With just under a month to go, road racing cyclists in the non-elite racing categories are preparing for the 2013 Msunduzi Road Challenge, which is the only leg of the global UCI World Cycling Tour (UWCT) on the African continent, in and around the Noodsberg / Wartburg area near Pietermaritzburg, on 26 and 27 October.
The UWCT event serves a dual purpose of offering the road cycling enthusiast a chance to cycle the scenic routes with road closure, as well as provide the seasoned competitor an opportunity to qualify for the once-off UWCT Final in 2014, previously known as the UCI Masters Road World Championships.
This year’s event forms part of the 2014 season challenge, and is the only qualifying event in Africa for the 2014 UWCT Final, which will be held in the Slovenian capital, Ljubljana.
The race distances for the various Masters’ age categories have been determined, and Masters’
Image credit: © Anthony Grote/Gameplan Media
will once again be racing in the five-year category increments from 30 years of age.
The different distance breakdowns per age category are as follows:
Men – 109km
16-29 / 30-34 / 35-39 / 40-44 / 45-49 / 50-54 / 55-59
Men – 80km
60-64 / 65-69 / 70-74 / 75+
Women – 109km
16-29 / 30-34 / 35-39 / 40-44 / 45-49 / 50-54
Women – 80km
55-59 / 60-64 / 65-69 / 70-74 / 75+
According to the race organisers, the Msunduzi Road Challenge lap-format routes have been reshaped slightly with the start and finish area just outside of Wartburg to the nearby village of Noodsburg, to assist in alleviating congestion in Wartburg itself, particularly on Sunday.
In the recent official press statement, race organiser Alec Lenferna said: “We have tried to create as little negative impact on Wartburg as possible. The people of the town were incredibly supportive but we decided that we needed to have a bare minimum of influence on the town as a whole.”
The route has taken another turn as it no longer moves through Wartburg and there is a turn just before the town.
For more information on the 2013 Msunduzi Road Challenge, please visit their official website
