GM/Mongoose Provincial No 1.

The first provincial DH went down on Sunday 17th, it was meant to be in December, but got cancelled due to the track being “too dangerous” from all the rain. And guess what? It was raining leading up to the race, but we raced.

Practise was slippery and loose, but things got better throughout the day. The course was changed a little before race day, by adding a chicken line around the Chute, and removing a drop that was hard to hit right in the dry. By race time, the chute was rideable, but the course was still nice and drifty. Read More...

Race time came, and the sun was trying to break through and the course was looking good. 40 riders came to ride, and they all brought supporters. The whole top section was packed with screaming fans, and made it feel like a world cup.

Adding to the world cup feel was Greg Minnaar, who showed up fresh off an 8km canoe portage. Greg was obviously taking this race seriously; he rocked up late, did two practise runs, and was seen eating proper race food (Boerewors roll…) between runs.

Racers were greeted by a massive crowd at the top rock garden, which led to a smooth burmed section in the forest with plenty of jumps. The now-famous Chute was also packed, and the scene of many crashes. From there the trail was pretty steep and muddy, with a few wild off camber corners and a sprint to the finish.

Tayla Brown, new to the Primi Maverick Kona team this year, was the only lady in the race, and put down a respectable 2:32:08 in her second run, which left her ahead of a few of the boys.

Maverick Cycles owner Mike Bradley whipped out the Kona Bass for the race, singlespeed and all. He had little practise on the course, and crashed outside the tape in both runs, but all the XC training helped him down the hill in 2:47:90. Team Manager Conrad Davies earned Hillcrest shop bragging rites, skydiving down the chute in his first run, but holding it together in the second run, coming home in a rapid 2:10:98. Team Mechanic Ian Duxbury also tried flying down the chute to little success, but the second run was better and he came down in 1:51:18. good enough for 10th overall.

The Team Riders made us proud, with Kyle Davids putting in a smooth 1:53:23 in his first run, but throwing it away in the second. Luckily his first run was good enough for 3rd in Youth Men, and 13th overall. New Rider Alisdair Fey looked super fast in his new team kit, and was on fire with a 1:42:10 in his final run, putting him in 3rd in Juniors, and 8th overall. And he doesn’t even have his Kona yet! Team Captain Kelvin Purchase was looking rapid all weekend, hitting all the good lines. He threw down a 1:42:05 in the first run, and was amped to go faster. A slightly dodgy entry to the rock drop at the start saw him unclip and nearly throw it all away, but he pulled through and rode it out. People even said he was laughing at himself in the run… he put it together in the final run, with 1:37:74, enough for 4th Elite and 6th overall.

Thanks go out to all who came and supported and raced, and to our team sponsors, Primi Polo, Kona Bikes, Von Zipper, Race Face, Intense Tyres.. Without you guys, we would just be average.