sani2c - newbie questions

[VincentBikes]

Ok, so i want to do this event. How do you enter? Is there like a 3 year waiting list? How does the entry process work?

 

As far as I remember entries open on 1 September every year. There is a two week period where participants off the previous year can enter first. You can enter during this period but you go onto a waiting list. We waited for two years to get in and only got in because the Trail opened and we were high up on the waiting list. Entries are on www.sanic2c.co.za or you can look on their Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/#!/sani2c . Other alternatives are to buy from someone who had to cancel and yes it is all that it is said to be.

[Beer4Recovery]

We waited for two years to get in and only got in because the Trail opened and we were high up on the waiting list.

 

what? 2 Years? pfff

Edited May 18, 2012 by FuelEX

[Stretch]

Any info yet? Found on another thread the entries was R8916 (per team) for this year. Should be something similar next year maybe?

 

Is there really such a long waiting list? Do you get picked by panel to enter? Can someone please explain this to me?

for 2012 entries they cleared the waiting list and it was a free for all to enter the new trail event. That is how lucky sods like myself got to enter. And yes...we will try keep our entry next year (preferential entry for previous year entrants prior to the public/waiting list entry process). The fact is that it is such a good event that there will always be a moerse waiting list - Its not only about the mtb and the singletrack and the balance between district rd/forest/singletrack and jeep track - the event is also about the uplifment of the local communities, the unselfish contribution of the local communities, farmers, schools and farmers associations - its also about reminding us why we live in this country despite everything that goes on around us - you cannot describe or visually show what day 2 is about.........so......add all that together and its a helluva popular event and very difficult to get in.

 

My advise..get on the waiting list, train hard every year and wait for dropouts (there are lots) and/or keep an eye out for the lottery entry like we got this year

Edited May 18, 2012 by Stretch

[Stevief]

Just got back from the trail, was an awesome experience, the smooth singletrack was brilliant, the scenery breathtaking, the vibe incredible , all in all it did live up to its hype. Day 2 will live in my memories for the rest of my life and the first 40km will go down for me as the best piece of singletrack on planet earth. Its truly MTB nirvana and everyone should do it once. It was my First Sani and i really enjoyed it. Even the cold was fun. BUT....here come the BUT. ....

 

I sensed towards the end that its success is beginning to be it downfall . Im not the best biker in the world but i know how to ride off road and if you enter the sani one should at least understand how to navigate rocks, roots etc, most of the course was pristine and smooth but every now and again as it got a teeny bit technical people would stop uncleat and push cause there was a rock or root or a puddle in the way. Leaving me to my gripe number 2 which is the same old same old thing with slow people on downhill singletrack. I was amazed at how some seriuosly fit riders would pass me on the flats and uphills only to come to a screaching halt as the terrain turned south. Im well aware that the Sani has now grown into a monster that even Farmer Glen cannot believe but for me the field is way to congested. There are to many riders out there (1500 a day) and i feel that was its downfall.

 

Would i do it again???? .... i would LOVE to ride that route again its the best terrain and i have ridden but to ride it in a crowd , and live in a mass crowd and eat in a crowd and sleep in a crowd was a bit hectic, there was lots of long lines for everything. from eating, to toilets, to washing, to , to singletrack that it became a bit tiresome. I might give it a miss next year and opt for a much smaller and unknown event like Lord of the chain rings or the knysna 300 etc. hmmm but day 2 could make me sign up for it again , i really am envious of the dudes that did this race in the early years before it became a mass mkt party.

 

Anyhoo well done to all who did it, i will treasure my memories, im just not sure if i will fall into the category of signing up for it year in year out like a lot of people do, i understand why they do, and i know there are thousands lined up ready to take my place but thats ok i might be somewhere else riding a route that will be the "New Sani: and will enjoy that before it too gets eaten up by the corporate monster of a world we live in.

Edited May 19, 2012 by Stevief

[dirtrider]

I find this very strange ! In the 5 years I have been doing this race only twice did I have to wait for the trail to clear . The very first year when there was no seeding and no dual trails and two years later at the bottom of Nick pass at the river crossings . Since the seeding system started the only thing I could se was clear open trails in front of me . BTW you trail blokes did a awesome job with those trails . Never seen them so smooth and fast was awesome . There are also plenty of time to get between seeding groups and get open space to bomb the Single tracks .

[Bike Lore]

man I would so love to do this race

[dirtrider]

This year there was a lot of entries for sale on here .

[jaxtun]

Just got back from the trail, was an awesome experience, the smooth singletrack was brilliant, the scenery breathtaking, the vibe incredible , all in all it did live up to its hype. Day 2 will live in my memories for the rest of my life and the first 40km will go down for me as the best piece of singletrack on planet earth. Its truly MTB nirvana and everyone should do it once. It was my First Sani and i really enjoyed it. Even the cold was fun. BUT....here come the BUT. ....

 

I sensed towards the end that its success is beginning to be it downfall . Im not the best biker in the world but i know how to ride off road and if you enter the sani one should at least understand how to navigate rocks, roots etc, most of the course was pristine and smooth but every now and again as it got a teeny bit technical people would stop uncleat and push cause there was a rock or root or a puddle in the way. Leaving me to my gripe number 2 which is the same old same old thing with slow people on downhill singletrack. I was amazed at how some seriuosly fit riders would pass me on the flats and uphills only to come to a screaching halt as the terrain turned south. Im well aware that the Sani has now grown into a monster that even Farmer Glen cannot believe but for me the field is way to congested. There are to many riders out there (1500 a day) and i feel that was its downfall.

 

Would i do it again???? .... i would LOVE to ride that route again its the best terrain and i have ridden but to ride it in a crowd , and live in a mass crowd and eat in a crowd and sleep in a crowd was a bit hectic, there was lots of long lines for everything. from eating, to toilets, to washing, to , to singletrack that it became a bit tiresome. I might give it a miss next year and opt for a much smaller and unknown event like Lord of the chain rings or the knysna 300 etc. hmmm but day 2 could make me sign up for it again , i really am envious of the dudes that did this race in the early years before it became a mass mkt party.

 

Anyhoo well done to all who did it, i will treasure my memories, im just not sure if i will fall into the category of signing up for it year in year out like a lot of people do, i understand why they do, and i know there are thousands lined up ready to take my place but thats ok i might be somewhere else riding a route that will be the "New Sani: and will enjoy that before it too gets eaten up by the corporate monster of a world we live in.

Do the Joberg2C..... small field.... no congestion in the singletracks and not much standing in line for anything!!

[Christie]

This was my second adventure, I can't imagine better trails. Im not going to try to describe what it feels like to ride the route, you have to ride it to know.

Imo the combo of scenery plus the balance of singletrack, jeeptrack and dirt road, plus the challenge factor is as perfect as it can be, and that makes it one of those moments in life where you only think about riding the bike, and nothing else.

I don't mind the tents, waiting in line for toilets, or cold showers at the finish. I try to socialize as much as I can on and off the bike, chatting to other riders and drinking a beer with the neighbours, even if they snore at night, so I had a blast off the bike, too.

Congestion can be a pain down the Umkomaas, I think that part of the route is worth the sacrifice in time to wait 5 or 10 mins to find an opening between batches.

 

I wont be riding again soon, I also believe in experiencing many different things, not just the same over and over each year. Next year I hope to be in France on a road bike, living out of a camper van.

 

I took some pics on the route, will post some in the future.

 

Biggest gripe for me were some @ssholes dropping spent gu tubes and saches in the trail.

Edited May 19, 2012 by Christie

[duringd]

I did the Trail and it was an absolute magic experience. Yes, one can bitch about a couple of things but the overall result was one of wanting to do it again and again and again..... I would like to try the Adventure and ultimately the Race because I believe each event, whilst having the same tracks, has its own magic and factors! I also just want to say THANK YOU to all the volunteers who made our lives so enjoyable at the expense of their time!

[deanbean]

Blah blah....

Absolutely magnificent event, great organising, it was good chatting to Glen and Mandy, and Gary Green (trying to get a sneaky Berg & Bush entry). The volunteers were great, the water-points were awesome, I pigged out on the jam doughnuts, and the competitors were all very friendly, through all the friendly abuse and chirps that my partner and myself threw at them, even the guys whose wheels I buzzed.

But the level of technical ability of the back riders was abysmal. My partner is slow, and as we don't ride any of the big races we were seeded at the back, and trying to get past on the technical stuff was frightening. A lot of the riders would move aside for you if you asked, but I could see that some peoples skills on the bike were so poor that I didn't even ask, as I was afraid that they would fall and hurt themselves.

The worst was going down the switchbacks on day 2, one poor chap was getting off his bike to make the switchbacks, I spoke to him that evening, he was absolutely terrified, what was potentially the highlight of my ride(which wasn't) was the worst part of his. It was an eye-opener chatting to him afterwards, I did try to coach him a bit, and gave him some drills to practice.

My partner was great, he did his best to get me ahead of the technically challenged riders on the easier sections, and let me go ahead of him.

Next year I'd like to do it again, pref in the Adventure, but I'll have to get a lot fitter, otherwise I'll not enjoy it.

[deanbean]

 

Biggest gripe for me were some @ssholes dropping spent gu tubes and saches in the trail.

Christie, as a farmer that is absolutely the worst thing that anyone can do, the livestock like the taste of the goo, eat the packet and it causes death through blockages of the bowels. FFS stop and pick the bloody things up if you drop them, it won't cost you much time.

My biggest hero's of the ride were the team in the trail that decided to pick up all the litter they found, wish I'd dome the same.

[Stretch]

But the level of technical ability of the back riders was abysmal.

 

we were midfield and it was abysmal. Didnt really bother as it was my first so i just slowed down and enjoyed the views. I also slowed down on the less technical bits so i could bomb the more technical stuff - but yes - our riders need to come to kzn and get some proper singletrack training. There were some sections the roadies were walking that my 11 yr old daughter could ride

[GTRacing]

It was awesome....

[GLuvsMtb]

Just got back from the trail, was an awesome experience, the smooth singletrack was brilliant, the scenery breathtaking, the vibe incredible , all in all it did live up to its hype. Day 2 will live in my memories for the rest of my life and the first 40km will go down for me as the best piece of singletrack on planet earth. Its truly MTB nirvana and everyone should do it once. It was my First Sani and i really enjoyed it. Even the cold was fun. BUT....here come the BUT. ....

 

I sensed towards the end that its success is beginning to be it downfall . Im not the best biker in the world but i know how to ride off road and if you enter the sani one should at least understand how to navigate rocks, roots etc, most of the course was pristine and smooth but every now and again as it got a teeny bit technical people would stop uncleat and push cause there was a rock or root or a puddle in the way. Leaving me to my gripe number 2 which is the same old same old thing with slow people on downhill singletrack. I was amazed at how some seriuosly fit riders would pass me on the flats and uphills only to come to a screaching halt as the terrain turned south. Im well aware that the Sani has now grown into a monster that even Farmer Glen cannot believe but for me the field is way to congested. There are to many riders out there (1500 a day) and i feel that was its downfall.

 

Would i do it again???? .... i would LOVE to ride that route again its the best terrain and i have ridden but to ride it in a crowd , and live in a mass crowd and eat in a crowd and sleep in a crowd was a bit hectic, there was lots of long lines for everything. from eating, to toilets, to washing, to , to singletrack that it became a bit tiresome. I might give it a miss next year and opt for a much smaller and unknown event like Lord of the chain rings or the knysna 300 etc. hmmm but day 2 could make me sign up for it again , i really am envious of the dudes that did this race in the early years before it became a mass mkt party.

 

Anyhoo well done to all who did it, i will treasure my memories, im just not sure if i will fall into the category of signing up for it year in year out like a lot of people do, i understand why they do, and i know there are thousands lined up ready to take my place but thats ok i might be somewhere else riding a route that will be the "New Sani: and will enjoy that before it too gets eaten up by the corporate monster of a world we live in.

I ended up in the back end of race (should have probably been in the Adventure where I would have been in the top 200) and I had NO congestion problems at all, even with 500 odd teams ahead of me. Admittedly we didnt hit the valley at fullgas, but going down at 80% was pretty spectacular. It gave me time to take it all in. The huge plus was that we could really kick coming out of the valley as we basically started day 2 at 40km in.

If you enter the trail event, expect the guys with their novice friends / wives to be there. If you wanted good trail etiquette, you should have enterd the race. The staggered starts worked well in our case, even to the point where the 10 minute intervals on the last day felt excessive as it seemed like half the field was in by the time we hit water point 1 (it probably was)

I gurss you cant please everyone. Next year there'll be moans and groans about riders not being able to get in, and there will be the ones (probably with entries) bemoaning the size of the field and having to pedal harder to get to the good stuff ahead of less technically astute riders.

[bassasdaindia]

the route is amazing,BUT :

 

we where one of the approx 15 teams taken out of trail with food poisoning.

 

I was sent to Toti hospital at 02h30 on the eve of the last stage.

 

They need to do something about the gastro issue that plays its hand every year.

 

The worst thing is that these things happen in bigger tours and bigger events,however there was no contingency plan.Like : how to get the bikes and the riders who where to sick to ride to the end or how I was getting from Toti Hospital back to the finish to collect our vehicle.

 

In saying this,I plan on returning every year,I just need to get my head around the food and water issue.