Call Me Manny Posted August 13, 2019 Posted August 13, 2019 After finishing my first Trans Baviaans last year (2018) I wasn't sure if I would ever do the race again, but when an entry popped up on the Hub I decided to take the plunge. The next challenge was finding 3 teammates willing to join me on relatively short notice. My mate Henry was dead keen and we decided to advertise the other 2 spots available. That is how we got in touch with Tom and Fred, both students at Stellenbosch University. Unfortunately, 3 days before the race, Fred had to withdraw due to illness, but Tom was still keen to take on the challenge alongside 2 strangers from Gauteng. We officially met Tom on Thursday as we picked him up in PE and headed off to Willowmore. The night before the race we saw a Facebook post asking if any teams had a slot available. Pieter had entered a 2 man team and his teammate was rushed off to the hospital for a burst appendix! Pieter, from Wellington, needed a team and we decided to adopt him and add to the already interesting team dynamics. So the morning of the race we officially met our 4th team member at the start line and we set off on this epic adventure from Willowmore to J-Bay through the magical Baviaans Kloof. The race didn't fail to deliver breathtaking views with a mix of water crossings, testing climbs and challenging road conditions. Surprisingly we managed to find such great synergy and gees as a team. 13 hours later we reached our destination. 4 strangers riding their bikes and finding friendship and camaraderie along the way. This will be one of those stories that I look forward to sharing with my grandchildren oneday!
RobertWhitehead Posted August 13, 2019 Posted August 13, 2019 It was a great ride this year barring the road surface - which they confirmed at the prize giving that it will be scrapped for the next weekend . I've always had mixed emotions about the race. I've always felt that I had a point to prove and after this years finish I felt that feeling disappear. Does that mean that I will never do it again? Don't know, time will tell
Stiggy Posted August 13, 2019 Posted August 13, 2019 Awesome story! That's the spirit of mountain biking! Hope it retains that emotion
Call Me Manny Posted August 13, 2019 Author Posted August 13, 2019 It was a great ride this year barring the road surface - which they confirmed at the prize giving that it will be scrapped for the next weekend . I've always had mixed emotions about the race. I've always felt that I had a point to prove and after this years finish I felt that feeling disappear. Does that mean that I will never do it again? Don't know, time will tell I will definitely be back next year!
Markellis Posted August 13, 2019 Posted August 13, 2019 Awesome, that's what riding is meant to be about.
taito Posted August 13, 2019 Posted August 13, 2019 Great story I feel we get to involved in our own race-space that we throw away the joys of the journey. I think someone should race the trans to Patensie get a B@B sleep over lekka braai en dop.Then leave at 5 to jbay and make cutoff-no probs.
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