Let me first mention that I am very much a Mountain Bike novice, so if people refer to me as a ‘Crash Test Dummy’ or the ‘Portage King’ it is probably because I spend a fair amount of time falling, crashing and pushing, especially on such a testing course.
Courtesy of Isuzu, I signed up for the Ride the Rock 3-day event in the Cederberg and thought it would be great training for Ironman. Little did I know what I was letting myself in for, as there were some very rugged sections, loads of rocks and way too much sand. However, one thing I have discovered on this Journey of Life is that if you sign up for something you try and get the task finished.When I arrived at the ‘race village’ at Sand-Drif, it was mind blowing, what a beautiful spot alongside the river, like a magical Oasis! The first person I bump into was Event Director Alexa Cunningham, one of the friendliest and nicest people on the Planet and in no time I was made to feel welcome and settling in to my home away from home for the weekend. Also bumped into Stuart Marais, who helped settle my nerves after the race briefing, with a few tips here and there.
At the start Day 1
Friday dawned and at 07h00 we set off for the toughest 85km I have ever ridden, probably because my Specialised Camber doesn’t have an accomplished jockey aboard. 
The first 10km on municipal dirt roads lulled me into a false sense of security as we hurtled along, but then we started climbing hills and mountains. The climbs are fine, as I simply switch off, hike the heart rate and soak up the pain or the burn. However, there was one climb, which went on and on and we simply had to walk and push. I asked John Smit if pushing the bike up that hill was worse than pushing the scrum machine multiple times and the answer was quite humorous.
Pictured with John Smit-well done John, great prep for the Cape Epic
It was the downhills that concerned me, as the heavy rains in the preceding month had played havoc with the terrain, so I portaged whenever I felt in danger, always remembering Sibusiso Vilane’s wise words from Wines2Whales where he used to tell me ‘Rather a live Donkey, than a dead Lion!’ The problem is I would be pushing along a nice stretch, only to suddenly be careering down a hill and wondering how to stop and get off the bike without falling, which I did a couple of times.The water points were great, as where the volunteers and after the penultimate water point, I decided to time trial home as fast as possible on the open road, in an effort to make up some lost time, finishing in six and a half hours, but feeling good enough to put my shoes on and go for an hour run. Thereafter, it was time for a massage and time to relax and I met some wonderful people and was quite amazed at how the friendly MTB community welcome newbies into their inner circle.
Day 2 was also a 7AM start and approximately 61km lay ahead. I decided to start a little faster and was pushing quite hard up the initial climb, only to find some tough single track to negotiate on the other side, so had to pull over time and time again to let the more skilled riders pass (seemed like everybody was more skilled than I). I overcooked a switchback (probably going 6km/hr instead of 3) and smashed into a rock, so have the ‘Ride the Rock’ bruise to show for it and from then on it was walk those rocky downhills.
We had a little reprieve on an open road once more, so once again I upped my pace and unfortunately this leads me to getting a little too brave and low and behold not a few kilometres further on some single track I lock my wheel in a gully and fly over my handle bars. Fortunately I landed in a sandy patch as I fell on my left shoulder (with plate still in) and my head and even though the sand cushioned my fall, I was dizzy and seeing double tracks when there was a solitary one.
Amazing Rock Formations
That was almost the end of Day 2 for me, but I pushed on and got to the finish as best I could. My planned run was promptly cancelled and a massage and rest was inserted in its place. Thanks to Chris Norton and Fedhealth for sponsoring the massages, much appreciated.
Day 3 was supposedly an easier 55km, but the frenetic pace of those first 20km left me thinking I was doing an off road Triathlon and then we hit the 6km climb (which served as King of the Mountains for the Pros), which was quite fun. On the way up I saw the Pros negotiating the single track back down and I was worried and rightfully so, as once again I was going faster than my capabilities would allow and crashed once more. So then I decided to chill and cruise home and linked up with a young, enthusiastic guy called Tiaan, who was having problems of his own but we kept ourselves in good spirits, finishing in 3hrs11min and receiving a well-deserved Finisher’s Medal.
All in all it was a great experience, exceptionally well organised and for anybody with half decent MTB skills, I am sure you would really enjoy this challenging 3-day event so make a mental note for 2015. I think I may just be able to call myself a Mountain Biker, now that I have the Medal and the T-Shirt (one of the best race T-Shirts).
Congratulations to all that participated and to the Pros, well, you have my utmost respect. We see you on the TV and it looks easy, but how you rode all of those downhills and that concrete climb, I will never know, but can only dream thereof!
Thank You to…..
-The Niewoudt’s for the Cederberg wines, probably the best I have ever tasted.
-Grant, Marius and the Isuzu Off-Road Academy team for the display and test drive
-Fed-Health and the therapists for the Massages
-Mlungisi and Isuzu for the invite
-OJ and Admakers for the arrangements and support
-Michael, Alexa and the Stillwater team for a brilliant event
-All the Marshalls, Volunteers, Course Designers, Chefs and the Coffee Lady
YES, you Can, you Will, you Want to!!
The Riddle of an Ironman's Life 