The Sabie Classic

On Sunday me, Dave, Paul, Cathy and Juanita entered a mountain bike race called the Sabie Classic. Our race was 38km long with 950m of ascent. We entered the race on the day instead of booking online so we started at the back in the last group (the start was in staggered groups from A to I) so we were behind around 3000 other riders! The first section of the race was a 12km climb to the first food/drink tent 500m above the start line, I was impressed by the number of people I overtook on that first climb but I lost too many places due to bad cramps later on. The weather was wet and misty so I felt right at home on the slippery, greasy clay surface while a lot of the South African riders got confused by the mud! I was really happy with my overall time (Just over 3 hours I think) but I could’ve done a lot better if my legs didn’t cramp up so badly. But I really enjoyed the race and the buzz as I crossed the line to cheers from complete strangers, the whole race had a really friendly, laid back feeling instead of everybody giving each other evil stares on the start line which was great. There are not many sports where you have over 3000 competitors from professionals to junior riders. But the best part was the smart little medal you get for finishing the race, it really feels like an achievement!