[Event] Durbie Dash Mountain Bike

[Jacques|DurbieDash]

Event Name: Durbie Dash Mountain Bike
When: 14/10/2023
Where: DurbanvilleCape Town, Western Cape
Category: Mountain Bike

The best way to experience the breadth of the Durbanville farmlands, covering 4 distances, the 2023 edition of the Durbie Dash will also host the Western Province Mountain Bike XC Marathon Championships*.

The Fair Cape Chain Breaker - 60 km (1800m climbing)*

Seeding event for the 2024 Cape Town Cycle Tour

The Diemersdal Muscle Jammer - 50 km (1250m climbing)*

E-bike friendly

The Bloemendal Rock Buster - 25 km (820m climbing)*

E-bike friendly

For our younger and non-racing snake friends, we have the following event:

The Altydgedacht Cruise - 12 km

E-bike friendly

Go to Event Page.

[Hilton.]

Looking forward to this.

Unfortunately it looks like the Chain breaker 60km isn't going to use Contermanskloof at all. It goes past, towards Meerendal, Hoogekraal, Faircape dairies, then all the way back. Some nice bits of single-track sprinkled along the route.

[Newbie321]

How bad is the 60km 1800m chain breaker? 6 hours to complete it seems like you need a fair bit of endurance? 

[Jbr]

23 hours ago, Hilton. said:

Looking forward to this.

Unfortunately it looks like the Chain breaker 60km isn't going to use Contermanskloof at all. It goes past, towards Meerendal, Hoogekraal, Faircape dairies, then all the way back. Some nice bits of single-track sprinkled along the route.

Have you got info about the route ? I can’t guess much from what I see on their website…

[Hilton.]

50 minutes ago, Jbr said:

Have you got info about the route ? I can’t guess much from what I see on their website…

Not much, just what I can see from the small route map on the website:

I compared that with Google Maps to zoom in a bit. 

[Hilton.]

21 hours ago, Newbie321 said:

How bad is the 60km 1800m chain breaker? 6 hours to complete it seems like you need a fair bit of endurance? 

6 hours is very conservative. The winners will do it in 2:30 - 2:45, with median time around 4 hours I reckon.

Not very technical, mostly gravel I think. But the hills will sap your legs in the last third.

[Jbr]

1 hour ago, Hilton. said:

Not much, just what I can see from the small route map on the website:

I compared that with Google Maps to zoom in a bit. 

it's really a terrible map they could at least give a GPX file or something to have a rough idea... So from what I see it looks like something like d'aria/majic forest, up hillcrest, down the mast, missing link, hoogekraal normal uphill and trail Z descent, connecting somehow with faircape, long flag boring section, then up the mast again, down bloemendaaler towards the finish, is it your read of this map ?

if that's what it is, it's pretty cool, means you'll have to gun it on the mast climb to try and not be stuck on the bloemendaaler descent. I'm almost getting excited now....and I entered the road race 🤣 

Edited October 10, 2023 by Jbr

[Mozzie]

1 hour ago, Hilton. said:

6 hours is very conservative. The winners will do it in 2:30 - 2:45, with median time around 4 hours I reckon.

Not very technical, mostly gravel I think. But the hills will sap your legs in the last third.

@ NEWBIE321
If you work out ..that is 300m of climb in every 10km. add some heat and it will take its toll. 6 hrs gives you and average of 10km/h. so definitely doable ... compare that with what you do on a weekend !

 

Edited October 10, 2023 by Mozzie

[Newbie321]

18 minutes ago, Mozzie said:

@ NEWBIE321
If you work out ..that is 300m of climb in every 10km. add some heat and it will take its toll. 6 hrs gives you and average of 10km/h. so definitely doable ... compare that with what you do on a weekend !

 

Thanks, actually went back and looked at some of my rides, I've done 40kms 1200m of climbing a couple of weekends ago in 3h15 hours. Also, very familiar with the Tygerberg trails, so I should manage. Will see what the extra 20km and 600m of climbing does to my legs

[Hilton.]

39 minutes ago, Jbr said:

it's really a terrible map they could at least give a GPX file or something to have a rough idea... So from what I see it looks like something like d'aria/majic forest, up hillcrest, down the mast, missing link, hoogekraal normal uphill and trail Z descent, connecting somehow with faircape, long flag boring section, then up the mast again, down bloemendaaler towards the finish, is it your read of this map ?

if that's what it is, it's pretty cool, means you'll have to gun it on the mast climb to try and not be stuck on the bloemendaaler descent. I'm almost getting excited now....and I entered the road race 🤣 

Yes, that's 100% my read of the route. I remember those long flat sections of dirt road around Faircape Dairy a few years ago.

But that climb towards the mast on the way back after Meerendal is a killer hey, super steep. By that point in the race, after 45km, the gaps between riders should be decently big.  

[devocean]

1 hour ago, Jbr said:

it's really a terrible map they could at least give a GPX file or something to have a rough idea... So from what I see it looks like something like d'aria/majic forest, up hillcrest, down the mast, missing link, hoogekraal normal uphill and trail Z descent, connecting somehow with faircape, long flag boring section, then up the mast again, down bloemendaaler towards the finish, is it your read of this map ?

if that's what it is, it's pretty cool, means you'll have to gun it on the mast climb to try and not be stuck on the bloemendaaler descent. I'm almost getting excited now....and I entered the road race 🤣 

JB, I did the MTB once, looks like exactly same route...

https://www.strava.com/activities/2800115644

...was lekker

[Mayo916]

Here is last year's route with missing link:

https://www.strava.com/activities/7964876084

[Jbr]

1 hour ago, devocean said:

JB, I did the MTB once, looks like exactly same route...

https://www.strava.com/activities/2800115644

...was lekker

Haha I only saw your name on strava after checking the route! Thanks Andy !

[ChrisF]

3 hours ago, Newbie321 said:

Thanks, actually went back and looked at some of my rides, I've done 40kms 1200m of climbing a couple of weekends ago in 3h15 hours. Also, very familiar with the Tygerberg trails, so I should manage. Will see what the extra 20km and 600m of climbing does to my legs

 

The adrenaline in those first first 40km, and trying to keep up with faster riders is much more dangerous than the actual distance  

 

Going out to hard .... school fees we all pay at some point another.

 

 

You CAN do it ... just manage your effort and nutrition.  Same with hydration ....

 

ENJOY 

Edited October 10, 2023 by ChrisF

[Bub Marley]

5 hours ago, Jbr said:

it's really a terrible map they could at least give a GPX file or something to have a rough idea... So from what I see it looks like something like d'aria/majic forest, up hillcrest, down the mast, missing link, hoogekraal normal uphill and trail Z descent, connecting somehow with faircape, long flag boring section, then up the mast again, down bloemendaaler towards the finish, is it your read of this map ?

if that's what it is, it's pretty cool, means you'll have to gun it on the mast climb to try and not be stuck on the bloemendaaler descent. I'm almost getting excited now....and I entered the road race 🤣 

I feel like they missed a trick here. I think many of us would actually like to do both Road and mtb. It’s one of the reasons I loved the knysna race until they changed that also now. Why not have Mtb Saturday and then Road on Sunday? I think there would lots of interest in something like this. 
 

Would actually be a great idea for any event organizer as I don’t recall anything like this in the western cape at least. Road, mtb and gravel all over a long weekend. Would be great. 

[babse]

4 hours ago, devocean said:

JB, I did the MTB once, looks like exactly same route...

https://www.strava.com/activities/2800115644

...was lekker

Did it that same year. Proper tough yet rewarding route. Way more fun that the 30min road race (so it feels) 

Was half decent on the MTB back then too.

 

https://strava.app.link/1Jc7tV03MDb