In early October, the TREAD Media crew realised we weren’t in the appropriate condition to participate with confidence at the 2022 FNB Wines2Whales stage race. We have also been concerned that stage races are losing their potential future market, so we asked the organisers if we could give our Media Team entry to two young riders. They agreed and we went about finding two appropriate riders. We asked Grant and Kelton about their first FNB Wines2Whales experience. This is what they said.
By Sean Badenhorst
Grant Hiscock (22) and Kelton Miller (25) are fit, young bike riders. They ride mountain bikes and road bikes and they also run. They race occasionally, but have been focussed on completing their studies at university and are now in their first full-time jobs. They were thrilled to be offered our media entry and they were on a buzz from the registration until, well, they say they’re still on a buzz.
They competed in the Shiraz edition, which is where all the country’s to male racers compete. There are some international level racers in the mix too. Grant and Kelton started off in C Batch on Stage 1 and managed to finish in 41st position overall, having passed at least 60 other teams that started in A or B Batch ahead of them. That moved them up to an A Batch start for Stage 2. It wasn’t the smoothest of stages (see details below) for the pair, but they soldiered on to finish 66th.
They only dropped two places on GC to 43rd and held their A Batch start for the final stage. They had a pretty solid final leg, finishing the stage in 35th position and moving up to a final GC position of 41st, one hour and eight minutes behind the overall winners, Konny Looser, the Swiss Marathon Champion and Marc Pritzen, one of South Africa’s strongest bicycle racers (road and MTB).
They showed that they’re no slouches and although we can’t confirm it, must have been the first novice team home. Novice as in first-time participants at the FNB Wines2Whales. We asked them some questions about their experience.
What is your overall impression of FNB Wines2Whales as an experience?
Grant: I was seriously impressed with the event as a whole. The race village, the vibe, the trails… absolutely everything about the event was as world-class as it comes. Really nothing to complain about at all.
Kelton: I think it is fair to say that the Epic Series’ events reputation precedes themselves. Having supported Hayley (my girlfriend) at the Absa Cape Epic earlier this year, I had a fantastic feeling ahead of Wines2Whales and was certainly not disappointed. Everything ran smoothly from start to finish which meant our experience was unbeatable. Personally, logistics are a key priority of mine at an event and they really nailed that. This meant we were able to enjoy the trails, food, post-race chill zones…. all stress free.
In terms of mountain bike races, where would FNB Wines2Whales rank in your personal experience?
Grant: The race route overall easily ranks near the very top of any mountain bike races I have ever done. World-class trails, epic scenery… and not trying to sadistically make us climb up every hill they can find! All-out fun in the truest form of the word.
Kelton: This was my first MTB stage race and can honestly say I now understand the hype. I have done many single day MTB races, but pulling something off perfectly one day after the next is even more difficult. I am still amazed by the Wines2Whales team as they had already done two events before we even arrived.
The riding itself is easily some of the best I have ever experienced. All of the miles are fun without them making it unnecessarily technical or steep.
What did you think of the off-the-bike experience at FNB Wines2Whales?
Grant: My overall view of the off-bike experience was fantastic. Extremely well organised, enjoyable, and convenient are words that come to mind. You cross the finish line have a chat to the guys you rode the day with, drop your bike off for a much-needed wash and lube, head to the showers and tents (never far away) and then straight to the chill zone to kick up your feet until you head through to lunch. I was amazed at the overall efficiency of the race village, at no point did I find myself standing in any outrageous queues, everything runs super smoothly and there are adequate amounts of everything on hand. Super friendly staff always willing to go the extra mile for you and lend a hand if needs be and everything you could possibly need all under one roof.
Standouts were the amazing vibe. I don’t think I’ve ever experienced such a positive vibe at a race before – ever. And that I think is a true testament to the race and the race organisers, it really is all about sharing the GEES no matter how fit or unfit you are. Everyone is stoked to be there and that is evident everywhere you look.
Kelton: I am sure I am not alone when I say that the off-bike experience is as important as the on-bike one. I have supported at Epic before but have never been able to fully immerse myself in the race village experience. Which is why having the opportunity to stay in the tents topped it all off.
I am a strong believer that food brings people together and the same can be said for all of the food-orientated events during the day. The mornings started off with a quality coffee from the Woolies truck – where you could see the nerves, but also the excitement floating around the race village. Personally, what was special were the post-race lunches. Everyone was in one space all reminiscing about the day’s stage. There were the war stories, the hammer-and-the-nail stories, finding out who took the day’s win and also being able to see the last few riders roll into the finish. The off-bike experience was smoothly run, well thought out and an exceptionally important aspect of the three days.
Were you intimidated at all to be starting in the A Batch on Days 2 and 3?
Grant: No, I don’t think so at all. Kelton and I were both very clear that we would ride our own pace and pick riders off one by one and that we wouldn’t fall into the trap of trying to hold the pros’ wheels, because we all know that hardly ever ends well… two minutes in and you already feel like you can’t finish the stage.
Kelton: I wouldn’t say that we were intimidated. Both Grant and I have done a fair bit of racing in the past and have lined up alongside a few of those riders before. We also knew what our intentions were for the three stages and getting too caught up in the pointy end wasn’t one of them. What was fun was getting to be in and amongst the racing snakes for a bit and experiencing that side of Wines2Whales too.
Day 1 and 3 saw you finish in the top 50, what happened on Day 2?
Grant: On paper, day two is known as Play Day, 66km of as much single-track as one can find in the Elgin area, utilising every inch of Oak Valley and Paul Culver’s extensive trail network. Unfortunately, Kelton hit the deck hard on Day 1 and hurt his knee quite badly. This was further aggravated by a fall early on in Day 2, where he clipped his pedal on a tree stump. And if that wasn’t enough just before Witklippies 1, through the most amazing section of fynbos in the Elgin Valley, he bought some more land, this time hitting the deck at a rapid pace. We were cruising through a very fast, flowy single-track section and I heard a serious thud followed by some anguishing moans. Fearing that he may have done some proper damage this time, I quickly dropped my bike, ran back to him, and tried to help as best possible. Garmin incident detection going off, rider upside down and bike in the bundu… you can imagine this wasn’t a pretty sight and Kelton had smacked his poor knees, again! But a true champion and absolute warrior in every sense of the word, he soldiered on through the agonising pain without so much as a complaint, no matter how hard the trails were on his knees he kept digging deeper and deeper to push through it all. By the third and final water point our spirits were sky high again and we were flying back to the finish.
Kelton: Stage 2 certainly was the day I made a habit of crashing in some rather arbitrary places. Grant mentioned the specifics. In mountain biking it is easy to get lost in the beauty of your surroundings or even just your own thoughts. Which I think is what happened to me – this meant Stage 2 was a hobble to the finish line with a bruised confidence and busted knee.
The stage was still a stunner and the trails kept the stoke levels high despite the pain. Post-race I was stuck on those bean bags with an ice pack in the FNB recharge zone for the remainder of the day. Thankfully the knee recovered well enough to make the most of Stage 3.
If you were to do the FNB Wines2Whales in 2023, what would you do differently?
Grant: Truthfully, not a hell of a lot. I had the best partner I could’ve asked for and so much fun that a few days later I’m still riding the absolute high of this incredible event. Kelton and I made a spectacular pairing and complimented one another superbly. The pure horsepower he has on tap from his road riding seriously helped me on the last day to sit in the group for as long as possible and soak up as much free mileage as we could.
Kelton: Can’t think of anything that we could have done differently. Thankfully Grant and I do a fair bit of riding together and had been spending some mileage on the MTBs. Ideally I’d love to have done some more technical training ahead of Wines2Whales – just so that I could have followed Grant’s wheel down those trails.
Based on your first-time experience, would you consider entering the FNB Wines2Whales in the future?
Grant: Most definitely. What an amazing event the Wines2Whales team have going here! Simply an unbeatable experience and one of the best weekends I’ve had in a long-time.
Kelton: Without a doubt yes. Stage racing makes for memorable moments and Wines2Whales did exactly that. It was a great opportunity to spend quality time with mates doing what we love. Having done one of these events you start to identify where the value is in the race entry.
