Lim schools mountain bikers gain valuable experience on national level

While the Limpopo schools mountain biking (MTB) teams that participated in the 2018 Spur Schools MTB Inter Schools final in Magaliesburg over the past weekend failed to win their events, the experience gained was invaluable with many of the cyclists being young, first-time participants at finals level.
This was according to Limpopo region spokesperson, Tiaan Fullard. The Limpopo schools who made their way to the finals were Louis Trichardt High School, Stanford Lake College, Pietersburg Hoërskool and Merensky High School.
“Our girls, especially, produced some really confident riding. “We’ve got a nice young group of riders coming through at the moment. They were first-timers at the finals and for many it was a rude awakening. The course was a lot more technical than previously and really tested the skills of the riders. It’s a good thing as it pushes them to train for technical riding and to brush up on their skills,” Fullard said.
“We’ll train up these young riders and next year we’ll be back stronger and better. It’s looking good,” he added.
This year Limpopo attracted a total of 1 324 entries – a 15% increase compared to 2017 – and completed 129 laps and 515 km for the season.
The Spur Schools MTB League, currently in its 10th year, is the country’s largest high school cycling programme and the main nursery for talent in the sport. For the full results go to www.spurmtbleague.co.za.

Story: KAREN VENTER
>>karen@observer.co.za