The second stage of the FNB Wines2Whales (W2W) Mountain Bike (MTB) Ride kicked off at the picturesque Oak Valley Wine Estate (Elgin-Grabouw) on Tuesday, 04 November 2014.
Riders had a lot to be thankful for with the rain ceasing minutes before the first batch of riders lined up in the start chutes.
Fondly referred to as the ‘Play Day’, Stage Two saw riders experiencing the best bridges and structures built for the sport of mountain biking including the madly creative Peri-Kromco Play Park.
Frikkie Hartog and Gerard Dirks of Team Knersus secured their second stage victory, completing the 67km route in a lightning fast time of 03 hours 22 minutes 39 seconds. According to Hartog, stage two was great. “We started in the front. With the route being fairly flat in the beginning, we all stuck together with us pulling away at water point two. The Paul Cluver Amphi Bike Park was enjoyable, while the Peri-Kromco Play Park was interesting and great fun. We’ll definitely like to go for our hat-trick win tomorrow, but will have to see what happens”. Fanie Steenkamp and Pierre Andre Knoetze of Team Xtreme Riders came in second, while Harry Orr and Ehlers Smit of Team The Fast Traks finished third.
Tamaryn Kietzmann and Nicholas Porteous of Team Specialized Duo were the mixed team to beat on the day crossing the finish line first in an impressive time of 03 hours 51 minutes 14 seconds. “Nick had to help me a lot today,” laughed Kietzmann. “I learnt a lot about mountain biking. I was a little nervous going into the Paul Cluver Amphi Bike Park, but ended up really enjoying it and definitely want to come back to do it again. Our goal for tomorrow is just to make it to the finish. Hopefully we’ll be first”. Yzette and Petrus Oelofse of Team Boys and Bikes came in second, while Colette Willemse and Edrich Fivaz of Team Vision Trust finished third.
German competitors Susanne Rathgeb and Nicole Kuttruff of Team Craft Rocky Mountain Girls had a great day out on route. Crossing the finish line in 04 hours 18 minutes 49 seconds they claimed the top spot on the podium in the women’s category. “We experienced technical problems early in the stage thanks to the mud,” said Rathgeb. “The support at water point one was excellent and we were able to sort out our bikes and carry on. The first two stages have been great and very professionally organized. Compared to events in Germany, this is a real mountain biking experience”. Caroline Schuerman and Janet Keet of Team Masikhule came in second, while Nienke Van Schaik and Kasha Dickie of Team Extreme Lights finished third.
GC Results going into Stage 3:
MEN
|
P_Group |
Time Day2 |
Time GC |
Team# | TeamName | Rider1 | Rider2 |
|
1 |
03:22:39 |
07:10:03 |
2AB | Knersus | Frikkie Hartog | Gerard Dirks |
|
2 |
03:24:44 |
07:12:10 |
517AB | XTREME RIDERS | Fanie Steenkamp | Pierre Andre Knoetze |
|
3 |
03:25:35 |
07:25:50 |
7AB | The Fast Traks | Harry Orr | Ehlers Smit |
|
4 |
03:31:15 |
07:32:01 |
23AB | The Wash @ The River Club | Adriaan Theron | Bryan Nicholson |
|
5 |
03:31:27 |
07:32:33 |
3AB | Having Fun | Graham Ransom | James Thomas |
MIXED
|
P_Group |
Time Day2 |
Time GC |
Team# | TeamName | Rider1 | Rider2 |
|
1 |
04:00:42 |
08:15:56 |
34AB | Boys and bikes | Petrus Oelofse | Yzette Oelofse |
|
2 |
03:51:14 |
08:16:08 |
25AB | Specialized Duo | Tamaryn Kietzmann | Nicholas Porteous |
|
3 |
04:01:22 |
08:41:16 |
114AB | Vision Trust | Colette Willemse | Edrich Fivaz |
|
4 |
04:18:39 |
08:49:01 |
80AB | LGS Exports | Piet Van Rensburg | Jeanie de Villiers |
|
5 |
04:10:55 |
08:49:45 |
154AB | Team WAKA | Kathy Milne | Walter Diezel |
WOMEN
|
P_Group |
Time Day2 |
Time GC |
Team# | TeamName | Rider1 | Rider2 |
|
1 |
04:18:49 |
08:58:35 |
527AB | Craft Rocky Mountain Girls | Susanne Rathgeb | Nicole Kuttruff |
|
2 |
04:29:24 |
09:34:26 |
6AB | Masikhule | Caroline Schuermans | Janet Keet |
|
3 |
04:32:49 |
09:39:28 |
124AB | EXTREME LIGHTS | Nienke Van Schaik | Kasha Dickie |
STAGE THREE: Wednesday, 04 November 2014
Start: Oak Valley Wine Estate (Elgin-Grabouw)
Finish: Onrus Caravan Park (just outside Hermanus)
Start Time: 07:00
Distance: 73km
Like the Facebook page: Wines2Whales
Follow the race on Twitter: @w2wmtb
All 2014 FNB W2W MTB riders (Adventure, Ride and Race) stand the chance to win a magnificent Specialized mountain bike in the #MySpecializedDraw. Valued at a whopping R50 000.00 per event, the #MySpecializedDraw includes a Body Geometry Fit Session.
