All-action mountain bike racing in glorious late-winter weather brought the curtain down on this year’s BDO Hayterdale Classic MTB Race & Trail Run in the Zuurberg and Greater Addo on Sunday.
Gqeberha professional Marco Joubert took full advantage of perfect riding conditions to win the 40km feature race.
Joshua Wagner and Bruce Campbell put in solid performances to finish second and third respectively.
Juanita Mackenzie, also from Nelson Mandela Bay, was the first woman home.
Callum Reed and Ashleigh Schroeter put in impressive showings to win the men’s and women’s 25km events.
Joubert could not have wished for a better day.
“The sun was out and the trails were super grippy. We had some rain yesterday [Saturday] to make the course tacky, so a super fun day out,” he said.
His strategy was evidently to go hard from the start to put his opponents under pressure on the pass, which loomed directly after exiting the Hayterdale gate.
“The Zuurberg pass was challenging. There are not many races in South Africa that have a decent 20-minute climb in them,” Joubert said.
The single-track that followed shortly after the top was perfect for his skillset and helped him consolidate his advantage over the chasing pack.
The experienced Mackenzie said her game plan had been to “go ‘till you blow” and, true to her words, she crossed the finish line a spent force.
“I was cramping something chronic but managed to make it to the line – so it’s all good,” she said.
“I knew I had to work hard on the climb because I wanted to get into the single-track at the front. I managed that and, once in the lead, the idea was to maintain it and thankfully it all worked out.”
The MTB races were held a day after Addo debutant Sanuse Mboneni showed his talent on the “tough ups and downs” to dominate the 18km trail run.
Annelise Scholtz won the women’s race.
The 12km and 6km men’s titles went to Aphelele September and Avuyile Nama, with Gail Willimott and Kylie Dorfling taking the spoils in the women’s races.
The two-day event offering both trail running and mountain biking is staged at Hayterdale Trails, a network of purpose-built trails in the shadow of the historic Zuurberg mountains.
Like Joubert, Mackenzie praised the single-track.
“It was such a nice way to end the day. The trails are really rugged, it’s real mountain biking.”
She advised anyone wanting to ride the Hayterdale Classic to train on single-track before the event and to pace themselves.
Results
MTB
40km
Men
1. Marco Joubert
2. Joshua Wagner
3. Bruce Campbell
Women
1. Juanita Mackenzie
2. Gail Willimott
3. Michelle Scowby
25km
Men
1. Callum Reed
2. Willem du Randt
3. Bryce Loenen
Women
1. Ashleigh Schroeter
2. Annalise Scholtz
3. Amy Preston
Trail run
18km
Men
1. Sanuse Mboneni
2. Karabo Ntabanjane
3. Patrige Chimwendo
Women
1. Annelise Scholtz.
2. Tracey Campbell
3. Annelie Pienaar
12km
Men
1. Aphelele September
2. Fransie de Villiers
3. Francois van der Merwe
Women
1. Gail Willimott
2. Anemi Jacobs
3. Wilma De Waal
6km
Men
1. Avuyile Nama
2. Connor Bird
3. Nato Oosthuizen
Women
1. Kylie Dorfling
2. Justine De Villiers
3. Liesel Badenhorst
