In his final Spur School’s Mountain Bike race, Potchefstroom Gimnasium’s Brendan van Eeden crossed the line in first place to take the victory at the Inter Schools Final on Friday, 5 October. In a close race, Van Eeden finished ahead of second placed Keegan Bontekoning from Monument High School and third placed Wicus Breytenbach from Garsfontein.
Van Eeden finished his season on a high and will savour this victory for a long time to come.
“It was fast and furious from the start of the race where six riders broke from the pack. On the second lap, Keegan Bontekoning broke away, with me riding behind in second place. I eventually overtook him on the final lap. I then made a last attack to lengthen the gap, which I held until the end,” explained Brendan.
“I give all glory to God, because it is He who gives me strength. I also want to thank my family and coach for all their support,” added Brendan.
Riders from North West achieved a total of four podium places: one first place and three second places. The second-placed riders were: Christiaan Smit (Potchefstroom Gimnasium); Joné van Eeden (Potchefstroom Gimnasium); and Willie van Eck (Rustenburg).
This year North West attracted a total of 791 entries and completed 1 851 laps and 9 674 kms for the season.
“It’s been a jam-packed league and we are so proud of our riders. Each one of them trained really hard and gave the 2018 season their absolute all,” says Deon Steyn, race director for the North West region.
Meurant Botha, director of Amarider and principal organiser of the League, says the North West performance speaks for itself and bodes well for the growth of the sport in the province.
“The League has performed incredibly well in the last 10 years, we are so proud to consistently witness its growth year-on-year. The fact that it gets the kids so excited is a bonus,” says Botha.
