Cape Town Cycle Tour 2026

[ChrisF]

2 hours ago, Jaco Steyn said:

My one female friend also rode with an e-bike this year. She’s in the 50-54 age category. Done her 17 previous Argus rides on a normal road bicycle. She actually did quite well on her e-bike. Overall 13th of the e-bikes, 3rd female and 2nd in her age group. 

 

8th to 13th split by 4 seconds ....

Congrats to her.

[ChrisF]

And a DIFFERNT view to the day ...

 

A friend had the task of the cut-off controller at the end of the M3.

 

He needed 8 traffic officers to assist, as some riders got aggressive about the cut off .... 🫣

[Gerlach]

1 hour ago, ChrisF said:

And a DIFFERNT view to the day ...

 

A friend had the task of the cut-off controller at the end of the M3.

 

He needed 8 traffic officers to assist, as some riders got aggressive about the cut off .... 🫣

[Shebeen]

 

 

 

 

4 hours ago, NotSoBigBen said:

As I said more than once in any demographic you'd care to use there are always a certain percentage, no I don't care to make up a stat, of twats!

Be it E-bikers, analogue bikers (stupid reference if you ask me), roadies, cyclists, butchers, bakers, accountants hell even pensioners or dare I say it the supposedly 'cool kids' the mountain bikers 😜

 

Yes and no. The power of Ebikes just gives the twats the ability to display their twatness easier.

The fact that they are "Expensive" also means the porportion of "entitled" people riding them is higher than the general population. You used to have to do your time in racing before you learnt how to bunch ride and follow the system, now anyone with R50k can jump in and cause havoc. and pull away if there's strong words up a hill.

They got told not to race, it got ignored by enough so now there is the 3:50 rule.

I'm a massive supporter of ebikes, but they are definitely guests at this event - enough of them ruining the experience for the muscle powered riders and there's a serious issue brewing. I don't think we're there yet.

 

 

 

2 hours ago, DrRichard said:

we had in interesting experience in 3B - two lovely  weathered elderly ladies.... both at least 20-30 plus argus in their legs - on every hill - hand on the pocket - and off they would go up the hill in tow - after the top of the hill the non-e biker would then let go from her tow and ride alone till the next hill where her E-bike friend would be ready for the next tow up the hill!  They came past us so many times  up every bump till they disappeared up and over chappies.... Great to have a friend on an e-bike to help you  up the hill - but conflicted in my emotions of the 'legality' / 'spirit' of riding of the plan - apart from the 'honours' board of doing 30 or 40 plus rides, finishing in under4 hours - I guess there is nothing wrong/ no harm  with it - but strange the emotions - e-bikes and towing affects those of us who try to do it the old school way  

this is a picture from last year, but relevant to your experience. All I'm going to say is that you can read the shirts, it's a Belgian beer brand that means "The Cat" - make your own conclusion. 

[Zebra]

3 hours ago, Dexter-morgan said:

...then pushed a tandem up chappies that was struggling, then went on my merry way ...

Whew! I got TIRED just THINKING about pushing a tandem, well done, you! 👍

[Zebra]

Not sure many RIDERS will have seen this chap, in a full business (albeit s-t-r-e-t-c-h-y!) suit, but I have seen him (riding, and later, spectating) over several years...

...he rides STRONGLY, greets MANY people who obviously react to him in a SUIT - fun story!

Edited March 10 by Zebra
spelling

[Sid the Sloth]

On 3/9/2026 at 9:57 AM, Pure Savage said:

You won our hearts

To be honest I already have yours. 😜🥰

[Shebeen]

10 minutes ago, Zebra said:

Not sure many RIDERS will have seen this chap, in a full business (albeit s-t-r-e-t-c-h-y!) suit, but I have seen him (riding, and later, spectating) over several years...

...he rides STRONGLY, greets MANY people who obviously react to him in a SUIT - fun story!

he is no slouch!

https://www.instagram.com/p/DVaSdwhDAaF/

 

[Zebra]

Oh wow - he is one SERIOUSLY accomplished individual!!

https://www.instagram.com/james_mccallum92/

[Pure Savage]

3 hours ago, Zebra said:

Not sure many RIDERS will have seen this chap, in a full business (albeit s-t-r-e-t-c-h-y!) suit, but I have seen him (riding, and later, spectating) over several years...

...he rides STRONGLY, greets MANY people who obviously react to him in a SUIT - fun story!

Did you see his socks  

 

He is even faster in a DC team without a suite  

 

Such a lekker bloke, find out more on the podcast: 

 

[ChrisF]

3 hours ago, Sid the Sloth said:

To be honest I already have yours. 😜🥰

 

Dan I am still watching the race, short episodes in between life ...

 

WOW !! 

 

You are one strong rider !!

 

What if .... if your group of 6 stayed 4 or 5 for longer .... heck, along M3 you were struggling to get the guys to do their turn .... 

 

I know it is the nature of the sport at the sharp end of the field .... but it is riders like YOU that make it a spectacle worth watching.

 

Nobody wants to a watch a 108km coffe ride then a sprint to the line ... good on you for keeping the teams working.

[PappaWatTrap]

This year was my 10th one and couldn't help to think back on the first one. I was probably 15 years old at the time. Flew down from Hartbeespoort with friends and slept over in Strand. I can just remember waking up to the south easter HOWLING.

We put our bikes on the trailer, drove out the parking garage and as we drove out my seat hit a pipe on the roof and the front of the seat bent backwards. Luckily we could sort a seat out before the start.

To this day I do not know how they didn't cancel that one, no one could start standing up, we crawled over the start line. It was easier cycling up chappies than it was cycling down in the wind, I had to stand and pedal against the wind. We obviously had to frame the Argus newspaper clippings. Did it on a yellow steel Hanson that was way to big for me. 

I don't know at what number I'll stop being excited for this race but as you can see at number 10 I still had a blast.

[Long Wheel Base]

On 3/9/2026 at 8:21 PM, ChrisF said:

ebikes ... times ... rider behaviour .....

 

My limited experience on the day -

I was fortunate to start in 3A, the first batch to accommodate e-bikes.  Naturally we were eyeing each others bikes and tech .... the two ladies on the Bianchis looked good !  Another lady on a Specialized with a connected range extender.  All of them drop bar bikes with small motors.  A number of couple on matching ebikes.  Point is a number of these bikes and/or rider kit was noticable.

 

FOUR shot ahead .... two parked on the pavement in Seapoint just before the finish straight.  two more actually entered the straight, then pulled to the left at an opening in the barriers.

 

The lady with the white Spez was on the Seapoint stretch the same time as me.  We were soft pedalling the last 500m along the sea front, then followed the flow to the finish line in 3:51.  The two lovely Bianchis about 90 seconds later.  Just the 4 that raced ahead, the rest of 3B just had a good consistent ride.

 

Rider behaviour .... yes, after the Noordhoek battery stop the odd e-biker was fast up Chappies.  Now in saying that, I was doing my normal 20 odd km/h up there, getting a few comments from others suffering up that first climb ... then getting blitzhed by the odd ebiker with a fresh battery.  BUT .... now let's also be fair here .... there were many more non-e-bikes blasting up those hills and shouting at people to keep left (I happened to get behind a big slow group) .... even an "ou omie" (probably in his 70's) blasting up that climb to the Chappies lookout point, I had to look twice, he was not on an ebike, but incredibly fast and angry at one and all .... At the time I was next to a very young lady on her first tour .... I took a moment to re-assure her she is doing nothing wrong and this man was not shouting at her (we were both on the left) ..... As much I saw the one ebiker of the 3B group being a box, there were many others not setting a good example either ....

 

Two bits of rider behaviour stands out to me .... that narrow section leading to Noordhoek, it was one thick bunch keeping a steady pace ... nothing to do but stay safe ... nope, this one sod kept on moving up and nudging his drop bars into my elbow, not sure if he wanted me to go onto the pavement or pull over, his front wheel was 5cm from the next guys rear wheel, but he kept on nudging .... thank goodness there ware now potholes or rocks, because he left me ZERO space to move.  The other "bahaviour" ... from the toll booth down we were three bikes, my hugging the rock face (trying my best to stay out of the wind), the next on the middle line, third rider on the far left ... first turn fine second turn fine, then on the third turn they both just cut in hard .... I had to grab my brakes to avoid them chopping my front tyre ....  None of this has anything to do with the type of bike .... some people just need to get out more and get some road skills.

This dude started with us. Not a great photo but he’s on an ebike. What was the highest group ebikes were allowed to start?

[ChrisF]

17 hours ago, Long Wheel Base said:

This dude started with us. Not a great photo but he’s on an ebike. What was the highest group ebikes were allowed to start?

3B.

 

EDIT:

109km earliest start was 3B.

No such rule in play for the 42km.

Edited March 11 by ChrisF

[Heina13]

9 hours ago, Long Wheel Base said:

This dude started with us. Not a great photo but he’s on an ebike. What was the highest group ebikes were allowed to start?

I started in the 2B, did 3:30 and I passed him when he was waiting in the finishing straight. I was very surprised to see an e-biker knowing their rules. So started in 1C but did the 3:50 I guess. Only some rules apply to him.

[Long Wheel Base]

1 minute ago, Heina13 said:

I started in the 2B, did 3:30 and I passed him when he was waiting in the finishing straight. I was very surprised to see an e-biker knowing their rules. So started in 1C but did the 3:50 I guess. Only some rules apply to him.

So he never started in 1C. This was actually group 2C. 
I thought the rules were they still had to cross the timing mats at certain times. They were not meant to race and then stop for coffee before the line.