[Event] Lions Karoo to Coast MTB

[Bernard Horn]

Dress for the worst case.You can always remove layers later, but if you are under dressed you are stuck.Take a pair of surgical/plastic gloves to wear under your cycling gloves especially if rainy on way down to De Vlught.After 2019 I bought a space blanket after turning blue at WP7.
Lekker ry

[KingZA]

17 hours ago, halfjack said:

Hi all, apart from the cold weather does anyone know the condition of the pass and is it gravel bike friendly?

Thanks

 

I did it a couple of weeks ago as part of Sedgfield500 and it was in really good condition so I'd say it's prime for a grave bike! MTB will still be faster on the descents so you'll win in some areas and lose in others.

[HdB]

Updated weather

Still starts very cold, but getting warmer than previously predicted. The long sleeve jacket could be too much, might use arm warmers and contego gilet rather

[halfjack]

3 hours ago, KingZA said:

I did it a couple of weeks ago as part of Sedgfield500 and it was in really good condition so I'd say it's prime for a grave bike! MTB will still be faster on the descents so you'll win in some areas and lose in others.

Thanks alot this is good news. Enjoy the race if you riding.

[Prince Albert Cycles]

Has the question which is best/fastest bike for K2C  been answered?
Won by Tristan Noortje on a mtb in a record time

[HdB]

1 hour ago, Prince Albert Cycles said:

Has the question which is best/fastest bike for K2C  been answered?
Won by Tristan Noortje on a mtb in a record time

Did my first one today. The decents were rough on my hard-tail. No thanks to doing it on a gravel bike

[Robbie Stewart]

It looked muddy.

[HdB]

4 minutes ago, Robbie Stewart said:

It looked muddy.

I don't remember a lot of mud, but that could be because my brain is still shaking from the rocky downhills

[Robbie Stewart]

8 hours ago, HdB said:

I don't remember a lot of mud, but that could be because my brain is still shaking from the rocky downhills

I made the mistake of riding it on a HT only once. What got to me more than the rocks on the descent on the back of Ouwapad was the relentless corrugations. Some suspension goes a long way on that road.

[HdB]

38 minutes ago, Robbie Stewart said:

I made the mistake of riding it on a HT only once. What got to me more than the rocks on the descent on the back of Ouwapad was the relentless corrugations. Some suspension goes a long way on that road.

The corrugations were not bad at all, the roads must have been graded relatively recently. The sections through the forests were a bit uneven though, by this point my sense of humor also took a temporary dip after some bad cramps 🤦 And Ou Wapad has definitely been improved, according the riders who have done it before it was far better this year. Would be even better if people could keep left, pass right, but oh well.

The event is quite well organised. Pity the numbers are down so much - there was plenty of space left for tents on the showgrounds, and plenty of space in the Church hall. The covid years and last year's cancellation taking its toll I guess

[Robbie Stewart]

10 hours ago, HdB said:

Pity the numbers are down so much

Ja, I did it three times. 14, 15 and 18. I'm not sure I'll do it again. Maybe one last hurrah sometime. 

[MORNE]

20 hours ago, HdB said:

Pity the numbers are down so much - …The covid years and last year's cancellation taking its toll I guess

Race logistics too i guess. 
But something that always gets me about knysna is that it’s a ghost town on Sundays.
Basically, nothing is open. For a town so reliant on tourism they really dont give a F….k about tapping into 2000k od tourists and their families on this weekend specifically.

You’ve spent the whole day on a bike….finished probably one of the largest and well known annual sporting events for the area…..and everything is closed the afternoon/night you just want to sit and have a cold one and a nice meal with your family who you got to drive a 200km-return trip to drop you at the start. 

Once you leave that rugby field it’s like the race never happened. That was my lasting memory from 2019….not the extreme weather and anties in space blankets.

Ive obviously been back there many times since and it always annoys me. The town really can do more. I want to spend money, support the local economy….but you need to come to the party and be open. I blame the seasonal migrating/foreign residents😅

Edited September 24 by MORNE

[Sepia]

I absolutely agree!  It has always been like that it seems.  Used to ride there often.

Prince Albert has more to offer for one day when a couple of tired cyclist ride through.

[halfjack]

On 9/22/2024 at 8:11 PM, Prince Albert Cycles said:

Has the question which is best/fastest bike for K2C  been answered?
Won by Tristan Noortje on a mtb in a record time

After my 2nd attempt on the GB a mtb takes the win. Some of the decents were rough. Trying to hold onto the drops required serious strength as well as being able to brake at the same time. A few sections got me contemplating why did I not just use my mtb! Other than that most of the route was enjoyable. Those who were on a GB and finished without suspension (there were a couple) deserved a free beer and a stupidity award 🤣! Numbers were down probably due to last yrs canceled event, logistics and sheer costs. It all ads up and newer events on the same wkend closer to CT. But it's still a spectacular race. The garden route/karoo has lots to offer. 

[Rowl]

Was my first K2C yesterday. Rode it with mate who forgot his bottles at home. No biggy, each rocky descent had enough to pick and choose from.

 

Was on a DS and was glad I wasn't on a gravel. Felt like I was either going up or down, no real space for recovery. Was also too warmly dressed, and felt a bit stupid tbh.

 

Water points were good and was a bit overwhelmed by having them as close as 10kms apart. Had way too muxh wors at the one stop.

 

Will I be back, probably yes and no. Logistics to an earlier post wasn't ideal, asking the wife to drop us at 06:30 and then fetching us at Knysna (from George) wasn't a back breaker but could be less effort. Saw a variety of riders, under and over-biked, under and over-dressed, which leads me to it is a fan favourite. And due to the scenery probably as well. So maybe in a few years time again. Also wasn't too expensive considering what the others charge. Which might sway me to go back sooner.

 

Thanks to all the organisers.

[JM Rides Bikes]

On 9/22/2024 at 9:42 PM, HdB said:

Did my first one today. The decents were rough on my hard-tail. No thanks to doing it on a gravel bike

It was my first K2C too. It was a tough ride but loved every bit of it! 

I can concur wrt the rocky terrain, I rode it with a @Titan Racing Bikes Switch Gravel bike. Descending was rough! haha biggest issue on my side were my Vitoria terreno dry tyres 38c. You definitely want a grippier tyre with higher volume and more tread.

 Looking at Maxxis Rambler or Kenda Booster Pro 700cx40c for my next gravel race

Terreno Dry will be my training tyre.