So, right when Mike and I got comfortable with winning, here we are out of the race. Pulling out of a stage and the race was interesting in itself, and really brought home to us what’s great about the Perskindol Swiss Epic, and our partnership. I want to tell the story of what went on, […]
Archives for September 2015
Perskindol Swiss Epic – Stage Four
Nothing hurts quite the same as watching a race from the sidelines. But the truth is that watching a race on the 5th day from the sidelines is a pretty sombre affair anyway. Despite the excellent trails, and the great accommodation and food, there were a lot of tired people in the start block today. […]
Perskindol Swiss Epic – Stage Three – back across the valley
The 4th day of a six day stage race, is well and truly the hump day. Starting in Leukerbad, the Perskindol Swiss Epic was set to descend down to the Rhone Valley, travel upstream towards Visp, and then ascend towards Grachen, via Visperterminen along a seemingly never ending climb, followed by a never ending descent […]
Perskindol Swiss Epic – Stage Two, Tour of Leukerbad
Whenever we get in a group of fast riders, challenging us, I always tell Mike that we have to ‘ride the wave, as long as we can’. We were feeling a little battle-worn when we finally turned out the lights last night. We’d had a very tough day: things had gone wrong, we’d both dipped […]
Perskindol Swiss Epic – Stage One, the Queen stage
Today the real racing started with a climb up to the iconic Croix de Coeur pass from Verbier, similar to the first ascent of the famous Grand Raid marathon race, but taken on some smaller and steeper roads. Mike and I enjoyed a call up to the front row, although we had to be beckoned […]
Double time for Specialized Australia at the Flight Centre Epic
Epic: noun (informal); an exceptionally long and arduous task or activity. adjective; heroic or grand in scale or character. “his epic journey around the world” . synonyms: ambitious, heroic, grand, arduous, extraordinary, Herculean; More informal particularly impressive or remarkable. “the gig last night was epic” The Flight Centre Active Travel Epic certainly doesn’t look the […]
Perskindol Swiss Epic – Prologue
Stage races come and stage races go. Each promises something different: the Croc Trophy takes you to the wildest Australian outback. Transalp over the most magnificent passes. The Cape Epic offers the ultimate physical challenge. The Perskindol Swiss Epic has a lot going for it, but its point of difference, I’ve quickly realised, is quality. Everything, […]
Perskindol Swiss Epic Rider Diary – the mind
When you stand on a start line and look around you one thing is always the same: everyone looks fitter, calmer, better dressed, and more prepared than you do. You can try numerous strategies to overcome your nerves: a friendly chat, a thousand-mile stare, some tweaks to your gear – but your heart will hammer […]
Dutoit Tankwa Trek boosts prize money
The Cape Epic is undoubtedly the behemoth of mountain bike stage racing, but the fact is South Africa has well over 40 mountain bike stage races – and each one needs to stand apart. The Dutoit Tankwa Trek, one of South Africa’s premier three-day mountain bike stage races, havesignificantly increased their prize purse for the 2016 edition, […]
2015 Sudety MTB Challenge Video
There’s not much left to say about the Sudety MTB Challenge. We all love it. The trails are what you hope for at a mountain bike stage race. The organisation are caring, efficient, and organised. The racing is hot. And the experience… hard to beat.