Team Valencia Perform Across the Board at National XCO #3

Last Saturday the 3^rd leg of the National XCO series took place at an all new venue: Wolwespruit, Pretoria. The course kicked off with a climb of about 500m long, not only was it extremely steep, the terrain was loose and uneven with rocks and tree stumps to navigate. The trail was wide enough to separate the field before the first descent. A narrow, windy descent with some tight corners and off camber sections was a welcome relief as it gave the legs and lungs time to recover just in time for the longest but less technical and steep climb.
Burning legs were rewarded with the 2^nd, most enjoyable half of the course. First up was one small drop off leading straight into a bigger, scarier drop-off both of which required some air time, or the B-line for the feinter hearted. Riders made their way down a long, loose switchback descent, over a bridge, up a short killer climb and down a pretty gnarly rock garden.
Some berms, jumps, rollers and a final drag concluded the 6km course. With over 300 entrance, this leg was the hottest contested race in the series thus far.

Armand Lombard showed his consistently growing form in the junior category coming 12^th overall in a field of 40 competitive riders. 'Wolwespruit XCO #3 was very well laid out and planned. The climbing was a handful and the downhills were good for catching your breath. It was not that happy with my performance as I was hoping for a top 10.'

Zandri Strydom blitzed the field in the Youth Women category winning with over 3 minutes to spare.  Zandri’s laps actually got faster as the race progressed, the mark of a classy XCO racer! 'It was fun and I liked the rocky uphills and downhills and was very happy to have won.'

Amy McDougall had to fight her way from the back of 12 riders and claimed 5^th in the Elite Women’s category at the end of her 5 laps. 'It was so good to back on the XCO track after many years. I was happy with my race and feel as though my love for XCO has been rekindled!'

Monique Swart, like many riders on the day suffered an unfortunate puncture which cost her the race.

Well done to each one of them who did their best and made their team proud!

African Champs in Lesotho is next up on the XCO calendar.

Until then!

Team V Shines at Local Sappi Mankele MTB Race

Last Saturday, one of the Lowveld’s favorite races, the Sappi Mankele MTB Challenge took place at the popular Mankele Bike Park renowned for its steep technical climbs and miles of stunning bush tunnels and technical descents. Team Valencia showed a strong presence with no less than 7 podiums across the marathon and half marathon disciplines.

In the marathon, Amy McDougall claimed silver with Samantha Sanders coming in 3^rd. 'It was my first ride on my new Scott Spark 900 RC, I loved how the bike felt and looking forward to many fast and happy miles with it! I wasn’t 100% recovered from a recent bout of the flu and felt my chest closing up as soon as I pushed hard on the climbs. I am still happy with my ride as I can feel my form has improved.'

Samantha Sanders suffered from major tyre issues as she cut her sidewall and eventually had to insert a tube which took a massive chunk out of her time. She fought hard to close the gap but had lost too much time. 'I was sad to have punctured in the first 14km of the race. Sappi Mankele is one of my favourite events and I was so looking forward to racing the course. But this is MTB racing and it’s always unpredictable. As usual the Mankele gave us a tough but enjoyable challenge and it was smiles all round in the end. A massive shout out to my sponsor Valencia and well done to everyone who rode!'

Emily Clarke and Kirsten Gillespie rounded up the senior ladies podium making it a full Valencia podium with Amy on the top step. 'Sappi Mankele was a tough but rewarding race for me. Every metre of climbing was justified  by the mot spectacular singnle track and bush tunnels any mtb chick could wish. Superb race, made possible my the V-Team.' - Emily Clarke

In the 35km half marathon, Armand Lombard who has shown huge talent on the XCO circuit lately showed diversity in his talent when he won overall on Saturday in a time of 1:21:52 exactly 3 minutes ahead of his nearest competition, Ryan Terry.

16 year old Monique Swart rode like a star coming 2^nd overall and first in the youth age category. 'It was a fun race. I liked the slippery single track and downhills. I felt strong throughout and was happy with my result.' Jessica Schulz of Valencia rounded off the Youth Girls podium in third. 

The race village was full of muddy smiles and war stories, which is what mountain biking is all about!

Next event for the team: National XCO at Wolwespruit in Pretoria.