A spectacular day and an awesome setting made for a great Grand Finale at Val de Vie estate.
The racing has been amazing this year – perhaps the most exciting ever – and it was fascinating to see how the so called “cross-country riders” took hold of the event. Nino Schurter and Matthias Stirnemann are typical of this type of rider and their tactics may have changed the way the pros approach the race forever. Congratulations to them on a thrilling victory.
And it was good to see Jennie Stenerhag coming home as a winner almost a year to the day after she had heart surgery for an ailment that forced her out of the 2016 Absa Cape Epic. Now that’s a fairytale comeback.
There were quality wins in the other categories too and seeing Tour de France winner Cadel Evans and George Hincapie taking the Mixed Category after a dominant day was very exciting.
I would also like to thank everybody involved in making this a success, many of whom you don’t get to see much of during the race but who are working very hard in the background. They include volunteers, our great sponsors, medics, traffic officials, the security team, local authorities, the media and, of course, our seemingly tireless staff and crew. Mother nature threw them a big curveball this year but they met the challenge in style. And finally thank you to the riders, who are the soul of the event.
Those wanting to get an entry for next year please remember to be ready to press ‘send’ when the Early Bird entries open at 3pm South African time tomorrow or to get into the Lottery process – www.cape-epic.com.
Looking forward to seeing you in 2018.