KwaZulu-Natal’s Keira Duncan continued his domination of men’s Enduro in South Africa when he won Round 1 of the Mpumalanga Enduro Series at Tranquilitas Farm at the weekend; while local racer, Arielle Behr secured a dominant win in the women’s category.
By Sean Badenhorst | Photos: Chris Taylor Media
Duncan lost just two Enduro races in 2022, the South African Championships, where he was second, and last year’s edition of this very race. But this year he brought peak form and a high level of motivation. Despite facing a stronger field than last year, the diminutive Pyga racer was in a class of his own.
Duncan won five of the six stages and clocked a total winning time of 28min 03.393sec. He was almost a minute quicker than second placed, Robert Frost, who clocked 29:00.785, giving him the Sub-Veteran Men’s category win. Frost won the stage that Duncan didn’t. KwaZulu-Natal Junior, Alex de Bruin, was third overall in 29:30.519, a fraction of a second faster than 2022 Tranquilitas Enduro champion, Willie van Eck in fourth. Another KwaZulu-Natal Junior, Keagan Brand, rounded out the top five overall.
Before the prizegiving, there was a change made by the Race Commissaire. The rain had washed away a chalk-dust route marker on Stage 2, which affected Van Eck, the first rider on that stage. The organisers were alerted and re-marked it to ensure other riders followed the correct route. As a result, the Commissaire neutralised Stage 2 for the top five finishers overall. This saw Van Eck move to third and De Bruin move to fourth overall.
“I really enjoyed the longer stages. Reminds me of some of the more extreme enduros I did a few years back, namely EzelEnduro in Ceres, Kingdom Enduro in Lesotho and the Hogsback Enduro. I like the long stages; they require a good level of fitness and skill to get fast times on. Consistency was the name of the game at Tranquilitas for me,” said Duncan.
“Most of my stages went considerably well. I had one small mechanical issue towards the end of Stage 2, which held me up minutely but otherwise I’m stoked for my six clean runs.
“The combination of moist soil and lots of pedally bits was probably my biggest challenge. It wasn’t an issue but taking into consideration most of our local Enduro stages are 2-3 minutes, once I’d ridden past that line and still had to push hard to keep up my speed my legs cried a little!
“But all in all, nothing wrong with a bit of pedalling, I like most things that help shape me into a stronger rider. This year’s event was a level up from last year so I’m looking forward to seeing what the next Tranquilitas Enduro is going to offer. Perhaps we will be surprised with some steeper, more technical stages,” he added.
Having grown up riding at Tranquilitas, Behr may have an advantage in knowing the trails better than most, but her 17thoverall finish position was impressive in a strong field. She’s still only 15 years old. Her winning time was 31:42.168, which included finishing top 15 on three of the six stages.
Veterans were the dominant female category on the day with, Lousie Kotze second in 33:40.283 and Elja van Urk third in 35:26.693. Wendy Odendaal and Irma du Plooy rounded out the top five respectively.
“All my stages went quite smoothly. I know the trails well, but with the new sections, I was unsure how long they were and it was hard to know where to push. Stage 5 was the hardest for me. I felt half dead by the end of it,” said Behr, who appreciated the longer stages.
“I prefer longer Enduro stages because it gives you the opportunity to make up time if you make a mistake. I prefer it to races with only short stages, although after this weekend, I realised that my fitness definitely needs some work,” she added.
The event took place two weeks after the first round of the Enduro SA Cup at Thaba Trails in Johannesburg, which Duncan won in a time of 12min 24sec. His winning time at Tranquilitas was more than double that, a reflection of the longer stages at the latter event. But while the stages were longer and with a fairly high percentage of pedalling, the event was rather balanced.
“It’s unfortunate about the route marking issue on Stage 2. The rain really came at an awkward time. I have to make it clear that while Willie alerted us to the issue as the first rider on the stage, he didn’t complain or put in a protest. Then, when we explained the situation to the top five afterwards, they were all in agreement and Alex was very gracious in moving down a place with the change. It’s encouraging to see such good sportsmanship among young men,” said Schalk Potas, Race Director.
Leading results
Men overall (initial)
1 Keira Duncan 28:03.393
2 Robert Frost 29:00.785
3 Alex de Bruin 29:30.519
4 Willie van Eck 29:30.770
5 Keagan Brand 29:32.704
6 Sharjah Jonsson 29:45.784
7 Christan Kirsten 29:59.173
8 Matthew Stubbs 29:59.863
9 Divan van Straaten 30:04:917
10 Luke Dinkel 30:49.628
Top five positions revised after Commissaire decision:
1 Keira Duncan
2 Robert Frost
3 Willie van Eck
4 Alex de Bruin
5 Keagan Brand
Elite men
1 Keira Duncan 28:03.393
2 Willie van Eck 29:30.770
3 Sharjah Jonsson 29:45.784
Junior men
1 Alex de Bruin 29:30.519
2 Keagan Brand 29:32.704
3 Divan van Straaten 30:04:917
Youth men
1 Gabriel Burns 31:09.242
2 Connor Watson 44:35.919
Sub-Junior boys
1 Luke Stafford 33:40.949
Sub-Veteran men
1 Robert Frost 29:00.785
2 Jacques Siebert 31:05.686
3 Werner Kruger 32:30.196
Veteran men
1 Robert Moore 32:38.026
2 Jaco de Witt 32:47.426
3 Andrew Duvenage 32:57.509
Master men
1 Sean O’Flynn Madden 31:36.777
2 Andre Terlouw 31:55.876
3 Sean Badenhorst 32:48.154
Grand master men
1 Anton Blignaut 35:39.119
2 Mike Behr 37:21.509
WOMEN
Women overall
1 Arielle Behr 31:42.168
2 Louise Kotze 33:40.283
3 Elja van Urk 35:26.693
4 Wendy Odendaal 36:41.754
5 Irma du Plooy 36:56.706
6 Talia Behr 37:46.712
7 Nande Hattingh 39:01.325
8 Mikyla Herbst 39:15.027
9 Ruth Behr 41:29.007
10 Kerry Rice 43:51.736
Elite women
1 Talia Behr 37:46.712
2 Nande Hattingh 39:01.325
Youth women
1 Arielle Behr 31:42.168
2 Mikyla Herbst 39:15.027
Veteran women
1 Louise Kotze 33:40.283
2 Elja van Urk 35:26.693
3 Wendy Odendaal 36:41.754
eBike
1 Ruth Behr 41:29.007
2 Kerry Rice 43:51.736
For full results and stage placings, click here
Round 2 of the 2023 Mpumalanga Enduro Series will take place at MTO Trials, White River on Sunday 9 April.
Thanks to the following companies and organisations for their support:
Oasis Water https://oasiswater.co.za/
Pyga Bikes https://www.pygamountainbikes.com
Valencia Cycles https://www.vbike.co.za
OPI http://onpointindustries.co.za
Cycling South Africa https://www.cyclingsa.com
Pronto Computer Solutions https://prontocs.co.za
Sabie Xperience https://sabiexperience.co.za
Sox Footwear https://soxfootwear.co.za
Leatt https://leatt.com/za/explore-mtb
SRAM https://www.sram.com/en/sram
Magnolia Restaurant https://www.casterbridge.co.za/magnolia_restaurant_cocktail_lounge.html
Hippo Hollow Country Estate https://www.hippohollow.co.za
Van Niekerk Grasdakke en Bouwerk
Sasol Waterval Boven
NFB Private Wealth Management https://www.nfb.co.za
Dr Corne Ackermann Orthopaedic Surgeon http://www.drcorne.co.za
Emer-G-Med https://web.facebook.com/EGMMedia/?_rdc=1&_rdr
Chris Taylor Media https://www.christaylorphotography.co.za
Phonix Capture https://www.phonixcapture.co.za