Wet, windy, and cold weather made for difficult conditions on the opening day of FNB Wines2Whales’ Pinotage event. While some E-Bikers made short work of the course, many analogue bikers were out in the rain for longer than they had anticipated the stage to take. As was the case in 2023, Benjamin Willeit and Joris Ryf were the pace setters on Stage 1 in 2024, crushing the course in 2 hours and 37 minutes.

After a weekend of sunshine, rain blew in from the north west for the Pinotage race at FNB Wines2Whales. Reports of snow on the mountain tops to the north of Lourensford were very believable as the temperatures dropped as low as 4 degrees, during squalls. Though it was impossible to confirm the snow rumours, due to the low hanging cloud which covered the mountain peaks throughout Monday, 4 November 2024.

The wet conditions did little to intimidate the defending E-Bike champions, Benjamin Willeit and Joris Ryf. The Specialized Racing pair blitzed the 66 kilometre course and its 1 350 metres of climbing in just 2 hours and 37 minutes. That works out to 26 kilometres per hour, which includes a 1.3 kilometre compulsory portage up the Gantouw Pass wagon trail; which averages a gradient of 10.2%.

Willeit and Ryf along with their fellow E-Bike speedsters, Matthew Grobler and Christoph van Heerden, as well as Bobby Behan and Giniel de Villiers, were not on course long enough to get cold. The non-electric powered bikes had a harder time of it.
 

“Those were the toughest conditions I’ve ridden an FNB Wines2Whales stage in,” Matt Daneel grimaced. “This is my nineth time riding the race, so I’ve seen rain and heat waves before; but this was the coldest! It even hailed on us, twice! I feel bad for Vicky [van der Merwe], she’s a road triathlon Olympian and I invited her to join for a fun race…”

Daneel even crashed while trying to guide Van der Merwe home. “As we dropped into the last trail, which was like a muddy super tube, I shouted to Vicky to follow me. I hadn’t even finished the sentence and my front wheel had slid out from under me and I hit the deck,” he laughed.

Zane Schmahl, founder and race director of MUT by UTMB – a trail running sister event to the Epic Series of mountain bike races – was among the first analogue bike finishers. “I think this is my first bike race in four years,” he smiled. “It was great to be out there and to be able to just spin the legs when I started to get tired. Though the Gantouw Pass portage did remind me of adventure racing with the hike-a-bike.” 

Another man who was enjoying an adventure of a lifetime was Luke Lockhart-Ross. The former Epic Series European Marketing Manager started the Pinotage alongside elite mountain biker, Hans Becking. “Luke [Lockhart-Ross] did well until 40 kilometres, then he cramped,” grinned Becking at Water Point 3, 48 kilometres into the course. The South African recovered, with the assistance of a couple of USN Cramp Blocker tablets and finished the day with a broad smile on his muddy face.

“I think we won the prize for the most fun, and definitely the prize for the most nonsense spoken on the bike,” Lockhart-Ross recounted. “We didn’t fight!” Becking interjected, joking: “I was a nice guy.”

As the morning wore on to early afternoon the finishers became increasingly dirty. One team who were clean, beneath their waterproof jackets were the third placed E-Bike women’s combination of Gemma Fundaro and Karlien Robertson. “This CIOVITA Supremo Rain Shell Jacket is amazing,” Robertson gushed. “Look at my jersey, it’s completely dry under my jacket.” Riders wishing to upgrade their apparel can do so at the CIOVITA pop-up shop in the Oak Valley Race Village, or at the Shiraz registration, at Lourensford Wine Estate on Thursday, 7 November.

Tuesday’s Stage 2 should be warmer and drier, though there will still be cloud cover and a few drops of rain on the trails of Oak Valley and Paul Cluver Wine Estates. There are however no plans to reroute or remove any of the trails at this point, so the Pinotage riders are in for a full FNB W2W experience. To follow the action, as it unfolds, watch the race coverage on social media. Regular updates will be posted to the @wines_2_whales Instagram and Wines2Whales Facebook stories. Post-stage highlight videos will be uploaded to the Epic Series YouTube channel. For more information visit www.epic-series.com/wines2whales or download the Epics Series mobile application.

2024 FNB Wines2Whales Chardonnay Results:

E-Bike Men | Stage 1:

1. Specialized Racing: Benjamin Willeit & Joris Ryf (2:37:38)
2. Acepak: Matthew Grobler & Christoph van Heerden (2:42:13 | +4:35)
3. Toyota Specialized: Bobby Behan & Giniel de Villiers (2:54:25 | +16:47)
4. XTREME RACING: Leeroy & Lyle Poulter (2:58:55 | +21:17)
5. Determinators: Martin Horn & Driko Venter (3:00:30 | +22:52)

E-Bike Women | Stage 1:

1. Trail Tarts do Turbo: Heather Collen & Kerry Ould (3:46:15)
2. Mountainbike-Südafrika.ch-6: Nicole Schumacher & Monika Walther (4:35:50 | +49:35)
3. SHEOVITA: Gemma Fundaro & Karlien Robertson (5:05:01 | +1:18:46)
4. Desert Roses: Connie-Marlene Theyse & Hanli Jacobs (6:39:45 | +2:53:29)
5. Pink & Turquoise: Jolanda Vorster & Kelly Robinson (6:59:53 | +3:13:38)

E-Bike Mixed | Stage 1:

1. Bergstrom Factory Racing: Santina Malacarne & Lukas Dennda (3:04:12)
2. Rufus da Balls: Ross Reuvers & Victoria Reuvers (3:39:17 | +35:05)
3. Team Prescient: Carla Beyers & Dawie Carstens (3:40:14 | +36:01)
4. W2W Pino Champs: Johan Kriegler & Reinette Geldenhuis (3:44:06 | +39:54)
5. Thundervyver: Werner & Marlize van der Vyver (3:48:01 | +43:48)

For the full results from the FNB Wines2Whales Pinotage click here.