Sus the Chris Willemse Cycles Durbie Dash
Date: 25 October 2015
Distances: The Contermanskloof Rock Buster (37km) & The Fair Cape Chain Breaker (54km)
Website: www.durbiedash.co.za
Report & Photos by: Jeanne-Louise & Jaco Wiese
The Durbanville Hills area, or specifically, the Tygerberg Mountain Bike Club playgrounds, has developed into one of the most auspicious mountain biking areas in the Western Cape. With long distance rides towards Philidelphia, cross-country riding through the surrounding vineyard covered hills, all the way to the flowing singletrack of Contermanskloof and technical downhill of Hoogekraal. With all of this in mind, as well as the nagging feeling that Jaco needs to get some training in before his November races, we were glad to see that the annual Faircape/Durbanville High School race would cover these routes and so we were excited to have the opportunity to ride the CWC Durbie Dash. If there were any hesitations they were quickly dispelled by the involvement of the country’s largest online cycling store as a title sponsor quickly dispelled them.
Naturally I’m not very keen on plummeting head first down a single track with no back brakes so Jaco had to arrange a last minute brake bleeding session, which caused him to miss a couple of essentials for his race, like sunblock, additional drinks and snacks.
We rushed to the starting blocks at 7h20 on a somewhat windy Saturday morning only to discover on arrival that the 54km race already started at 7h00. Not sure precisely where we lost our bearing of time, and knowing that we probably missed the briefing given to us at registration on the Friday, our whole day started late. The backup vehicle was nice enough to lead Jaco through the neutral zone to the first turnoff onto Clara Anna Fontein. I opted for the shorter 37km route which followed a lot of the same trails and given the weather the day (it was hot and windy) I was very pleased with myself.
The Fair Cape Chain Breaker – by Jaco Wiese
The route climbed the hill along Aurora to the entrance into the first vineyards. A slight descend towards Tygervalley road saw me catching up with the first co-racers at the well-stocked water table and I grabbed a banana for breakfast. The school kids cheering at the table seemed like they were having more fun than they normally have at school and set the mood for a great day out in the hills. Leaving the water the route started the gradual and long ascent through the vineyards to the top of Contermanskloof. I wished I had some way of capturing some of the views in those hills. It was then that I realised that I had not ridden this route before. A steep ascent up the hills soon found us riding a contour path along the southerly shaded slopes of the “koppie” and enjoying the views below. The cool bliss did not last long however and soon we were climbing again from the reservoir to the mast above Contermanskloof. The rocky terrain at the exit of the climbing single track, near the top, hampered some of the smooth riding, but it was well worth it to breath in the views from the top.
Aside from the views, the climb was made worthwhile by the smooth single track descending into Contermanskloof, for about a 120m vertical descend. This singletrack is manicured like a putting green on St Andrews with good hard packed berms, nice technical jumps and mini-rock gardens and ample chicken runs. The racers were winding down the hill like ants. The downhill brought the kid out in just about everyone, although it seemed that there were some people honing their preservation instincts, rather than letting go on the downhill. At this point I have to commend the general downhill riding ability of most people nowadays. Given the exponential rate at which mountain biking has surpassed even the growth rate of China, people have become better technical riders by spending time in the saddle and enjoying the great outdoors. This point was also proven on the technical climb up the singletrack at Hoogekraal!
Dropping out of Contermanskloof at breakneck speeds onto the Visserhok tar road, the route entered into Hoogekraal. This area was the most dreaded by the riders for its technical climbing which just never ends! The route took the normal route up to the bluegums and down into the singletrack. This singletrack is more of a technical purist’s delight. It’s dusty, not perfect lines everywhere, rocky and a lot of bumps which can break your speed if you time them incorrectly. Everyone seemed to enjoy it, but a lot of guys mumbled something about a “long climb ahead” and “saving energy”. Although the route was well marked with dangers indicated, I saw one lady who fell off a small bridge in a technical section. It seems like she dislocated a shoulder and I’d like to wish her a speedy recovery, and also thank all the guys who assisted. Camaraderie is what mountain biking is all about.
The start of the climb has a little sign stating the number of switchbacks, or something. It was torture seeing numbers knowing that you can actually track the torture up the route. The wind however brought in some welcome bliss ascending the singletrack. After about 250m of vertical ascent, I noted the route continued past the famed Hoogekraal downhill. Given the morale and fatigue after the long singletrack climb, I am glad the organisers did not include the downhill. It would have been unpleasant to see crashes and unnecessary bottlenecks. Well played!
Then the route descended through a few quite slippery corn fields, slippery due to the hay on the ground, before climbing onto the Malanshoogte road to send the riders into more farmland. The newly harvested lands made me appreciate my rear suspension a lot! And the ripe grain blew softly in the wind, which gave it a bit of an authentic farmland feel. The water table at the dam provided some fresh Fair Cape fruit juice, a first for me on a ride, but definitely refreshing. We crossed onto another farm and down to the Diep River. Initially the shade offered. by the trees along the river bed, was welcome but soon the river bed exposed the riders to the most dreaded enemy – especially when the route required us to cross the river three times – it pounces on tired legs at the end of a race. After the final river crossing we entered onto the final kilometres of farm roads. At this stage it was all about surviving the race and the headwind south easter. The long route joined the medium route (The Contermanskloof Rock Buster which Jeanne-Louise did) at this. The final water point was like an oasis before the final climb of the day which was followed by the descent back into Durbanville.
Jean-Louise’s Wrap-Up
To summarize the day it was fantastic weather, great atmosphere at the start and finish, loads of family fun and an overall well organised event. The cyclists also behaved very well as I did not once see a wrapper being tossed along the trail. But now that we are all very well trained to refrain from littering, it is time to start an initiative to keep those water bottles from scattering the trails like a Chapmans Peak rockfall. So if you are heading to the bike shop with your “essential spares” list, remember that a proper bottle cage should be right at the top of it.
