Absa Cape Epic
Stage 2; Sauser and Stander Turn the Screw
News Release / 30.03.2011
A 12km steady upward drag took riders to a 6km climb on an ancient Voortrekker wagon trail, specially opened for the race. At the top, the 18km mark, riders had already ascended almost 1000m. With the stage’s major obstacle out of the way, the valley opened up ahead, with the route looping clockwise, following the buffer zone between orchards and mountainside. A look at the profile showed that the tracks were far from flat and a short section of singletrack compensated the labour of the first 50km. As it was a hot day, some riders were tempted to take a dip in one of the several dams dotted along the route as they begun to head home. After a 1.5km rise to the highpoint of the day’s outing came the rewards of the hard work invested in the first climb, the unmistakable silhouette of Table Mountain was visible from the crest. Riders then descended the wagon trail towards town for a good night’s rest.
<b>Hat Trick for Sauser and Stander</b>
The South African/Swiss team of Burry Stander and Christoph Sauser (36ONE Songo Specialized) again proved their world-class stature by winning Stage 2 of this year’s Absa Cape Epic. This is their third consecutive win, having also taken top honours in both the Prologue and Stage 1. The 36ONE Songo Specialized team will wear the yellow leader jersey for Stage 3 tomorrow.
Songo Specialized crossed the finish line first for the third consecutive day in 4:32.43,4 (overall 9:27.38,0). They were followed by Hannes Genze and Jochen Käss of Multivan Merida Biking in 4:33.30,6 (overall 9:33.56,3) with their second podium finish for this event and placed second overall. In third place with their first podium finish this year were Lukas and Mathias Flückiger of Trek World Racing in 4:34.07,2 (overall time 9:48.42,1).
In fourth place was the Bulls team of Karl Platt and Stefan Sahm in (4:34.23,6; overall time 9:35.01,6), placing them in third position overall. Nicolas Vermeulen and Kevin van Hoovels (team Versluys-Evenza) finished in fifth place today in 4:40.18,0 (overall time 9:49.53,2). Click here for more information on the stage's results.
<b>Blind Adventurer Completes Stage 2</b>
Blind adventurer and motivational speaker Hein Wagner completed Stage 2 in this year’s Absa Cape Epic with experienced cyclist Gerrie Olivier. It is the first time in its history that a blind rider participates in this extreme endurance event. Commenting on the day’s race after they crossed the finish line of Stage 2 in 08:23;42 (overall time of 17:43;20), Wagner said: “Today’s stage had a couple of downhills, but we started with a mountain which we literally had to climb as it was just too difficult to ride. And then we had to cross that again on the way back. We made up a little bit of time on the downhills and the flat areas, but it was a long day. Gerrie had lots of responsibility today. That downhill was really, really scary. It was exceptionally high, exceptionally dangerous.�
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