If at first you don't succeed...

If at first you don’t succeed...

This weekend was supposed to be a big one. Months of training, a good eating plan, good preparation races. Everything was in place and all indications were that we were ready for this. 

The race is the CA 2 C (Cape Town to sea), or what seems to be an 11th hour sponsorship, Die Burger Weskusser. The event was conceived after the highly successful Renosterveld 3 day mountain bike challenge in September 2010 by the same orginisers. 

On Friday we arrived at Clara Anna Fontein to register and collect our race packs. The goodie bag was amazing. Aca Joe Golf shirt, sludge hamper, CO2 canister, USN Vooma gel, USN pro sports bar and a few other bits and pieces. 

After a good nights rest we gathered at Clara Anna Fontein for the start, which was moved on to 6:30 from 6:00 to ensure that SABC2’s TV crew were given enough time to set up and have good enough light to shoot the start. We eventually started at 7:10, and immediately it was apparent that this was going to be a long hard day on the bike.

We traversed “Bloemendal Hill” from the Eastern side and did a full circuit of Contermanskloof before we crossed the Vissershok road. 25 kms of racing and we were 2 km from our start.

We had a quick stop at Meerendal and was off, straight up the big climb on Meerendal and down onto the quarry with a very technical descent. 30km into the race and we have climbed 1200m already. 

All around riders were suffering and a strong South Easter was kind at times, but brutal at others. 45km into the race it was apparent that something was very wrong with me. I had no power in my legs, my balance was off and soon I was vomiting. My partner had to wait for me at the top of every climb and at the 55km water point he advised me to pull out. It was a very tough decision to make. I don’t quit. Period. But soon the medics attended to me and I was told in no uncertain terms that to continue would be suicide. So my race was over 4 hours into day 1. I was gutted. My wife was at Phillidelphia an hour later to pick me up. A rider struggling with a flat front wheel asked hopefully if he can borrow my bike. I laughed and then realised that he was serious, so I turned around and walked off. 

As I got to the finish line at 1pm, only 8 riders were in. 6 hours into the race with practically the whole field still out there. 

I collected my bag at my tent and as I walked back to my car. I passed what seemed to be a hall of fame of Epic, Pioneer and even some Trans Alp luggage bags back to the car - all of them still out there fighting the elements. 

As I waited for my partner the riders crossed the line one by one and here and there small groups of 3 or 4 riders limped in. I didn’t see many smiles as the riders came in. Asking on how the second half was, the most common response was blank stares and shaking of heads. 

At 4pm Chris finally dragged his tired body across the line. As he got off his bike, he collapsed. The medics who already had their hands full attended to him smartly. After a graphic description of the sand, more sand and the tough second half, Chris asked me to load his bike and get his luggage. Another 9 hour day would not benefit his Epic training in any way, and as he was dehydrated and feeling ill (much like myself earlier), he would rather recover and be ready for a mid-week training session. 

Soon sweeper vehicles with bakkie loads of bikes and riders came to the finish, dropping broken bodies and their equipment to go back for more. 

I am unsure of the final figure, but I suspect that more than 40% of the day 1 starters did not start on day 2. Surely the orginisers would tone down day 2 of the event, but the damage was done. It is evident that there is a fine line between a success and disaster. From an orginisational point of view, every detail was thought of and nothing was too much trouble. This is what we became accustomed to during the Renosterveld, and at CA 2 C it was certainly at the same level. It is easy to be overly critical, but some constructive comments and advice follows:

• 7am was maybe too late for the race to start
• the Bloemendal/Contermanskloof loop could have been left out and some of the more moderate Meerendal trail could have been used. We spent 2 hours doing a 25km loop that took us very close to where we started.
• more water points should have been enroute. 3 was not enough. 
• the 8km of unridable sand needed a better solution. There was 1 tractor doing duty, but if this section was unavoidable, having 3 or 4 vehicles on standby to shuttle riders through on  say 5 minute intervals, with a time credit at the end for time spent waiting for a pick-up could have saved many riders another hour in the field.
• February is possibly too dry to attempt this event in the future. September was a good time for the Renosterveld race (same orginisers)
• initial marketing advertised the event as 1800m climbing over 110 km day 1 and 1200m climbing over 120km day 2 (from memory). This changed to 2300m climbing over 115 km day 1 and unless day 2 was altered, 2100m climbing with 110km riding on day 2. This was 1400m of additional climbing from what was sold initially to the riders. Better route planning should therefor be done before entries opened. Only 2 or 3 races can get away with opening entries and then releasing route info later. This is not one of them. 

In closing I hope that those who started day 2 had a much more enjoyable time than on day 1. Riders spent a lot of money to enter for the event, and when it is too tough, the spirit of the event is compromised. Hopefully the orginisers will go back to the drawing board and come up with a better balanced event next time around, and hopefully the riders will come out to support the event in future. We need good event orginisers and we need good events. This one has the potential to become a real classic, but 3 weeks before the Epic, riders want 5 to 6 hours of riding time and sufficient time to recover for the next day.

So if at first you don’t succeed, try and try again. I am sure that the next event brought to us by Renosterveld Mountainbiking will be one to look forward to. 

Lighthouse to Lighthouse race report

Lighthouse to lighthouse.

Stage 1

The day started off with way too little sleep being had. Last night's U2 concert was still ringing in my ears and with 2 hours sleep since then, I had to face a long day on the bike. The start was a low-key affair at danger point lighthouse with an informal start line formed up, and then a start to the race with no announcer or official starting things off. Quickly we progressed to Franskraal and Pearly Beach via an urban assult-type trail that incorporated walking trails, beach access paths and the neighborhood's beachfront roads. A good long stretch of tarred road got the legs warmed up and the riding groups sorted out early on. We were riding in a group of about 10 riders that were steadily catching a group of 5 riders ahead of us. Soon we were one bunch with the workload being shared by us and 2 other "teams" (officially this is a solo race). We soon left the comfort of the tarred road for a corrugated dirt road with 4 or so mild climbs. The group was getting smaller with riders going off the back with every climb, and one or 2 stragglers being collected from the leading group as well. About 30 kilometers into the race one of the stragglers was being confronted with the reality that our group too was too strong for him. In his attempt to try and stay with the group, he ended up speeding past me and a few riders that was recovering from a stint at the front. As the group accelerated, I started to move back up to the front. The straggler veered into my front wheel and "switched" me. I hit the dirt road with my shoulder and my left knee. The rider stopped and looked around with a shocked-horror expression on his face as I uttered an obscene word or 2. I got up gingerly and checked my bike and myself and assured the rider that I was ok. My partner who stopped ahead came back to check on me and soon we were chasing the bunch down. We lost about 3 minutes on them and caught them just as we entered a water point. We were now about 9 riders making good time through some splendid farming country. My shoulder was stiffening up as we went through a rain shower, but my left knee felt ok as I focussed to keep it from stiffening up by pedalling on the climbs and descents. 5 of the group tried to make a move after another water point, but another team and us waited for the sandy stretch to catch and drop the 5. The other team seemed experienced enough not to panic and chose their moment well at the start of the sandy section. We stopped to deflate our tyres and soon we have lost sight of the 2 in front of us and another 1 of our group. 4 of the 5 that was in the break was now falling back rapidly in the sand. We were alternating on and off the sandy trail for the next 10 kilometers. Soon we were on the beach for another 10 km stretch on sand and through sections with fynbos dunes and rocky beaches. We passed one of our former comrades on the beach. He was suffering and couldn't hang on, so we moved along. Certain sections required decision making to scale rocky coastal sections or to port our bikes over sandy dunes with dense milkwood and fynbos. As we reached the last water point we were told 10 km to go. We resisted the temptation to open the throttle and completed the 90km stage in 4:20 in 30'th and 31'st overall.

Stage 2

The day started with a bit of confusion, as the start was delayed by 1 hour from 7 to 8am. Some riders decided to ignore the new start time and set off at 7. I can imagine how this could have ended in disaster. 

At 8am we started on a near perfect day. A light South Easterly was edging us on during a fast start. Soon we were in the dunes and back on the beach re-tracing our steps from the previous day. We let some air out of the tyres again and made our way to the 10km sandy stretch from day 1. We knew what to expect, and made light work of the sand. As we left the sand, Chris tried to inflate his rear tyre, but air was escaping from the tyre at a steady rate. We nursed his rear tyre to the second water point of the day, where he proceeded to put a tube into his tubeless system. The first tube was a dudd, so I took out my tube, and soon we were riding again. Some 15 cyclists passed us while we changed our tube and soon we were catching riders again. The second tube was losing air as well, and one of our mates kindly gave us a tube half way from the water point to Elim. Soon we were nursing the third tube along when our “support crew” passed us. We did a wheel change and figured that as outside support was not mentioned in the rules we were not breaking any rules. 

With the new rear wheel we were now riding like 2 men possessed. We hit the town Elim just as the church service finished. Unsuspecting church goers got the shock of their lives as they were crossing the road just as we passed the church. We left with a few shouts of “sorry!” and “watch out” and soon Elim was a distant memory. Over the rolling hills we kept the pace up. My shoulder was killing me from the fall on stage one. Mental note: Get a physio appointment on Monday for some dry needling...ouch!

Soon we made our way past Baardskeerdersbos and as we hit the tarred road to Gansbaai we were still passing riders. The wind had also turned from a gentle South Easter to a gusty South North East Wester. It seemed like every turn we took, we encountered a head wind. 

We caught up with Kerry who gave us her tube earlier and helped her along in the head wind. As soon as we had the Danger Point lighthouse in sight, Kerry sent us on our way to finish the race in style. We caught another rider or 2 in the last few kilometers and crossed the finish line, 24th and 25th overall. A great effort with at least 30 minutes lost due to technical issues. 

Weight loss and carrot cake

Ask any cyclist, social, or competitive if he is happy with his/her weight. The answer will be an unanimous “I can do dropping a few kg’s”

I contemplated this phenomenon over a slice of carrot cake at my favourite coffee shop late November last year, still blissfully in denial about the 9kg’s I’ve picked up since my wedding day 7 months prior. That night I had bad dreams about the carrot cake wanting to eat me. It struck me then: The carrot cake was busy eating me, and so was the chips in the cupboard and the slab of chocolate I had after my last ride. I needed to do something about my eating habits and fast. Attakwas was less than 2 months away, and in 2010 I had a very hard race, not training nearly enough. I addressed my training early enough. I was doing between 10 and 14 hours a week and the gym programme I was doing with my best friend was proving useful, but if only I could magically drop the 9kg’s and maybe even another 5 for good measure...

Nothing worth getting in life comes easy, so I had to go back to the drawing board to see what worked in the past. A few years ago just before I started mountain biking, I was a hefty 113kg’s. After a year of hard work, eating properly and training hard, I was at 89kg’s. Now I was back at 102kg’s and not feeling too good about it. I couldn’t finish my last bite of carrot cake, as it suddenly made me nauseous.

So what worked last time? In 2006 I joined Weigh Less, and tackled it like I do most things in life: With purpose and almost obsessive attention to detail. It contributed in a big way to my weight loss, but over the last few years, I drifted away from the good eating habits I cultivated at Weigh Less. I was tempted to get out the old booklet and simply try to eat better, but realised quickly that I needed the 3 way support Weigh Less offered me, namely the group leader support, the weekly group support and the eating plan. So I joined again on 3 December, got my eating plan and I was on my way to 88kg’s.

Since 3 December I have lost 7.4 kgs. Its been a slow process, being made more difficult by, mountain biking weekends and races (where you want to eat everything you see afterwards) the Christmas holidays, various work functions and lunches, birthdays and other celebrations in-between, but every week I become more motivated to eat properly and to get to my goal weight. Its amazing what a few kg’s can do for your riding. Its obvious that you’ll be climbing like a mountain goat and that your heart will cope better with the stresses of the sport, but other subtle changes also contribute hugely to better enjoying the sport, like better balance, easier breathing and less stress on knees, hands and your back. Consider riding around with an 7kg backpack for a long ride. I had to do this last week as I did not plan my commute properly and had to pack clothes etc for work the morning. I was glad that the ride was over, and on Friday afternoon on my way to Silvermine gate appreciated being 7.4 kg’s lighter as we peddled along.

The initial challenge was to be at 94.5kg’s by 28 February. I am still on track to reach this goal.

Sani 2 C - Its closer than you think

Ok so a few weeks ago I got to the office and realised that I needed to think about the logistics around Sani2C. For those hearing about Sani2C for the first time, its simply one of the best multi stage mountain bike races around. http://www.sani2c.co.za/ for more info.
Since I live in Cape Town, and the race is about 1800km up country, driving makes very little sense. So first step was to book a plane ticket. I shopped around for a good budget flight and found a return flight to King Shaka Int Airport (Durban) and back to Cape Town for a reasonable R1600, including an extra 10kg luggage allowance to ensure that I don't have to pay in extra for my bike with check in.
Accomodation was a bit trickier. The race starts in Underberg on the foot of the Drakensberg, just before the Lesotho border, and come Sani2C finding a bed is expensive. I got lucky with a booking at Pile Inn. Upon enquiry I was told that it is right across the road from the start venue, but the cost was quite steep at R1900 for 2 nights, as during busy times like these, they don't have a single room rate. At least the rate included breakfast on the 2 mornings and pasta dinner the night before the race. I wondered about the wisdom to be in Underberg 2 days before the start, and had to remind myself what the consequences would be if a flight was delayed, my bike didn't arive with my other luggage or any of the usual Airport desasters.
Now I needed to figure out how to get from Durban to Underberg. Google is you friend, and she duly supplied me with the details of a shuttle service from Durban to Underberg. I enquired, only to find out that my Monday afternoon flight needed to be a Monday morning flight as the shuttle departs promptly at 1pm. So I had to pay an additional R600 to change from the afternoon flight to the morning flight. So finally the shuttle was sorted out.
The race is a fully catered event that runs 2 start groups on 2 consecutive days, the Adventure starts on 18 May and the Race starts on 19 May. Having entered the non-competitive adventure meant that we would have the benefit of riding the prestine single track first, getting the best Sani2C has to offer. We would arive at Scottburgh on Friday, 20 May for a well earned rest.
My wife is unfortunately not able to take the whole week off to come and support me, but she had put in leave for Friday, and will fly in on Thursday afternoon, so at least she will be there at the finish.
I've booked for the weekend at Ocean View Resort in Umkomaas. I look forward to go to one of the supporters points on the Saturday to see how the pro's do on their final stage.
Cost to date for this event:
Flights (for me and my wife) R4200
Race entry R3990
Accommodation Underberg R1900
Shuttle service R350
Ocean View Resort R900
Total R11340
I hope to keep the total expenditure for the whole trip to under R14000.