KB280DT Posted June 12, 2023 Posted June 12, 2023 1 hour ago, ChrisF said: Final day for packing. Tuesday our roadtrip starts ... whoop whoop .. 😊 Safe travels to one and all joining us at Trans Augrabies 2023. Do say "Hi". Always nice to meet Hubbers. BIG shoutout to Lani and her merry team for putting this event together. Jy moet veilig ry ou maat en geniet elke KM van die Trans Augrabies 😎 ChrisF and Scary Rider 2
Mark_J Posted June 12, 2023 Posted June 12, 2023 Good luck to all the riders, looking forward to hearing some awesome stories and seeing some great pics. Suffering serious FOMO! Scary Rider and ChrisF 2
INDABUSCHE Posted June 12, 2023 Posted June 12, 2023 Absolutely looking forward to it. Leave Weds morning 3 bells.
DJuice Posted June 12, 2023 Posted June 12, 2023 6 hours ago, ChrisF said: Final day for packing. Tuesday our roadtrip starts ... whoop whoop .. 😊 Safe travels to one and all joining us at Trans Augrabies 2023. Do say "Hi". Always nice to meet Hubbers. BIG shoutout to Lani and her merry team for putting this event together. Veilig ry Chris! My werk weet het begin in Augrabies, kom elke dag deur as daar iets vergeet is. Bewolkte weer in die lug, rivier vlak oor die naweek nog gestyg. Sover niemand by die middag watergat raakgeloop nie😝 ChrisF 1
ChrisF Posted June 12, 2023 Author Posted June 12, 2023 50 minutes ago, DJuice said: Veilig ry Chris! My werk weet het begin in Augrabies, kom elke dag deur as daar iets vergeet is. Bewolkte weer in die lug, rivier vlak oor die naweek nog gestyg. Sover niemand by die middag watergat raakgeloop nie😝 Ons is Woensdag ongeveer 13.00 daar 👍👍 Koffie as jy naby is 😉 DJuice 1
ChrisF Posted June 13, 2023 Author Posted June 13, 2023 Na bykans 18 maande se voorbereiding .... Now it is getting REAL ... NERVOUS excitement .... 👍😉 Scary Rider and mikkelz 2
Prince Albert Cycles Posted June 13, 2023 Posted June 13, 2023 33 minutes ago, ChrisF said: Na bykans 18 maande se voorbereiding .... Now it is getting REAL ... NERVOUS excitement .... 👍😉 So pak mens .Eers die fiets en fiets paraphernalia dan die res van die bagasie… Underachiever, Scary Rider and ChrisF 1 2
DJuice Posted June 13, 2023 Posted June 13, 2023 (edited) 5 hours ago, ChrisF said: Na bykans 18 maande se voorbereiding .... Now it is getting REAL ... NERVOUS excitement .... 👍😉 Laat dink my terug aan my driekamp racing dae. My ouers het alles in hul vermoë gedoen om my racing te ondersteun. Een event is my ouers saam en my training buddy, kar vol gelaai, my ma het die 1300km na Richardsbaai die ekstra stel wiele op haar skoot houvas. Veilig ry Chris. Daar was gister op die afraai na Augrabies `n stop/go met padwerke. Edited June 13, 2023 by DJuice ChrisF and Scary Rider 2
ChrisF Posted June 14, 2023 Author Posted June 14, 2023 Only 2 shallow streams ... 👍😊 mikkelz and Scary Rider 2
DJuice Posted June 14, 2023 Posted June 14, 2023 Spitsverkeer op die dwarspad gewees! a Few licence plate from other provinces. All the best, enjoy the stages and Northern cape hospitality! @ChrisF jou geskatte tyd vir dag 1?
dasilvarsa Posted June 16, 2023 Posted June 16, 2023 Where Can I get Results for Stage 1 ? I got a Swaar Riding There.
DJuice Posted June 16, 2023 Posted June 16, 2023 https://m.facebook.com/transaugrabies It is a quick race report. Have not managed to get results. Was their yesterday lunch time to spectate. Tuff day out kilometre en time was. Terrein is unmanicured trails, jeep track, district roads. dasilvarsa and ChrisF 2
ChrisF Posted June 20, 2023 Author Posted June 20, 2023 BIG shout out to the organisers and sponsors. What a stunning event. From the registration through to the "Bitter-einder" party at the falls on Saturday night. With the rest of SA having the worst rain, we had superb weather for all three days. NO, that was not wind on days 1 and 2 ... I finally managed to get through my photos. Dry river crossings (work on the canals upstream) Lots of this ... And this .... Excellent water points ... Bit of this ... And YES ... some of this ... Rangers helping at Klipspringer ... dasilvarsa, Prince Albert Cycles, Scary Rider and 5 others 8
ChrisF Posted June 20, 2023 Author Posted June 20, 2023 Doing the photo editing, with a still tender body, I was thinking of a question that often comes up: "So what is the terrain like? Is it a technically challenging event?" Three days in the saddle with about 227km distance and about 2 720m in elevation are the basic stats. With the Augrabies still flowing VERY high the day 3 route "only" 50km, so mathematically it is easier. Yeaaaa right .... There is a LOT of gravel roads, as in the photos above. Noting that the term gravel includes anything from the smoothest gravel road, to badly corrugated sections (thankfully very short), to the service roads ..... and then the line blurs to the sections with loose pebbles and even chucks of rocks. Still mostly non-technical. The single tracks are hiking trails. No berms. Mostly easy going. Day 1 throws in "Tier se Spoor". It is an interesting little section You most certainly need to be awake. Lots of tracks where riders overshot a turn .... LOTS of fun. And the VIEWS ! And then a few kilometers which has inexperienced riders walking the odd "obstacle". Tricky up-steps that are just too much for tired legs. Couple of down-steps that are easily rideable ... miffed at myself for getting to the one that was easy last year, and at the last second I chickened out, hopped off and walked down ..... (should have walked back and ridden it !) There is one LOOSE pebbly drop section in the Rock Garden that has my number ... walked it last year, and just could not get myself to ride it this year. Silly, as it you just need to trust the BLIND exit .... light on the brakes and you can easily roll through it .... if you are comfortable with a blind exit. Now it is back to normal single tracks and gravel sections, open taps to the end. Well sort off .... there is that nasty "little climb" back up to the mast, but that was the "technical section" for the day. Day 2. Similar mix of gravel, service roads, hiking trails .... for the first 60 odd kilometers. The last few kilometers towards Klipspringer CLIMB throws in some very nice single track. CONCENTRATE !! Tired legs and two days later this section seems more difficult than it actually is. Then again, the fast changing hard packed surfaces to pebbles to loose sand in turns WILL catch you out if you dont pay attention. Klipspringer climb is an event in itself ... but with the rangers carrying your bike up it can actually be a moment to catch your breath. Now there are a good few kilometers of "Swart klip rante" .... this is NOT easy going !! Worst part is, by now the temperature was into the mid 20's, and I still had my thermal base layers on .... I was properly overheating, and loosing concentration, making this section even worse than it is. At the next watering point I stripped off the thermals and poured cold water over me, and took a moment to "reset". Gravel road, full taps to the end ..... ooops, no, wait .... Moon Rock. Nice steady climb up, up and up .... then a steep DROP. LOTS of fun on an e-bike (would LOVE to get hold of the video another rider took of me going up there). The last section had a nice fun single track bit. Day 3. The alternate route, with the river crossing route not possible now, takes as back over the Moon Rock. Now that steep climb in the first 3km will warm up even @'Dale legs. Bit of caution on that long down slope, and then it is single track. But this is a real tricky bit !! Couple of step-ups that is just too much to ride up. You need to be alert for this section ! Short tar section, now it is the Swart klip rante in reverse .... As much as I enjoyed it, I also did struggle a bit .... in hindsight, doing this section on day 3, slow down and relax. I did manage to get some nice video footage of a group of riders along this section. Then it was time for the rangers to carry the bikes down Klipspringer. I really enjoyed the next section of single track, more so than the previous day (now doing it in reverse). The rest of day 3 is a totally different route to previous days. Typical mix of gravel, single track and thick sand. But with the terrain lends itself to a nice high speed ride. How do one rate such terrain ? The climbing, combined with the steps, loose terrain, etc ... you need a decent level of fitness to mange three days of this. Thankfully I was too busy taking photos to worry about race time .... thats my story and I am sticking to it (but will keep my camera close as an excuse) Technical difficulty .... uhmmm .... there are a few bits to keep skilled riders on their toes. But even newer riders can complete the event, walking a few sections. Certainly enough scrapes and bruises amongst the riders. Mostly minor tumbles on loose pebbles or in the thick river sand. Most certainly doable to an average rider, with sufficient fitness level. Rating the "event" .... now that is EASY !! FANTASTIC !! For the optimal experience - make sure to get accommodation INSIDE the park. For us the logistical simplicity of this event is just so nice !! Parked our car at the challet on the Wednesday, and only started it again on Sunday. Everything is in easy walking distance. Skubarra and DJuice 2
ChrisF Posted June 20, 2023 Author Posted June 20, 2023 TRANS AUGRABIES 2024 .... 14-16 June 2024 This event date is linked to the 16 June public holiday. Which worked very well the last few years. In 2024 it falls on a Sunday, with the Monday being a public holiday. SCHOOL HOLIDAY. Many have noted that they cant attend as this date overlaps with exams and the end of school term. The current school roster for 2024 states that the school holiday starts before this long weekend ..... This may open the event to many more riders. Okay, anybody's guess as to what dates the private schools will follow ...
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