The 2016 Mpumalanga Cycle Tour is attracting great interest from professional and non-professional cyclists alike as entries begin to pour in for the Forever Corporate Cycle Challenge, which will see corporate teams, ride the race routes with professional teams in almost a month’s time, from 18-23 January 2016.
Interest from professional and non-professional cyclists alike is beginning to grow, as entries pour in for the Forever Corporate Cycle Challenge, which will see corporate teams ride the race routes with professional teams at the 2016 Mpumalanga Cycle Tour from 18-23 January 2016.
Non-professional teams can join the pros on each of the stages covering a total of 749km around Mpumalanga. The route has climbs of more than 11 500m and takes riders from Loskop Dam, through Badplaas and Barberton to Hazyview, Pilgrims Rest and all along the Panorama Route including Blyde Canyon and Graskop to end at the Forever Hotel at White River.
Companies or groups may enter a team of any size and all riders need not ride every stage. The best time of a team rider for each stage will be taken into account in determining the team’s overall time for the Tour.
“We trust that companies will take up the challenge to allow their riders to participate in this ‘Tour de Force’ and have the opportunity to ride in the tracks of the late Ertjies Bezuidenhout and other well-known South African cyclists from yesteryear,” said event organiser Hendrik Wagener.
The challenge will be known as the Forever Corporate Cycle Challenge as Forever Resorts, together with the Mpumalanga Department of Culture, Sport and Recreation and Europcar are the main sponsors of the event. The Forever Corporate Cycle Challenge will carry a first prize of R10 000, second prize of R5 000 and the team finishing third will get R3 000, with the Mpumalanga Cycle Tour carrying a total prize purse of R200 000.
The ’Tour has sparked great interest, with riders from near and far set to compete for the spoils. “Director of the UCI World Cycling Centre Africa, JP van Zyl has already entered 16 women from Africa, and there is a large contingent of riders that have entered from the Police force,” said Wagener. “The Mpumalanga province has also entered a women’s provincial team, and Elite mountain biker Max Knox has entered a team of well known mountain bikers including Nico Bell and Gawie Combrinck to tackle the spectacular road race.”
The race is open to the following categories of riders:
- Elite, U/23 Men
- Elite Ladies
- Open Vets
- Corporate Open Category
- Individual Open Category
- Junior Men
For more information about the Mpumalanga Tour, click here: http://www.hatoere.co.za/index.php/events/2016-events/8-mpumalanga-tour-2015
To enter, click here: http://www.cycleevents.co.za/category/road-events/
