The world’s leading female mountain bikers could be spotted on the slopes of Table Mountain on Sunday 15 March, but not for long as they tore apart the Prologue route of the 12th Absa Cape Epic.
Ariane Kleinhans and Annika Langvad of team RECM Specialized during the Prologue of the 2015 Absa Cape Epic. // Photo by Nick Muzik/Cape Epic/SPORTZPICS
Starting on the rugby fields of the University of Cape Town (UCT), known locally as the Green Mile, the elite women set off just as the temperature in Cape Town started to rise. The timing was fitting, as from the word go the women’s field was blazing around the 20km course.
On a route with ample space to overtake and with only three sections of singletrack to negotiate, the racing was always going to be hot.
Ariana Kleinhans and Annika Langvad (RECM Specialized) took top honours on the day, in a time of 53.38,7. Jennie Stenerhag and Robyn de Groot (Ascendis Health) raced into second place in a time of 57.14,5 with Milena Landtwing and Hielke Elferink (Meerendal Wheeler Cannondale) rounding out the podium with a finish time of 57.25,8.
“It feels amazing to win the Prologue,” said a beaming Kleinhans. “We felt very good going into the day and our preparation had been excellent. Everything went super smooth today, as well. Plus, it s great to ride with Annika on a stage like this. She’s a great time trialist and she really pushed it on the short tar section.”
Langvad said it was great to be back in South Africa and straight into the Cape Epic groove. “I feel like we just carried on from last year – but even better!” said Langvad. “Everything felt natural and I think that our tactics have gotten so good that we don’t need to change anything,” she added. “We wanted to get into the leaders jersey as quickly as possible and we’ve achieved that.”
Women podium (L to R) Jennie Stenerhag & Robyn Lee de Groot of Ascendis Health (2nd), Ariane Kleinhans & Annika Langvad of Specialized (1st) and Milena Landtwing & Hielke Elferink Meerendal Wheeler C’Dale (3rd). // Photo by Gary Perkin/Cape Epic/SPORTZPICS.
Stenerhag and De Groot, riding as a team at the Absa Cape Epic for the first time, were somewhat surprise second-placed finishers. “We just wanted to be steady and get it over and done with,” said Stenerhag. “There is a long week ahead. We will just ride our own race from here and not worry about anyone else. Our strategy is to stick with what works for us.”
De Groot, lining up at the Absa Cape Epic for the first time, admitted that the nerves and emotion almost hit during the race. “I don’t think I’ve been this nervous on a bike since the Olympics,” she said. “But the Prologue is done now and the nerves should be settled from tomorrow. It’s vital to stay calm at this race.”
Third-placed finishers Meerendal Wheeler Cannondale surprised even themselves with their result. “We’re very happy to be third – surprised actually,” said Milena Landtwing. “Technically, the route was nothing special, but we needed to be careful because you can easily make mistakes and that can be the end of your race.”
“A good start is half the work done,” added teammate Hielke Elferink. “But it will be important to not start too fast tomorrow. It’s going to be a long, hard week.”
The race moves on to Elgin tomorrow, where riders will start Stage 1 at Oak Valley Wine Estate. They face 113km of truly epic riding with 2800m of climbing to keep things interesting.
Prologue results:
1. RECM Specialized; 53.38,7; 50-1 Ariane Kleinhans (Switzerland); 50-2 Annika Langvad (Denmark)
2. Ascendis Health 57.14,5 55-1 Jennie Stenerhag (Sweden) 55-2 Robyn Lee de Groot (South Africa)
3. Meerendal Wheeler C’dale; 57.25,8; 54-1 Milena Landtwing (Switzerland) 54-2 Hielke Elferink (Netherlands)
4. Meerendal Wheeler; 58.24,0; 51-1 Esther Suss (Switzerland) 51-2 Alice Pirard (Belgium)
5. SasolRacing; 59.10,0; 56-1 Yolande de Villiers (South Africa) 56-2 Janka Keseg Stevkova (Slovakia)
6. Sellaronda Hero; 59.14,8; 52-1 Sally Bigham (England) 52-2 Christina Kollmann (Austria)
7. World Bicycle Relief; 1:00.17,7; 53-1 Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesja (Norway) 53-2 Kathrin Stirnemann (Switzerland)
8. Lovechock Specialized; 1:01.11,7; 57-1 Sanne van Paassen (Netherlands) 57-2 Jolien Janssen (Netherlands)
9. RBS; 1:01.14,6; 137-1 Theresa Ralph (South Africa) 137-2 Jeannie Bomford (South Africa)
10.Novus OMX Pro; 1:01.36,4; 79-1 Mariske Strauss (South Africa) 79-2 Cherie Vale (South Africa)
Early days but RECM Spez team blew the field away today, great to watch.