09 May 2012 Van Wyk thrilled with victory at African Continental Championships, Mauritius
The 2012 African Continental Championships was held on the lovely island of Mauritius on the 5th of May. Team bizhub-FCF’s Junior Linda Van Wyk participated in the ...
Jade Roberts
(January 2010, Clarence Training Camp)
Hilton 50 miller
So this weekend we were up in Hilton for another MTN Marathon, the Second to last one in the series. As we lined up, I knew we were in For an aggressive, tough race, as Yolande Speedy (MTN-Qhubeka) and
Ischen Stopforth (bizhub), we tie for the overall leaders jersey. Both Were wearing pink jerseys, and I knew that this race was going to be a pursuit of the pink jersey. I was going to do my best to make sure that my team-mate (Ischen Stopforth) secured the highest number of points possible. The weather was great, a cool 30 degrees in comparison to last weeks 45!! The forests and mountains of Hilton awaited us...
The start was a lot faster than most marathons, which suited me as a Cross-country rider, and I enjoyed "pacing it" at the front with Speedy and Stopforth. I could see that Speedy was showing some good
form and was fresh, due to her relatively short season. However, knew that Ischen was going to give her a "run for her money" and would fight right to the end. Unfortunately, Ischen had a crash in the
single-track about 20kms in, which set her back about 30 seconds or so. Winding through the beautiful forest singletrack, I was purposefully holding back in front of Speedy to give Ischen a chance to catch up. Due to Ischens "never say die" attitude and her strength on the climbs, she caught and passed me and was firing on all cylinders to catch Speedy, who was currently living up to her name!
The rest of the race was really challenging! The course was relentless. It was basically a series of steep and sometimes lengthily climbs, with some single-track thrown in between. (just to remind us of the fun element). I could see Ischen on and off almost until the end. However, I really wanted her to catch Speedy!
The last 10kms was really rough for me. They had told us that the race would be 70kms, and when I crossed the finish line, my garmin read 80kms! So, needless to say, it was a long 10kms of wondering where the finish line may be. I crossed the line in 3rd, behind two very classy riders. Unfortunately, Speedy had won the battle, but Ischen should be commended for her extreme determination and "vasbyt". She is a real racing machine!
It was fantastic to have a race where the top 3 women were in close proximity of each other the whole time. It makes racing a lot more exciting and is a great sign for the future.
Well done to all the bizhub girls! Yolandi had an excellentrace, finishing 4th as well.
Thank you to Conrad for the amazing mechanical and feeding support. That cold bottle is always appreciated 70kms into a race. Thanks for all your work.
And thank you to bizhub and John Robertson for making this all possible. What a wonderful opportunity to use our able bodies to full capacity.
