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31 minutes ago, MongooseMan said:What are you basing this on? An inside source, or a gut feel?
I mean, they spent all the money you paid them. I'm not sure they're expected to get funds to reimburse everyone? If they're feeling really generous, maybe they'll offer discounted 2024 entries, but even then I'd be surprised.
Remember, CTCT didn't give anyone anything that time they cancelled on the day due to winds. Not sure why a smaller race like ATP should be held to a different standard.
I agree , it sucks but it is what it is. No event can afford to give discounts or roll over entries if basically 100% of the operating cost was already paid.
Mmmmm...certainly entertaining. For some reason I am wondering what happened to that oke that sold bike tours in Stanford and vanished off the face of the earth
We did the race and was fortunate to finish just before sunset , we rushed to our accommodation at Mentors. Showered, ate something and returned to the finish a couple of hours later to wait for friends. Only then I realized that there was nothing at the finish. I could see the disappointment on riders faces when they were told to buy something at the Wimpy stand. Some people were really spent and to expect from them to fall around and look for a drink or snack is just wrong.
After completing the past race I would strongly recommend decent gloves and a proper rain jacket. We saw riders that couldn't even shift gears or take a bite with clogged up hands. Our stops was brief at CP 1,2 and 3 in order to stay warm on the bike. We kept on reminding each other to eat and drink and just focused on reaching the next CP. The water crossings was actually pleasant, it felt warm. Even before we started I could tell which teams were not going to make it. With the right attitude and mindset you will be fine. Good luck and enjoy
Hats off to everyone who finished. This was my 4th Baviaans and I have never felt so cold on a bike. We didn't waste any time at the check points and just kept going after brief stops to stay warm. From cp 5 the conditions improved and we found a nice rhythm and finished just before sunset. The highlight of my day was the last km's on the single track that was dry.
The weather will probably change 3 times before Saturday
I was privileged to be involved at the Epic this year as crew member and spend every day at various sections alongside the route. Apart from the acceptable dropout rate from the heat, illness, mechanicals, crashes etc I was stunned at number of riders that pitch up genuinely under prepared. There is definitely a percentage of riders that under estimate the Epic either by poor fitness/conditioning and shockingly poor skill levels. Everyday there was a couple of really big guys at the back end that did amazingly well in difficult conditions and if they can manage to be prepared there's no excuse.
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9 hours ago, DKS said:Hope it’s not to early to start this group up.
I might just be over eager, but have entered the race, and looking to complete my first TB,
As always, will be good to have the forum for useful tips and motivation as we go along.
First question I have is best accommodation options for the night before?
Cheers
If you are not fuzzy about accommodation book a room at the hostel. We have stayed there on 4 previous races and enjoyed it. Dinner and breakfast included.
1 hour ago, Skubarra said:So to the peeps who have done this year's event - how did the switchback route compare to previous years? Which version is better?
I can't say which is better, both versions was really good but stage 3 at the SB for me is definitely harder. For the guys doing the shiraz keep something in the tank for the last 15km
3 hours ago, Warrenlee said:Final seeding/ batches schedule to be released tomorrow! I'm pretty sure given the lack of races I have done in the last year my seeding is going to be wrecked! But we will see it as a good opportunity to chase down some of the boys in front of us. This time next week we are on the way to Cape Town!
Its already up in team format.
The High court apparently granted a interdict today for the removal of all unoccupied structures and any further shacks being erected. The municipality is looking for alternative land to house to current land grabbers. The danger however is protest action that will probably follow
11 minutes ago, Help.Me. said:Hi ACE Cycles , when doing my longer training rides(3-4 hours) i normally take water and a banana, we will stop halfway and do a coffee and scone , when home i will have the usual chocolate milk and then a normal lunch or what ever. I am never that stuffed after my long rides compared to doing a "race/adventure". I am open for suggestions , i did take Game on Ride the Karroo and we indulge at every water point...........
Never underestimate nutrition before, during and after training or racing. It will have a huge impact on performance and recovery. For example my training partner for Baviaans is a extreme banter and carbs is in the same category as the anti christ. He struggled to keep up after a couple of weeks after hard days and back to back endurance rides and after convincing him to follow a more balanced diet with good carbs his performance literally sky rocketed.
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22 minutes ago, Warrenlee said:Where did you see this? I went to look on the website but couldnt find it.
21W2W_Website-View_Provisional-Seeding_Pinotage (1).pdf 21W2W_Website-View_Provisional-Seeding_Shiraz.pdf 21W2W_Website-View_Provisional-Seeding_Chardonnay.pdf
I see provisional seedings is out on the website. Excitement is building up
Will be my 2nd W2W after 2019 and really looking forward to this. I have ridden some sections of the 2021 switchback route and I can tell you now that they didn't name it the switchback for nothing.
1 hour ago, JohanDiv said:You are 100% correct. Our 4-man team was reduced to a 2-man team. One of our guys pulled out two months ago, and I pulled out at registration on Friday. I got Covid three weeks ago, very light symtoms, but could feel the after effects when trying to excercise or riding..did a 50km 1500m elevation ride last week for a final leg check before TB, and my HR was more or less 25 bpm higher than usual. I was in denial and kept on thinking I'll fully recover in time for the race, and then last minute realized it was just not going to happen and that I might risk my health if I try and race. We ended up riding our 2nd and 4th strongest riders, both of which have not ridden Trans Baviaans before. So this is a race report from the support vehicle's perspective...
We arrived in Willowmore on Friday around 14:30 for registration. Filled out a few Covid forms and moved my name from team rider to support driver. We had a quick chat on the spot about what to pack in the crates and decided to not pack anything in them since the team will get going in the dark and have lights and warm clothes already mounted.
Our Willowmore accommodation was around 55km outside of town in a farmhouse. Excellent hosts that even organized us a few roosterkoeke and wood for our braai. The fire was lit and the first brandy poured by 5PM to warm us up and settle the nerves. We hit the sack early around 10PM since we were planning on driving to town at 5AM for a 6AM start. Temperatures went down to -5 that evening.
We got to the startline at 6AM. Did a few final bike checks and our guys took off at 06:08am in -3 degrees temps. They only needed their lights for the first 15mins of the ride. I was able to live track them on Whatsapp for the first 20mins and then they lost signal all the way to CP5 at 170km. In the meantime I made my way with the support vehicle through Uniondale and The Langkloof to J-Bay. Arrived there at 09:30. Booked us in, bought groceries for the evening's braai, and only had around 45mins to spare before making my way to CP5. I thought there would be more time to play with. I arrived there at 13:45.
Our team went well from the start to CP1. Caught 8 other guys willing to work together. In and out quickly at CP1 and on to CP2 with the same batch. Our weaker rider started to show signs that the pace was just a bit too hot at an average of around 27km/h at the 70km mark and decided to stop taking turns at the front just to try to recover, but it was too late. At 90km the cramps and lower back pain started for him and they took a proper rest at CP2 losing the group. From CP2 they carried on at their own pace to try and get our weaker rider recovering. Water crossings were minimal and Langwater was only half calf deep and easily rideable. The second Fang required some pushing with lower back pains, and again up MAC as well. Got caught in a rain shower up MAC. At Bergplaas they decided to lie down for just a few minutes to try and get our teammate that suffered a bit to recover before descending. He was struggling to keep down food, but managed to get down some of those milk products at Bergplaas, and he claims that gave him new life!
They finally reached me at CP5 on 170km at 14:30(just under 8 and a half hours race time) looking not too badly beaten up, but lost a crank bolt down the Big Dipper descend, so they lost more time there trying to get a new bolt. Off with the rain jackets and change of dry cloths out of the car, and off they went again 25mins later.
I made my way back through Patensie towards CP7 and could live track them again. I could see they made steady but solid progress over the Neverender and the massive tailwind definitely helped. At CP7 people were starting to get reports from J-Bay that a massive storm was busy moving in.. wind picked up even more. They reached me at CP7 around 16:30, two bites of a jaffle, rain jackets on again, and off they went looking even stronger than at CP5.
Mini MAC was the first signs of fatigue to our stronger rider that had a hammy cramp up, but got it sorted out with a bit of high cadence spinning. After mini MAC they had a 4-5km stretch of gravel road with the wind from behind where they could keep the speed up to 47kmh, and then the rain came down for the final few kilometres. Just before they entered the final single track they had to switch on the lights again. Muddy and dark finish in the end.
They crossed the finishline just after 18:30. Official race time 12:26, moving time 10:55. Very proud of the way they rode. Both of them agree a sub12 was on the cards if it weren't for the lost crank bolt and the lying down at Bergplaas.. next time Bergplaas will just be a check in/check out point.. they say you can recover while going down Big Dipper.
After the race sitting around the fire, we all felt we have a bit of unfinished business now with the Trans Baviaans, all for different reasons..so we'll definitely be back next year fitter and stronger aiming for a Sub 11!
FOMO and all for not being able to ride, the Trans Baviaans weekend was still a great experience for me as a support driver this time around..
Well done to them. We managed a 12:27. Was hoping for a sub 12 but 1 rider's derailleur was damaged on the corrigated section and he only had a couple of gears in the middle of his cassette and his chain then kept on dropping on the downhills. Nevertheless we accepted the setback and nursed him home. The Rolling start definitely made the first 100km more difficult without bunches and neverender is worse during the daylight. The mudfest on the single track at the end is really unnecessary but all in all a great event. Will be back for my 4th
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We will be leaving for Willomore tomorrow morning. Good luck everyone
Seems it is a go for this event. Any weather predictions from the people in that area? Long term shows rain and strong winds
10 hours ago, RobertWhitehead said:If you do not get to CP#5 by a certain time you will have to camp there until 04:00 the next morning. I still don't have an entry for the TB but I am definitely keen to do it this year. I mean starting at 05 - 06 will change the dynamic completely, you will start in the dark and finish in the dark
We will be chasing the sunset
Garmin Edge 510 replacement Battery
in The Bike Room
Posted
I bought a replacement battery from Takealot for my edge 520 , took it to our local Pakistani cellphone shop and the guy charged me R100 to replace the battery. I am back to 12 hour battery life comfortably