2014 Cape Epic review A big adventure What an adventure. For a very small minority of the participants, the Absa Cape Epic is a race, pure and simple. Nino Schurter, Jose Hermida, Rudi van Houts, Christoph Sauser – those guys are all racing, throwing it down every day for eight days, sprinting for stage wins, […]
Tips for racing a mountain bike time trial
It’s pretty common these days for a mountain bike stage race, even a marathon stage race, to include a short TT leg, usually by way of a prologue. Mountain bike TTs give riders a chance to thrash out some of their nerves, and from a race director’s perspective are useful for sorting out seeding safely, […]
The 2014 Cape Epic – in Summary
The ABSA Cape Epic is a brute of a race. Once you have won the first round against the race, securing an entry, you have almost a year of mental burden. You must train, you must be prepared. Do not take the Cape Epic lightly, as it will destroy you. Finishing this race in one […]
Australian XCM Championships – the Contenders
Mt Joyce Mountain Bike Park opened in 2011, and the Australian XCM Champs that year would have been the first event to be held on the new trails. They were actually so new, that the venue wasn’t yet open, and racers were almost required to race in long sleeves and with steel capped shoes. That […]
Jenny Fay – taking on the world in 2014
Cycling is full of hard working, motivated athletes. We are in a sport that rewards hard work, dedication and discipline. Anyone from the Australian marathon scene would recognise Jenny Fay. Some riders get over-hyped, but when it comes to marathon racing, Fay lives up to the hype. She is rarely beaten. She is a fierce […]
2014 Absa Cape Epic – only a few days to go
Too late! Too late for any more training, probably too late for any significant changes to bikes and kit, definitely too late to get an entry; the 2014 Absa Cape Epic is now only a few days away. The race is now on its eleventh edition, and still going from strength to strength. This year sees a […]
Want kudos? Six cycling achievements you can’t post on Strava
Strava changed cycling. Data is no longer the domain of coaches; bragging no longer confined to the coffee shop; and racing is on every day, not just Sundays. I don’t want to discourage anyone from using it, because it’s useful and fun – great for tracking improvement and finding new rides – but If you’re […]
Crocodile Trophy 2014: Profiling the Stages
The 2014 Crocodile Trophy will be a UCI classified MTB Stage race, attracting an S1 ranking. Only the Cape Epic has the highest ranking, HCS – or “beyond categorisation” for a Stage Race. The Crocodile Trophy is arguably the longest running MTB Stage Race in the world. It’s possibly the hardest too – but ‘hard’ […]
Shimano MTB Grand Prix – Four Hours, Hard?
The options for MTB racing seem limitless at the moment. Coming into March, a mountain biker based in the South East of Australia has a plethora of bike races to attend. National Championships, the opening rounds of two different Marathon series, lap based endurance races, club cross country, stand alone marathon events… it’s a long […]
Gravel Grinding: Escape to the better Daily Grind
Ok, I’ll admit it. I’m a child of the 70’s. From a bicycle standpoint that means my first ‘real’ bike was a BMX – now where I lived (Port Morseby, PNG) the whole concept of a ‘BMX track’ was a bit foreign so most of our time was spent exploring tracks, making jumps and trudging […]