the unofficial Cape Epic thread

[ChrisF]

2026 Registration day

 

BEST wishes to those that are registering today.

 

 

Looking forward to supporting friends that are taking the leap to take on this challenge.

 

[DieselnDust]

13 hours ago, Mamil said:

That looks terrible.

That you not listening to the doctor makes me anxious on your behalf.

I'm very medically compliant. If the doctor says "don't bend your hip past 90 degrees" I get a raised toilet seat and pooh with me legs straight out in front of me. If the physio says do 3 sets of 20 stupid little movements with whatever limb is affected by my lack of MTB skills, I do 3 sets of 20 with all the rigour of an initiate in a monastery looking to be ordained.

 

compliance or rather lack thereof is the number one cause of escalation of medical conditions according to my GP and other medical professionals in my circle of friends.

Tell a patient take 2 panado's and call the doc in the morning, they will take none and call back in a week.

Physio tells you to move the leg, patient sits on a couch beer in  hand watching rugby. Apparently the weight of the beer activates the hip flexor.....

Human's ....we are our own worst enemy 😂

[DieselnDust]

23 minutes ago, Ozzie NL said:

Given people are seeded in batches based on their race results, there are not many "being held up" issues at Epic... Exception can be Prologue depending on how accurate your estimated time was.

 

There will always be the issue of some people climbing faster whilst others descend faster ... I cannot see a way around that

assuming the team mates are evenly matched....

If one is fast enough to be in D batch while the other is only good enough for O then there is going to be problems since the O will dictate the start batch

[Ozzie NL]

3 minutes ago, DieselnDust said:

assuming the team mates are evenly matched....

If one is fast enough to be in D batch while the other is only good enough for O then there is going to be problems since the O will dictate the start batch

Sure but that is something you know before you start the race and will have to reconcile yourself with as the faster rider (that you will be riding well below your own pace) ... it should not cause any hold ups for other riders as in this scenario you will be riding O batch pace

[DieselnDust]

9 minutes ago, Ozzie NL said:

Sure but that is something you know before you start the race and will have to reconcile yourself with as the faster rider (that you will be riding well below your own pace) ... it should not cause any hold ups for other riders as in this scenario you will be riding O batch pace

errrrrrm yes, but you that rider will be attempting to ride while the O's will be walking.

There are walkers even in D and that delivers the same result. It happens all the time. Bardies article in Tread talks to this. A lack of technical riding upskilling in favour of more speed and endurance training. Add in a very technical trail or 4 and you have hold ups

[Shebeen]

53 minutes ago, DieselnDust said:

errrrrrm yes, but you that rider will be attempting to ride while the O's will be walking.

There are walkers even in D and that delivers the same result. It happens all the time. Bardies article in Tread talks to this. A lack of technical riding upskilling in favour of more speed and endurance training. Add in a very technical trail or 4 and you have hold ups

The answer seems fairly obvious to me.

there are okes dropping massive ZARs on doing the epic. They get everything from the latest SWorks (that not even those red jersey guys on the podium can justify this to their sponsors), training plans, nutrition plans, bling training camps, camp upgrade everything, massage. 

but they don't seem to think that entry level skills training is worth the effort/money?

A simple 3/4 sessions with a competent rider/coach will get them down the hills quicker and with less effort. and ENJOY it more. Seems like the easiest bang for buck, or maybe I am missing something?

 

the other option is to name and shame, or get more of this content out.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2122325068001413

 

 

 

[MarcoDeS]

Anyone keen to sponsor or have me as their plus 1 for 2026 epic? 😬😀

[Paul Ruinaard]

On 3/29/2025 at 12:45 PM, Zebra said:

I thought it was a very well-balanced article, which gave me a much-clearer idea of just how much this event has changed in its nature, from ‘endurance’-focus, to much more of a skills-focus.

Back in 05/06/07, it really was more of a gravel-type stage race, with say a bit of Groenlandberg, and small bits of single-track thrown in, whereas today it really is a different ‘animal’. I am wiser for reading his well-reasoned argument.

Chris

Good article IMO and the race has changed. it is going to fracxture IMO in to a pro race and a Letape type race for the amateurs in the not so distant future. Thats the only way forwrd when the levels keep increasing. That or more rigid qualification criteria than the size of your wallet and ambition.

[The Ouzo]

49 minutes ago, Shebeen said:

maybe I am missing something?

ego

[DieselnDust]

30 minutes ago, The Ouzo said:

ego

Spot on 

I rode with a couple of guys from Singapore on the Thursday. They didn’t finish last year,  but came back this year with brand new bikes…..both didn’t finish this year either. I’ll bet if they keep throwing money at the problem they’ll get there

Edited March 31, 2025 by DieselnDust

[Paul Ruinaard]

All of this wrt technical skills goes back to the discussion around dropping hundreds of thousands Zars on your dream race and then only to have a day 1 or 2 crash whilst going down a technical section. Break something and it ends your race, your partners race and there is no asking for a refund.

So you become super conservative about the stuff you know you could probably ride or may think is a bit technical and then rather walk it, because you want to finish it. Honestly it screws up the fun you would have normally had IMO. Also mismatch in partners abilities - you dont want to force the weaker technical rider in to a mistake and then end the race that way.

You think differently in the Epic. You are running a long game with all aspects focuse don a longer term horizon.

Even Anika walked the one descent in the prologue, but having said that its super sketchy and i probably think about 50% of the field would also have walked it.

Edited April 2, 2025 by Paul Ruinaard

[DieselnDust]

I’ve been catching up on the live stage broadcasts. Annika didn’t cover herself in glory on the techy bits. She crashed a lot. I think she’s lost her edge there not that she was a super gifted technical rider to begin with. In the World Cup xco’s she only excelled on courses that were more open with less technical features. I reckon if Yolanda Neff rides the epic she’ll have to have a really competent partner like maybe Rissveds or Ferrand Prevot to keep up with her. Not taking anything away from Annika’s 6th win but if they were pushed by a stronger team I think she’d have crashed herself out of the epic. She looked really sketchy on everything resembling an xco course

[samson99]

any idea what the volunteers paid this year to be there?

[MORNE]

3 hours ago, Shebeen said:

 

the other option is to name and shame, or get more of this content out.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2122325068001413

 

 

 

To be fair, Theo would probably make the sharp end of the epic field, look similarly ‘silly’ down those trails. 😅

Most people, wouldn't even attempt the stuff these guys get up to most weekends, minaar included (he’s on video saying as much - at the hardline road gap…it’s an absolute chasm)

i think when you are like these guys and actually closer to being a ‘pilot’ than a cyclist most weekends…its easy to make mere mortals look l like absolute peasants down a mildly techie trail thats actually so far below your pay grade…you can send it on a bmx while hardly touching the ground.

[Dicky DQ]

This is a video of experience of a Euro guy finishing 3rd in Armature group 2024. Yes 2024, but it give a very good perspective of the trails from a raider perspective. And yes you need to to be able to rise single track or do not enter. It is what it is.

Well I though this was a cool video.

 

Edited March 31, 2025 by Dicky DQ

[DieselnDust]

56 minutes ago, MORNE said:

To be fair, Theo would probably make the sharp end of the epic field, look similarly ‘silly’ down those trails. 😅

Most people, wouldn't even attempt the stuff these guys get up to most weekends, minaar included (he’s on video saying as much - at the hardline road gap…it’s an absolute chasm)

i think when you are like these guys and actually closer to being a ‘pilot’ than a cyclist most weekends…its easy to make mere mortals look l like absolute peasants down a mildly techie trail thats actually so far below your pay grade…you can send it on a bmx while hardly touching the ground.

Extreme contrasts. 
The rider who Theo is having a good laugh at is pretty typical of your average cape epic rider. That person is at least rolling. Many walk plumb pudding. I remember in 2018 when I rode with Will from Williams Bike Shop we hit that section at full

tilt and nearly rolled other several teams walking it and still falling over. I’m afraid that if skills criteria becomes a #measureofall then it will Just be the uci men and women, some amateur men and possibly A and B batches. Beyond that it’s a lottery as to who is actually capable of riding the XCO courses included in the route. 
 

having thought about it with an ever clearing mind the strategy for any team should be to hit the prologue as hard as possible and take Stage 1 easy. Get into a good start batch so the course is more clear and let the great unwashed fend for themselves at the back. 
with cut offs enforced at Water Points the field will be weeded pretty quickly. The event lost 3.5 start batches this year. So if people don’t unskill their singletracking they’ll be out before the midpoint in future cape epics. I don’t see this as a bad thing. If it’s the race that #measuresall and darn it measure it manne!!!