the unofficial Cape Epic thread

[gemmerbal]

27 minutes ago, DieselnDust said:

We shouldn’t 

I would rather (and I have, Munga 2023) cycle in 50 degree weather than the peanut butter $hitshow of for example the 2023 edition of 36One. But thats just me, I’m a ginger with a tan, they call me the Daywalker 😛

[Mamil]

11 minutes ago, DieselnDust said:

Stage 4 feedback . Fairview to fairview

the first 20 km was a boring meander through the Fairview vines. Large track of land, must be worth a fortune.

things got exciting when we hit diamanté estate XCO track. How I remained patient and amused is beyond me but none the less, there does need to be a skills criteria or I need to be seeded in faster start batches. 
over a simple obstacle, Grand master on a S-works , stops mid feature and unclips as my team mate is spooling up to ride over it. He stops to avoid the chap and tears his calf muscle. It seemed like just a strain at first but by WP 2 the pain was becoming unbearable for him. The medics gave him some pain killer which slowed him to pedal, albeit slowly to WP3. Back to diamanté estate …..

the XCO track might have in pristine condition but after 800ridees it was quite beaten up. Everything still rideable but not for the back markers. Bear in mind these people have been through the wringer the first 3 stages and were /are basically in survival mode. There is no more strategy, just a dash of smack talk but generally just silence and grunting…like a 80s German porn movie….dont be coy, you know what I’m talking about…

there are no free climbing meters in Paarl. Everything is compact and that means steep to pack in the kilometres. Prepare yourselves well when you come ride out here.

we exited diamanté estate onto tracks build under the monument and then through  a girls school. What a punk track that was. I nearly saw my gat there.

the  we went through LaBorie vineyards and their XCO track . Notice a bit of a trend here. If you have ridden the spice route, diamant, diaries and laborie XCO courses you’ll have some idea of how technical today was.

by WP2 Hans calf was really troubling him. They routed us past the Taal Monument and then a right at the top of the mountain  and lead us along the gravel road up there to Spice Route. Some vicious climbs up there. 
I started keeping an eye on the clock and realised that at the pace we were moving we wouldn’t make cut off at WP3 . His face was a grimace of pain and bravery but I could see he was hurting and whatever was going on wasn’t just a little niggle. At WP3 I pulled him over to the medical tent and said “ we have till 13:50 to make a decision on whether you carry on or I pull you out. The doc examined him and said it’s likely a torn muscle but an Ultrasound back at race village would confirm. He handed me the transponder and said “I’m getting in the ambulance “

so we had a stay of execution yesterday with the dehydration episode but here was a real issue. Ultrasound confirmed a tear in the muscle. I continue as an Individual Finisher tomorrow 😢

 

Absolutely brutal - it sounds staggeringly difficult. Well done on keeping your sense of humour. The video of the elites racing through the dust and loose dirt looked hard enough - can't even imagine what it was like after all of those wheels through there.

[daveno7]

13 minutes ago, DieselnDust said:

Stage 4 feedback . Fairview to fairview

the first 20 km was a boring meander through the Fairview vines. Large track of land, must be worth a fortune.

things got exciting when we hit diamanté estate XCO track. How I remained patient and amused is beyond me but none the less, there does need to be a skills criteria or I need to be seeded in faster start batches. 
over a simple obstacle, Grand master on a S-works , stops mid feature and unclips as my team mate is spooling up to ride over it. He stops to avoid the chap and tears his calf muscle. It seemed like just a strain at first but by WP 2 the pain was becoming unbearable for him. The medics gave him some pain killer which slowed him to pedal, albeit slowly to WP3. Back to diamanté estate …..

the XCO track might have in pristine condition but after 800ridees it was quite beaten up. Everything still rideable but not for the back markers. Bear in mind these people have been through the wringer the first 3 stages and were /are basically in survival mode. There is no more strategy, just a dash of smack talk but generally just silence and grunting…like a 80s German porn movie….dont be coy, you know what I’m talking about…

there are no free climbing meters in Paarl. Everything is compact and that means steep to pack in the kilometres. Prepare yourselves well when you come ride out here.

we exited diamanté estate onto tracks build under the monument and then through  a girls school. What a punk track that was. I nearly saw my gat there.

the  we went through LaBorie vineyards and their XCO track . Notice a bit of a trend here. If you have ridden the spice route, diamant, diaries and laborie XCO courses you’ll have some idea of how technical today was.

by WP2 Hans calf was really troubling him. They routed us past the Taal Monument and then a right at the top of the mountain  and lead us along the gravel road up there to Spice Route. Some vicious climbs up there. 
I started keeping an eye on the clock and realised that at the pace we were moving we wouldn’t make cut off at WP3 . His face was a grimace of pain and bravery but I could see he was hurting and whatever was going on wasn’t just a little niggle. At WP3 I pulled him over to the medical tent and said “ we have till 13:50 to make a decision on whether you carry on or I pull you out. The doc examined him and said it’s likely a torn muscle but an Ultrasound back at race village would confirm. He handed me the transponder and said “I’m getting in the ambulance “

so we had a stay of execution yesterday with the dehydration episode but here was a real issue. Ultrasound confirmed a tear in the muscle. I continue as an Individual Finisher tomorrow 😢

 

good luck tomorrow....hard luck on your friend...

[Mamil]

44 minutes ago, DieselnDust said:

We shouldn’t 

Ja I'd agree with that - the munga comparison isn't really valid as riding on those trails is a completely different kind of effort - it's one thing to keep ticking the engine over at low intensity for long periods in 40 plus conditions in the karoo - quite another to be doing the repeated 3 to 5 second big watt efforts it requires to ride up a steep switchback climb or get through a tricky technical section with. momentum in the same temperatures. The latter far more dangerous.

I hope that noone has been seriously hurt by the heat.

[gemmerbal]

2 minutes ago, Mamil said:

Ja I'd agree with that - the munga comparison isn't really valid as riding on those trails is a completely different kind of effort - it's one thing to keep ticking the engine over at low intensity for long periods in 40 plus conditions in the karoo - quite another to be doing the repeated 3 to 5 second big watt efforts it requires to ride up a steep switchback climb or get through a tricky technical section with. momentum in the same temperatures. The latter far more dangerous.

I hope that noone has been seriously hurt by the heat.

I’m too fat to climb, my pens helps to kick the pedals over at 60rpm. I prefer the slow poison, I’m too stubborn to know any better. Plus my oval shape is more aero in the pesky Tankwa headwind. 

[DieselnDust]

24 minutes ago, Mamil said:

Absolutely brutal - it sounds staggeringly difficult. Well done on keeping your sense of humour. The video of the elites racing through the dust and loose dirt looked hard enough - can't even imagine what it was like after all of those wheels through there.

Spice Route was a complete mess. The first descent was a water bottle graveyard. I made a contribution thanks how rutted the trail was.

dust and powder everywhere 

[babse]

2 hours ago, Robbie Stewart said:

That is such a stupid comparison. It's beyond cringe really. The TdF at least is a race worthy of it's title and not a dick measuring contest between fat old guys with fatter wallets like the Epic has become.

So you telling me we cannot compare finish of Val de Vie and the Champs Elysees? 

eish... 

[Robbie Stewart]

1 hour ago, MORNE said:

Tar in 45*C Paarl is liquid…and therefore lawa…and untamed.

The floor iiiiis laaaava 🔥

[SwissVan]

1 hour ago, DieselnDust said:

Stage 4 feedback . Fairview to fairview

the first 20 km was a boring meander through the Fairview vines. Large track of land, must be worth a fortune.

things got exciting when we hit diamanté estate XCO track. How I remained patient and amused is beyond me but none the less, there does need to be a skills criteria or I need to be seeded in faster start batches. 
over a simple obstacle, Grand master on a S-works , stops mid feature and unclips as my team mate is spooling up to ride over it. He stops to avoid the chap and tears his calf muscle. It seemed like just a strain at first but by WP 2 the pain was becoming unbearable for him. The medics gave him some pain killer which slowed him to pedal, albeit slowly to WP3. Back to diamanté estate …..

the XCO track might have in pristine condition but after 800ridees it was quite beaten up. Everything still rideable but not for the back markers. Bear in mind these people have been through the wringer the first 3 stages and were /are basically in survival mode. There is no more strategy, just a dash of smack talk but generally just silence and grunting…like a 80s German porn movie….dont be coy, you know what I’m talking about…

there are no free climbing meters in Paarl. Everything is compact and that means steep to pack in the kilometres. Prepare yourselves well when you come ride out here.

we exited diamanté estate onto tracks build under the monument and then through  a girls school. What a punk track that was. I nearly saw my gat there.

the  we went through LaBorie vineyards and their XCO track . Notice a bit of a trend here. If you have ridden the spice route, diamant, diaries and laborie XCO courses you’ll have some idea of how technical today was.

by WP2 Hans calf was really troubling him. They routed us past the Taal Monument and then a right at the top of the mountain  and lead us along the gravel road up there to Spice Route. Some vicious climbs up there. 
I started keeping an eye on the clock and realised that at the pace we were moving we wouldn’t make cut off at WP3 . His face was a grimace of pain and bravery but I could see he was hurting and whatever was going on wasn’t just a little niggle. At WP3 I pulled him over to the medical tent and said “ we have till 13:50 to make a decision on whether you carry on or I pull you out. The doc examined him and said it’s likely a torn muscle but an Ultrasound back at race village would confirm. He handed me the transponder and said “I’m getting in the ambulance “

so we had a stay of execution yesterday with the dehydration episode but here was a real issue. Ultrasound confirmed a tear in the muscle. I continue as an Individual Finisher tomorrow 😢

 

Thanks for your daily updates, vasbyt this time next week it will all be over and you’ll be planning the next one 🤙👍

[dev null]

1 hour ago, DieselnDust said:

...

there are no free climbing meters in Paarl. Everything is compact and that means steep to pack in the kilometres. Prepare yourselves well when you come ride out here.

...

 

Having ridden at Rheebokskloof I know how flippen hard it is. And I ride Helderberg regularly and have done one Piket Bo-Berg. It is a step above Bo-Berg.

Edited Thursday at 08:55 PM by dev null

[quade]

5 hours ago, Wannabe said:

Also heard reports from a Dr working at one of the Hospitals where the riders were transported to, NO DEATHS, but three riders in ICU with failing organs. He is on one of my cycling groups.

 

From a rider who has a partner is in hosptial:
Confirmed: (Paarl Mediclinic) - 3x patients on ventilators in ICU, 1 with heart damage.

From other sources that I cannot 100% validate yet.
UNCONFIRMED:
--------------------
rumours of 3 dead and 100+ required hospital treatment.

Temperatures were  50C+
--------------------

[DieselnDust]

28 minutes ago, SwissVan said:

Thanks for your daily updates, vasbyt this time next week it will all be over and you’ll be planning the next one 🤙👍

Thanks for the encouragement but on the next one,…….Nooit, I think this is my last time. Nothing left to prove and unfortunately it’s just not the same gees anymore. That has been in decline but I think it is at rock bottom and might be digging 

[Shebeen]

21 minutes ago, quade said:

From a rider who has a partner is in hosptial:
Confirmed: (Paarl Mediclinic) - 3x patients on ventilators in ICU, 1 with heart damage.

From other sources that I cannot 100% validate yet.
UNCONFIRMED:
--------------------
rumours of 3 dead and 100+ required hospital treatment.

Temperatures were  50C+
--------------------

This is what makes the official Epic press release problematic. 

We know that water points ran dry, so they got that wrong. 

They put spin on the rumour of a rider death, which leads to speculation. 

The actual cape epic rider forum is hosted on this site if I'm not mistaken.  How can they not be monitoring what is being said. 

Sounds like the golden goose is being cooked, would be very happy to be wrong. 

 

[quade]

10 minutes ago, Shebeen said:

This is what makes the official Epic press release problematic. 

We know that water points ran dry, so they got that wrong. 

They put spin on the rumour of a rider death, which leads to speculation. 

The actual cape epic rider forum is hosted on this site if I'm not mistaken.  How can they not be monitoring what is being said. 

Sounds like the golden goose is being cooked, would be very happy to be wrong. 

 

I have heard a crazy story 

It's from a reliable source but time will tell if it's true ....I hope it's not 

Clearly they are in damage limitation mode, and they are not being fully transparent so the rumours are rampant. 

An Austrian website has removed the news article, so they are clearly monitoring and engaging.

lets hope its not because the truth is a problem.

I wish the guys in ICU a speedy recovery 

[V18]

4 hours ago, gemmerbal said:

If I read that article correctly, I venture to say that we won’t have any sporting events in SA in summer?

Haha. Initially also thought so. But a wet bulb temp of 25 is way higher than it sounds. Read a bit around the wet bulb temp measurement. Looks like the sport physiology guys did their homework on this one. 

[ChrisF]

8 hours ago, DieselnDust said:

Stage 4 feedback . Fairview to fairview

the first 20 km was a boring meander through the Fairview vines. Large track of land, must be worth a fortune.

things got exciting when we hit diamanté estate XCO track. How I remained patient and amused is beyond me but none the less, there does need to be a skills criteria or I need to be seeded in faster start batches. 
over a simple obstacle, Grand master on a S-works , stops mid feature and unclips as my team mate is spooling up to ride over it. He stops to avoid the chap and tears his calf muscle. It seemed like just a strain at first but by WP 2 the pain was becoming unbearable for him. The medics gave him some pain killer which slowed him to pedal, albeit slowly to WP3. Back to diamanté estate …..

the XCO track might have in pristine condition but after 800ridees it was quite beaten up. Everything still rideable but not for the back markers. Bear in mind these people have been through the wringer the first 3 stages and were /are basically in survival mode. There is no more strategy, just a dash of smack talk but generally just silence and grunting…like a 80s German porn movie….dont be coy, you know what I’m talking about…

there are no free climbing meters in Paarl. Everything is compact and that means steep to pack in the kilometres. Prepare yourselves well when you come ride out here.

we exited diamanté estate onto tracks build under the monument and then through  a girls school. What a punk track that was. I nearly saw my gat there.

the  we went through LaBorie vineyards and their XCO track . Notice a bit of a trend here. If you have ridden the spice route, diamant, diaries and laborie XCO courses you’ll have some idea of how technical today was.

by WP2 Hans calf was really troubling him. They routed us past the Taal Monument and then a right at the top of the mountain  and lead us along the gravel road up there to Spice Route. Some vicious climbs up there. 
I started keeping an eye on the clock and realised that at the pace we were moving we wouldn’t make cut off at WP3 . His face was a grimace of pain and bravery but I could see he was hurting and whatever was going on wasn’t just a little niggle. At WP3 I pulled him over to the medical tent and said “ we have till 13:50 to make a decision on whether you carry on or I pull you out. The doc examined him and said it’s likely a torn muscle but an Ultrasound back at race village would confirm. He handed me the transponder and said “I’m getting in the ambulance “

so we had a stay of execution yesterday with the dehydration episode but here was a real issue. Ultrasound confirmed a tear in the muscle. I continue as an Individual Finisher tomorrow 😢

 

 

After all you went through .... so sorry for your team mate, and for you as a team.

 

Make him proud and kick some butt on the last stages.

 

Thank you for posting these race reports.