Cannondale Factory Racing and Toyota Specialized doubled up on their Momentum Medical Scheme Tankwa Trek, presented by Biogen, success with stage victories on Friday, 9 February 2024. The wins are both the UCI women’s and men’s category leaders’ second of the race. This sees both Candice Lill and Mona Mitterwallner, as well as Matt Beers and Alex Miller extend their overall advantages.
Stage 2 was a technical 88 kilometre affair, with 1 700 metres of climbing, in the Witzenberg Valley. Famed for its challenging singletrack and arduous climbs, the course provided the terrain for the strongest teams to gain from their physical advantages. In the women’s race, the second climb of the day was the one which proved decisive, while in the men’s it was only on the return to the Koue Bokkeveld Plateau that the accumulated efforts told on the Toyota Specialized team’s rivals.
“Our plan for the stage was always to wait for the climb on the Tulbagh side of the Witzenberg Valley, 48 kilometres in,” Mitterwallner recalled. “Up to that point we were happy to ride with the group and conserve a bit of energy. Though the trails also didn’t really lend themselves to establishing a gap.”
“On the climb we pushed hard and were able to create the start of a gap to Janika [Loiv] and Yana [Belomoina],” Mitterwallner added. “We capitalised on that advantage by going fast, but safely, on the descent and then going full gas on the flats.”
Having ridden in a group with the Efficient Infiniti Insure and KMC-Ridley teams for the first 48 kilometres; when Cannondale Factory Racing pushed on, they initially distanced Danielle Strydom and Vera Looser. Janika Loiv and Yana Belomoina remained in contact with the race leaders until the summit of the second climb, but once the gap began to grow on the descent, it ballooned out to 2 minutes and 30 seconds relatively rapidly. By the finish line the deficit was 5 minutes and 13 seconds.
Thus, after two days of racing Lill and Mitterwallner lead Loiv and Belomoina by 6 minutes and 57 seconds. Vera Looser and Danielle Strydom’s loss of 1 minute and 13 seconds to the KMC-Ridley team sees the Efficient Infiniti Insure team slip to third overall, at 7 minutes and 31 seconds behind Cannondale Factory Racing.
In the men’s race, Imbuko Pro Cycling took the fight to Toyota Specialized in the early phases. “Wessel [Botha] had been caught out behind a group yesterday so we knew we had to be at the front from the start today,” Marco Joubert stated. “We kept the pressure on and managed to ride cleanly through the singletrack in the first 40 kilometres.”
Joubert and Botha’s pace setting was such that only Beers and Miller, as well as the KMC-Ridley, Pyga Euro Steel, and Bulls Mavericks teams were able to follow. Pieter du Toit, Jaedon Terlouw, Simon Schneller, and Axel Roudil-Cortinat yo-yoed off the group at times, but repeatedly made it back. “Though the riding in the Witzenberg is tough, it’s hard to make a difference to other strong teams,” Beers explained. “You have to just make sure its hard enough that the fatigue builds up in your rivals’ legs in order to create an opportunity for later in the stage.”
This is exactly what happened as the top five teams started the climb to the highest point in the stage together. “We kept pushing on the biggest climb and managed to get away with the Toyota Specialized team,” Botha explained. The Imbuko Pro Cycling and Toyota Specialized teams were only able to establish a 60 second buffer by the foot of the descent which followed the climb.
Over the following seven flat and fast kilometres they extended that advantage by 30 seconds, as Pyga Euro Steel and the Bulls Mavericks caught up to KMC-Ridley. Despite their numerical advantage, it was clear that the chasers would not be able to reel in the leaders. Ascending out of the Witzenberg Valley back towards the Koue Bokkeveld, Beers and Miller came to the fore.
“We tried to shake Imbuko [Pro Cycling] on the last climb, but couldn’t manage it,” Beers said. “Then on the kick out of the descent we attacked and got a little gap. With the tail winds coming home we were able to extend that and take a nice lead into Stage 3. This is mountain biking and the Tankwa Trek, though. You never know what will happen tomorrow, so every second is valuable.”
Beers and Miller’s margin of victory, on the stage, was 1 minute and 18 seconds over Joubert and Botha. Gunnar Holmgren and Martins Blums recovered from having to stop to reinflate Blums’ rear tyre inside the final 15 kilometres to win the sprint for third. They slipped from second to third on the general classification standings, which are topped by the Toyota Specialized team. Imbuko Pro Cycling leapfrogged from fifth to second, and are 3 minutes and 14 seconds off the men in the yellow First Ascent jerseys. KMC-Ridley are a further 34 seconds back. Pyga Euro Steel and the Bulls Mavericks are within 7 seconds of each other, just over 5 minutes down on the overall standings.
The time gaps could change significantly on Stage 3 as the race takes on South African mountain biking’s most iconic climb, the Merino Monster. Rising from the Ceres Valley floor to 1 799 metres above sea level the pre-climb and the Monster itself gain over 1 000 metres in elevation. The 7.8 kilometres from Water Point 3, on the Merino Farm, to the summit averages an 8.8% gradient and gains 686 metres. The current Strava King of the Mountain record holder is Sebastian Fini, who clocked a time of 36 minutes and 49 seconds in 2020. Isla Short set the women’s Queen of the Mountain best effort, also during the 2020 race, of 45 minutes and 55 seconds.
In total Saturday’s course includes 96 kilometres and 2 200 metres of climbing. The racing action will get underway at 06:30 and mountain biking fans can follow the action on the race’s Instagram and Facebook stories. Follow @tankwatrek on Instagram and Tankwa Trek on Facebook. Further information can be found at www.tankwatrek.co.za.
Momentum Medical Scheme Tankwa Trek, presented by Biogen
Leading Results:
Men’s Results | Stage 2:
- Toyota Specialized: Alex Miller & Matthew Beers (03:21:52)
- Imbuko Pro Cycling: Marco Joubert & Wessel Botha (3:23:10 | +1:18)
- KMC Ridley: Gunnar Holmgren & Martins Blums (03:25:04 | +3:12)
- Bulls Mavericks: Simon Schneller & Axel Roudil-Cortinat (03:25:08 | +3:16)
- Pyga Euro Steel: Pieter du Toit & Jaedon Terlouw (03:25:10 | +3:18)
Women’s Results | Stage 2
- Cannondale Factory Racing: Candice Lill & Mona Mitterwallner (04:05:34)
- KMC Ridley: Janika Loiv & Yana Belomoina (04:10:47 | +5:13)
- Efficient Infiniti Insure: Vera Looser & Danielle Strydom (04:12:00 | +6:26)
- Freewheel Cycology Absolute Motion: Frances Janse van Rensburg & Hayley Preen (04:28:30 | +22:56)
- Absa Bell: Sarah Hill & Hayley Smith (04:29:16 | +23:42)
Men’s Results | Stage 2 General Classification:
- Toyota Specialized: Alex Miller & Matthew Beers (04:13:45)
- Imbuko Pro Cycling: Marco Joubert & Wessel Botha (04:16:59 | +3:14)
- KMC Ridley: Gunnar Holmgren & Martins Blums (04:17:33 | +3:48)
- Pyga Euro Steel: Pieter du Toit & Jaedon Terlouw (04:18:56 | +5:11)
- Bulls Mavericks: Simon Schneller & Axel Roudil-Cortinat (04:19:03 | +5:18)
Women’s Results | Stage 2 General Classification:
- Cannondale Factory Racing: Candice Lill & Mona Mitterwallner (05:06:47)
- KMC Ridley: Janika Loiv & Yana Belomoina (05:13:44 | +6:57)
- Efficient Infiniti Insure: Vera Looser & Danielle Strydom (05:14:18 | +7:31)
- Freewheel Cycology Absolute Motion: Frances Janse Van Rensburg & Hayley Preen (05:34:01 | +27:14)
- Absa Bell: Sarah Hill & Hayley Smith (05:37:46 | +30:59)
For the full results from the Momentum Medical Scheme Tankwa Trek, presented by Biogen, click here.
Source: Seamus Allardice Media
