Team RSAWEB’s Team Gamma – Sani2C Race report

March 19, 2010

Team RSAWEB’s Team Gamma (myself, Richard Tasker and Jeremy Shaw) was officially entered the Sani2C Race when my wife, Kirsten, pulled out.  This meant that we could use the race as preparation for the upcoming ABSA Cape Epic.

Day 0:

The trip to Underberg started with a 6am departure from Jo’burg (fortunately missing the morning traffic).  We stopped in Nottingham Road to drop off the kids with their Grandparents and then headed to Registration. News was already starting to flow in from Rob Gilmour and Mark Slingsby, who were also doing the Sani2C, that the conditions were muddy.  After some deliberation I decided to stick to my current tyres (Hutchinson Pythons) and not change at the last minute.

Registration was quick and easy, and we hung around to meet with friends and waited for the race briefing. Thereafter, we hopped on the shuttle to our accommodation in Himeville, claimed our mattresses in the makeshift dormitory, and headed to Himeville Arms for dinner with many other riders, before we turned in for the evening.

Day 1

81.6km 4h06  1240m+

Deciding to ride down to the start, we left Himeville accommodation around 5am, in complete darkness, and arrived at Underberg to a welcomed breakfast and our 6h40 start time.  The race began along district roads for a few kilometres before heading into the first single track.  A few changes to the ‘View Climb’ took us towards one of the day’s highlights – the Floating Bridge (watch our YouTube clip – specifically from 1:13).  Hats off to the riders who managed to wheelie on the bridge – that takes some courage.

Mist quickly moved into MacKenzie Club, increasing in thickness and eventually converting into rain, leaving us eagerly awaiting Farmer Glen’s decision about riding down Nic’s Pass into the Umkomaas Valley.  Eventually the disappointing call was made that we would not confront the Pass, and that was the end of Day 1.

Day 2

92.8km 5h17  1750m+

The beginning of the race was particularly muddy, which persisted until we dropped out of the mist-belt and into Umkomaas Valley with a fast and furious descent. We made our way along the Valley, climbed out for a short stretch on the tar road, and rejoined the original route to the first Water Point.

Conditions became ideal for good cycling, which lead us to make good time into the Valley, and we carefully made our way across the 4 river crossings before starting the big climb up and out of the Valley. A much needed and appreciated lunch was provided by Nando’s, which increased our energy levels before reaching the toughest climb of the day, and ending our day with more fantastic single track.

Finishing the day’s race, we were greeted by sunshine at Jolivet Farm, where we made full use of the generous facilities and spent the afternoon welcoming in the late-comers.

Day 3

77.2km 3h32 975m+

A late start on the final day left us enjoying a few extra hours of sleep (albeit that we still had to wake up at 5am).  The new start route took us on some great single/Subaru track, before hitting the cane plantations and the final sprint to the beach.  We were feeling strong and pulled hard on the last 15km making up some time and catching up to a few teams.

Overall all, the Sani2C 2010 was a great race, and excellent preparation for the upcoming Cape Epic.

Watch this space for our extensive coverage of the ABSA Cape Epic.