The forecast was 0.7mm of rain for the 6 hour period 6am – 12pm. Knysna has a reputation for having a number of hippies. I think their weather man is a hippie too. He has been eating far too many organic magic mushrooms, from deep in the wet muddy forests we raced in today.
As you can see from the photos, there was a touch more than 0.7mm of rain forecast.
With the rain pouring down we tried to convince ourselves that it would soon stop before we were on our way. Being at sea level the only way out of Knysna is up, and up we went. We started well and the profile which makes the climbs look deceptively steep, was kinder than what we anticipated.
A lead group with the Biogen-Volcan, Contego-Swift, Squirt Lube, Asrin and ourselves, Altech Autopage formed along with a couple of the solo riders. The race stayed together until some 40km into the 90km stage, until the split occurred.
Along with Squirt Lube we formed a coalition chasing the Biogen and Contego teams ahead. Ultimately Squirt would take the final place on the podium with Biogen edging out Contego for the win.
The queen stage awaits tomorrow, although many of the riders probably felt like they encountered it today with the harsh conditions we encountered. Hopefully the forests dry out a bit and our bikes don’t get subjected to the muddy abuse again.
Results:
1. Biogen-Volcan – Knox & Evans
2. Contego – Swift – Louw & Luus
3. Squirt Lube – Keey & Swanepoel
4. Altech Autopage – Kachelhoffer & Wolhuter
5. Asrin – Krenn & Boyes