PLETTENBERG BAY NEWS - The M&G Investments PE Plett mountain bike race, which started in Plettenberg Bay and ended on the outskirts of Port Elizabeth this year, delivered a comeback story of note.
HB Kruger and Matthew Keyser of the Valley Electrical Titan Racing team lost 11 minutes on the opening stage of the four-day stage race, but fought back to secure the leaders' jerseys after stage 3.
A clean run from Mentors Kraal, in Jeffrey's Bay, to Crossways Country Kitchen outside Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth), confirmed the pair as the winners of the event's tenth edition on 26 February.
In the women's race, Wintergreen Ciovita's Elrika Harmzen -Pretorius and Lehane Oost-huizen were prevented by a final stage mechanical issue from making a clean sweep of stage honours, but nonetheless rode to victory.
Well-known for its diverse route, the M&G Investments PE Plett traces the eastern coast of South Africa, straddling the Western and Eastern Cape provinces. Each year the race switches direction, with the 2022 edition heading north, from Nature's Valley near Plettenberg Bay to Port Elizabeth's Crossways Country Kitchen.
The 290-kilometre long route takes riders into deep indigenous forests, plantations, fynbos, pastures and single track.
After their inauspicious start, Kruger and Keyser did not expect to be in contention for the overall win against the Insect Science Pro team of Keagan Bontekoning and Alan Gordon.
Keyser punctured a tyre half-way through the opening stage.
Though he and Kruger were able to plug the hole, the rear tyre continued to leak air throughout the final 30km, leaving them unable to match their rivals.
On stage 2 they achieved a stage victory, clawing their way into second on the general classification.
The following day, in tricky conditions after an overnight thunderstorm, they completed their comeback. Having battled their way into first they were cautiously optimistic going into the final stage.
"We had a small gap going into stage 4, so we just needed to ride a bit defensively," Kruger explained.
"As a result, we waited for the first big climb, which came 40km into the 70km stage, and laid down the smack there; to see how hard we could go. Luckily, we opened up a sizeable gap and from there we could focus on keeping it steady, staying safe and avoiding punctures. It's a great feeling taking our first stage race win for the season."
Kruger and Keyser's general classification victory, which included three stage wins, was completed in 11 hours, 32 minutes and 46 seconds. Insect Science Pro were six minutes and 48 seconds behind them.
Plett locals Shaun-Nick Bester and Rogan Smart, of the Bester Performance/The Bike Shop, took the final podium place, finishing 17 minutes later.
The mixed category race was closely fought throughout the event, yet Samantha Sanders and Conway Oliver were able to win all four stages.
They were joined on the final, general classification podium by Nicola Freitas and Grant Daly, as well as by Lastminutetraining.com's Mandi and Wesley Augustyn.
'We bring you the latest Plettenberg Bay, Garden Route news'
