some of the pain.  If it hadn’t been for Johan I would have gone into ‘limp home’ mode but I felt bad him taking the weekend away from home and having to ride so slowly so I kept my head down and gave myself a stern telling off, had my earliest ever gel before 7.30am and pressed on.  Luckily I have ridden the escarpment many times before in Joberg2c as I was too busy chewing my bars to take in the views but I did make sure that I enjoyed the descent.  Flowing single track via Solly’s Folly and the new Drakensberg Drop, nothing too steep and with the gel now in my system I perked up and found it great following Johan’s wheel.  We caught up to Yolande and Mike and rode with them for a while until Yolande got something caught in her mech and had to stop.  We lost sight of them then and later heard that they had taken a wrong turn at some point that cost them a few minutes no doubt.  The rest of the ride had some tough drags and smooth descents with a nice section of single track at the end along the river but already it’s a blur as I was in a world of pain and suffering and at one point told Johan I felt like an asthmatic snail.  In hindsight with all the travelling, the stage race last week and the lack of fast racing I should have expected it to hurt but not that bad!!!  We crossed the line at the Em’seni Camp 2^nd mixed behind Candise and Darren, and a minute or so in front of Yolande and Mike and Jeannie and Martin. 4 mixed teams in within 5 minutes ensuring another few hard days would follow! 

That evening was the Spioenkop Sprint, a 1.somthing km climb up Spioenkop Mountain for both woman and men.  I could think of nothing worse having spent the day either lying down or cramping up but maybe once I set off I would feel suddenly better.  I was of course wrong; within 100m of the climb I was creeping and did the sensible thing of getting up the hill as easy as possible.  I was gutted not to be up there in the mix, it was my kind of steep climb, the crowds were out lining the road, the prize money was high and had I not found Theresa with me to share the last half of suffering, I would have been in a dark place.  As it was, I think my body was on the verge of rebelling and giving up completely so not racing up was probably the best thing I could have done (well, listening to advice and not entering the climb would have been the best thing but not in my nature!!) 

Day two

66km

I slept solid and was awake before the alarm went off so had plenty of time for cereal and fruit and tea before the 6.30 flag off.  A shorter day with less climbing meant for another fast start but from the very off I knew my legs were going to play ball and I found some nice gaps to sneak through before we hit the first and main climb of the day up Ox Wagon Hill.  I felt better and kept the lead mixed team within sight.  Johan helped a lot especially near the top as I tried to hang onto a small group of men.  I know in mixed racing how much faster it is to hang on wheels so your partner can rather sit behind and help as apposed to having to sit pace in front.  Eventually we dropped off and rode alone for the middle section of the race and the Puff Adder Pass descent. Johan stopped and got coke and lied that there was nothing that nice at the feeds that was worth me stopping for (I later heard there was not only my favorite Kooksisters but someone also said there was soft scoop ice cream; I will never know if that was true or not!!) With 10km to go we turned round and saw a fast approaching pair of Jeannie and Martin so Johan had to switch into time trial mode on the open road back towards camp.  He was that strong that even in a head wind I was spinning out on his wheel in my biggest gear and we just held them off to come in 2^nd again.  Candise and Darren were flying and way off in front and Yolande and Mike had lost a few more minutes so we still had a friendly battle lying ahead with Jeannie and Martin. They are such a great team and have had so much success at some amazing endurance adventures together as well as having a family in tow and I have a massive amount of respect for them.

Having finished day two by 9.30am and with a heat wave I spent the rest of the day between the pool, the chill zone with its chocolate milk and delicious ‘health’ bars and the river.  The massage Johan had booked for us was working wonders for my legs and along with the cool water in the pool and the sugar from the bars I was feeling much more sociable and energized.

Day Three

60km

Another short, fast ride was in store for us today so much so they moved the start in case the first men were back before the last batch set off!  The race quickly split up along the flat trails and we sat with the lead mixed team for a while before I found myself at the wrong end of the group into some single track and while Johan paced the group at the front, I was jo jo ing at the back and eventually as the group splintered, Candise and Darren disappeared off the front as Johan made he way back and collected me!  We pulled back a few teams as the trails went through some sand then dragged up towards Spioenkop Mountain.  That climb was the only one of the day and once over that and seeing no sign of the next mixed team, I took a bit more care descending down the long, famous 13km fun and easy single track and we finished without issues, done and dusty just after 8.30am into camp holding on to 2^nd on GC.  It had been an intense and hard three days of racing but for a change from last week had been very few racing hours and hopefully just what I needed before the Pioneer starts next week.    

Thankyou to the Berg and Bush Team for putting on a great three days of racing with lots of feel good single track and rewarding climbs and a race village that not only had a pool and river to cool of in, but also chocolate milk on tap and the tastiest health bars and salad variations ever along with recipe book so I can attempt it all back home. 

Thanks to Johan for all the pushes, and sheltering and for the BEST and most needed bottle of coke ever on Day One that got us onto the podium.  Without the help I may still be half way along stage ones route!!

Thankyou to Sasol, Squirt Lube, and Rubena/Mitas for the support and products.   

 

11th Hero MTB Himalaya Stage Race October 2015

The days ticked down before we were ready to get going.....

Stage One

Race day finally arrived.  First was a neutral ride to the town square where the local dignitaries wished us well on our journey, followed ba ride up to The Ridge before leaving in groups of 5 for the race itself straight into a technical descent.  Following that was a brutal climb and without much racing through summer I felt rusty and struggled with the 32-chain ring.  At the top I was passed by 2 Europeans and saw that as way to make up time on my slow climb.  They motored along the flat ridge and though I managed 2 turns they soon came past to ramp up the pace again.  They rode away on the next climb and I was alone and cautious through the small villages we passed where the traffic, pedestrians and wandering cows were the main concern. 

Week of amazing views and high mountains

The race continued on up and down through forest tracks and down gravel roads.  I ended up back with one of the riders I had tagged on with and we rode together up the last climb to the finish.  I won the woman’s category and came in about 16^th overall, a result I was very happy with considering how bad I felt for the first hour. 

Descending down from the finish we were welcomed to a beautiful campsite set amongst a meadow.  My expectations were surpassed yet again with hot buckets of water for showers, thick sleeping bags and inflatable mattresses in our tents and a seamlessly endless supply of food with lunch, snacks, dinner and my favorite new find: Marsala tea. 

 

With Vanni who would go on to come 2nd Master

Stage Two

I slept better than I had all week thanks to a hard day on the bike and fresh mountain air as well as very good earplugs and that super thick sleeping bag!  The stage started at 8.30 and we headed off straight up hill. I rode with Daniel Carruthers from New Zealand and Kiran Kumar, the leading Indian rider, for quite a while until the next long climb.  For over an hour we climbed through apple orchards in blazing heat on rough slow going terrain and it was a real welcome to enter the forest at the top.  From there was a great descent through the forest and a long descent that wasn’t that welcome as I knew this was part of the loop that would take us all the way up again.  The next climb was steep then turned gradual through a pleasant forest jeep track.  All alone now the track went on and onto go on yet I was still only at 50km.  Finally the track came out and back to the forest descent.  Some of the back markers were still coming down and luckily most of them were told to miss the loop out otherwise they’d be out well after dark.  On paper the last 30km was downhill and it was actually quite accurate.  I had a real sugar low and started making a few errors on the descent so even though the finish was close by I stopped at the last water point, had a colslaw sandwich that hit the spot and saw me arrive safely at the finish line along with Kiran who had got a flat near the end.  I was very glad for the company as from the finish we had a 10km slog to the camp.  Tired and with temperatures now over 30 degrees it was very unpleasant and moods didn’t lift much as we arrived at a barren overgrown camp with no seats out and the only shade on the dust under the Red Bull banner.  There were very few negative remarks made about the route, it took me 5 hours 20 and considering this is most riders first stage race, a lot were been brought in the trucks or arrived in the dark.  Two Portuguese crashed badly on the last descent, one with a broken leg; the other broke his shoulder,  a few vertabra and ribs which shook us all badly in the camp and, hearing the rescue mission to get them to hospital had taken hours was a reminder to all that we were really out in a remote area and from then on I’m sure every rider rode with extra caution. 

Stage Three

Khegsu – Kullu Sarahan

106km

Rumors were flying around about a shortened course and there was a communal cheer when it was confirmed 25km were to be taken off making the day around 80km. A huge off road climb was replaced with a gradual tar climb and it meant for a faster start as I tried to hang onto the second group on the road.  I managed for about 15km and though it was hard, it felt good to get some ks under the belt with company.  A fast descent followed and along the valley I caught up to Kiran taking his time at the feed stop.  We rode together after that enjoying the long tarred sections after yesterday’s grueling stage.  With 12km to go the real work began; straight up a very rocky steep climb.  In my easiest gear the whole way it was a mission to ride  and comical for us both as the only way to get up was with surges of effort followed by an almost track stand rest.  From a bird’s eye view it would have looked like we were making very slow motion attacks on each other.  One hour and twenty minutes later the suffering ended and I improved my finish with a had a top 10.  The climb was worth it and as I saw the camp in front all the pain faded away.  At 2200m altitude the camp was set out just down from a village with an anciant temple, surrounded by mountains with green meadows behind where cows wandered, kids played and locals were collecting dried cut grass for the cattle through the winter.  This was our rest day camp and as the riders trickled in from a slightly easier but rewarding day spirits were high and we were all looking forward to tomorrow.

Rest Day

It felt a strange and new thing to have a rest day in the middle of a stage race but it turned out to be an excellent day and made the whole adventure a little more like a holiday.  I slept in till the sun made it too hot in the tent and had a leisurely breakfast of eggs and Indian breads.

Relaxing with breakfast on the rest day

After washing kit a few of us headed up the mountain to a waterfall an hour or so away.  It was a hot walk but well worth it as I put my costume on and had a very refreshing shower while the guys drank beer chilled in the pools.  

The only downside about our walk was that I’d missed the school visits.  Every day the supporters and some crew would go to remote schools and teach the children about the Global Goals for Sustainable Development made up by the United Nations as well as telling them about out mountain biking adventure.  I did however meet some of the locals later that day as I headed into the village, took a look around the temple and had pictures and chatted with the local woman thanks to wandering up there with Shachi, the only Indian girl in the race. 

 

Local traffic jam

Local woman collecting grass 

Stage Four

Kullu Sarahan – Bahu

Our rest ended abruptly with the steep rocky descent back down into the valley.  No issues and soon we were back on the tar road from stage 3.  I was alone the whole day and took in the views of the snow topped mountains 100km away before turning off the road at 60km.  I’m sure there were more views worth seeing but the next descent required full concentration starting with a tricky single track then a loose gravel road with long drops off the side.  The finish was again up a long 10km climb though not as steep or as long as I’d planned for and I was only at the finish a few minutes before Kiran arrived having had a bad stomach all night and feeling pretty empty of energy.  Camp was a few kms down the road by a river.  Low down now it was a warm afternoon and I didn’t mind the cold bucket shower though we did complain that the only non spicy thing at lunch was plain rice and got overly excited about some butter veg the team of cooks then whipped up.  The food so far has been excellent considering the resources available out here.  Breakfast is Indian spicy foods I wouldn’t dare touch before racing as well as nice breads, porridge, honey, cereal.  Lunch is simple rice, pasta and (usually not too spicy) lentils followed by tea of scrambled egg, biscuits, more tea and salty snacks before a late 8 to 8.30pm dinner of a whole range of veg and non veg dishes, soups, rice, pasta, breads and butter veg followed by many variations of hot milk pudding. 

 

A short walk to get a bird's eye view of the camp

Stage Five

Bahu to Gada Gusaini

80km, 2912m ascent

The new Queen Stage and the profile looked like it would be a long long 80km ahead with a climb all the way up Jalori Pass at 50km. We started going up from the off and I hung off the back of a group of three unable to quite bridge across.  With some steep rocky parts the going was slow and hot.  Finally we reached an out and back section that split the climb up a bit though adding on a section that included some barely ride able single track seemed a bit unnecessary even if it was through some nice forest.  Back on the climb and all alone with no one in front or behind I had no idea how far we had left and the kms dragged by until the final steep section came along.  From there it was only 5km to the top though for some reason I had 10 in my head so was pleasantly surprised when the temple at the top of Jalori Pass came in view.  I had had a few demons in my head and was struggling with riding so much alone until I saw woman at work breaking up huge piles of stones and at that point realized how lucky and privileged I was doing what I was doing.  The local woman here are all very happy looking but they know no different and will never travel or see half the things or have certain luxuries I have been lucky enough to have and see.  Talking to Shachi, she literally begged her parent to let her come and race such is the culture here and it seems a long hard battle for equality. For woman to pursue sport as a hobby let alone a career here must be very difficult and not encouraged at all it seems. 

 

Leading rider, Luis flys the flag at the top of Jalori Pass

At the top we were given 15 minutes to take photos, eat and chat to some of the supporters up there before the final 30km.  A brilliant descent then a long last 20km uphill rounding off a long 6 hour day for me and an even longer day for many of the field with the last riders coming in in the dark to the cheers of us keeping warm around the camp fire.  

Stage Six

Gada Gushaini to Chindi

98km, 2900m ascent

Down in the valley made for a very cold start and my warm up consisted of many cups of Marsala tea.  The cold also brought about a chocolate craving of all things so at 8.30am on the start line I had a small bar and felt the benefit for the first climb!  The start was through a few river crossings and across meadows and with the fresh cool air I felt energized and enjoyed the route.  From the top was a long descent and with no one insight in front or behind I switched off race mode and cruised down enjoying the scenery. As look would have it Kiran caught me at the bottom and we chatted and suffered together up the next long climb, a loop that took us back down some good single track and a sketchy rocky descent.  3 hours 30 in and only half way we knew we were in for another tough day and the 40% tar mentioned was more like 10% by the time we reached the town before the last big climb.  I have come to enjoy following Kiran’s line, he is technically a great rider and rides through traffic like the locals drive, crazy but highly skilled.  Its true, the drivers are brilliant: they overtake on blind bends relying on their horns, squeeze through gaps not there, drive on roads with small cars we would struggle to drive with a 4x4 and speed amongst pedestrians, goats and cows but in my whole trip I haven’t seen so much as a knock.  So I came to follow Kiran through the chaos of this town, shouting like his mother to be careful but then chasing back when a bit safer to do so.  He had a scary near miss, overtaking a bus and coming head on with a car but somehow managed to swing his bike sideways and stop in time.  Reckless yes but he trains in traffic every day and I’d also say very highly skilled.  

Camp was up another 5km hill,  very steep with loose stones and again difficult with my gearing and aching knees. Kiran took 4 minutes out on me and nearly caught back the riders in front despite us having no sign of them all day.  I didn’t mind the tough climb… it means camp is high, has views and therefore offering a nice breeze and cooler night and we weren’t disappointed.  Set amongst a Government house some of the girls even found a real toilet to use but I have got used to the hole in the floor and actually have started enjoying the cold jug of water shower.  Poor Walter had a less than fortunate experience.  Having survived the rocky descents, extremely hot climbs and a stomach bug that was taking a lot of riders down, he slipped in the shower, stood on a nail and ended up with a huge cut on his foot requiring 6 stitches!  The organisers told him his result as 2^nd team would still stand if he didn’t race the next day but he did actually finish all be it in a lot of pain. 

Stage Seven

98km, 2200m ascent

Chindi to Shimla

The last day came and there was excitement around the camp.  The three leaders were riding easy and 12 or so of us had a steady first 10km down the tar descent.  Turning off onto rough ground we split up and I got back onto the tar and started enjoying the views and taking it easy down the rest of the descent.  A few km’s later Daniel, kitted out in baggies and a shirt was clearly having fun and chased past me and I couldn’t help but tag on.  I rode 10 meters or so behind, sprinting out of corners and flying down the tar until we caught up with the front group again.  It was a lot of fun and before even having a drink we had 40km under our belt.  I knew a long 2 hour climb was coming up and took some time at the feed stop before settling into a steady pace spinning on the flatter bits and pushing on the steeper parts.  Once on the top came a longer than expected road drag and I was glad to eventually catch Daniel for some company to the timed finish line on The Ridge 8km outside Shimla.  The main finish line, a big banner and podium set up at The Mall was another 8km through the crazy traffic into Shimla that obviously would have been an impossible end point. 

 

Congrats and hugs all round

The organisers saw to it that instead of having a long hungry wait at The Mall, we were taken to a lovely restaurant where I had the most welcome iced coffee ever and we cheered every rider that came through the door.  The podium presentation in the square was a big affair with lots of local dignitaries; champagne, photographers and lots of onlookers making it really feel like we’d done something special.  To be crowned Queen of the Himalaya did feel great but surpassing that feeling was sharing the adventure, the good and hard times in such remote and extreme places with new friends and coming together at the end was very special.  Returning again with Rob to share the experience would be something I would love and hope to do. 

Leading men made a better effort with spraying the champagne

 

Riders gradually gathered together at The Mall

Top three woman

 

All the finishers together for one last evening

Thank you so much to all the organisers at HASTPA for firstly inviting me to the 11^th Hero MTB Himalaya and secondly for treating me so well and looking after me from arriving to departing.  Its always stressful arriving somewhere alone but from the moment I stepped out of the airport at Delhi I have been taken care of and been amongst such friendly and motivated volunteers and staff rubs off and helps make for an amazing experience.  It was a unique challenge against the terrain rather than a race and one I would love to return back too.  I would recommend anyone come ride as long as you like climbing! A lot of us said some of the days were too long considering the amount of climbing we had to do and this meant that on some days less than 50% of starters managed the whole route but shorter routes were often provided and failing that, riders were picked up and allowed to start the next day.  I have massive respect to every fellow rider from the pro men at the front battling it out, to the riders finishing in the dark and starting again barely 12 hour later, to those like Ilda who suffered illness and injuries like Walter with his stitches but still continued to the end.  I am also extemley grateful to all the supporters who kept our bikes working,  gave massages, kept us fed and clean every day and took all the photos and videos we can share with friends.   I’ve done many stage races and this one had the hardest climbing, required the most determination and involved the longest hours each day I’ve ever done. 

Final Results

Men:

Luis Leao Pinto 27h29

Andi Seewald 27h48

Pau Zamora 28h19

Woman:

Catherine Williamson 34h31

Ilda Perreira 38h52

Laxmi Magar

Best riding buddy Kiran who came first Indian along with Ashish and Srishti who looked after me from stepping off the plane!

Stage Eight

The journey itself deserves to be a stage in itself and by the time I arrived in South Africa two days later I felt more exhausted than after the Queen Stage.  I was extremely grateful once again to the organisers for treating me so well and booking me into the Ibis hotel once again after the long 10h bus drive back to Delhi.  Surviving that bus journey was a relief , we had the most aggressive driver ever to the extent of him stopping on the highway, blocking another car in, getting out, pulling the guy out of the car and punching him such was his road rage!  After a long wait for a taxi to the Ibis and a solid nights sleep I had a lovely outdoor swim, waffles for breakfast and complementary taxi to the airport 10 minutes away feeling refreshed and well.   The stress came again booking in and been told I’d have a excess charge of around 400 pound unless I lost 8kg.  I went away from the desk, took anything remotely heavy from my bag from my wash bag to my spare tyre and hid it on the trolley under a fleece and jacket and went back.  The check in man insisted I must only have one check in bag and off my nearly empty large bag went.  I then planned to throw everything back in my bike bag once taking it to oversized luggage, a trick I have always got away with unless as in this case, a porter comes along to take the bike.  At this point I was really stressing so imagine my relief when, once out of sight, the porter told me to stuff everything back in before we got to the scan area.  I could have hugged him but instead discreetly gave him some notes and thanked him a lot.  

Two flights later I arrived in Johannesburg where in a few days time I’ll race Berg and Bush in the Mixed Category, a race that has always been on my Too Do List and part of the Joberg2c trails.  I’m not expecting to be fresh but am looking forward to racing back in my favorite country and catching up with friends I haven’t seen since May!!

Thanks to my Rubena Tyres I had no flat tyres all week despite the rocky, loose terrain and Squirt Lube kept the chain running smoothly despite the dust. My KTM duel was a must, I wouldn't recommend anyone ride a hard tail.  

11th Hero MTB Himalaya Stage Race, 27th September to 4th October

A number of months ago the organization HASTPA invited me to come and race in the 11^th edition of the Hero Himalaya MTB Stage Race.  They would organize everything and not one ever to turn down an opportunity like this I immediately said yes.  Gradually plans were put in place and I started looking at last year’s stages.  The race looked very tough, not only based at altitude but also climbing around 3000m every day, 500km over 7 days and with some days taking the leaders last year over 6 hours.  Rob, my every supportive husband suggest I try get hold of an altitude tent which I quickly dismissed on the grounds that even if we did find one in Yorkshire to rent which sounded highly unlikely, the cat would no doubt claw a hole in it in order to reach her duvet!

With much appreciation HASTPA booked my flight to Delhi all be it from Heathrow and the morning after an event we were working at in Harrogate finished.  So on Sunday night I got on a National Express, toured UK airports and finally arrived at Heathrow at 6am.  I must say despite the time it took, a bus takes all the stress out of travelling and on this one I didn’t even have to trek across London Victoria to change buses.  6 hours to kill/stay awake before getting on my Air India flight to Delhi.  Air India isn’t famous for luxury travel but with roughly one person to every three seats, very friendly staff and good non-spicy food it might have well have been first class travel. I arrived in India quite nervous about getting various taxis to the hotel then to the bus station the next morning but was saved by Srishti, working for the race, who was waiting for me despite it been 2am and who, only 3 hours later got a cab with myself, Andreas and Manuel from Austria to make sure we met the correct bus.  In my mind I pictured the public bus would have a few chickens strapped to the roof and would have 50 standing people in the aisles but instead it had seats that almost fully reclined with comfortable leg rests and I slept nicely till the lunch stop.   About three hours later we started climbing and it felt like the end was near yet the journey went on and on.  We stopped at some rough looking places and the hand gel post toilet stops became very handy.  Our driver who had been on the go since 8.30am was driving like a mad man up the mountain roads overtaking and relying on the horn on blind bends.  I was glad I wasn’t on the valley side of the bus even if the views were impressive.  The lights of Shimla finally came into view and 11 hours after embarking we staggered off to be welcomed by Ashish Sood whom I felt I already knew, as he was the one who answered every rider’s questions via our race Whats App group.  We were checked into one of the best hotels in Shimla; Woodville Palace, in the best part of town amongst the trees and only a short walk to the main tourist street, The Mall.  After a great dinner, sat outside in a restaurant overlooking the hustle and bustle I slept like a log and woke up to the sound of birds and crickets. 

The next few days passed nicely as I gradually got used to the thin air and a sore throat either from the air con on the bus, or the altitude went away. We were taken for a short ride by one of the local riders riding for Hero.  A hero he will be if he finishes the event as he dislocated his wrist a week ago and will be racing with a pot right up to his elbow!  He took us right up to the world’s highest positioned statue at around 2500m altitude I think and as it was the God of Power I asked him quietly if I could borrow a little, he was bright orange and matched my KTM after all!  I also joined Team Rocky Mountain up the main road to where the race would start on Sunday and though we rode easy, the traffic was that bad I am sure my heart rate was through the roof.

Each night that week I ate in the same restaurant until I waved at the chef on the way out and the waiters were super friendly.  I even ended up with one and a half dinners one night after asking for extra sour cream as my chicken wrap was too spicy for me and instead of sour cream he came back with a whole new wrap!  I felt rude not eating the whole thing again but it was that tasty it wasn’t such a hard challenge! 

On Friday most of the riders had arrived and a Press Conference was held.  It’s the first time I’ve ever sat at the front with a microphone and I tried not to show how nervous I was.  I wasn’t so much asked a question, rather asked to say a few words about the event and for a split second I panicked, had no words to say then all of a sudden I started waffling and all was fine again.  Some snacks and a chance to chat to other riders filled the rest of the afternoon and after showing some guys from Dubai the square as if I were now a local I joined them for one final dinner at my favorite restaurant. 

Pre race day is finally here now, it seems a lifetime ago that I waved Rob off at Leeds bus station and I am very much over the honking of horns and hustle and bustle of Shimla.  I planned the morning spot on.  We were to all ride behind a taxi carrying our bags through the morning down to the race hotel.  Knowing the hotel had a swimming pool (distraught to find it closed a little later!!) I came down behind an early taxi in kit ready to ride.  The rooms were to be ready in 20 minutes and knowing Indian time I headed out for a ride knowing by the time I got back the room may actually be ready.  True enough, 2 hours later having filled my lungs with some more truck fumes before finding a quiet road all be it way down the mountain, I came back to find my room just about ready.  My last night in a real bed before heading off into the unknown tomorrow begins.  With temperatures predicted of anything up to 30 degrees and down to minus 4 at night tonight I will make the most of four walls and a thick duvet!!