The Subaru Sabie Classic 100km So a few of us decided we were up for the challenge and after a night in the backpackers we were there at the start for 100km of schweet Sabie dirt. We all knew it was gonna be no easy task, so we did just enough training so that we could survive.. And after seeing quite a couple of buddies it was go time at just before 8am on one beautiful day.
The front pack turned on the heat from the first climb, unbelievable athletes and performance saw Max Knox and Burry Stander in for a sprint finish in just on four hours... but if you wanna know more about who won and how fast who did it... you gonna have to read some other article.. cos the success of our riders is in the enjoyment of being there... The climbs were marvelous and testing, working you for as long and as hard as you could withstand.. we dissapeared through the trees and popped out high above the world on a very interesting ledge singletrack (aka fanie Botha hiking trail) and after the water point had some more gnarly singletrack on ledges that had me wonder.. hmm isn't this where that "But check the penalty for failure dude!" video clip was made... hmm, but lucky for us we did not end the same way and got to bomb down some really lekker gnarly downhills... and the we climbed again... and again and again... I was feeling really good and keepin a happy pace till about 4 hours 40 when after another gnarly piece a downhill i noticed this chap infront of me do this cool stretch thing while riding... you uncleat one foot and hook it over your seat then lean back to stretch those tired muscles.... i did not see the "Over 30's do not try this without Doctors consent warning.." and thought let me do that... now I am generally not a person that cramps up... oh..my greatness... I got nearly into position when suddenly my left hammy bites down like a rabid pitbull... suddenly I am floating along doing this on legged balancing act...paralised by pain and trying not to land on my nose... eisch skadaddles... that frikkin hurts... now i've seen crampin okes crying and screamin next to the trails before... now I know what they were going through... but I refused to cry... atleast that anyone could hear me :-) ... I limp along to the 60km waterstation, temperature clocking around 40degrees... man my sugar levels are so low... and I am thinkin... if I was dirtrider I would have a whole packet of smokes at this stop..... but they didn't have any... neither did they have coke or powerade... i looked blankely as the guy waffled on to the other thirsty riders.... he told em to write a letter to complain cos all the got is water and beers.... "Bring me that Beer!" I say with a seriousness that makes the dude surrender... he gives it to me..."Black Label...eisch this thing is gonna kick like a mule...I guess i can do with that." I think while he is trying to give me a free cap...yeah..huh?> some kid sprays me with a hose and then I go park in the veld and chug down this ice cold beer....wooohooo it was soooo goood... I am contemplating the next 40km's and how they are gonna suck.... keep tellin myself that its all downhill from here....hehhe yeah right.. then Nico, Aka STEALTH, arrives and reckon what am i doing?... so we decide to carry on together... Man, thanks Nico, I was really glad for the company.. the beer dropped my sugar levels into a different dimension and the next 20km were like hell...except for the part where Nico stops as we cross a stream and much to some forestry workers amusement we hop in and splash down... after about 20km more of hard work.. climbs and now (the hardy been riding too much softy) body is aching so much that even the downhills are severly punishing... We do some schweet descents... too tired to really care about how techincal and what a hardtail can or can't do... we bomb down towards the end... stop to help a rider that came pipe in one of those 3down arrow sections... whip through some bumpy pine forest singletrack and then we are getting close and pump through those Noon2moon singletracks.. some other riders on our tail yet Nico is carving those trails like a ninja...we hit some muddy sections and schlip-slide across and make it through... they don't... we go through one hang of a deep puddle and then its a 1,5km tar section... i get in Nico's slip stream and we are like a bullet right into the end.. Woohoo atlast it was over!!!! Man what an incredible ride... very TOUGH... awesome climbs and downhills... amazing scenery... really tests your endurance.... no mercy... Thanks Nico, it was an Honour to ride the last 40km with you. Thanks for waiting :-) you are right, it was much better than suffering alone. Cois came in about 8minutes l8r and Jan a bit l8r... his story will follow soon with time in the trees revealing to him the sublime wisdom about the "Way of the wa-Sabie Warrior!" a wee bit dissapointed about the generic medal that doesn't say 100km.. but aahwell.. it was an hectically awesomely traumatic experience!!!! till next time. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "DarkAndDirty" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/DarkAndDirty?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
