Full Sus’s eyes and legs in the 2014 Bridge Cape Pioneer Trek was Diana Carolin (follow her on @di_carolin). Di raced with Rob Cragg for Craft SA in the Mixed category and she provided daily updates (we were exceptionally busy and didn’t get to uploading her Stage 5 and 6 reports on the evening she sent them) exclusively for Full Sus throughout the race. Here’s how Stage 5 and 6 went for her went:
#MontaguMettle – 71km with 1 755m ascent (Planned)
Stage 5 was reduced to 51km on the eve of the stage as the rain which turned Stage 4 into a sufferfest for the riders made some of the MontaguMettle route unsafe to ride. The day therefore kicked off with a neutral zone to the foot of the Montagu Pass before the racing got underway.
After five amazing days of having legts that were working surprisingly well, today (Friday) was the day that they screamed in protest! It took the first 24km, which consisted of a neural start of 20 minutes then the Montagu Pass and then some, before they started working again.
We made it up the Pass and hit the downhill at speed to make up time lost on the climb. But as I pulled my back break for a corner there was nothing there!! I yelled for Rob who was flying ahead and he slowed to have a look. My mechanical skills yesterday (Thursday) in my exhausted daze seemed to be lacking somewhat as my one break pad had fallen out. Doh!!
Fortunately there was a tech zone about 1km ahead and we got it sorted there, but it added about 6 minutes to our time.
Then we had to play catch-up. We both dug deep and pushed as hard as we could. After about 10km we could see the teams we had been close behind when we had to stop, and we just kept pushing. (It was a great thing that we did stop though because there were some hairy downhill sections to navigate and they wouldn’t have been possible without brakes!)
With 2km to go we almost caught them but then a nasty little climb slowed us up and they stayed beyond our reach. We came in strong none-the-less and finished in 6th on the day.
I have never needed a massage so badly as I did today and it hurt like hell. One more day to go! Hopefully it will be plain sailing for the last day and my legs will be back!
Well done to everyone who finished Stage 5, it might have been short but it was by no means easy.
#ChandelierChampagne – 86km with 1 024m ascent
At last: Louvain to Oudtshoorn. The last day. I woke up with legs that felt good and it was a beautiful day. Right from the start we went out hard and got into a big group that pulled us along for about 50km. Some serious low flying!
Then we hit a rough section and a couple of hills and that spilt the group up a bit. So we were back to flying solo for a while as we turned off the district roads onto rougher jeep tracks. We kept pushing and passed two mixed teams with punctures and a few others too. It was just pedal to the floor to get home and we were lucky to have no problems today (Saturday).
We hit the tar with another mixed team and the race was on. I wasn’t sure there was much left but my legs didn’t let me down. We flew up to the finish and put on a good sprint finish between us. Finishing in 4th on the stage and 5th in the Mixed category in the GC. We were pretty stoked considering the competition!
I just want to mention what a great race it was yet again. And I’d like extend a big thank you to all the supporters, fellow riders, Bridge, Craft and Dyland for makin git all possible! It was a brilliant week.
Thanks too Gerald for driving my car back, without it I would have been lost.
Final words for Di
One last mention… at no time did I use a single caffeine gel or any caffeine whatsoever! Not once ever! Just raw honey Ener-B gels, Raw Revolution bars and High 5 4:1 drink. And not to forget the yummy vanilla Cadence Revive for recovery. It’s a great combination of products and they got me through the whole race feeling fantastic! In fact better than I have ever felt in a stage race and I’ve done quite a few now.
Ok I’ve said my bit.
Well done everyone for completing such a tough race!! It’s a must for 2015!!!
Pro’s on the final two stage
After the #KammanasieKanon drama the Bulls and Asrin ladies managed to hang onto their GC classification leads without any drama for the final two stages of the 2014 Bridge Cape Pioneer Trek.
The highlight for most mountain biking fans though were the stage wins for the #IRide4Burry ladies Cherise Stander and Candice Neethling. There are not many better sights in South African mountain biking than a beaming Cherise on the podium.
GC Results:
Men:
- Simon Stiebjahn (GER) / Tim Bohme (GER) – Team Bulls 22:08:19
- Philip Buys / Matthys Beukes– Scott Factory Racing 22:17:07
- Johann Rabie / Gawie Combrinck– EAI South Africa 22:49:05
- James Reid / Herman Persteiner (AUT) – Asrin Cycling 22:50:54
- Michiel van Aelbroeck (NED) / Robby de Bock (NED) WMTB.Be 23:09:39
Women:
- Catherine Williamson (GBR) / Alice Pirard (BEL) – Asrin Cycling 25:59:00
- Jennie Stenerhag (SWE) / Robyn de Groot – Biogen Toyota CBC 26:43:38
- Theresa Ralph / Esther Suss (SUI) – Meerendal Wheeler 1 26:57:45
Mixed:
- Max Friedrich (GER) / Jana Zieschank (GER) – Firebike Tomotion 26:07:18
- Kobus Barnard / Fienie Barnard – Klein Karoo Mixed 26:13:58
- Igna de Villiers / Daleen Van der Leek LGE Midas Bells Cycling 27:49:19
Click here full final 2014 Bridge Cape Pioneer Trek results.
Tweet of the Race:
Catch the Pioneer on TV
| Date | Show | Channel | Time |
| 22 Oct | Daily Highlights Repeat | Super Sport 8 | 10:45 – 12:30 |
| 23 Oct | Daily Highlights Repeat | Super Sport 8 | 15:15 – 17:00 |
| 23 Oct | Daily Highlights Repeat | Super Sport 8 | 22:30 – 00:00 |
We’ll let you know when the full highlight show premiers!
