Ride the Beloved Country
Photographs: Kelvin Trautman. Article from the July 2013 issue of Ride Magazine.
In 2012, Grant Usher crushed the Old Mutual JoBerg2c on his singlespeed. As one does. So he wasn’t really surprised to find himself lining up, again with former pro Nic White, for another nine days of mountain-biking nirvana in late April.
Most events have a defining factor, or at the very least a promoted tag line they aspire to. Each claims to be the hardest, biggest, wildest or most scenic, but few deliver. In my experience, the JoBerg2c claims little but delivers much more than expected – and in surprising and subtle ways.
The JoBerg2c is nine days of riding, from the dusty south of Joburg in Gauteng to Scottburgh on the KwaZulu-Natal coast. Crossing some 100 farms on its way, the route includes as little district road as possible, and even less tar.
Each day has a new destination, and this point-to-point format provides a true sense of adventure and achievement. It showcases the diversity of our beloved country in the best manner possible. I’ll never look at a map of South Africa in the same way again: that subliminal line the route follows is always there, giving me a warm, fuzzy, fulfilling feeling followed by amazing lifetime memories. The format also offers up the best possible route from A to B, creating in the riders great anticipation for the upcoming change in terrain. There is definitely no padding of distance here; after all, 900-odd off-road kilometres should be enough for anyone.
No matter who you are or where you finish, you are made to feel special and spoilt in the race village
Another great aspect of this format is that you visit a new location every day, complete with a fresh group of enthusiastic hosts and starkly contrasting scenery. If I had to choose my one favourite thing among the highlights of this event, it would be the people.
The passion, enthusiasm and good old gees is so tangible each and every day. Thankfully, it’s also contagious. Everyone really does feel like a winner at the end of each stage. No matter who you are or where you finish, you are made to feel special and spoilt in the race village. From the eager smiles of the schoolkids carrying bags on their weekend off, to the chef cooking your personal stir-fry, you just cannot help but feel appreciated. Every bit of spectator encouragement at a water point or effort taken on outfits makes a difference to one’s morale in a multi-day event such as this.
The effort they put in is, in part a result of the Participate For Good vibe the event has going for it, so I felt I was riding for all the right reasons. The clever organising format that Farmer Glen and Farmer Gary (and Wappo) came up with allows the event to be a crucial fundraiser for schools and communities along the route, especially for off-the-beaten-track communities such as Frankfort, Reitz and Kamberg, to name a few. This year, as with the last, the JoBerg2c teamed up with the 46664 Nelson Mandela Day initiative to open libraries along the way, and riders were fortunate enough to attend an opening. It felt great to be offering something in return to those catering for our many needs and whims along the journey.
But just what was that journey like?
The Route is King
Surely, traversing the mielie fields in the Free State must be pretty k@k? Not so: each and every day has at least one highlight on the riding front, even those supposedly flat, fast and ‘boring’ days.
‘Diverse’ has to be right up there on my list of adjectives for this route, closely followed by ‘engaging’, ‘raw’, ‘scenic’ and ‘demanding’. Among the misinformed folks, it has the stigma of being an easy, long, multi-day option.
While it may be far from technically demanding every kilometre of the way and isn’t splattered with spirit-sapping sections of relentless terrain, the JoBerg2c is by no means easy.
It is for good reason that its sister event, Sani2c, has become one of the largest and most popular stage races in the world: the riding is legendary. Appropriately, the Sani2c route comprises the last three days here. The 30 km decent into the Umkomaas Valley is rapidly becoming world-famous, and you really need to ride it to find out why. Preceding this is more magical riding.
Day four is my favourite day on a bike – raw terrain and vistas from Sterkfontein Dam along and through the Drakensberg World Heritage Site, controlled by Gary Green of Berg and Bush fame. It includes a breathtaking drop off the escarpment into KwaZulu-Natal early on and ends with postcard-perfect bushveld and a historical plummet off Spioenkop, the home of SSWC2012. It also happens to be the only day where a rigid singlespeeder would choose a front shock over gears – not that any of these are reasonable options anyway.
Despite his canvas, even Wappo has upped his game, and if you thought the first three days may not be worth riding, you should see the two descents that qualified for the Red Bull runs. My pick of these has to be Mount Paul. What used to be a marker on the horizon is now something to look forward to, 3 km climb included. Oh, sorry, you still thought the Free State is flat, in more ways than one…
The fact is, if you are looking for a challenge, you could race around a parking lot and, if done correctly, even this would be difficult. Sure, the first day of the JoBerg2c is an ‘easy’ 115 km non-racing day, but it still has a pretty cool dragon boat crossing of the Vaal to add to the adventure, and it lets you ease into the task ahead and socialise – just another refreshing aspect of this event.
If you haven’t done a stage race yet, the JoBerg2c should be near the top of your list. It’s like an extended Sani or Berg and is brought to you by the same passionate, hands-on organisers. It’s hard to explain how they do it – make you feel special – but they just do, and they do it right. Although there is a solo option, I would strongly recommend the team ride: the experience is heightened when you have someone to share it with. The same goes for the tents: don’t be put off by them, as they enable you to get to know your extended neighbours – some would say a little too intimately at times, but it all makes for a memorable experience you will not find in your regular campsite.
This event has renewed my love for South Africa, has restored my faith in humanity and is proof that there are many more great people out there than I often suspect.
It has also reminded me that we have damn good riding here, sometimes right on Jozi’s front stoep.
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