Craighall’s physiotherapist excited to participate in the Cape Pioneer Trek
A road cyclist based in Craighall expressed how her new venture, mountain biking, requires more technical skills.
A physiotherapist from Craighall Park Parys Edwards is excited to be taking part in the Cape Pioneer Trek.
The mountain biking race will be taking place from September 4 to 10. Edwards said she accepted a late substitution entry into the race.
“It’s a seven-day mountain bike stage race around George. It’s a beautiful purist mountain biking [event] just under 11 000m of elevation over the seven days [and] around 500km of riding. I am really looking forward to it,” said Edwards.
She said she still had a ‘good engine’ from her triathlon days and her road cycling but has less technical ability. The physiotherapist advised anyone switching from triathlon or road cycling to mountain biking to get some lessons.
“The technical side of it is just a game changer not just from a time point of view but from a safety point of view. It’s so good to know you can move your body around the bike so differently. You throw that bike around, you trust the tyres and it’s just very different to, for example, riding a bike in the same straight line where you and the bike are one. So, the technical side has been humbling and also a real game changer.”
She said she found mountain biking so much more challenging on the whole body yet so beautiful and she was personally really happy to be off the road. Addressing the perception that there were a lot of injuries, crashes and falls that occurred on a mountain bike, Edwards suggested managing one’s risk by being technically more competent and not taking risks.
“So, you can calculate your risks a bit more off the road. On the road, I think the risks are a lot more out of your control because there are other riders and traffic.
“As a self-employed physiotherapist, I am taking mountain biking to enjoy our beautiful countryside but then I’m going to manage my risks right within my technical ability and just enjoy keeping fit. It’s been great to have an opportunity to stay within a sport that I enjoy but it just feels totally different.”
Details: Cape Pioneer Trek www.capepioneer.co.za
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