This hasn’t been a good year for races and events – massive wind caused the Cape Town Cycle Tour to be called off, severe heat saw a stage of the Cape Epic shortened, and crazy rain, hail, and snow neutralised stages of the Sani2C and Berg & Bush.
But I suspect extreme weather hasn’t been the only thing keeping road and MTB event organisers awake at night. I think their concern is that the every cyclist may be losing interest in races.
I’m probably projecting, but hear me out: when I started riding with the Argus virgins, we participated in all the local road races. Just about every week I’d line up with hundreds of other Lycra bandits, and race my guts out. I enjoyed being ‘competitive’ against my age group, and I found it addictive: from the buzz in the start chute, to the endorphin rush of riding fast on open roads, to the sense of achievement after crossing the finish-line knowing I’d gone as hard as I could, to the ecstasy of the first sip of ice-cold Coke a few moments later.
Denne historien er fra December 2017-utgaven av Bicycling South Africa.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Denne historien er fra December 2017-utgaven av Bicycling South Africa.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
GEAR FOR THE AGES
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A RACE LIKE NO OTHER
IN KENYA'S MAASAI MARA, KNOWN MORE FOR SAFARIS THAN CYCLING, THE MIGRATION GRAVEL RACE CHALLENGES RIDERS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD THE WORLD WHILE FORGING A FUTURE FOR BIKE RACING IN AFRICA.
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THE SECRET TO MAKING A COMEBACK? JUST START
\"THIS IS WHAT DECONDITIONING LOOKS LIKE,\" I said out loud to no one, as I looked at the heart-rate reading on my phone and gasped for breath. \"This shouldn't be so hard.\"
DEAR MARK CAVENDISH
WHEN I FIRST STARTED FOLLOWING professional road cycling around 2014, you were at the top of your game.
HOW TO CALCULATE YOUR POWER-TOWEIGHT RATIO
POWER-TO-WEIGHT RATIO IS one of the most telling metrics in cycling - and thanks to indoor trainers, many more cyclists are now familiar with it. Right now it's never been easier to calculate your power-to-weight ratio and use it to improve your performance.
EASY RIDER
A FEW YEARS AGO, my wife and I along with her parents, brother and his wife-cycled down the Danube River in Europe.
LEADING THE WAY - RYAN GIBBONS, 29, SA PRO RIDER, MULTIPLE SA & AFRICAN ROAD CHAMP
AFTER JOINING LIDLTREK from UAE Team Emirates, South African national champ Ryan Gibbons aims to be the best lead-out man he can be - while also helping his new team in their quest to climb the World Tour rankings.
6 WAYS TO BEAT THE HEAT THIS SUMMER
TOP TIPS TO KEEP YOU COOLER AND RIDING STRONGER... NO MATTER WHAT THE TEMPERATURE.
