Nissan Trailseeker #4

The Nissan Trailseeker series is scheduled till late in the season and will keep the standard of racing high till the end of the year. The 4th leg called #bundubash was a new venue for this year and everyone was excited to race a new route. I had no idea what to expect from the route until someone said keep some energy in the tank for the last 20km, that person was correct! The start was extremely fast and hard and very dusty. The first 15 to 20km the leading group was still huge with about 30 to 35 riders and it was a race inside the race to keep a good position at the front of the race.



Not long after the first tough section with a climb and some bumpy roads the group finally got reduced to about 12 guys. Two riders tried to slip of the front and that was a hard chase to catch up with them again. After that chase we were only about 6 riders left at the front,everyone trying to hold on and catch your breath at the same time.

We got some very nice single track sections on the route and a very lengthy one about 5km before the Hotspot on 45km. At that stage 5 of us entered the singletrack at almost the same time, unfortunately I entered the singletrack behind a guy who couldn't keep up with the guys up front and at the end of the singletrack the three guys in front wasn't even in sight and it was a very tough chase after that to catch them again and I used a lot of energy not to catch them at the end and with all that effort I forgot about that "last 20km" and I paid for my efforts! I suffered with about 10km to go riding all on my own for about 25km after the hotspot.  

From 5km to go there are indications telling you how far to go, with about 4km to go I pushed myself to the limit cause a chasing group of about 4 riders were just behind me and my goal was to finish in front of them as I counted to kilometers down 3km to go.....2km to go..... They passed me with a bang I could't even get on the back of the group as I nursed myself to the finish with 1km to go.  

                                                                              

I was disappointed not to finish in the top 5 positions but there is always a lot to learn from races and it is important to take the positive aspects out of a race and to improve in the next one. With only two races left for the 2014 season I hope to finish on a high. Thanks for all the support before,during and

after the race I really appreciate it.

I can't thank my sponsors enough for the opportunity they are giving me to live out my dream , racing every race to the best of my ability. Make a point to follow these great sponsors on social media to see their latest and greatest products (Team Jeep- @teamjeep) (Jeep-@jeep) (Gu energy-@GUEnergySouthAf ) (Salomon-@salomon_SA) (POC SA- POCSouthAfrica)

Till next time

Smurf

MTN National Crater Cruise

The Crater Cruise is usually the last race of the MTN national XCM series. Situated in the Free state in a small town called Parys. Most people have that picture in their minds that Crater Cruise is a easy day on the bike just because the route profile is a lot flatter than most of the other MTN national races, but one can never underestimate the Crater Cruise. The heat, sand and bumpy roads are the main factors that make this race so difficult. Parys is about 50km from where I study and 40km from where I live so I can almost say it was my "home ground" with a lot of friends and family out there to support me on the day.

The start was a 5km tar section through the streets of Parys and with no neutral car the pace was fast from the word go. It was the first Marathon (80km) race held at the Crater Cruise usually there was only a 55km and a 115km so the 80km route was new to everyone and I was not sure what to expect. throughout the race I positioned myself at the front to make sure I don't miss any moves at the front. The real bumpy roads started at about 20km into the race and the King of the Mountain(KOM) was at about 30km so the leading group was still very big at this stage of the race. I went to the front up to the KOM trying to thin out the leading group and I succeeded in my goal. With only a selected group of about 10 riders left things started to move in the right direction. We rode a nice but sandy singletrack alongside the river and I managed to lead us into that section. At the end 3 of us made a gap on the rest of the group and we worked well together trying to extend our lead. It was not long when everything got together again. About 30km to Go Julius Cobbet launched one attack after another and soon there were only 6 of us left chasing the lone leader.

15km later and it was still the 6 of us chasing the leader and we didn't really closed the gap. Next on road was a long bumpy drag and I realized we had to do something otherwise it will be a sprint for 2nd place. I pushed my body to the limit up that climb trying to get myself clear from to group and up with the leader. I managed to get away with one other rider on my wheel, the two of us worked our way to the finish line in pursuit of the leader. 

Unfortunately the two of us could not catch Julius so it was between us for 2nd place. I knew Julius was not a U23 rider anymore so the top step for U23 was still open for someone to take. Philemon a rider from the Exxaro academy was the rider on my tail and also a U23 rider. There was a bridge were only one rider can ride over about 50m from the finish and I just got myself over that bridge in the lead to claim 2nd overall and 1st U23 in the marathon. This is my best result in a MTN national series thus far and it was my last as a U23. It was a great experience and a unbelievable feeling.

 






















Thank you to everyone who supported me I really appreciate it, it makes my effort just that more easier knowing there are people waiting for me at the finish line. I can't thank my sponsors enough for their support at every race and in my preparation. The guys from GU energy , Salomon , POC SA, Jeep apparel and Jeep SA are making it all worth the effort.  Next up is the 4th Nissan trailseeker see you guys there.

Till next time 

Train safe

Smurfie :-) 

Silverstar MTB race

The Silverstar MTB race is a very popular race based in Krugersdorp and attracts about 1500 riders. My goal was to defend my title from last year but I knew it would be a difficult task. The start of 2014 was a very tough time for me with a big injury keeping me out of action for 12 weeks. Saturdays win meant a lot for me and gave me a lot of confidence heading into the last part of the season. A few pre race interviews and comments added a little bit of pressure on me to successfully defend my title. The quality of riders improved a lot from last year with guys like Guylin VD Berg, Henry Uys and Julius Cobbet in the mix.

My tactics was to hammer it in the early stages to put the pressure on the other riders. With most of the tough climbs inside the first 15km I knew any gap can make a difference and soon it was only Guylin and myself in front of race.

The two of us worked our way through the kilos in pursuit of the finish line.The race had some very nice technical sections, fast flowing singletracks, fast downhills and some steep short climbs to get the heart rate up. About 10km to the finish the 3rd place rider made a big comeback and both of us realized we have to push the pace a bit higher. With my route knowledge from last year I recognized most of the section in the last few kilometers and I just hammered it up the small climbs and trying to lead the two of us into the last section of singletrack before the very tricky finish arrives. The finish had a long fast tar downhill with two extremely sharp turns at the end. I managed to get myself first going into the tricky corners, with only about 10m of sprinting left after that I successfully defended my title. Taking the win just two seconds ahead of second place rider Guylin. See you guys next year where I will try to make it a hat-trick of wins.

I would like thank all the sponsors for all their support throughout the year without great sponsors it would have been nearly impossible to live my dream. And to my parents and girlfriend who will do anything to support me and motivate me to do my best all the time, I am really blessed with the best and lastly the most important I would like to thank our Heavenly Father for the power He gave me and for keeping me safe throughout the race.




Train safe but train hard!
Till next time
Pierre (smurfie6)

Nissan Trialseeker #3

The 3rd leg of the Nissan Trailseeker took place on Saterday at Curro college near Hazeldean. I had a few weeks without racing and did some good training in the winter and I thought we will have a nice warm race on Saturday, when I got the great news there is a cold front on its way and believe me we felt it! It was freezing cold on the start line with temperatures close to 0 degrees. But as always there were some classy riders such as Nico Bell, Ben Melt and Brand Du Plessis who made the pace hot in the early stages of the race. I'm mentally a lot stronger than earlier in the year where I overcame injuries, illness and some mechanical problems in races. I prepared well for the second half of the season including Saturdays race and I gained some much needed confidence.

Back to racing, the hotspot was 9km into the race and soon a leading group formed of about 12 riders. As in most of the races when the climbing starts the bunch gets smaller and smaller and that is what happened Saturday as well. After a few attacks we were only 5 guys left in the group. We worked well together up until 45km, when I realized my back tire is slowly but surely losing air. I did't want to stop because I knew that will be the end for me and I won't see the leading 4 again. While I rode I took my gloves off and got my bomb ready to make this stop as quickly as possible to try and catch them again. So I kept on riding until it was impossible to race with such a flat tire and I quickly stopped and bombed my wheel, it took me like 15 seconds and I were back on my bike chasing the leaders again. It was a difficult task and I got really close but wasn't able to catch them. I just kept my own pace trying to stay clear of a big chasing group behind me. Unfortunately I had to bomb my wheel for a second time with about 10km to go and at that moment the chasers caught and passed me. It was a big mental knock for me and I got back on my bike and charged to the finish line. There was just not enough time to catch them again and I had to settle for 12th place overall and a hard fought 2nd U23. I took some great confidence out of the race and i'm looking forward to race the 4th leg on the 4th of October. With the U23 podium far from settled there is still a lot to race for.  

I got a very nice surprise after Saturdays race and that is a new POC helmet! now I can ride in style,comfort and safety. Thank you to Team Jeep SA (@teamjeepsa) and POC SA (@POCSouthAfrica) for this beauty. Follow them on twitter for all their latest products.

Thanks to all the sponsors and partners for all the support through thick and thin.

See you guys at the next race.
Be safe
Pierre (@smurfie6)

Nissan Trialseeker 2 #hakahana

With only one rest day after the tough USSA student tour it was time to get back on my mountain bike and head to Hakahana for the 2nd race of the very popular Nissan Trialseeker. I finished 15th overall and 2nd U/23 at the 1st race of the series and with my main goal to finish 1st U/23 in the series my goal is still well in sight. I was a bit unsure what my legs would do on race day after some hectic road racing the whole week before the race. It was a freezing start and took my legs a long time to warm up again, by that time a got drop by the leading group, luckily I got myself back after a few tough sections that warmed me up. It is always great to race against riders like Nico bell, Lourens Luus and Brand Du Plessis and throughout the series there will be pro riders. It was not long before the climbing started and everyone tried to grab the wheel in front of them as the pace got very high. I settled in the 2nd group on road alongside 4 other riders. About half way in the race I found myself in the middle of nowhere on my own, chasing a two man group in front of me, I was to scared to look back and just focused on the group in front. All the steep climbs suited me well with a very low body weight it was a bit easier for me up there. I caught the two riders and not long after that we dropped one and it was Myself and James working our way to the finish line.



I was unsure about my position in the race so I just kept fighting to get a respectable position at the finish line. The race had some very technical rocky downhills and just the opposite some tough rocky climbs. Luckily there is that saying for every uphill there is a downhill and we were not disappointed with some nice single track sections taking us down. Arriving at the finish someone told me I got a top 10 finish and I did I finished 8th overall and 3rd U/23. I am very happy with my performance throughout the week into the weekend from road bike to mountain bike. I just want to thank everyone for all the support I am getting I really appreciate it. And most important I want to thank The Lord for the opportunity to race and live my dream #livewithoutlimits

Keep warm and safe out there.
See you guys at the next race

And to all the sponsors thank you for all the support and making sure we train and race with the best.

Student USSA Tour

About a month ago North West University asked me to join their team to race the student tour this upcoming holiday, At first I was a bit unsure cause this is some serious road racing and I am a mountain biker. I only raced one road bike race like 2 years ago and it was a small local one. After a few thoughts I agreed and prepared myself for this tour. To give you guys some info on the stages,this is not a walk in the park on day one we had the mountain biking leg a 50km XCO race starting at rosemary hill. I knew I had to give everything cause this is my territory the rest of the week I will be in their territory. It was tough racing cross country again but I enjoyed it a lot and got myself a 2nd place overall and it took some pressure of me for the rest of the week. It was a nice track with some awesome singletrack and technical sections and I enjoyed every moment of the race.

Day 2 (stage 1) was the start of the road tour and we started with a 80km short stage in the morning. everyone was a bit nervous in the group and was a bit unsure what to expect from one another. Soon after the start the attacks began and it was full throttle all the way. I was a domestic(worker) in the team so I had to do a lot of chasing and pace making at the front of the race. There were no surprises and most of us finished in the peleton. Only a few hours after the short stage we started stage 2(still day 2) with a 20km individual Time Trial. This was my first TT ever and I really enjoyed it. I got myself a top 10 finish not bad for a mountain biker. Day 3 (stage 3) was the long stage a 140km ride just outside Pretoria. The first half of the race we kept a nice steady pace with one or two individuals trying to break away. The action started with about 40km to go and we had to cover a lot of attacks from the other varsities, and we did a good job nobody got away and we (NWU) controlled the pace at the front again. 10km to go a guy from NNMU attacked and nobody responded and he got a gap of about 25 seconds when I decided it is my turn to attack. I chased him down and we worked well together to keep the peleton of our backs with about a 40sec gap. With 1km to go we realized we can actually survive and suddenly we were enemies again and it was a bit of a cat and mouse effect,but I had to settle for second place. Still a very good achievement for the team and myself.

After stage 3, I was 9th place on the GC(general classification) day 4 (stage4) was a short but hard stage we did a 2.4km hill climb. My legs were a bit heavy after the effort of the previous 3 days and I struggled on that hill but everyone felt that way and I climbed up there in the 7th fastest time. That same afternoon the last stage was in sight a 45min + 1 lap criterium. It was a very short course of only 500m with about 40 cyclist, it had trouble written all over. It was full gas from the word go and it was not long before the riders crashed one by one and after about 10 minutes more than half of the field were eliminated.
With all the crashes a gap opened up in front of me and it and it was not to long after that and my race also ended, only 6 riders managed to complete the 45mins. I finished the tour in 10th place overall. I am really happy with my performance in the tour. I just want to thank Team Jeep and all the sponsors GU Energy, Salomon, Jeep Apparel for all the support they gave me throughout the week. It was a great experience for me to race on the road and it was great training for the rest of the season.