The iconic Wines 2 Wales Mountain Bike events start this weekend with the Adventure and is followed by the Ride and then the Race, 3 events comprising 3 days of the most incredible mountain biking trails, fun and camaraderie. Ironman athlete Alec Riddle joins Sibusiso Vilane, of Mount Everest fame, once again, but this time they are riding the W2W Race from 7-9 November. Riddle reflected upon their experiences as total novices last year and share some thoughts and tips for MTB beginners and Stage Race novices. 
It all starts at Lourensford Estate in Somerset West, with the race village at Oak Valley, a place that holds special memories for me as that was where the Isuzu Iron Bakkie vs Ironman TV advert was shot and I got to realise one of my boyhood dreams, to be an actor-if only for a day. The finish in Hermanus would be a particular highlight for me, as I had never been to this iconic coastal town.
Last year I teamed up with Adventurer extraordinaire Sibusiso Vilane to do our first ever Mountain Biking event and talk about jumping in at the Deep End, it took us all of 9 hours to complete Day One (in the rain I might add) which was a solitary minute slower than the leaders combined time for the 3 days. So to say we had and still have lots to learn is an understatement, but I do feel we can offer some invaluable tips and thoughts to novices and a few ‘weekend warriors’.
Life is not always about Gold or Silver, but about Finishing the Challenge. Those who experience the most are the true Victors!
Our Adventure got underway on the Thursday with registration at Lourensford Winery and that was the easy part as both Sibusiso and I have been to many event Registrations, but if it is one of your first, try and register timeously between 14h00 and 20h00 on the day preceding your event start. It is worth spending some time looking at the route profiles and the briefing on the TV monitors which are played continuously. It is highly recommended that you browse through the Wines2Whales website and the packing checklist, something I didn’t do as I was too busy, but how I would pay for that oversight.
Look out for the great gifts and value-adds from the organisers Stillwater Sports & Entertainment team and FNB, who are amazing sponsors. I was so impressed with FNB’s sponsorship last year, I changed banks after 34 years and return this year as an FNB client.
Race day dawned and with it lots of Grey clouds which seemed to want to cry all day long and the only silver lining in the early morning was the Bokomo Breakfast and Coffee, which was extremely welcome. Hitting rain along the route is one thing, but starting in the rain is another (brrrr) and mistake #1 I had no rain jacket and forget to check out the weather forecast. Be prepared and know what to expect. PS For those doing the Adventure it looks nice and dry on Windguru.
Race announcers Gerald De Kock and Altus Schroeder spotted the Isuzu Adventurers in batch K (stands for?) and made us sound like seasoned Pros but nothing could have been further from the truth. We were less than a km into our race, when we had to pull over to rectify mistake #2, Sibusiso’s saddle was many inches too low. Ensure your bike has been serviced and is ready to roll and double check everything especially after your bike has travelled. It didn’t take long to realise that Mountain Biking (especially in the mud and the wet) is a whole lot slower than road biking, so my hope of finishing by lunch time soon went out of the window after noticing the first 10km took an hour. Mistake #3 Ensure your mind (body ) is prepared for as long as it takes.
Reaching the first refreshment station was a relief and to see what is available, even for us right at the back of the field was a delight (with no thoughts of Banting on the day). Mistake #4 No need to pack a kilo or two of nutrition and extra liquids, the refreshment stops provide ample liquid for topping up bottles and plenty to eat, so limit stocks to specific needs. One of the beauties of mountain biking is the fellowship and encouragement received (and given) to all riders, something glaringly absent in road races. However, the lessons learnt and encouragement received by my esteemed team mate who has conquered Mount Everest twice was one of my best sporting experiences. I have certainly tried to focus upon the Journey in my sporting life (as opposed to the destination or outcomes), but Sibusiso has such a positive and mature outlook it inspired me a great deal. Seven hours into Day One and the Finish ever so far away, I asked him how he was feeling, his response “Great! Whenever I do something where I don’t have to stare death in the face is very enjoyable.” Now I’m not sure about not staring death in the face on a MTB, as I thought I had on a few of the down-hills or muddy switchbacks. Another funny quip was fired back at me when I asked Sibusiso should we attempt to ride this downhill (steepish) or walk it and his response was “Rather a live Donkey than a dead Lion Alec!” So we walked and that was not a mistake.
So on to the finish and some banter from the folk in the bar, thanks to Brandon, Mark, Silvio, Mike and Richard our only 5 supporters left as most had retired for an afternoon nap by 5;30pm, which was when we crossed the finish line for Day One, wet, cold, bikes clogged in mud and very fatigued. We made a good job of missing lunch, as dinner was starting when we arrived, but maybe being out in the country so long would lead to a lighter Riddler for Day Two, as admittedly my chassis wasn’t finely tuned.
Off to fetch our FNB kit bags and locate our Tents, only for me to discover Mistakes #5,6, 7and 8! Mistake #5 No slip slops or gum boots to trudge through inches of mud to and from the showers, the bike park (bikes get cleaned daily thankfully), the beer tent and the food tent, so my one pair of running shoes were wet, muddy and cold. Mistake #6 The light only came on in my head that I would need a headlamp (or torch) to find my tent in the dark, what a primary school error. Mistake #7 Pack or attach your pillow to your bag properly, mine was attached flimsily and didn’t make the trip successfully, which left me using a T-Shirt as a pillow… eish! Mistake #8 Pack a spare bottle or two in case you lose one.
Important Tip: Pack a good recovery drink for consumption after you finish, I use Muscle Milk which aids recovery and is high in Protein.
Enjoyed a few beers with good friends (and new ones), some good food and slept like a log and thankfully no packing required (which meant I wouldn’t lose anything else), so getting started on day Two was a breeze, only to find my bum was still feeling the effects of Day One. It was going to be a long, long day. We were even upgraded to a higher batch, but that may have been to do with people not finishing as opposed to our finishing time. Packed a whole lot lighter, had dry clothes but wet squeaky shoes and hoped to make it by lunch-time. Not sure if making it back by 2pm (7 hours) qualifies as lunch time, but fortunately it was a couple of hours quicker than the day before. The scenery was magical, so if you are not racing for overall or age group honours, be prepared to pause, take a few pictures and thank the volunteers and marshalls.
The only mistakes made on Day Two were the fact that we hadn’t trained enough, although this was our Boot Camp to aid us to get going for Summer and my lack of skills, which led to a number of falls for me (mistake #9 did not do enough specific MTB training). I was acting as the Body Guard taking the hits and forewarning Sibusiso about the dangers that were lurking.
Important Tip: I learnt to sit further back on the down-hills (hope learnt correctly), which seemed to create more stability and more importantly learnt to anticipate the steep hills and gear down in advance. There is nothing worse than being in too high a gear and you cannot turn the pedals as then it is all about which shoulder may have to take the hit if you cannot un-cleat fast enough.
Day three dawned and we had to rise a little earlier to pack and drop our bags off (to be taken to the finish) before embarking on hours #17-23 and I was starting to realize just why the Cape Epic has never caught my attention, those guys are radical. Another awesome day of mountain biking with incredible views and the most challenging part of the day was what to do at an intersection, which if reached by 2pm meant you could ride through the trails to the finish and if not you could freewheel down the tar road. As we reached the junction with seconds to spare we were given the option and in our state of fatigue we did well to follow the Isuzu motto, which is be prepared to choose the longer route and like life you only realise how happy you are after the fact, that you made the tougher call. PS We did sacrifice a few precious finishing positions as a few behind us took the shorter route, but it wasn’t about position for us, it was about Finishing the race you start.
Awesome views
Hermanus is indeed a beautiful town, but the finish line was like an oasis in the desert, it was the highlight of our three days together, the medal was worth 23 hours of blood, sweat and fortunately no tears. They do say that you cannot teach an old dog new tricks, but that is only if the dog is unwilling to learn and this old dog is learning all the time and am prepared to. So in 2014 Sibusiso and I will return to represent Isuzu in the ‘Race’ this year, but before expectations run too high we haven’t improved sufficiently enough to convert our 9 hour day one time into 9 hours for the whole 3 days so we will not be ‘racing’, we will be there to participate, to support, to encourage and to have fun and if we crack 20 hours we will be happy!
Alec introduces his MTB partner and fellow Isuzu Brand Ambassador, Sibusiso Vilane who has summited Everest twice, is South Africa’s Chief Scout and loves adventure. 
AR: What do you focus upon a 3 day stage race like W2W? I will focus on three things, “Safety first, enjoy each day & strive to finish, as this is my end goal.”
AR: What to take on bike (nutrition)? Energy gels and race food are important, but learnt that we can carry less as water points have plenty of good food.
AR: Your thoughts on the organisation compared to other major events done? Each event is different, I have not done many mountain bike races or events, but I thought that the organisation of W2W was world class
AR: What to do in your free time during the 3 days? Getting enough rest is important for me, so I spend most of my time doing just that obviously with a bit of networking and mingling.
AR: Your best moment of the ride? I condition myself to live the moment, so every minute is just the best moment for me. This includes even having to push the bike for ages up some dogged hills.
AR: The finish line experience in Hermanus? It was a personal fulfilling moment for me, getting that medal and being cheered by our support team, awesome!
AR: Did you pause to reflect & enjoy the views? All the time, I even took photographs to remind myself of the experience.
AW: Some advice for your fellow riders, in particular the beginners or novices? Keep the end goal in mind, but do not be too overwhelmed by it such that you miss the little things that make the entire race a spectacle! Cherish cherish every moment. Don’t be overly brave, be prepared to get off and push your bike, as I said to Alec last year “better a live donkey than a dead lion!” and that will be our motto again this year!
Savour the Moment!
YES, you Can, you Will, you Want to!!
The Riddle of an Ironman's Life 