Cape Town - Doctor evil is an apt name for the twisted GP behind one of the world’s toughest mountain bike challenges.
In the Absa Cape Epic’s 10-year history, the doctor (known to his friends and colleagues as Leon Evans, head of the route design team) has engineered some of the steepest climbs through some of the most treacherous, albeit eye-pleasing, Cape terrain.
The blueprint hasn’t changed too much for next year’s edition on March 17-24 - with 698km of dirt, sand, rocks and tarmac waiting patiently for the next crop of eager cyclists.
While the course promises to be easier than this year’s, for which the already difficult track was made even tougher by bipolar weather conditions and gale force winds, event founder Kevin Vermaak warned that it wasn’t going be a tricycle ride.
“You never know how the weather might turn out,” Vermaak said.
Despite wild speculation that the event might return to its birthplace in Knysna for its 10th birthday - the challenge will once again spin into life at the Meerendal Wine Estate and see 1 200 cyclists, divided into teams of two, chase through the Cederberg Mountain Range, Bains Kloof Pass and the Stellenbosch Winelands over seven gruelling days.
And with a prize of R1 million for the winners, there has never been a better reason to tear through the Western Cape countryside.
The prologue event on the first day of the race will see cyclists loop through the Meerendal Wine Estate - even pedalling through the historic Meerendal Manor House before embarking on a steep climb known as the “Stairway to Heaven”. While this section of the race is short, at just over 23km, the showcase event will decide which teams will wear the coveted leaders’ jerseys at the opening stage.
Stage one will be new ground for the Epic. Cyclists will wind between farmlands and slog up sandy mountainsides. Spanning 103km, with about 2 500m of climbing, the opening leg will be a brutal introduction to newcomers and a reminder to stalwarts that Doctor Evil is still handing out the prescriptions.
Stage two is the longest part of the route, covering just over 145km. Cyclists will travel from the race village in Citrusdal to the Saronsberg Wine Estate. Early sections of the stage will demand that cyclists battle uphill. But desperate climbs eventually flatten out and then dissolve into rollercoaster descents, where riders will hurtle down past red sandstone formations into the Witzenberg Valley.
In Stage three, the word of the day is mountains. Cyclists will pedal through a 103km-long figure eight, which loops through the basin between the Winterhoek Mountains in the north and the Witzenberg range to the east. Again the day starts with a climb, but quickly turns into a blur as cyclists hurtle between lush vegetation and send their wheels spinning through softer soil in the area.
Stage four will see riders travel 106km from Saronsberg Wine Estate to Wellington. The day won’t kick-off with a climb, but rather 15km of rare “free mileage” on gravel and even some tar roads will give weary legs a break. But this is the Epic, so, predictably, flat roads give way to a washed-out, rocky and rut-ridden trail. There won’t be a dull moment as the terrain and surroundings change frequently, with forests spilling into open farmlands.
Stage five is described as short and sweet, but riders will need the relatively easy 75km trek through Wellington to prepare themselves for the next day.
Stage six is the challenge’s gauntlet. It’s probably fair to assume that Doctor Evil was having either a particularly bad day or was feeling mischievous.
The 100km route between Wellington and Stellenbosch has more climbing than a schoolyard jungle gym. With just under 3 000m of climbing, riders will feel like they should be in outer space by the time they reach the finish line.
Stage seven is the grand finale, but unlike the majority of the race, the final leg is short and surprisingly devoid of climbing. Views of False Bay, Cape Point and Table Mountain will probably be wasted on many of the riders as they put their feet to the pedals on the final stretch.
Waiting at Lourensford Wine Estate is the race’s famous finish line. The melting pot of emotion has hosted celebrating (and relieved) cyclists, as well as a fair share of proposals and family reunions.
Cape Argus