We at Silverback Racing value the health of our riders more than race results, and based on the recommendation of a medical professional, we made the decision to withdraw team Silverback SBC, Nicola Rohrbach and Konny Looser from the 2019 ABSA Cape Epic.
Konny developed health issues on Stage 3 that led to lower back pain. To continue with the race would be at the risk of a prolonged time period off the bike and possible long term nerve damage in his back. Nicola will return home to focus on his coming race season.
True to the nature of the #Untamed ABSA Cape Epic, Silverback SBC has had an unpredictable race, with Nicola puncturing 2 days back to back, first on Stage 1 (but still finishing 10th overall on the GC) and then stage 2 (dropping them to 32nd overall on the GC) and having to fight back to an overall 26th place after Stage 3.
Silverback Fairtree, Mariske Strauss and Jennie Stenerhag is currently in 4th place on the UCI Womens GC and riding consistent with the aim of getting back on the podium. Strauss & Stenerhag continues racing and will still have our full support during the last stages of the ABSA Cape Epic.
Silverback’s new Stratos XC Race bike platform R&D testing is part of Silverback Racing’s goals for Epic. With our Design Engineer assessing the bikes after each stage, and spending time with the riders, vital insights gained from the Epic will be used for R&D purposes, as well as setup recommendations for when the Stratos platform is market bound, meaning a better bike.
Marthinus Kruger, Team Manager, Silverback SBC
Rohrbach with an overwhelmingly positive Epic history, teamed up with Looser, a marathon specialist, with the aim of adding to his Epic achievements.