Morne Veer

.....I do not know all the names of the various trails, but there was one unique change in last year's route, which was let's say....."interesting"..... It was a downhill trail, which we did in reverse.....on tired legs nogal. Eina Eina, continues little switchback-back-breakers !! Just ads to the whole event and being so so special !! Def lining up again next year, unprepared as always !

Nope, but I do recall #goodtimes

I maintain, the best one day event I have done......and arguably the toughest as well. The amount of climbing is a lot, but a lot becomes hectic, when you squeeze it in over a relative "short" distance. The views and single-track make up for all of the suffering uphill though, and you'll have proper arm-pump at the end. Great vibe, water points and venue ......makes for a memorable event.

Unlike normal operations of past, at this stage none of the Tygerberg venues / trail centres allow day passes - Members Only throughout the whole network.

Event Name: 2020 WC XCO SERIES - Event #2 When: 14 March 2020 Where: Rhebokskloof, Western Cape Category: MTB 14 March sees the second event in the Western Cape XCO series, brought to you by WP MTB'ing, proudly supported by TYGERBERG MTB Club, take place at the beautiful Rhebokskloof. The trails of Rhebokskloof played host to a number of XCO races in the past, and the organizers will once again make sure they bring all participants a challenging, yet enjoyable route, with loads of singletrack and rock features on hand. The event caters for all age categories, from nippers, right up to masters, and is most surely not just aimed at the top end of the field. Actually, the first event at Bloemendal Wine Estate, had the biggest Masters Category field to date, which is testiment that even among the bald and grey haired, there are many who embrace the thrill of racing. Despite being a hard workout, it is short in duration and riders get to recover quite quickly, vs the other disciplines such as Marathon events which keeps you in the saddle much longer. There is a huge fun element in lap-racing, and offers riders a challenging experience, but also one with great reward. The course provides a number of viewing points for spectators, as they support their friends and family, who have to work their way up and down a 5 km course, for a number of laps (depending on category). As per all the XCO courses, there are a handful of technical features, such as a rock gardens, or a step down, BUT there are B lines around these, which will not cost you much more than 4 or 5 seconds, if that. Try something different and challenge yourself to see if you can better your own lap times, which are available immediately after each age category's event. Any queries may be sent directly to info@wpmtb.co.za Go to Event Page

So when will entries open for 2021 ? #askingforafriend

Listen, I have done some toughies in past, but this one remains firmly in 1st place. Well done to each who finished, regardless of time or position. Got to agree, the organisation was VERY good. Route marking on point, water points stocked with all you need and ICE, great post and pre race vibes, and stunning setting and scenery out there. Grateful for the good weather vs last year though ! Think I might skip my ride tomorrow the way my legs are feeling now

Hopefully my batteries are charged .....

I am still going with my poor tactics of starting way too fast, so if you go slow from the start, we should be able to make it up to Waterpoint one together - deal ??

Blowing up is par for the course for me of late......

Lekker man ! We had pretty much the best entry numbers in the Masters category which confirms that for a number of older guys, there is a desire to compete (be that against yourself, or your other bald headed participant next to you). Also pleasing to see Chris Nixon, currently heavily involved in the WP Downhill scene, come out and support the event - lost none of his xco prowess of his younger years.

Ag nee man - sorry about the bad luck. Thanks for the kudos for the awesome event, and although we do play our part in a number of ways, it is the kind hearted folk (a handful of volunteers just like ourselves) who are responsible for the provincial scene in WP - in this case, the WP MTB Commission / Western Province Mountainbike Commission, go give them a follow on Insta / Facebook, and even a shout out, I promise you it will mean a lot to them, as it is rather a "stank vir dank" (unappreciated) labor intensive operation over a few days, not just race day. We are very proud to be associated with them and Enduro Western Cape, who without these events will never be able to take place. See you in Rhebokskloof, right now it seems like the 14th will be a lovely overcast day, with a max predicted temp of 21 degrees .

A long day out and literally just now got off Bloemendal after helping with post day clean up and break down of course etc, it remains brutally hot out there. Big ups to the WP MTB Commission for all their effort and hard work of this week, and for hosting a great day out for all of us - as their partners and sponsors over the last three years, Tygerberg MTB Club, are proud to be associated with them. Hats of to each one who took part today - a lot of new faces in the young categories, and one or two new ones in the older toppie brigade . Really hope our efforts to get more numbers to the ladies and "mature" categories pays dividends in the future. Well done again to each who took part, regardless of positions at the end of their races - it was simply great seeing folk enjoy the thrill of XCO racing. Some time left to the 2nd round at Rhebokskloof, which by all accounts will be another scorcher of a day, but hey, Africa is not for sissies Now time for some recovery drinks.....and not the protein milky ones O yes, just have to add that it was great having Allesandra Kellar form Thömus RN Swiss Bike Team taking part. She is a former junior European and World Champ, silver medalist at the u/23 European Champs, and recent u/23 World Champ.....post race she was full of praise for the course, and although we all know it is not remotely close to UCI World Cup standards, she felt it offered more than enough punchy climbs and fun, yet tricky, single-track. Photo Taken today by Raymond Cox :

just check if Milkey is not already claiming that excuse....he always has first dibs in the book of excuses

Seems some starting ealry might be okay with "fair to warm" temperatures, but the not so young guys and gals, and real racing snakes in elites, will have to put on double layers of sunscreen. Guess it could have been worse, need I remind anyone of two years back at Rhebokskloof in that lovely 37 degrees ?

Nope, Bar1 = Bart Brentjens

.....you know the rules......choose 2 of the 3 in your last sentence.

Think your son will enjoy it - it is basically the same format as the Spur Series, but obviously more of a challenge with terrain, inclines, and some fun singletrack. The nippers and sprogs seems to love it, as do the older toppies. The racing element is strong, but we all know the podium only has 3 spots, and once you are happy to compete against yourself and do your best, regardless of the podium, it really is a thrill to take part. I am sure your son will have a great time, as the routes as basically the normal routes that the kids would enjoy on any given Sunday - now just taped off and a few more riders around them to keep them pushing themselves. Hope to see your son in the chutes on Saturday - more info if required could be gained from the social media pages of WP MTB Commission.

XCO "ready" ....do you one ever get to that stage ?? I am very keen to take part again, and line up with old mates as well as make some new ones. The XCO events is really something very special.....to think the kiddos double up on the fun at XCO events, as they have the Spur Series as well, based on the same lap format. Wonder if we make enough noise, if we can get an old toppie category going at the Spur Series ?

Event Name: 2020 WC XCO SERIES - Event #1 When: 8 February 2020 Where: Bloemendal Wine Estate, Western Cape Category: MTB The first event, in the series of 4, kicks off on 8 February, on one of Tygerberg MTB club’s most iconic venues, Bloemendal Wine Estate. The trails of Bloemendal are of premium quality, and up to now hosted the wheels of many international stars (such as Nino Schurter, Henrique Avancini, Sam Gaze, Michiel Van Der Heijden, Andri Frischknecht, Matthias Stirnemann and Simon Andreassan), and SA hot rods such as Alan Hatherly, Gert Heyns, Matt Beers, Luke Moir to name just a few. The event caters for all age categories, from nippers, right up to masters, and is most surely not just aimed at the top end of the field. On the contrary, continues effort are made to encourage those with more meat around their bones vs the racing snakes up front, to join in the exhilarating discipline. Despite being a hard workout, it is short in duration and riders get to recover quite quickly, vs the other disciplines such as Marathon events which keeps you in the saddle much longer. There is a huge fun element in lap-racing, and offers riders a challenging experience, but also one with great reward. The course provides a number of viewing points for spectators, as they support their friends and family, who have to work their way up and down a 5 km course, for a number of laps (depending on category). As per all XCO courses, there are a handful of technical features, such as a rock gardens, a step down, etc, BUT there are B lines around these, which will not cost you much more than 4 or 5 seconds. Try something different and challenge yourself to see if you can better your own lap times, which are available immediately after each age category's event. Any queries may be sent directly to info@wpmtb.co.za Go to Event Page

No probs, I shall respect your request

So Donny, are you gonna tell the okes here, how you kept me back on Lombards Tera last Sunday ?

Thought it would be a good idea to test the climbing legs on Saturday past, and took my sorry ass just just to 2000m of elevation gain on the Tygerberg MTB trails, in 70 kms (which included a lovely 10 km road ride to and from the trails, which sadly will not be the case come next month)...... Boy of boy, did I suffer, felt okay'ish for two thirds of the ride, but the unease and discomort in the legs rapidly got momentum, and I was cramping over the last climb at Bloemendal. Nothing like a little bomb-shock to the system to get you fired up, so still looking forward to Imbuko, but will handle it with care this time around.

Think I am going to dive into the old storage bin in my garage and look for my old 2 X crank and fit a 22T and 26T in front, still running the 50T cluster at the rear

So when will be a good time to start training for this Imbuko-thingy-magigi ?