Cyclists hit Magoeba Trek trails
The scenery, fantastic routes and the promise of a great race vibe attracted a full field of cyclists that included several local Limpopo teams.
Mountain bikers from across the country came together last weekend to test their skills in the Magoebaskloof mountains at the third edition of the 3-day Insect Science Magoeba Trek stage race.
The scenery, fantastic routes and the promise of a great race vibe attracted a full field of cyclists that included several local Limpopo teams. Stanford Lake College provided an excellent venue from which cyclists tackled either the 40km/ day Trail or the more gruelling 70km/day race.
The cold and rainy weather meant that the trails were wet and slippery on Day 1, but the mist lifted for the weekend, enabling riders to enjoy the views as well as the trails.
With numerous events being cancelled in 2020 and earlier in 2021 due to Covid, the event organisers and sponsors made an enormous effort to ensure Magoeba Trek was able to go ahead.
Gerhard Booysen, MD of the event’s headline sponsor, Insect Science, said: “Insect Science is passionate about building a sport that is healthy and gets people outdoors, so we are very proud to be involved with an event of this calibre. It was fantastic to have people back on their bikes for three great days of racing, fun and camaraderie.”
In the 70km Race, several pro men’s teams fought hard for the podium spots. In the end, it was the Pyga EuroSteel duo of Philip Buys and Pieter du Toit who took the honours, showing their strength throughout the three days.
They were followed by the Insect Science team of Keagan Bontekoning and CP van Wyk, with TypeDev NanoTime’s team of Wessel Botha and Nico Bell completing the podium.
In the ladies’ race, the Galileo Infiniti Spot team of Theresa Ralph and Sam Sanders were the clear winners, with the Vivo Vita Sport duo of Mari du Toit and Udo Juterbock winning the mixed team category. In the 40km Trail, the podium was dominated by the younger teams, with the Insect Science Junior Team of Gunther Katzke and Herman Fourie storming to the top spot of the men’s team category, coming home well ahead of second-place Reinhard Jansen van Vuuren and Tyrone Anders, and third-placed Ruben van Tonder and Andani Raphalalani.
In the ladies’ race, Olivia Penfold and Lianke Fourie finished ahead of Anke Rood and Jani Jordan, while local mixed team Britt and Chris Dando topped the mixed team podium, followed by another husband and wife team of Jason and Shirley Scriven.
The Copper Moon Events duo of Marc and Jennifer Noné were once again the driving force behind the event. “We are delighted that the race was able to go ahead this year, bringing cyclists back to this beautiful part of South Africa.
“A 3-day event of this magnitude also helps to build tourism in the area and, at a time like this, it provided an important boost to many local businesses,” said Noné.
She added that without the support of sponsors, it would not be possible to host an event like this. “We are very grateful to our sponsors, Insect Science, BF Petroleum Tzaneen, ZZ2, Miami Canners, Trophy Toyota, Talisman, Enduren nutrition and Squirt Cycling Products.”
