Stage 1 of SA\u2019s MTB Party of the Year, the highly anticipated Savanna Origin of Trails MTB Experience fueled by Coca-Cola Peninsula Beverages, kicked off on Saturday, 16 November 2024 at Coetzenburg Field in Stellenbosch. Mountain biking enthusiasts were treated to a \u201clucky packet\u201d of world-class, exclusive trails, offering a truly unforgettable experience.<\/p>\n
When entering the event, riders could choose between the Marathon and Half Marathon distances.<\/p>\n
Day 1 of the Marathon covered 48km with a total ascent of 1,400m and offered a variety of short, punchy climbs, smooth single track, long climbs, and technical terrain, all set against diverse and stunning scenery. It was one of the most thrilling stages in the region, featuring a unique combination of trails, including an exclusive section in Keermont that wowed riders. Other highlights included the ever-popular trails of Mont Marie, Dornier, Ernie Els and Stellenzicht.<\/p>\n
No stranger to the Savanna Origin of Trails MTB Experience, Luyanda Thobigunya (Idas Valley) was the first rider home in Marathon. According to Thobigunya it\u2019s the trails that draw him back to this event each year. \u201cI love the trails, especially the trails in Dornier and Stellenzicht,\u201d says Thobigunya. \u201cThe trails were nice, but difficult. I used to ride in Stellenbosch every day. It means a lot to me to finish first today. I am so happy. My plan for tomorrow is to ride with my teammates but keep the position.\u201d<\/p>\n
Celebrating her Savanna Origin of Trails MTB Experience debut on the day, Andrea Sch\u00f6fmann (Stellenbosch) was the first female rider home in the Marathon. \u201cMy plan was to go out as hard as I could and have fun on my backyard trails,\u201d laughs Andrea Sch\u00f6fmann. \u201cThe route was fun, I really enjoyed it. I actually haven\u2019t done a lot of the trails that we rode today, so it was nice to do something new. I had a little swim in the Mont Marie dam, not on purpose, but it was fun. I\u2019ve just come out of off-season, so it was good to start like this. It gives me confidence for the season.\u201d<\/p>\n
Day 1 of the Half Marathon featured a 26km route with a total ascent of 650m and offered a balanced stage with a mix of jeep track and single track. Highlights included the floating bridge at Mont Marie and the iconic G-Spot trail. This stage catered to riders of all levels, incorporating some technical riding without the more challenging sections of the full Marathon.<\/p>\n
NEXT UP: Stage Two \/ 2024 Savanna Origin of Trails MTB Experience<\/p>\n
Date: Sunday 17 November 2024
\nStart and Finish Venue: Coetzenburg Field, Stellenbosch
\nStart Time: 08:00<\/p>\n
Category and Distance:<\/p>\n
Full Marathon
\nDistance: 54km
\nTotal Ascent: 900m<\/p>\n
Half Marathon
\nDistance: 36km
\nTotal Ascent: 600m<\/p>\n
Charity Support: The Savanna Origin of Trails proudly supports the Stellenbosch Trail Fund (STF), a registered non-profit organisation (NPO) entirely funded by donations from local trail users and corporate sponsors. Since 2011, STF\u2019s aim has been to create, improve and maintain hiking, biking and running trails in and around the Greater Stellenbosch<\/p>\n
Like our Facebook page: Stillwater MTB Events
\nFollow us on Instagram: @stillwater_mtb_events<\/p>\n
Hashtags: #savannaoriginoftrailsmtb #mtbpartyoftheyear #savannaoriginoftrails #mtbcomeshome<\/p>\n
Stage 1 of SA\u2019s MTB Party of the Year, the highly anticipated Savanna Origin of Trails MTB Experience fueled by Coca-Cola Peninsula Beverages, kicked off on Saturday, 16 November 2024 at Coetzenburg Field in Stellenbosch. Mountain biking enthusiasts were treated to a \u201clucky packet\u201d of world-class, exclusive trails, offering a truly unforgettable experience. When entering […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":58694,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3260],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-58695","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58695","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58695"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58695\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58694"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58695"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58695"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58695"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}