Experience the Untamed Action of The Race That Measures All as it happens by tuning in to the Live Broadcast of the 2024 Absa Cape Epic.
Tune in on our website, on SuperSport, Facebook, YouTube, or download the Epic Series App for access to the Live Broadcast and Live Tracking throughout the stages.
16 March 2024
Live Broadcast - 15:00 to 15:30 (SAT)
To get things started, a live preview show will surely tickle the tastebuds of those hungry for the 2024 Absa Cape Epic.
Prologue - Lourensford Wine Estate
17 March 2024
Live Broadcast - 09:00 to 14:30 (SAT)
Opportunities in the UNTAMED Opportunities await as the 2024 Absa Cape Epic begins its journey into the untamed on the manicured trails of Lourensford Wine Estate. The Prologue time trail pits teams against the clock on the steep climbs through vineyards and orchards, as well as on the superb singletracks along slopes where plantations are being repopulated by pristine fynbos. Short, sharp and punchy the opening day will provide seedings for Stage 1’s start batches; so, teams are advised to push hard on the climbs and enjoy the flow trails. Do not overdo it though, flow can prove technical at high speeds. An untimely crash could shatter epic dreams before they truly begin. Opportunity is a double-edged sword, in life and mountain biking. Seize it with both hands.
Stage 1 - Saronsberg, Tulbagh
18 March 2024
Live Broadcast - 08:30 to 12:00 (SAT)
Brave the UNTAMED Bravery will be required on Stage 1. Tulbagh, once a frontier town, is still an untamed mountain biking destination. New trails and established challenges ensure a fittingly difficult day. Four major climbs punctuate the day with Raptor Rise setting a tone of sweeping switchbacks through fynbos, continued by Boegoe and the Kliprivier Trails. Fanti’s Pass, infamous in its intensity ensures the day’s elevation gain easily exceeds 2 000 meters. It’s not just all challenges and climbing though. Singletracks, never before ridden in a race, like Jan se Bos offer a welcome reward for uphill toils, as do established trails like Assegaaibos and God’s Window. Fortune will favour the brave on this stage. But the line between bravery and foolishness can be a fine one, so be warned.
Stage 2 - Saronsberg, Tulbagh
19 March 2024
Live Broadcast - 08:30 to 12:30 (SAT)
Withstand the UNTAMED Withstanding the untamed and unrelenting challenges presented by the Witzenberg Valley requires endurance and skill. Stage 2 begins with an ascent from Absa Cape Epics of yore, climbing the waggon trail into the Wizenberg Valley. Famed for its relentlessly technical trails the valley itself might not feature an imposing amount of climbing, but do not be fooled by the profile. Ouplaas, Wakkerstroon, Slagboom and Welgemeen all provide singletracks which will demand absolute focus, as well as constant shifts in weight. The rocky trails deny momentum and reintroduce the concept of inertia to all but the most skilful. Ascending back out the valley is no easy feat either, nor is the Wagon Trail descent back to succour at Saronsberg. Withstanding Stage 2 will require mental as well as physical fortitude.
Stage 3 - Saronsberg, Tulbagh - CPUT, Wellington
20 March 2024
Live Broadcast - 08:30 to 12:30 (SAT)
Asphalt and UNTAMED Blending the buttery smooth tarmac of the recently resurfaced Bainskloof Pass with the rugged remoteness of the Waterval Nature Reserve Stage 3 is a mix of natural and manmade. An asphalt run out of Saronsberg starts the day before the course gets complex with a dual track climb into the wild. The summer sun will have slowed the waterfall to a trickle and turned Zuurvlakte to a valley of rock and sand, so be prepared for a rapid change in conditions. Kluitjeiskraal and Blueberry Hill continue the off-road climbing challenges, before Bergsig Wine Estate signals the resumption of smooth roads at the foot of Bainskloof. A loop above Andrew Geddes Bain’s most famous pass adds a sting to the tail of an otherwise manageable day, before a taste of the Wild Boar Trails introduce teams to Wellington. A route divided between asphalt and the untamed, it is the only transition stage of the 2024 race.
Stage 4 - CPUT, Wellington
21 March 2024
Live Broadcast - 08:30 to 12:30 (SAT)
Rise to the UNTAMED The Queen Stage of the 2024 Absa Cape Epic, Stage 4 will demand every individual and team rises to the gauntlet laid down by the untamed. Featuring more meters of climbing than any stage in recent years Stage 4 is defined by ascents. Pataskloof and the Hawequas Scout Camp climbs are the first order of the day, before Beula and Buffet Olives lead to the Hawequas Bergpad. Once the dual tracks turn to singletracks the climbing becomes even steeper, up 7 Peaks and the never-ending switchbacks of Aap d’Huez, DNF and the Cliff Hanger. There are incredible descents too, with Cool Runnings, Cool Runnings Too, Brandslang Neck, Full Monty and Route 66 all adding excitement to a day rising into the clouds.
Stage 5 - CPUT, Wellington
22 March 2024
Live Broadcast - 08:30 to 11:30 (SAT)
Wild and UNTAMED In the absence of a second transition stage, Stage 5 features a thrilling loop through the Wild Boar Trails. Home to technical climbs, traverses and descents it is a rare day at the Absa Cape Epic. One of flat out fun, but still with a challenge or two. A mix of district road and dual tracks starts the day, interrupted by the Roller Coaster singletrack, then it's on to Mischa and Welbedacht. The trails begin in earnest, for the second half of the stage, with Luislang, Happy Hog and a race into the rocky reaches of the Doolhof Valley. On the south-bound, return from the top of the valley True Grit awaits en route to Doolhof itself, then its home via Dirty Dancing, Welvanpas, the Golden Mile and Val du Charron. Wild and rocky at times, always untamed, it should be a faster stage, ahead of the bus journey to Stellenbosch for the final two stages of the race.
Stage 6 - Stellenbosch
23 March 2024
Live Broadcast - 08:30 to 12:30 (SAT)
Steadfast in the UNTAMED After a transfer to Stellenbosch allows for two full days of singletrack racing. Though teams should be warned, they will need to be steadfast in their resolve if they are to conquer the untamed. Stage 6 is no play day on the Simonsberg, it presents climbs aplenty across Rustenberg, Quoin Rock, Mauratie, Uitkyk, Knorrhoek and Morgenhof. It does however also boast singletracks, both uphill and down, on most of those famous estates. Passing through Mauratie twice the bulk of the trails come back-to-back in a feast of Dirtopia’s best riding, before heading for Stellenbosch along Morgenhof’s new singletracks. The Ida’s Valley trails provide a penultimate treat, followed by the stick of climbing Botmaskop and the carrot of The Doctor descent towards home. A final test of riders’ steadfast resolve, on the Berg Pad, ensures that Stage 6 is no easy day.
Grand Finale - Stellenbosch
24 March 2024
Live Broadcast - 08:30 to 12:30 (SAT)
Conquer the UNTAMED No free-ride final stage, the Grand Finale in 2024 is packed with adventure. But the conquest of the untamed is within reach. Only 65 kilometres remain. Of those remaining kilometres the majority are in the Jonkershoek Valley, with the world-renowned MTO Forestry Trails providing the bulk of the riding. Ater a tough dual track climb into the plantation the trails begin by continuing the ascent up Irish, the dropping into Armageddon. A zig-zag of climbs and descents follow with Red Pheonix and Neverending Story completing the exploration of the valley’s northern slope. The Valley Trail crosses the river and Bosluis climbs the southern slope to the XC Trail. Exiting the MTO gate the course drops into The Dentist and climbs the Jonkersdrift trail en route back to Coetzenburg. A new singletrack traverses high above familiar terrain into Eden, then its on to Mont Marie for the Gutted Baboon and Element before a race back through Eden, down G-Spot and the World Cup XCO Trails to the final finish line. With that the Absa Cape Epic and the untamed are conquered. And your name will be added to the Book Of Legend.