After winning the ABSA Cape Epic’s short opening prologue stage by the narrowest of margins on Sunday, South African Burry Stander and Swiss Christoph Sauser (36One-Songo-Specialized) put in a dominant display on Monday’s tough first stage proper to win the day and secure a commanding nine-minute lead overall with six days remaining.
Stander and Sauser’s closest rivals after Day 1, the all-South African pair of Kevin Evans and David George (Nedbank 360Life) lost a massive 24 minutes on the 115km stage that started and finished in the town of Robertson in hot, dry conditions. They encountered a series of problems with George’s tyres and eventually finished the stage in 15th position, heavily denting their hopes of becoming the first South African team to win the prestigious race.
With George and Evans floundering, the teams that stepped up to lead the challenge against Sauser and Stander were the Team Bulls 2 pair of Tim Boehme (GER) and Thomas Dietsche (FRA) and the Swiss Stockli Pro team of Urs Huber and Kenny Looser. But their combined strength was no match for the defending champions, who attacked the lead group before the final water point at 78km and then charged on relentlessly on their own for more than 40km to finish in 04 hours 33 minutes 22 seconds.
Huber and Looser outsprinted Boehme and Dietsche for second place, but their time of 04:38:31 was more than five minutes slower than that set by the winners. German Three-time champions Karl Platt and Stefan Sahm (Team Bulls) finished a minute-and-a-half later, outdashing Hannes Genze (GER) and Andreas Kugler (SUI) of Multivan Merida and Alban Lakata (AUT) and Robert Mennen (GER) of Topeak Ergon Racing.
“We rode well today and were on our own for the last 45km, which we rode at our own pace. Some of the guys had problems with the heat or with their tyres. We didn’t have any problems, so it was a nice steady race for us. Touch wood,” Stander told the post-race press conference.
“I felt much better today than yesterday and enjoyed the stage. And of course it’s nice to go from 13 seconds in the lead to just under ten minutes. It really helps to have a strong second team and they were close to us for most of the day. It makes a big difference. I’m sure after today team 360Life will agree, as they apparently had many problems.”
The ‘second team’ Stander referred to, is the Songo-Specialized team of Max Knox (RSA) and Kohei Yamamoto (JPN), who finished 12th on the stage, but would have given their bikes or wheels to Stander or Sauser if required. Nedbank 360Life doesn’t have a second team in the race.
The first African team home was the eighth-placed overall MTN Qhubeka pairing of Andrien Niyonshuti (RWA) and Jacques Janse van Rensburg (RSA), while the first all-South African team home was 14th-placed Gawie Combrink and Nico Bell (Westvaal-Columbia).
Evans and George started the stage with aggression, claiming the R10 000 cash prize on offer for the first team over the Telkom Hot Spot at 28km into the stage, but it was shortly before the second water point at 58km where they encountered their first problem – a torn sidewall in George’s rear tyre. Their repair job wasn’t permanent due to the extent of the tyre damage and shortly after replacing his rear wheel at the next technical station, George’s front tyre punctured, forcing more delays.
In a show of goodwill at the evening’s prize giving, George and Evans donated the R10,000 to the JAG Foundation charity.
In the highly competitive Master’s category South Africans Delaney Impey and Adrian Enthoven (JAG Craft) upstaged overnight leaders, Nico Pfitzenmaier (GER) and Robert Sim (RSA) of Team Robert Daniel Momsen to win the stage. However, Pfitzenmaier and Sim retained their overall lead by just over a minute, setting the scene for an exciting Stage 2.
Another South African victory came in the Mixed category where Erik Kleinhans and his wife Ariane (Contego 28E) finished 25th overall to secure the category win by over five minutes from overnight leaders Udo Boelts (GER) and Melina Landtwing (SUI) of Team Centurion Vaude. The Kleinhans couple now leads overall.
In the women’s race, Esther Suss (SUI) and Sally Bigham (GBR) claimed a dominant stage victory and extended their overall lead. Second on the stage was South African Theresa Ralph and Norway’s Nina Gassler (Britehouse Biogen), who are also second overall.
Tuesday’s Stage 2 covers a distance 119km with 1650 metres of vertical ascent, four kilometres longer than Stage 1, but with less climbing, small respite ahead of Wednesday’s monstrous Stage 3.
South Africans set prologue alight
South Africa’s top marathon racers got the 2012 ABSA Cape Epic off to a blazing start when they dominated the top positions in the 27km prologue time trial that heralded the start of the international eight-day mountain bike stage race in Durbanville on Sunday.
Defending champions Burry Stander (RSA) and Christoph Sauser (SUI) of the 36One-Songo-Specialized team sped around the short, hilly course in a time of one hour, 11 minutes and 52 seconds to claim a narrow 13-second victory over the all-South African Nedbank 360Life pair of Kevin Evans and David George.
Third place went to Austrian Alban Lakata and German Robert Menen of the Topeak Ergon team, with another South African, Max Knox and his Japanese partner, Kohei Yamamoto of 36One-Songo-Specialized 2, filling fourth place.
Four South Africans in the top four overall after the opening day is a promising start for the host nation. The world’s most prestigious mountain bike stage race, which saw 600 teams of two set off on the opening stage in warm, dry conditions at Meerendal Wine Estate on Sunday, has been dominated by foreigners over the past eight years. Last year Stander interrupted that pattern when he claimed the first South African victory along with Sauser, who first won it in 2006.
Stander and Sauser were the favourites going into Sunday’s prologue partly as a result of recent good form and partly because they’re both former World Champions in the Olympic Cross-country discipline, which requires speed, skill and intensity over short duration.
Evans and George, bidding for a third time as teammates to become the first ever South African team to win the coveted title, have also shown good form in the build-up races, but are marathon specialists, surprising many by finishing so close to Stander and Sauser on a short, technical course.
Knox, another of South Africa’s leading marathon racers, was paired with Yamamoto, the Asian Olympic cross-country champion just last week, after his original American partner, Todd Wells, was forced to withdraw due to injury.
“We were hoping to get more time in the prologue like we’ve done in previous years, but Nedbank 360Life have upped their game for sure. We went has hard as we could. I took a small tumble and Christoph almost crashed, but after that we tried to relax and it seemed to help,” said Stander.
“The prologue is only a very small part of the race, but it was important for us to win it. It sets a good tone. The win today didn’t come as easy as before. But the other teams are going to have to show they want to take the lead tomorrow. We’ll be very vigilant of course. We’re prepared for a hard week of racing.”
Stander was full or praise for the support and stage setting, finishing on top of Dorst Berg, the race’s first ever mountaintop finish.
“The crowds were just awesome. So much support out there today, especially on the last climb. It’s good for us and our Songo.info charity. Having a mountaintop finish was quite special.”
Other South Africans that shone on Day 1 were Robert Sim, who along with German partner Nico Pfitzenmaier of Team Robert Daniel Momsen, claimed the stage victory in the Telkom Masters (over 40 years) category in a time of 1:23.00. Runners-up were the all South African JAG Craft team of Adrian Enthoven and Delaney Impey.
In the women’s category, South African Theresa Ralph and her Norweigan partner, Nina Gassler (Britehouse Biogen) finished in a strong second place behind the Wheels4Life pair of Esther Suss (SUI) and Sally Bigham (GBR); while in the Mixed division, the Contego 28E husband-and-wife team of Erik and Ariane Kleinhans finished second to the German/Swiss pair of Udo Boelts and Milena Landtwing. Another South African, Russell de Jager and his Swiss partner Andrea Huser (Big Tree Velocity Sports Lab) were third in the Mixed category.
On Monday’s Stage 1, Stander and Sauser will wear the overall leader’s Yellow Zebra Jerseys, while Evans and George will don the red jerseys denoting the leading African Team. In true Cape Epic tradition, it’s a menacing first stage, starting and finishing in Robertson and taking the riders over a distance of 115km with 2350 metres of vertical ascent. The ascents are steep and some of them rocky, classic Cape Epic terrain that’s sure to break the rhythm of even the top teams.