Bonanmanzi AR - Preview

Very little information has been made available ahead of this weekend’s Bonamanzi 88km Adventure Race. However the team is really looking forward to the race and we can feel the excitement growing! Team Lickety Split is entering 2 teams, the hares and the tortoises

Team Lickety Click (Hares)

Nando

Con

Adri

Team Lickety Split (Tortoises)

William

Mike

Sue

Everyone is leaving Joburg at 2pm and will be at the AR venue very far ahead of time. We have (hopefully) got accommodation and will be more than ready for the race starting at 4am on Saturday. Prize giving is at 9pm on Saturday. We know we have about 20km on foot, 60km on our bikes, and 8 km of tubing in the Steelpoort river.

The race organiser has released the start coordinates and has encouraged everyone to have a look at the terrain on Google Earth. This is against the standard AR principles of no scouting but does add a certain level of excitement to the race with some discussion on the team email list of terrain, roads etc. Looking at Google Earth and 1:50000 maps of the area (http://www.spatialreference.co.za/) shows a LOT of mountainous terrain which could make this a really tough race.

With new technology coming out all the time, it is getting even easier for teams to carry GPS logging devices that can help the race organiser keep track of where teams are at all times. At the end of the race for teams to compare their route choices. And for teams to keep friends and family updated with their progress and position in the race. It might be time for race organisers to start using this information to help them manage the events in the race a lot more easily.

In AR a certain amount of trust is necessary, that teams don’t get helped outside of transition, that teams always carry the required safety gear, that the team sticks together etc. And now with GPS available on all phones that teams do not use the GPS to give them an unfair advantage with positioning etc. I know that our team feels that as soon as we look at the GPS coordinates on the phone we are 1. Lost, 2. No longer official.

As always our team goals are to FINISH the race.

Capestorm Rogaine - Event Preview

Only three members of Lickety Split will be going through to this year’s Capestorm rogaine. Mike and William will join up as team Lickety Vets (as this is the first race William is doing as a Veteran). Adri will be joining us for the foot event.

Lickety Vets are doing both the 6hr foot on the Saturday and the 5hr MTB on the Sunday. Last time Mike and William did the Foot Rogaine we found a wonderful gorge to climb/crawl through and this time we won’t be doing anything different. Our goal will be to take a peaceful stroll through the environment looking for neat spots to have an adventure in. Adri who does not have a team for the event will be joining us just for fun.

We will be taking the MTB event on the Sunday a little more seriously, in other words we won’t purposefully get ourselves lost at a small mountain pool we happen to find along the way. Our goal is to cover between 50 and 70 kms (dependant on terrain), starting at the furtherest point we can find and working our way back as fast as possible.

The 24 Hour - Preview Ride

As a team Lickety Split would like to enter this year’s 24 hour MTB event – it is “good training” for next year’s Swazi X which is currently our major target event. After the disaster that we had at last year’s Maropeng race (horrible course, cheaters, wind, etc) we decided it would be a good idea to go and see what the terrain for this year’s event would be. Four of us went on a trip to Rietvlei farm and joined up with Wendal, the course designer, to see what the route was like.

First off let me state that I love long open dirt roads for riding, I am not a “fan” of single-track and technical riding. I do them (and would consider myself an average rider) because they form part of MTB events. The 24 hour at Northern Farm was to me the perfect 24 hour route – easy riding, non-technical etc.

Rietvlei is rather small, and a winding route has been graded out of the grass for the first few kilometres. This will be great for spectators to be able to see the riders for quite a while, but does give people that want to cheat an opportunity to do so. After the winding graded route, the trail enters the technical single track routes through the koppies and wooded copses of the farm. I feel that this section gives little opportunity to overtake, however many of my team members disagreed with me. Once through the single track sections the route comes down quickly off the high ground and winds through the woodlands before entering the flat section that will contain the start.

While the route is reasonably technical it can be tackled by anyone. The better riders will be challenged to keep a high pace going, while the beginner riders will find the route difficult but doable.

There is no way that I would want to tackle the route as a solo rider. But as part of a team I think the route will be great.

Our thanks to Wendel for allowing us entry early onto the property and showing us the route. We will be back to visit Rietvlei as a training venue.