Cape Town Cycle Tour 2021

[Shebeen]

8 minutes ago, MTBeer said:

what is the lower age limit for kids to ride the CTCT?

in the year you turn 11, can do tandem stoker

the year you turn 13, can ride on your own.

 

back in the day, there was a junior school category, needed to be a team of four and best three times counted. many kids under the current age of 13 would be riding it.

 

As my daughter turns 9 this year, i potentially need to buy a tandem in the next 18 months.

[RearWheelDrive]

1 hour ago, Mamil said:

True that. And then when you draw breath to give a detailed exposition or to say that actually it's all about the tbv or whatever else they say "did you finish" cos for most people riding 100km is an inconceivable thing! 

Sorry maybe a little off topic...

 

My funniest "Are you going the August" conversation. My buddy and I were out riding and stopped at a Wimpy for some breakfast. This guy walks past us

"You okes doing the August?" 

We're like  "Ja"

He replies " I have a mate that cycles hectically, he cycles to work 8km there and back everyday"

We're like  "Oh Ok"

He says " He should probably do the August, He'll do well, might not win but he'll be up there"

Once again we're "Oh Ok"

He says " He's got this fancy bicycle, paid R3000 for. I'd never pay R3000 for a bicycle. Good luck with the August"

We reply " Ok thanks" and off he goes

 

My mate just bought Lance Armstrong Nike special edition shoes (this was  2008 or something) I ask him if we should tell the guy he just spent 3k on shoes let alone the bicycle. we just decided to leave him be. That story still makes me smile

 

 

 

[The Ouzo]

This pretty much summarises sunday for me. Only place I went faster previously was that stretch from Scarborough through to misty cliffs the one year we had a hectic tail wind

 

 

and yes you can laugh at my slow times at Suikers and Edinburg

Edited October 12, 2021 by ouzo

[DieselnDust]

6 minutes ago, Shebeen said:

in the year you turn 11, can do tandem stoker

the year you turn 13, can ride on your own.

 

back in the day, there was a junior school category, needed to be a team of four and best three times counted. many kids under the current age of 13 would be riding it.

 

As my daughter turns 9 this year, i potentially need to buy a tandem in the next 18 months.

Ditto.

Thats my next purchase before  I replace my MTB

[Pure Savage]

18 hours ago, stringbean said:

Is it me or is the CTCT loosing its appeal?Not to us cyclists but to general population.Old days Lemmer live TV coverage,lots on social media.

Thus year very little.I know it was streamed but just not the same.

Loss of interest or just saving money?

Think its still there, just maybe playing it "safe"

[DieselnDust]

CTCT might have lost appeal this year. There's many reasons that would include;

• greatly lowered disposable income for the larger portion of the population
• fewer riders coming down from upcountry
• the required Covid testing caused quite a few no shows.
• Some contracted Covid post entering and therefore were not in the appropriate health situation
• cycling events overall has taken a knock in terms of entries due to the dire economic situation in SA, safety concerns
• our long and wet winter has kept many off the roads and covid has kept them out of gyms, therefore lower fitness and uncertainty of the ability to finish the course.
• Specialized recalled the SL7 so many may not have a bike to ride....

 

I also might be wrong here but the sharp end of the field has gotten stronger while the middle to back end of the field has gotten softer. There's far fewer  Sub3 this year and I'd need to work out the proportionality to compare to other years but there appears to be many who rode Sub3 last year who have fallen short this year indicating  a lower level of fitness across the cycling community in October rather than March.

 

[ChrisF]

2 minutes ago, DieselnDust said:

....

• Specialized recalled the SL7 so many may not have a bike to ride....

 

There you summed it up .... 

 

 

Not so easy to "gauge" the number of weekend road riders.  But at the MTB trails the parking lots are PACKED over the weekends, and there are a LOT more riders out there since lockdown.

 

With the number of rides/events canceled days after registration closed left a bad taste, and must have impacted the appetite for risk of the out of town riders to commit to the CTCT.

 

 

A lot of "non-cyclists" were surprised to hear that the "Argus" was taking place in October.  It would seem there may have been a lack of publicity of this event outside of the cycling community.  

[Shebeen]

33 minutes ago, DieselnDust said:

CTCT might have lost appeal this year. There's many reasons that would include;

• greatly lowered disposable income for the larger portion of the population
• fewer riders coming down from upcountry
• the required Covid testing caused quite a few no shows.
• Some contracted Covid post entering and therefore were not in the appropriate health situation
• cycling events overall has taken a knock in terms of entries due to the dire economic situation in SA, safety concerns
• our long and wet winter has kept many off the roads and covid has kept them out of gyms, therefore lower fitness and uncertainty of the ability to finish the course.
• Specialized recalled the SL7 so many may not have a bike to ride....

 

I also might be wrong here but the sharp end of the field has gotten stronger while the middle to back end of the field has gotten softer. There's far fewer  Sub3 this year and I'd need to work out the proportionality to compare to other years but there appears to be many who rode Sub3 last year who have fallen short this year indicating  a lower level of fitness across the cycling community in October rather than March.

 

I don't think you can compare this year's event to anything gone beforehand. it will be an anomaly, maybe only joined by the march2022 one.

 

same argument will be how "different" the epic is this week. yes, the epic is on this weekend. 

[SJ01]

Good Day All 

Riders/Non Riders , Etc...

 

I am making a note today to just give a SPECIAL THANK YOU  for making Sunday Happen AS for many of us, we just wanted to be on the road and enjoy the tour and I won't get into much detailS as well and keep it short.

COVID has had a huge toll on many of us , with loss and recovery and making it somewhat more difficulty as the body was not the same as it used to be but yet found the courage to complete the tour. Pure determination and dedication and a huge " THUMBS UP " as I have seem many call the "UBER" and seeing the bikes on the trailer ... Just .... Can't explain ( Crying face) as I was almost 1 of them that was about to give up. Actually I did, but then a GOOD SAMARITAN Came past and stopped as I was lying on the pavement along the road ( OU KAAPSE WEG JUST BEFORE THE SHELL GARAGE ) , assisted me as my legs started giving in. I forgot to ask his name but all I no is that he said it's his first Agrus and he had on a Brown bib with white top ( I no it took a lot of your time away ) .If you are reading this. THANK YOU SO SO MUCH FOR STOPPING AND ASSISTING ME WITH MY LEFT LEG (BAD BAD CRAMPS) Hope I can repay the favour to the next rider that needs assistance . It helped me get on NOORDHOEK MAIN ROAD but then all "H@LL" broke loose and both my legs gave in just  opposite " Eduexcellence Education". The Marshalls, Traffic officer came over and said they will call a Medic. It was then that I knew, " IT'S OVER. I'm GIVING UP. I had enough as the body was not playing it's part any more like it use too. 

Then out of nowhere, 2 angels walked over with their dogs and just helped me, encouraged me even went to checkers to get more liquids( Used their own money) .I again want to thank those 2 ladies as they said they were avid cyclist but not taking part. They gave me my strength back and the will to carry on. Man, I felt good after that. ( How do I, how can I ever repay you -I just have a metal picture ) 

Cramps were gone but still abit sore and I took my bike and carried on as I was looking for the next massage tents . LOL and after that, lets just say I did not get any cramps and took the next step to complete the climbs and by the grace of GOD , I manage to FINISH with a SMILE with no legs pulling stiff on me ... Well I was in pain after the finish ,Heheheheeh , But I finished and lost out about 2 hours.

 

ONCE again, to the helpers along the way , a special thank you for helping those in needs. A rider never knows who will be your guardian angel.

Looking forward to the next Tour and hopefully I will see them along the way and properly thank them.

 

Keeping it short. Cheers .

 

 

 

 

[Skubarra]

32 minutes ago, DieselnDust said:

CTCT might have lost appeal this year. There's many reasons that would include;

• greatly lowered disposable income for the larger portion of the population
• fewer riders coming down from upcountry
• the required Covid testing caused quite a few no shows.
• Some contracted Covid post entering and therefore were not in the appropriate health situation
• cycling events overall has taken a knock in terms of entries due to the dire economic situation in SA, safety concerns
• our long and wet winter has kept many off the roads and covid has kept them out of gyms, therefore lower fitness and uncertainty of the ability to finish the course.
• Specialized recalled the SL7 so many may not have a bike to ride....

 

I also might be wrong here but the sharp end of the field has gotten stronger while the middle to back end of the field has gotten softer. There's far fewer  Sub3 this year and I'd need to work out the proportionality to compare to other years but there appears to be many who rode Sub3 last year who have fallen short this year indicating  a lower level of fitness across the cycling community in October rather than March.

 

Proportionally there are fewer sub-3's but not by a big margin,  its ballpark similar compared to last year.

Most of the reasons you list are not specifically related to the CTCT, but speaks more to the general situation in the country.

I think the appeal for the CTCT is still there, its a very unique event that appeal to a wide range of cyclists from serious to casual. Not really an experience you can replicate on your own somewhere else in the country or even during the rest of the year in CT.

Giving the current economic conditions we will probably not see a sold out event again soon but I foresee this event to stay huge in the foreseeable future.

[DieselnDust]

14 minutes ago, Shebeen said:

I don't think you can compare this year's event to anything gone beforehand. it will be an anomaly, maybe only joined by the march2022 one.

 

same argument will be how "different" the epic is this week. yes, the epic is on this weekend. 

Of course you can compare it to previous events. It was still over a 109km and everyone watched the weather forecast from Wednesday.

The 2021 edition clearly drew more devoted cyclists to the start line than previous years but in essence it was still the Argus, albeit with a lower turnout.

Its not like 2015 or the DeTour years

[bleedToWin]

I enjoyed my day out with $, in-spite of the many crashed close to my position.
I got to (literally) rub shoulders with Nic Dlmanini.
I experienced sag climbing at 600 Watts.
I got my nose in the wind once or twice.
I was on "TV" for 10 seconds.

All in all a fun day. Dropping on Chappies proper sucked, but now I know what I need to work on: Find an extra 40 Watts ????, or lose another 7kg ????, or some more realistic midpoint between those two extremes...

[DJR]

Interesting, the discussion about what was different this year. This is what I saw Sunday:

• Definitely fewer people and more room to maneuver. I liked that because basically D and I did a ride of our own and never drafted anyone or joined a bunch at any time. Perhaps we took social distancing among 18000 people too seriously? (I decided to do that since my bad crash that was caused by an inexperienced rider that did something dumb and nearly cost me my life. Since then I only ride in a group with people I know and trust. Tough luck if it makes my CTCT slower and more difficult. I'll just have to start a new team DJR.)
• The unusual start format was a bit difficult, but for a first try it actually worked.
• I did not miss the Expo and liked how quick and easy the number collection was.
• I think vaccination and negative Covid tests are here to stay, at least for another year or two. It certainly made me feel a bit more relaxed about Covid in my first real big crowd outing since the start of the pandemic. I could really say, afterwards, that I had absolutely minimal contact with people. I think that the organizers did well and I'm keen to see how it pans out afterwards. I'm sure the medics are doing interesting studies to track Covid after the Tour. 
• Definitely far less aggression and a lot more goodwill out there. I'm not sure why this was. Perhaps the lower numbers? Perhaps the grumpies stayed away? Perhaps fewer Gauteng riders? (Just kidding you lot of Vaalies!)
• Fewer old classic steel bikes, certainly in the groups where we rode. Perhaps the bike collectors (mostly older?) stayed away? I rode my 30 year old Eddy Merckx and usually I see many other old bikes all around, mostly ridden by proud owners who are always ready for a chat along the way. But not this year.
•  I heard more Afrikaans than I can remember from any previous Tour. Perhaps that had something to do with there being a far bigger proportion of locals this year? Frankly, Afrikaans speakers make up a much bigger portion of the Western Cape and Cape Town than most people think. 
• Almost zero internationals, although I heard French and Italian along the way. Yes, I know I heard the Italian going up Chappies, and by then I was also probably hearing voices in my head ........ 
• More e-bikes than I expected, sommer many more e-bikes! They didn't bother us and I think they should be allowed to start wherever they are seeded. It will thin them out. Perhaps they will learn some manners and have sympathy with the likes of slowpokes sweating up the steep hills?
• Also, many more gravel bikes. Some of them really good looking too.
• The people of Cape Town are fantastic supporters and came out to cheer just about the same as for any other Tour. Perhaps the only part that was quieter than usual was down around Cape Point. The usual supporter spots like Wineberg hill and Suikerbossie were as packed as usual. The "mankini guy" of Simonstown is a diehard fan of the Tour.
• I did not miss the lack of facilities at the finish because we do our own thing (usually a braai) anyway.
• I was impressed that there were just as many marshalls, water points and traffic cops out there on duty compared to a normal year with full numbers. It did not feel like a "last minute, half baked" tour at all. 

[The Ouzo]

32 minutes ago, SJ01 said:

Good Day All 

Riders/Non Riders , Etc...

 

I am making a note today to just give a SPECIAL THANK YOU  for making Sunday Happen AS for many of us, we just wanted to be on the road and enjoy the tour and I won't get into much detailS as well and keep it short.

COVID has had a huge toll on many of us , with loss and recovery and making it somewhat more difficulty as the body was not the same as it used to be but yet found the courage to complete the tour. Pure determination and dedication and a huge " THUMBS UP " as I have seem many call the "UBER" and seeing the bikes on the trailer ... Just .... Can't explain ( Crying face) as I was almost 1 of them that was about to give up. Actually I did, but then a GOOD SAMARITAN Came past and stopped as I was lying on the pavement along the road ( OU KAAPSE WEG JUST BEFORE THE SHELL GARAGE ) , assisted me as my legs started giving in. I forgot to ask his name but all I no is that he said it's his first Agrus and he had on a Brown bib with white top ( I no it took a lot of your time away ) .If you are reading this. THANK YOU SO SO MUCH FOR STOPPING AND ASSISTING ME WITH MY LEFT LEG (BAD BAD CRAMPS) Hope I can repay the favour to the next rider that needs assistance . It helped me get on NOORDHOEK MAIN ROAD but then all "H@LL" broke loose and both my legs gave in just  opposite " Eduexcellence Education". The Marshalls, Traffic officer came over and said they will call a Medic. It was then that I knew, " IT'S OVER. I'm GIVING UP. I had enough as the body was not playing it's part any more like it use too. 

Then out of nowhere, 2 angels walked over with their dogs and just helped me, encouraged me even went to checkers to get more liquids( Used their own money) .I again want to thank those 2 ladies as they said they were avid cyclist but not taking part. They gave me my strength back and the will to carry on. Man, I felt good after that. ( How do I, how can I ever repay you -I just have a metal picture ) 

Cramps were gone but still abit sore and I took my bike and carried on as I was looking for the next massage tents . LOL and after that, lets just say I did not get any cramps and took the next step to complete the climbs and by the grace of GOD , I manage to FINISH with a SMILE with no legs pulling stiff on me ... Well I was in pain after the finish ,Heheheheeh , But I finished and lost out about 2 hours.

 

ONCE again, to the helpers along the way , a special thank you for helping those in needs. A rider never knows who will be your guardian angel.

Looking forward to the next Tour and hopefully I will see them along the way and properly thank them.

 

Keeping it short. Cheers .

 

 

 

 

This is the kind of spirit that keeps bring me back to CTCT.

It sort of got less over the  years, but certainly in the early 2000s, whenever you stopped for a cramp or a breather or anything, there would be people around you very quickly wanting to assist / encourage just generally help.

I remember my first couple of "Argus", going up Suikers there would be crowds of people only to willing to help push you up should you stop.

You don't get that at any of the joburg races

Edited October 12, 2021 by ouzo

[The Ouzo]

8 minutes ago, DJR said:

Interesting, the discussion about what was different this year. This is what I saw Sunday:

• Definitely fewer people and more room to maneuver. I liked that because basically D and I did a ride of our own and never drafted anyone or joined a bunch at any time. Perhaps we took social distancing among 18000 people too seriously? (I decided to do that since my bad crash that was caused by an inexperienced rider that did something dumb and nearly cost me my life. Since then I only ride in a group with people I know and trust. Tough luck if it makes my CTCT slower and more difficult. I'll just have to start a new team DJR.)
• The unusual start format was a bit difficult, but for a first try it actually worked.
• I did not miss the Expo and liked how quick and easy the number collection was.
• I think vaccination and negative Covid tests are here to stay, at least for another year or two. It certainly made me feel a bit more relaxed about Covid in my first real big crowd outing since the start of the pandemic. I could really say, afterwards, that I had absolutely minimal contact with people. I think that the organizers did well and I'm keen to see how it pans out afterwards. I'm sure the medics are doing interesting studies to track Covid after the Tour. 
• Definitely far less aggression and a lot more goodwill out there. I'm not sure why this was. Perhaps the lower numbers? Perhaps the grumpies stayed away? Perhaps fewer Gauteng riders? (Just kidding you lot of Vaalies!)
• Fewer old classic steel bikes, certainly in the groups where we rode. Perhaps the bike collectors (mostly older?) stayed away? I rode my 30 year old Eddy Merckx and usually I see many other old bikes all around, mostly ridden by proud owners who are always ready for a chat along the way. But not this year.
•  I heard more Afrikaans than I can remember from any previous Tour. Perhaps that had something to do with there being a far bigger proportion of locals this year? Frankly, Afrikaans speakers make up a much bigger portion of the Western Cape and Cape Town than most people think. 
• Almost zero internationals, although I heard French and Italian along the way. Yes, I know I heard the Italian going up Chappies, and by then I was also probably hearing voices in my head ........ 
• More e-bikes than I expected, sommer many more e-bikes! They didn't bother us and I think they should be allowed to start wherever they are seeded. It will thin them out. Perhaps they will learn some manners and have sympathy with the likes of slowpokes sweating up the steep hills?
• Also, many more gravel bikes. Some of them really good looking too.
• The people of Cape Town are fantastic supporters and came out to cheer just about the same as for any other Tour. Perhaps the only part that was quieter than usual was down around Cape Point. The usual supporter spots like Wineberg hill and Suikerbossie were as packed as usual. The "mankini guy" of Simonstown is a diehard fan of the Tour.
• I did not miss the lack of facilities at the finish because we do our own thing (usually a braai) anyway.
• I was impressed that there were just as many marshalls, water points and traffic cops out there on duty compared to a normal year with full numbers. It did not feel like a "last minute, half baked" tour at all. 

I enjoyed having to dodge less people going up the early hills, I enjoyed not having to keep out of the way for so many people on the later hills.

I missed the big sound systems and cheerleaders at the many water points, but I still got to hear "Eye of the Tiger" many many times

Did not miss the crowds at the end, although for once I was not it a hurry to get out of there so would have been nice to grab a burger whilst I waited for some mates to finish.

 

Overall I think the organisers can pat themselves on the back for a job well done.

[Long Wheel Base]

7 minutes ago, ouzo said:

This is the kind of spirit that keeps bring me back to CTCT.

It sort of got less over the  years, but certainly in the early 2000s, whenever you stopped for a cramp or a breather or anything, there would be people around you very quickly wanting to assist / encourage just generally help.

I remember my first couple of "Argus", going up Suikers there would be crowds of people only to willing to help push you up should you stop.

You don't get that at any of the joburg races

If you feel someone pushing you up malibongwe at 947,they actually trying to steal your bike.