KZN Provincial #1 - Top Section of WC Track - 29 Jan 2012

I am so stoked to have finally got the 2012 DH season under way! Going into the first race, you never know what to expect. It's where you see how hard everyone has trained during the off-season.

The weather on Sunday was perfect - slightly overcast in the morning, but the sun soon took over and it became rather hot. I did 2 practice runs and was feeling good on the track, so I sat under the gazebo and relaxed until my race runs.

My first race run was really good. I was hitting all my lines, and not making many mistakes. As I neared the bottom section on the track my upper body and hands started to take a beating as the track became super fast and rough. At the end of all the race runs I was sitting with the fastest time for Juniors and 4th fastest overall. I knew that staying in these positions would be difficult because the other riders were riding so well!

After some refreshments, I headed back up to the top of the track and waited for my second run. I started off well, and I gave everything I had in the short pedally section. There was quite a few people at the bottom, which pushed me even harder towards the end. Unfortunately I was about 1 second slower than my first run. Tiaan Odendaal really stepped it up and posted the fastest Junior time of the day.

I finished 2nd Junior, and 5th overall and I am stoked that I have started off the season in a good way. Huge thanks to Team Jeep and Gu Energy for keeping me going throughout the day and to Morewood and Rush Sports for helping me put together an awesome racing machine for 2012. Lastly I want to thank the race organisers and everyone involved for making it such a successful event.

                                2- Sam Bull         1- Tiaan Odendaal      3- Kyle Davids

 Cycho Media :  2 of the 3 pics

The new 2012 racing machine - Morewood Makulu

Yesterday my new bike that I will be racing on for the 2012 season was built up! I was riding a small Morewood Kalula frame for the 2011 season and I have now moved onto a medium Morewood Makulu. I rode the new beast for the first time today at Karkloof,and I have to say, that I have never felt so at home on a bicycle as I do on my Makulu. Everyhting about it seems perfect - the setup, the size and the feel of it. I am super stoked to be riding next season on such an awesome machine and I can't wait to ride it a lot more. Huge thanks to Andre from Rush Sports and the guys at Morewood for putting together such an amazing bike!

Hiking to the summit of Cathedral Peak

I have always wanted to do a big hike in the Drakensberg and yesterday I got the chance to do so. My dad, my uncle, my brother and myself all summited the infamous Cathedral Peak. The Peak is at 3004m above sea level and is one of the most challenging hikes in the area.

We had an early breakfast and set of with our guide at about 7:20. The sun was already shining and I could tell it would be a scorching day. The first part of the hike was through the foot hills and wasn't too difficult. The terrain all of a sudden became very rocky and steep, and thats when the hike really began. We were very lucky to be able to fill up our water bottles in the streams along the way, because keeping hydrated in that heat was crucial. The last kilometre of the route to the summit was definitey the most challenging. "Bugger Gulley" as it is known, really leaves you feeling "buggered" after you climb it. The last 300m to the top was the most exciting part of the hike. We left our back packs and food underneath some rocks, and began climbing up the almost vertical rock faces. The rocks were slippery, and wet but we managed to all make it to the very top. The 360 degree view of the Drakensberg was breathtaking. After a 5 hour up, we had a well deserved break and took in the beautiful views.

Feeling fresh and full of energy, we started the trip back to the bottom. The pace was much faster, and my legs seemed to holding up well. I was so impressed with my Salomon shoes and the amount of grip that I had because of them. We finally got back to the hotel just after 3 o'clock.

My legs are very stiff this morning, and the 8 hours of intense hiking yesterday has definitly taken a toll on my body. My plans for the rest of the day are to relax by the pool and put my feet up.

Rico Racing DH event / Greg Kaumpek Memorial Race - 1 October 2011

The past weekend saw the Rico Racing DH event, combined with the annual Greg Kaumpek memorial race, take place. After a lot of rain on Friday the track had a little bit of mud on the surface. I hadn't done much practicing on the track but it was relatively straight forward and there weren't too many lines to choose from.

The first few pratice runs were slipery in some places, and the mud was sticking to the tires, which decreased traction. On about my third practice run I had a big crash, where I drifted around a slippery, off-cambre corner and could not make the turn properly, resulting in me hitting a stump and going over the bars. I was really winded but thankfully my bike was alright, and my my body was still in one piece.

I really enjoyed my race runs. I just had fun on the bike and was enjoying the riding time. The atmosphere was awesome and it seemed as if everyone was enjoying themselves. The age categories were slightly different to normal with riders older than 17 racing in elite. I finished 6th overall and 6th elite. The racing was competitive, but I think everyone was mainly there to have an awesome time and ride with their mates, supporting Rico Racing and remembering Greg Kaumpek at the same time.


The day ended off with a very fun, 'mass start' race. All of the riders lined up the start, and ran to our bikes. We then rode down the track in one big train. I had a great day riding and chilling with everyone. Big thanks to Dave from Rico Racing for putting on the event, and to everyone who helped make it a super fun weekend. Looking forward to the next one for sure!

  

 Photos: Grant Dekker

Sa National #4 - Hartebeespoort - 31 July 2011

After hearing about the track from some of the Joburg riders, I could not wait to start the trip to the last round of the National series held at Stonehouse, Hartebeespoort. I was very prepared for this race, and although Gauteng had been dry and no rain was forecast I even packed my rain pants and jacket. We left home at 3:00 am on Friday morning, hoping to miss Joburg rush hour. My dad and I shared the driving on the way there, and against my liking, forced me to man-up and drive in the dreaded 'Joburg traffic'. It just so happens that we arrived there during roadworks, and I had to make my way through heavy traffic. We did however arrive safely, so the weekend was off to good start.

The track was just what I was hoping for: tight in places, technical, rocky and very loose. My practise runs on Friday went well, but I didn't feel like I was going very fast. Saturday went much better for me, and I started to feel some speed coming on as I did more runs. The track was changing everytime I rode it because there were so many loose rocks which was going to make things very interesting come race day.

I had decided that I was only going to do one run down the track before my race runs as the track was very demanding on the body and I wanted to conserve energy. I was going down behind my team mate Kyle Davids, who had dislodged a rock that fell into my line. I came down the one steep section to find this rather large rock in my line. I could do nothing about it, and I went sailing over bars onto the rocks. I didn't even finish the run and I rode down to the bottom on the road. My elbow, ribs, and hand were very bruised and my hand swelled up. I had to ice my body and try and get my mind right for my race runs. The push to the top was hard, so I headed up early for my race runs.

My first run was good and I managed to keep it together to the bottom. I made a minor mistake in the middle of my run which wasn't very costly. The bottom pedalling section was hard work because of all the rocks, and my pedals had some gashes in them from the rocks. I finished my run and had a good time of 1:50.047. I was 1st Junior after the first runs which I was really stoked about.

My second run also went well. I felt good on the track, the bike was performing really well, as usual, and I finished my run with a time of 1:51.360. Alastair Fey then came down with a faster time than me, and so did Tiaan Odendaal. My team mate and I were both in the same hundredth of a second and I was 0.043 secs faster than him.

I finished 3rd in Junior and 9th overall, and won some really cool Skull Candy earphones. The race organisers did a great job and the goodie bags that all of the riders received were really cool. Thank you so much to Andre van Aarde from Rush Sports for the awesome setup I have on the Morewood, and to Adrenaline Cycles for all the help this year. I have asolutely loved every minute of this season and I cannot wait for next year's racing to start.

 

PHOTOS : CSharp Photography and Erlo Brown Photography

Greg Minnaar/Mongoose DH Series #5- Giba Gorge - 10 July 2011

The final provincial race of the year was held at Giba Gorge bikepark. It was rather sad to be finishing off the 2011 Mongoose/Greg Minnaar series, which has been so much fun. The Giba Gorge track was so much fun, and I was absolutely loving riding it! The track was relatively straight forward, with some sneaky lines all the way to the bottom. I had gone the day before the race with some other Maritzburg riders to practise the track. The runs I did went well and I was enjoying spending time on the Morewood.

While lying in bed the night before, I suddenly thought about a new line that my team mate and I hadn't thought of. As I arrived at Giba Gorge on race day we walked up the track to check this line out. From the looks of things, it was faster than our previous one. I headed up for a few practise runs to get the track dialled, and to try out the new line. It was faster, so I did a few more runs. On my last practise run, a mate of mine showed us a few more good lines which helped in the race runs.

My first race run started off really well and I had the top section pinned. I had a good middle section, and finished off strongly on the last section. I managed to string my lines together nicely and I was super happy to find out I was in the hotseat after my run. After being there for a couple of riders, Tiaan Odendaal finished his run with a faster time than mine, kicking me off the hotseat. My first run's time put me in second junior amd third overall.

I was hoping to improve my time in the second run and I was well on my way to doing that after feeling quite a bit faster on the top section. I ended up having a little crash as I tried to hop onto the rocks to get into my line. My back wheel washed out and I rag dolled on the rocks.I was sore and winded so I pulled off the track to make sure the other riders didn't get held up by me. I slowly made my way to the bottom pulling off for riders, including my team mate who came flying past me. My wrist and injured knee were in a bit of pain.  My first run's time obviously stood.

I was really stoked with my result. I finished 2nd in juniors and tied for 3rd overall with Jono Philogene. This was my first time finishing on the podium for overall. A huge thanks needs to go out to Morne Odendaal, Nigel Hicks and everyone one else who put together this absolutely amazing provincial season! I enjoyed it so much. Andre from Rush Sports and Adrenaline cycles helped so much, so a thank you goes out to those guys.

SA National #3 - Cascades - 5 June 2011

Cascades WC track was the track used for the third round of the national series. After the first national at Cascades and the second at P.E both being rained out, my fingers were crossed that this race would at least take place. That Friday, during practise, I had a nasty crash in the notorious Pebble Beach rock garden. I ended up injuring my ACL in my knee and somehow during the crash, I bent my swingarm. This was definitely the biggest crash I have had so far. Luckily I didn't fully tear my ACL because that would have put me out for at least 6 months. Morewood have definitely helped out loads as they have already replaced the swingarm, and my bike is ready to race at the next event. I am really disappointed that I wasn't able to race, but I am looking forward to coming back strong at the next race.