tubed

Nicely summed up - glad it lived up to your expectations, hope to see you back. Thanks too for passing on the gees.

As the photo says Glenn Harrison heading for Elandsberg - the weapon of the hunter. Travelling light, clear skies and dry - making it count.

Update Sun 22: While the rest of us have been watching rugby or SWC2014, the race continues to take shape and evolve into what seems to be a two horse race between Graham Bird and his chaser Glenn Harrison. See here for a bit of a catch up: http://glennharrison...ible-john-loos/ All of the racers are now between Rhodes and the Baviaanskloof, these days are characterised by portages initially for the first few days out of Rhodes as one leaves the high mountains and then as one enters the Eastern Cape proper , the roads get better and the days riding are longer, but a bit 'easier'. There are still numerous portages and it is by no means flat at all, with grassland being replaced by Karoo thickets and acacia trees. The riders will also move from predominantly cattle farms to quite a few game farms and this presents the game fences which they have to scale, some of these up to three meters in height - a new skill quickly to be mastered. The only constant is the cold, in the mornings it is excruciating, see the pics of Marnitz, probably taken as he emerges from his outside bed somewhere. In terms of the weather it must be said that it is near as good as it gets, these guys have been very lucky because if the wind blows int his area or it gets muddy, then instead of doing a double day between 2 support stations, one then sees event he best riders struggling to make one support station and sometimes even 50-80km to an intermediate support station will take a whole day. Back to this years race: Graham is still out in front near Romansfontein, but Glenn is now hot on his heels and there are hours separating them. Consensus seems to be that Glenn is quicker on the bike, but Graham is a seasoned adventure racer..... similar to the last big battle between Alex the cyclist and Martin the adventure racer, Martin set the record that year..... There is still a lot to happen here with the weather, mechanicals, health and sleep all possibly to still play a part. Behind the two are; Hanno, who seems to have recovered and Tim, also back at it, dont count wither of them out yet, but it would take one of the front guys to falter, what we can be assured of is that neither seems to have any idea of giving up and we know Tim gets stronger as he nears Cape Town. Marnitz is also still in the race and following his own strategy - see the pic of the buffalo he came across, buffalos have poor eyesight and a keen sense of smell, it smelt something terrible and stayed clear of Marnitz Out in front Bugs and Allen should enter the Baviaans via the Osseberg today, this fabled old ox wagon route into the Baviaans will keep them busy for the day, hope they make Cambria tonight.......not quite the place where you want to sleep as things definitely go bump in the night there and they growl at you. Did I mention the Cape Leopard research center is at Cambria. Sadly it seems like Clint aka Trailwarrior has pulled out of the race at Chesneywold, its been a ding dong battle to get this far, no news on Fanie yet, hope you guys heal up soon and well done for soldiering on this far. They will be enjoying Minki's hospitality, sadly they wont get to meet the late Christo who passed away in the last year. RIP Christo. So today we will see the race continue to take shape, we are still a long long way from home and there is lots still to happen. Probably the best part of the Race to Rhodes is that now that the excitement of that is over - we are left with the main serving - the 2014 Race Across South Africa and its lining up to be a special edition - stay tuned.

Great posts Trackz, well done on your ride - similar to the PMB boys - lots of prep a healthy dose of humility and humour and it all went according to plan. Hope to see you back.

Well done Clint and Fanie - respect!

Marnitz getting photographically creative near Krantzkop near Molteno. Nice blue skies - that means the temp will plummet from now through to sunrise tomorrow, remember Marnitz is sleeping out rough somewhere tonight, that's going to be very very cold.

I am trying to keep an open mind on todays announcement: perhaps amongst the new roads to the new 'green building' offices there will be some infrastructure spend on mtb. From the official press release: Tokai is a major gateway for local users and is also due for infrastructure investment which will benefit a further component of our stakeholders. Visitors can look forward to a multi-user access road and improved services to the area. The overall development will require a new office building for the park which will be built according to “green building” principles. http://www.sanparks....lt.php?id=56099 more here: At Tokai, close to R11m will be spent. http://www.iol.co.za/polopoly_fs/copy-of-ca-p6-tmnp-birthday-done-1.1706443!/image/3354766819.jpg_gen/derivatives/box_300/3354766819.jpg Table Mountain National Park manager Paddy Gordon and Mayco member for community services and special projects Belinda Walker cut the birthday cake at the Park's 16th birthday celebration at Cape Point. supplied Work here will include upgrading and widening the entrance road leading to the historic manor house – currently in a terrible condition – and adding pedestrian and cycle lanes, while a new office for the national park built according to “green” building principles is also part of the plan for this precinct http://www.iol.co.za...44#.U6Q6xfmSw5w

Drama: "Tweet and Hanno get to Slaapkranz 14:36. Tweet pushes on, Hanno not well staying behind to rest" Just when we were saying Glenn is feeling strong after being sick and its too early to say if Graham and Hanno's lead is material, Hanno drops off the pace. Pretty significant that Graham left him, wow!

Glenn been in at Rhodes for an hour,now Meryl says he just left "race on". No mention of Tim at Rhodes yet. Graham and Hanno past Chesneywold and on the Kapokkraal portages toward Slaapkrantz. Marnitz out of Kranskop - washed and clean - thank heavens for that.

Having a drink with your hosts and sharing what you have is encouraged......these people go out of their way to host you, it would be downright rude not to accept some of their generosity or to share yours . This may include a single malt, a bottle of wine with a farmer who hardly ever gets to drink and he has no idea what he is serving you, to the late Christo's bar at Chesneywold where anything is on offer. Of course at the community lodges en route it is Zamaleksall the way and they are cheap, so dont overdo it.

Sheez and you come here to ask, am humbled? we should be asking you!! The twitter feed is about the latest info and guys at jumpertrax seem to be doing all they can to improve the system, the armchair/ keyboard riders are very demanding. But unless you know the route and the background all of that is a tad confusing. In a nutshell then: The two guys out in front on the trail are Bugs and Allen, they are headed through the Eastern Cape toward the Baviaans as their next big challenge, they started a week before Glenn and the other racers. Coming up behind them are the front runners Graham and Hanno who have passed through Rhodes and are on to the next support station. Glenn is behind them and is picking up the pace as he seems to have recovered from the tummy bug, he is going up and over the Drakensberg today and onwards down to Rhodes, it seems he and Tim are close together. Guess it remains to be seen if they stop in Rhodes and for how long. While Graham and Hanno have about 12 hrs on the two chasers, it is still too early to say if that is material as a lot can happen. Main thing is that they are over their illness and both are very seasoned riders who know the route.

Clint/ Trialwarrior Clint is en route to Rhodes today with his trail partner Fanie, they deserve a special mention as I think it was touch and go in the early days as they seem to get hit with illness, falls and were generally shellshocked. To their massive credit they stuck at it, got their heads in the game and are due to summit the Drakensberg and then ride on down to Rhodes later to day with a biggish group. A great achievement, looking forward to posting when it is confirmed they are in Rhodes.

you guys will make memories of a lifetime - RTR needs only a week or so off work, seems like you have most of the stuff you need, less is better refer Ryanpmb and Percyzn, they got excited last year and this year they did a brilliant ride to Rhodes - think they enjoyed all the prep as much as the ride

talking of Mordor, which is what Alex Harris termed the Baviaans in 2011 after the floods, it has had another year of rampant growth with good rains, I expect the Osseberg entry to the kloof will try its utmost best to detain some of the riders, perhaps even torment one or two for a night what goes on in that part of the Baviaans is primal

thats vrek funny - "the grenade in mordor"....confess to have done that too, even Chris Froome did it last year and got pinged, now he packs the inhaler.... the kit, bike and attitude are critical - navigation helps........

thats quite ironic- I went in 'unprepared' in 2012 - took 3 days to decide to go, had no boxes, I 'bought' another racers who had withdrawn - had no idea what I would get each day. Started with game in my 2 bottles and 1 gel in my bag, remember saying to Dave race director as we were about the start that I was going to try and do the whole ride on normal food. Biggest asset was my attitude/ resolve and my kit from previous year, I was there to finish this time come hell or high water - the rest were minor details. to be honest there is so much race junk food in the abandoned/ disused boxes you can rely on that if you need it, but you need to eat the proper food when you see it - the vetkoek, meat, biltong, veggies and soups

@barklyboy reporting on -10 in Barkly area this morn..... Marnitz slept out near Moordenaarspoort in the same area Danie at Moordenaarspoort Farm will welcome him, special people there, very proud 7th/8th generation farmers, humbling to see how proud they are of their heritage and passionate they are about this country.

Update: Sadly adventure racer couple Chris and Julia Fisher are out, Chris's knee given up the ghost....they will be back. (real pity because Chris redid the maps this year which are by all accounts fantastic and Chris and Julia used to post great pics).

Depends what sort of weekend warrior you are? Seriously though, it takes a lot of preparation and depends more of your desire and resolve than fitness, with those in place you will finish sooner than a race snake. So it really depends on if it appeals to you - the hardship, if so then its worth the effort. Look at the guys finishing from last years thread, fathers and sons, moms and sons, older guys.

Yes the need to share/ support and not compete is a major standout feature of the FC. I would also say that other than the wind of this year, the FC has been tame for some time. We seem to have forgotten what a series of cold fronts can do to the race - but I am told I must not tempt that beast, but we still have time this year.....those rain pants you packed.... then we see the grown men cry, literally.

Marnitz's bed last night - he is sleeping out, that looks like a dry concrete floor. ( to give an indication of the cold, at Slaapkrantz while we were tucked under electric blankets in the children's beds Dave's camelback froze during the night next to his bed in the bedroom. You can begin imagine how cold it is outside.

Deanbean, when you local guys complain of the cold......., Marnitz threatening to do something with his pee this morn as it is the only substance still in liquid form, everything else frozen solid. See pic. There are quite a few riders leaving Slaapkrantz this morning over the portages, everything there will frozen solid. I see Gawie is out a bit late of Slaapkrantz, he knows the portage route so well he will be on top there in the rising sun before the rest - he's enjoyed another hour of Andre's warm kitchen and coffee......the small things.

The Freedom Challenge (RASA, R2R) vs Epic vs Munga...... Going to wade into this one as I am surprised it hasn't come up, but I like the fact that there is not too much debate about this among the guys following this thread, that the guys here don't bash other races I think the reason is that FC riders do as many of the other races on offer as they can, its not ever a case of "oh this ones better than that", most guys here just love riding and that's what the FC is about - simply riding a bike wherever possible. I love the fact that Tim James was competing at the Epic this year with Robbie Mac, that he still rides age group races at national level - marathon and XC. I seem to think I have seen some national bands on one of either Con or Coen ( I could be mistaken, but it would be nice to know). Gawie was an SA champ many many moons ago - he still has the skills to show it. Jeannie Dreyer (dont think she needs much intro) was tweeting today about her ride this year being at the marathon worlds in a week or so. Then the adventure racers are represented at the FC this year by two of the top two teams about at the moment. The point is, the FC, R2R and RASA are not for fringe loonies, (although Mike Woolnough may fall into that category in the nicest way!) and while there is some negative debate elsewhere about the Munga, I think like the R2R, the Munga is a good addition and I hope Alex pulls it off. Even more so, I hope one of the silent assassins from this looney crew out there tonight are in at the death racing themselves to a big paycheck, hell if I had the spare cash I would take a punt on a Tim/ Glenn combo..... Just my thoughts.

Enjoying your blog and pics as they come through, well done on a good ride, like your approach and the ability to improvise as you go. I think the quote from one of the PMB boys of Steve Thomas sums it up "it is what it is". If the winds blows a demented gale, that's your lot, get on with it and finish with a good attitude.

Hi Peter, I was one of those guys riding with Gawie, he is very strong, especially when he is on a mission. In 2012 I was getting the monkey off my back, I saw it sitting next to you in the Amarok at the Grasnek/ Osseberg turnoff, glad you passed it on, I think Philip has it this year and is passing it on as we speak.