Johannesburg – Team Bonitas are looking to continue their domestic dominance this season when they line up in the elite men's race at the SA Road Cycling Championships in Nelspruit this weekend.
The UCI Continental team has enjoyed a great start to the 2013 season, racking up five road titles in the past few weeks.
“We hope to keep winning as we have done in the past two months,” team manager Barry Austin said on Friday.
“Winning the race on Sunday will cement what we've achieved so far and put us firmly in charge of the first part of the season.”
The new riders at the professional outfit have stood out this year, producing some stellar performances.
Christoff van Heerden leads the pack with a total of three wins for the team. He finished first at the Value Logistics Fast One 106km race, the Herald VW Cycle Tour and the Gauteng provincial road championships.
Pieter Seyffert, another new recruit for the team, claimed the biggest win of his professional career when he took the title at the Dischem Ride for Sight 116km race in Boksburg last month, and sprinter Herman Fouche bagged his first win of the season at the Optimum Berge en Dale Classic in Krugersdorp.
Even with a wealth of talent in their line-up, Austin was quick to point out that they always rode as a pack.
“The team as a unit has been outstanding, we don't rely on individual performances,” he said.
“Coming to this race, Van Heerden will be a favourite as one of our stronger riders, but we have many other riders who will be srong contenders for the title.”
Team Bontas adopted a fresh approach in their 2013 line-up with the aim of grooming young riders who could produce results, both in South Africa and abroad. The strategy seems to be yielding results.
“We didn't expect it so soon but the team has come together,” Austin said.
“We made the team younger with the aim of looking towards the future.
“We are building a younger team and a sustainable project, bringing in new faces and supporting the old ones.”
Meanwhile, defending champion Ashleigh Moolman Pasio has her sights set on another title in the elite women's race on Saturday.
Moolman Pasio claimed the gold medal at last year's championships, winning the 110km race.
She also won the women's time trial at the national championships on Thursday, while Daryl Impey won the men's time time trial.
“I'm going out there to defend my title and will be riding hard to secure another win,” she said on Friday.
“We have a strong field out there that includes Lise Olivier, who was a strong contender last year and was a good climber, but I will do my best to win again this year.”
Riding for the Lotto-Belisol Ladies team overseas, as well as Momentum Toyota in South Africa, Moolman Pasio said she was eager to compete at the national championships.
“I spend six months in Europe and the remainder in South Africa,” she said.
“I always look forward to the national champs because it's an honour to win the title as you get to ride in the South African champion kit for the rest of the year.” – Sapa