ABSA Cape Epic, the worlds toughest and biggest mountain bike stage race in the world. International riders know this as the Tour de France of mountain biking. Kevin Vermaak, organizer made this event a successful one after he got an idea of creating it in 2004 and after 9 years, this is a well known event a cross the world. From professionals to amateurs ride a distance of 707km, 14 550m of climbing in just 8 days.
1200 riders from a cross the world participate in this prestige race. I honestly never knew of this event till in 2007 when they visit Robertson for the very first time. The water point was located at the airstrip not far from my house and that was the first time I saw the likes of Jose Antiono Hermida and many other international riders pass me. Still today, I would always visit the ABSA Cape Epic when its in my area. The vibe is always truly amazing and so many people come out to make the riders feel welcome when they visit the town.
Last year I finally got a chance of meeting Jose Antiono Hermida and his teammate Rudi van Houts in Worcester and its not always possible to meet up with the world champion himself. Every year it brings many memories back that I will hold on to for years. While I'm a huge fan of Team Merida, I always support a couple of South African teams such as Team Garmin Adidas, Team MTN Qhubeka and DCM. In 2011,
I once again was a spectator at the ABSA Cape Epic, this time at the Time Trial in Worcester. The night before, it was raining since early the morning and with riders and staff sleeping in tents means trouble. Every thing is soaking wet and as with the route, Leon Evans known as Dr. Evil had to fix some of the bridges due to the rain and had to change the route slightly for safety reasons. As the riders started at 7am on Thursday morning, they were facing 800m climbing over a distance of 32km.
With the top 30 elite teams starting only at 11, Burry Stander and Christopher Sauser of 36One Songo.info taking the win, the weather was certainly unpleasant as the wind was blowing and it started raining but this didn't stop people from coming to the venue and support their family and friends. I met so many knew people on the day from Holland to other European countries. Every year this event gets better and with the number of people participating, the Western Cape and South Africa can show what it has to offer.
With some of my friends racing, I decided to go and support them on the day as encourage helps a lot especially after such a long period they have spent on the bike. One funny thing that happened was my friend Francois Ashton who I know from my racing as he is a commentator at some of the races in our area, introducing me to the crowd. The Worcester Primary School took some time to sing and just go all out to support the riders and cheer them on, this was really special.
Now I once said that I will never participate in the ABSA Cape Epic and today I decided to give it a try and get to know the feeling of it as the other riders. The most scary part is the fact of crashing, if you fall there you might wake up in a hospital. After injuring my ankle, this got me thinking but if you don't take a risk, where will you end up in life. Its all about creating memories and test yourself to see how strong you are and how determined you are.
Every rider in this race not only have to have faith in himself but in his partner as well because they are not only your partner but your friend as well. The one thing that inspires me is the words "Together we shall overcome", this is not an individual race but a team of 2. It takes hours of training to get there but at the end when you cross the finish line in Lourensford, you achieved something that you simply can't describe to anyone.
Next year I'm going to volunteer but first I need to go through the process of sending an application to tell them why I would like to volunteer. As we know when it comes to these events, experience in a certain field are required. Thanks to African Cross Country Championships, I have a chance of getting accepted. Its not an easy job to volunteer but its all about having fun. All I do hope for is to participate in 2013 myself. This is chance I want to grab with both hands and test myself against the best riders in the world and see where it will take me. Every person who have done this in the past, have a inspiring story to tell and this is something that change you views on life.
In my next blog, I will be writing on the second part of the 2011 ABSA Cape Epic.
Till next time!
Yolande
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