4 Stages over 4 days, all under 2-1/2 hours, piece of cake. Those be the words of a Cape to Cape virgin. Of the 1,300 riders at this year’s Cape to Cape I would estimate that at least two thirds were first timers, me being one of them.
Most MTB stage races require some self-pacing to ensure you are able to complete all the stages with roughly the same intensity without blowing up before the end. The Cape to Cape isn’t raced like that, the stages are just short enough to race them at full gas, the same as you would for a short one day race. Having spoken to many people in the lead up to the Cape to Cape I was aware that the first stage would be the toughest. Comments about some of the hills being unrideable due to loose sand and the dreaded 2km beach section actually inspired me. The first stage is a mass start with the first 200 across the finish line getting a black sticker entitling them to start subsequent stages in the Elite group, which means getting to the trails first and riding them in the best condition for the remaining 3 stages. The next 1,100 riders would be divided into groups of 250 or so and set off 5 minutes apart once the elites had gone. So with a tough first day and the need to place in the top 200 the motivation was there.
I spent the week sharing a house in Margaret River with 5 other guys, guys that weren’t regular racers but who all put 100% on every stage and managed to place far above their wildest expectations. It was a good learning opportunity for me on how to relax and not takes things too seriously and also to share some of my knowledge on race nutrition and recovery. We had a great set up with a large house, chefs kitchen, chill out areas and a garage that we set up as a workshop and massage parlour – I use that term loosely, we had two massage therapists come in at the end of every stage and work on us to help set up our recovery.
Stage 1 started at the Cape Leeuwin lighthouse and headed north to Hamlin Bay. The trails were very dry and in complete contrast to the bucketing rain the night before. As expected a couple of climbs were tough and required some running off the bike but we were then rewarded some awesome downhills, some sand, some packed and some very rooted and rocky. It was on one of the sweeping packed sections where I managed to top 68km/hr and claim a 2nd overall on Strava (not that I care too much about segments except when it requires balls rather than brawn). One unlucky punter passed me on a straight section but didn’t see the hard left turn at the bottom. I went passed him with a huge grin whilst he was climbing out of the bushes. I thought I handled the beach section ok by letting down my tires which enabled me to ride about 90% of it, plenty didn’t and had a long walk. Once off the sand and onto the trails I gassed the tires and headed for home. The last sections took us through farm paddocks where you could get some good air time and cross up the bars for the photographers. I rolled over the line in Hamlin Bay in one piece, without falling off and with nothing broken. I got my black sticker, mission accomplished.
Stage 2 started back at Hamlin Bay and headed through the Boranup Forest. The singletrack in Boranup was awesome. It was fast, packed and had plenty of overtaking opportunities. Out the forest we headed towards the ocean and along loose sand tracks with sharp limestone outcrops. Many riders learnt that riding aggressively over sharp limestone isn’t good for the tires and there were loads of punctures. The last 20km took us through Leeuwin Estate where we raced past their restaurant and bemused patrons enjoying their cardon-ay and truffle honey drizzled bok choy parfet , through the back of Voyager Estate and into a tarmac section and open sprint finish into Xanadu Wines. The Cape to Cape has visited Xanadu a number of times, a great location for a stage finish. The governor put on a great BBQ with one of the best lamb burgers I have had in years.
Stage 3 headed out as a neutral ride through from Xanadu, down the main road of Margaret River after which we were let go and headed into the Pines MTB park. We raced though 20km of sweet singletrack in the Pines. Flowing trails, jumps, manicured berms, you name it, it was there. For most this was the best part of the entire race, for me it was one of frustration as the overtaking opportunities were limited and I was held up for most of it by riders even worse than me on technical singletrack. The last 15km was along firetrail where I managed to pick off a few people and unleash my frustration. The stage finished with a sprint into the Colonial Brewery, again another fitting place to finish a stage.
Stage 4 was the fastest as it had long sections of tarmac and firetrail with two short sections of technical singletrack taking us from the Colonial Brewery to Dunsborough. I came a cropper in the first section of singletrack landing awkwardly and going over the handlebars. Luckily most of the damage was to my ego but I did manage to put a good sized hole in my prized Cervo Rosso shorts where the brake lever tried to burry itself in my leg. In the sprint for the line I managed to unclip my right foot and catch my shin on the pedal as it came around, twice. Doing this at 50km/hr should hurt, but when there are 1,000 spectators waiting for their husbands, wives, mums and dads to come in, you don’t really feel it as you push for the line that one last time knowing that the pain will soon be dulled as everything else is hurting too.
As far as records go the Cape to Cape was quite an achievement. I only fell off once, damage to the bike was a single broken spoke, I didn’t get any punctures, the chain drop count came in at 3, and I finished the race in the top 5% of the 1,300 strong field. Not bad for a 40 something year old.
