South Africa has a passion for endurance sports events. And when it comes to bicycles, this passion borders on obsession. We have every kind of endurance race for mountain bikes (and now also gravel bikes), but which race is the one that truly offers the greatest test of a rider’s limits?
Paid partnership with Dryland Event Management
There are marathons (50-90km), ultra-marathons (90-180km) and ultra-endurance races (longer than 180km) all of which deliver a challenge that takes riders to their limits. But there is a point at which an event changes from a race to a survival test. What point is that?
It depends really on the following factors:
- Distance
- Gradient
- Surface
- Temperature
- Type of bike
A race can be fast or it can be steady. Either way, the winner needs to pace himself/herself perfectly to complete the course first. Any race that requires self-navigation or having to stop and sleep, brings in new factors that can ultimately ensure the rider that wins isn’t necessarily the fastest pedaller…
So, for an all-out once-off pedalling effort over a long-distance during daylight hours on challenging terrain in the heat of summer, there’s only really one South African race that stands out – the News24 Karoo Burn. It’s the race that’s the perfect test of a rider’s limits. Here’s why…
Distance: Starting in the town of Calvinia, in the Northern Cape, the Karoo Burn follows a point-to-point route over 242km to finish at Kaleo Guest Farm near Ceres, in the Western Cape. That’s a long distance for many, but it’s still a distance that strong riders can race from start to finish. It’s definitely more a race than a survival test.
Gradient: There’s a total of 1950m of vertical ascent. You may think that over 242km that’s not particularly outstanding. But when you consider that the majority of that ascent is accumulated in an 85km segment of the race – from 103km to 183km – then it’s formidable. From 103km until 175km it’s gradual, steady climbing before ascending more than 600m in just over 10km up the Katbakkies Pass. Coming at 175km into the race, the location of the pass (riders are growing weary), its steep gradient and the afternoon heat, combine to ensure this section is brutal!
Surface: It’s a gravel road race. But you get gravel and you get gRaVeL. The Karoo Burn has both. The road surface varies from smooth and predictable, to rutted, sandy and stony. And then there’s also corrugations, which can shake and jar riders that opt for hardtail mountain bikes or gravel bikes.
Temperature: Average maximum temperature for the Karoo in February is 34 degrees Celsius. Average! That’s hot. But it regularly reaches into the 40s, especially in February, making the weather conditions a key feature of the event when it comes to being able to race from start to finish effectively.
Type of bike: The Karoo Burn is a gravel race. But it’s not a European gravel race through Tuscany on picture-perfect, graded gravel roads. It’s a South African gravel race through the harsh Karoo desert. You can choose to use a gravel bike, which will likely be faster, but uncomfortable and difficult to control at times, or you can choose a mountain bike, which will roll a little slower, but will soften the impact of the rough sections of road and large segments of corrugations.
After two editions, here are some interesting facts:
- Bennie Viljoen and Jaco Davel won the 2020 edition in a time of 9 hours 53 minutes at an average speed of 24.5kph. They raced on gravel bikes.
- In 2022, Jaco Davel raced solo and won overall in a time of 8 hours 10 minutes at an average speed of 29.6kph. He raced on a gravel bike.
- You can enter as a solo rider or as a team of two or a team of four.
- You can choose to race on a gravel bike or a mountain bike.
- There are Mixed Team, Open Men Team and Open Women Team category prizes (in addition to solo awards).
- There are six well-stocked water points along the route.
- The event is organised by Dryland Event Management
- The cut-off time for official finishers is 20 hours.
- The third edition takes place on Saturday 25 February 2023.
Find out more about the News24 Karoo Burn, the race that’s the perfect test of a rider’s limits, here.
