Bouckaert Soenen League

Race report from the Bouckaert Soenen League and Funride.

This weekend was the Bouckaert Soenen League and Funride, the longest (126km) race on the Summer calender.

With temperatures the day before reaching the forties it was pleasant to wake up to coolish conditions.

The standings on the general classification had a big effect on the tactics employed by the 2 leading teams Daikin and and Cape Town Market.  Daikin wanted a break to go away, while Cape Town Market wanted it to come down to a bunch sprint to give Stefan Ihlenfeld, who is lying 2nd overall, a chance for his 3rd race win in a row.

There was only one major obstacle on the route and that was the climb of Botmanskloof pass that came at around the 50 km mark.  The bunch did split over this climb but with over 70km in the race remaining the pace in the front group slowed enough for the majority of the bunch to regroup.

It was then a case of attacks trying to get away but in each case being brought back by the large team of Cape Town market.  I managed to get away in a small group at the 100km mark which at stages looked promising but after about 10km's it too was brought back.

At just over 5 km to go a big attack was launched on the narrow Agter Paarl road.  Neil sensing that such an attack would be made had positioned himself perfectly near the front of the pack to be able to respond and went away with about 5 others.  They quickly opened up a gap and at some stages it looked to be a successful move.  Credit must go to Cape Town Market though who worked very hard to get things back together and brought them back with less than 2 km to go.

The finish was always going to be a fast one and getting a good position around the right hand turn off Paarl's main road was going to be crucial if a good position was to be achieved.   It took some risks to get near the front of the pack while bouncing along the manhole filled main road but luck was on my side and managed to go around the corner in the top 10.  With sprinting not being my strongest point it was a nice feeling when the legs responded and I managed to come past a couple of the riders before the line.

Stefan Ihlenfeldt managed to win his 3rd race in a row and with the bonus seconds moves closer to Ryan Kemp and the Pink Jersey.

Winning Time: 3:04:20

1. Stefan Ihlenfedt - Cape Town Market
2. Dean Hopf - Cycle Lab
3. Pierre Henri Olivier
4. Stuart Strang - CAPESTORM
5. Alex Heward - Olympic Cycles

Stuart

Orange River Day 1 & 2

What an awesome time!

 

15 of us (consisting mainly of cyclists) headed north to the Namibian border to test our upper body strength on the Orange River.  We actually did quite well, but that is mainly because bones don’t get stiff!

 

We left in convoy on Wednesday morning and managed to hit every Wimpy between Cape Town and The Namibian border.  I personally managed to get through a waffle and a half on the second stop.  (training has already started to try get rid of it!)  Luckily we all cruised up in luxury because the temperature at the Nam border must have been easily in the 40’s.  If you are posted there you must have done something seriously wrong somewhere along the line.

 

The Felix Unite camp was only a couple of k’s from the border and we were soon settled on the lawn setting up camp for the night and sampling the local brew.   The stars were, as expected, out in full force and it was great to fall asleep under them.

 

The next day we woke to an awesome sunrise.  There were a few clouds and that made the sky shine a very bright red, which was beautiful to look at but a sign of the weather (headwind) to come.  After a great breakfast of bacon and egg rolls we packed our buckets (kitchen, closet and linen cupboard) and were ready to roll.

 

The first morning was a tough one having to deal with a headwind but with a bit of a push we reached the lunch stop where we were treated to a good lunch and time to play a bit of Wabooba.  Soon enough though we were on our way and to encounter the first rapid of the day.  On this rapid Moolman and I managed to turn the boat and hit it backwards.  Somehow between the 2 of us we managed to control it and get through safely.  That is more than can be said for Nic the guide’s boat which ended up getting wrapped on a rock and being sunk.  It was amazing to see the power of water.  What looked like a fairly innocent patch of water quite easily took care of the boat.

 

The first night was spent on a piece of the bank that had been recently populated with bovines and was affectionately  nicknamed “cow pat island”.  Once all the pats had been flicked out the way the first papsak appeared and the evening started to get underway.  The headwind had taken its toll and by 10am there wasn’t a light to be seen at camp.

 

 

The best thing on day 2 was probably being served coffee in our sleeping bags by Nic and Hannes.  Looking at the faces of the group that first cup of coffee was actually more of a necessity than a luxury.  Again there was a good breakfast that got us on our way and to test out the damage the previous days efforts had done to our shoulders.

 

Day 2’s paddling was absolutely awesome.  It included the (in)famous Shambok rapid which we could preview when we walked up one of the hills over during the lunch break.  On the hill we were told to pick up fluoride pieces which when were later thrown into the fire glowed a bright blue before popping like fireworks.

 

Shambok rapid lived up to its reputation, even though due to the high level of the water was tamer than usual, and took the first victim of our group. The rest of us managed to make it through and I think Moolman, now paired up with Cathy, did most of this one backwards too.

 

I must admit I was lying when I said that the coffee in the morning was the best thing of the day, it was in fact the ice cream and chocolate sauce we had at the night stop.  Ice cream has never tasted so good!

 

There were plenty of fun and games that night, made even better with the help of a 2^nd papsak!  First up was a test of flexibility when you had to fold yourself inside out to get a paddle around from one side of your body to the other.  Next up was a game of Orange River Seconds.  A version of 30seconds OR style.  This of course ;-) was taken by the boys or team YUM YUM!

Even with a few sneaky moves from the girls!

 

Every night there was a fairly strong wind and some people who won’t be named decided to take advantage of it and hide Moolman’s and my mattresses! Making us believe they had been blown away.  Revenge will be had and oh yes, it will be sweet ;-) I can’t wait for the reunion and fines evening!!  It was on this night that Kasha claims a fine for  pumping up her bed after lights out!!

 

To be continued!

 

 

 

Me skiing!

iPhone update

Well this is another arb blog post to check if I can update my blog
through my newly aquired iPhone.

Let's see.....

Sent from my iPhone

Snow, snow,snow

I'M writing this as I lie in bed waiting for my alarm to go off. I can
feel I am stiff in almost every part of my body but hell it is worth
it. What an experience.

You see I spent yesterday skiing in Perisher, Australia. It was my
first time skiing and man what fun.
We got there at 8am so had about an hour before my Lesson starred. In
that time I managed to pick up enough to convince the instructors I
could handle level 3 which meant that pretty soon I was headed away
from the nursery slopes and onto some of the proper runs! During the
lessson we were taught to perfect the "snowplough" and handle some
turns and how to catch a Tbar and the other lifts.
By the end I could handle myself quite well. Today's Aim though is to
try a bit of more parallel skiing and less snowploughing!
Now to get out of bed and check the weather. Will post pics soon.

Sent from my iPhone

Easter Lion's Head Walk

<<Lion's Head.jpg>> What an evening!
It was an absolutely perfect evening on Friday when a couple of us
decided to tackle Lion's Head. The light in the distance in the photo
believe it or not is actually the Moon.

Thanks to everybody who came with!

Disclaimer
http://www.shopriteholdings.co.za/pages/1019812640/disclaimer/E-mail-Disclaimer.asp

New Years

New Years was at Chris's House this year. Ended up being a great party, but not so wild that Craig and I couldn't put in a 140km ride the next day!

Up close and personal!

Luckily he wasn't looking at me!

My New Camera!

I bought myself a Xmas present. A Nikon D60 DSlr. Manged to put it to good use at Umzolozolo Game lodge this past week. Here is a pic of one of the many Kudu's

SIMONSVLEI LEAGUE RIDE

Written by Neil:

 

It was cold and windy as day broke on Sunday for the last race on the Spring League calendar.  Just before we were off the wind died down and the mercury rose which made for perfect racing conditions.  

 

The race started at a fast pace over the rolling hills around Paarl all the way along the R44 to Stellenbosch.  Just before the Hellshoogte climb, Ingram launched a big attach but the bunch was waiting for the move before the climb.  As soon as Ingram was caught another group went away and Stuart went after them, but again the group was brought back.  As the bunch hit the climb André attacked with Tredoux on his wheel.  Soon afterwards the attacks came from all the overall contenders going after Tredoux.  A small group of about 10 riders went over the climb first containing Tredoux and all the big names.  André and I went over in the second bunch of 12 riders but soon caught up to the leading bunch.  Ingram and Stu paid for their big efforts before the climb and came over in the next bunch.

 

With a small break of 4 riders ahead of the first bunch and the breeze from behind, the pace was kept close to 50km/h by a hard working MTN team assisted by André and myself all the way to Paarl where the 4 riders were caught.  With about 4k’s to go André again launched an attack but the bunch was not going to let anybody get away so close to the finish.

 

The sprint was won by Michael van Staden from Team Sotherby’s closely followed by Moolman Welgemoed and David Garrett both riders from Team Daiken.  Tredoux was boxed in for the sprint but finished strongly in 7^th position pushing him up one place in the overall league standing to 6^th. 

 

As in the Bonnievale race Team Capestorm again received complements on the new red Speedman jearsy which seems to be working well to keep the team riders at the sharp end of the racing.

 

On behalf of the team I want to congratulate Tredoux for an excellent finish to the season and the writing seems to be on the wall that next season is going to be even better than this one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bonnievale league

The Speedman lives up to its promise!

Team Cape Storm got a nice surprise this week when we were given the new Speedman shirts (hot off the production line).  The new shirts are a tweaked version of the original Speedman and has been updated to include some of the suggested features that the team gave to CS to improve an already great shirt.  Besides the features, the bold Cape Storm logos on the new shirt will make the team far more recognizable in the peloton.

If you read the description on the tag that comes with the shirt it ends saying: “We have done our part, now it is up to you to do the rest for your podium finish”.  I think these words were written directly to the team, who while have been racing well this season haven’t quite cracked a big result yet.  Well the new shirts were all the motivation we needed and Tredoux proved the label prophetic and made the podium at the Bonnievale league race this past weekend.

 

It was an early morning for the team, having to get to Bonnievale (170km from Durbanville!!) in time for the 7am start.  Due to the distance it was a fairly small bunch that lined up for the 80km route but it included all the favourites for the yellow jersey. 

The race was anything but a steady pace with many of the riders thinking they could get a break away to stick.  Neil unfortunately punctured early in the race reducing our team to just 3.  Stuart, after a tough working week spent in Joburg, took it upon himself to try control the race during the first part of the race.  At 45km Ingram made a good attempt to break away and was out front for a number of kilometres.  Unfortunately for him he was caught just before the break of the day went with 8 riders.  Tredoux managed to make this decisive split and stuck with it all the way to the finish and with it claiming Team Cape Storm’s first podium of the season.  He now is lying in 7^th position overall in the PPA elite league with one race to go.

Can I blog from my phone?

This is to test if I can blog directly from my phone?

Tour de Worcester

Tour de Worcester. – Neil Swarts

 

Day broke as the sun painted the snow capped mountains pink and red.  It looked like a beautiful day until we noticed the howling winds on the other side of the Du Toitskloof Tunnel... it was going to be a hard day in the saddle.

 

We set off at an easy pace with the guys catching up as this was the first league race of the season. 

 

After 4k’s things heated up as the first attacks went.  The pace was fiery through Rawsonville and the gutter started to take its toll on those legs that were not yet used to race pace.  Because of the wind and high speed, the bunch was stretched across the road from the left shoulder to the right and the race was stopped twice as we received a friendly but serious warning from the race commesaire.  After about 40k’s the leading bunch consisted of about 20 riders which included myself and Tredoux.  At 45k’s I was dropped by a hard attack from Tredoux (thanks team mate!!) 

 

Stu’s knee packed up as a result of new pedals he bought a week or so earlier and he waited for the women’s bunch (nice move).

 

The pace in the leading bunch was very fast with attacks going all the time which ended in a break staying away consisting of David Garrett and Garth Thomas.  Tredoux finished in the first bunch with a very credible 12^th place.

 

The chasing bunch of about 20 riders which included Ingram, André and me started to pick up some of the riders who found the pace in the first bunch too hard.  The stormy winds drained the impotence from the chasing bunch, but Ingram took a flyer with 3k’s to go and stayed away to finish 16^th.

 

Because of the chilly windy conditions we just waited for prize giving and then left for a Wimpy breakfast.

 

With lessons learnt and a good idea of our strengths and weaknesses, we are looking forward to the next league race in Durbanville.

 

Mossel Bay pic

 

Mossel Bay Race Report

 

The PPA league season is about  to begin and Team Cape Storm hopes to begin with a bang! 

 

In order to do some final preparation Team Cape Storm decided to head up the coast to Mossel Bay and take part in the Welstand vir 'n Leeftyd 100km race.

We unfortunately headed out of Cape Town one member short as Neil had picked up a bit of flu and decided against racing.

 

Anyway, the rest of us managed to sneak out of work early and after loading the trailer (thanks to Danny for leanding it to us) the 4 of us were on our way.  We were riding in style in Andre’s GTI and although Neil was missed I must admit it made sitting in the back seat more bearable.

We made good time and arrived in MB with enough time to unpack and go for a loosner before supper.  Our accomodation was at Tredoux’s parents house and thanks must be given to them for making us feel so at home.

 

The talk over supper was centered entirely around the following days race, the route and the unknown competition.  Tredoux’s dad has a wealth of cycling knowledge and shared some with us while at the dinner table.

 

The race the following day only started at 8:30 so it was nice to be able to prepare leasurely for a race for a change.  A short ride to the start and we were ready to go.  The race route was certainly not an easy one and made more difficult by it being unknown to us.  The first 30 km gradually climbed out of Mossel Bay and included one fairly lengthy climb.  It was on this climb that the race broke apart.  Tredoux put in a big attack and split the pack.  Unfortunately Ingram, Andre and myself got a bit caught out by our own teammate and failed to make the split.  The 3 of us however were not far behind and the front pack needed to work hard to keep away from us.  This meant that Tredoux could sit on the back get a fairly easy ride till the turn around point at which the local teams ganged up on him and kept giving him a dead wheel and a gap to close.

 

Andre and I managed eventually to haul in the lead group at the 75km mark.  This point however also coincided with the main climb of the day and we regrouped right at the base of Grootbrak.  Andre pulled an “Erik Dekker” move and shot straight through the bunch and attacked from the bottom of the climb.  Absolute classic move.

 

Tredoux followed the front pack and set about trying to chase down Tiaan Kannemeyer, who had made an early move.  By the top of the climb Tredoux was in the front group, Andre in the second and I was in no mans land.

 

In the final corner Tredoux had a close shave with a car thanks to a sleeping marshal which ended all chances of him claiming a podium position.  All in all it was good preparation for the upcoming season, and a good weekend away.

 

Final Results:

Tredoux           4^th

Andre              9^th

Stuart              12^th

Ingram            16^th

 

There was also a crit that followed far too shortly after the race!  The crit was held on a very short loop that had 2 very sharp hairpin bends in it.  Tredoux managed once again to pick up a 4^th and just miss the podium.

   

Check what happened to me this AM!

This is the result of Fuji Carbon vs a Landrover Discovery.

Luckily I am ok and the bike is insured.

Any Frame suggestions???

9-5 relay

 

Team Cape Storm managed to overcome numerous mechanicals (and hangovers) to get 3^rd in the 9-5 relay!

3 punctures and a broken chain lost us about half an hour in total.  It would have been less if Neil had remembered to bring his bomb that Andre gave him for his birthday!

 

It was some tough riding with each rider racing to the point of puking for +-30mins and then resting for 90.  Sounds easy when you see it like that!

 

The weather was ok, but our Aardvarks definitely helped protect us against the wind which started pumping in the afternoon.

 

Cape Storm at Dirtopia

Check this out.

 

http://www.capestorm.co.za/news/news_details.jsp?news_id=12603

 

Dirtopia Pic

 

Dirtopia and Team Cape Storm

This past long weekend (thanks Thabo!) was Dirtopia and the launch of Team Cape Storm.  The festival for 2008 returned to its roots and was once again held in Greyton.   This year things were a little different to previous years with a more relaxed program in terms of races, but don’t worry all the classics were still there, the ENDURO, the widowmaker hillclimb, the trophy race and of course night polo.

 

Day 1

Myra, Andre, Tamara and myself arrived on Thursday morning and quickly got our campsite in some sort of order.  Next on the agenda was to track down Pierre from Cape Storm and our new kit!!  It felt like Christmas had come early and there was a massive box of stuff for Andre and myself.  Most importantly Pierre had remembered to bring along my CS Firefly sleeping bag so no cold nights for me.  Once we were fully kitted up Andre and myself were on our bikes and headed off for lunch in Greyton.  Myra who unfortunately had picked up a bad case of flu caught a lift with Tamara.

After a slight altercation between Andre and a Greyton motorist (I thought only people from the city got road rage!) we found a spot to eat.  There must have only been about 10-15 of us in total but this coffee shop was totally unprepared for this group of mtb’ers.  After we had eaten all their food they actually had to close!

 

Once we had eaten all their food we saddled up for the 17km trek home.  I use the word trek because the burgers in our stomach made the ride home feel a lot longer than it actually was!

 

Next on the program was the night race (2 laps of 7km).  After a bit of humming and harring and checking to see if our lights had enough batteries we decided to join in the fun in the dark and ride the night race.  As with any mtb race it started at a pace.  My legs were actually feeling really good and started off really well until I decided to test out my helmet and go over my bars!  The fall was actually quite harmless but when I got up and tried to remount I fell into fynbos!  I got quite stuck and battled a bit to get out.  I managed to regain my position (4^th) and seeing as though Andre (3^rd) was now a fair distant ahead and 5^th place was quite far behind I decided not to take too many more chances.  In the end Andre managed to get Team Cape Storm’s first podium!

After a shower it was braai and beer time!

 

Oh I must tell you about the carbon Giant with Crossmax that I was riding!!  I had taking my bike (Raleigh) into Flandria to send for the fork to be serviced and it didn’t come back in time.  Leonardo however kindly let me his bike, hence the upgrade which made Andre very jealous!