Race Report - Simonsvlei Funride

Report by Sipho Mona, Team Manager: Team GT/Velokhaya/PPA.

Sunday, January 24, 2010

The 118 kilometer race began with the team holding the coveted King Of the Mountain jersey (Songezo Jim) and with four of our riders in the top ten, within seconds of the overall jersey, in the Pro- Classic Series.

In the first 10km of the race it became evident to the other teams as to what Team GT/Velokhaya's intentions were as our riders relentlessly launched attack after attack while at the same time protecting the KOM jersey. The relatively flat course made it difficult to shake off the competition as there were few climbs to separate the riders.

80km into the race a small break went away but only as far as 100m and was quickly brought back by the rest of the bunch. The last 20km were very eventful as many of the teams launched attacks in order to get an advantage on the overall jersey holder. With the finish line getting closer the chance of a making a break from the pack was getting slim.

With less than 2km to go there was drama - the overall series leader was involved in a crash - fortunately none of our riders were involved. The commissaire ruled that all the riders involved in the crash would receive the same time as the main bunch of finishers.

The overall standings still remain the same with the KOM still worn by Songezo Jim, and four of our riders still in the top 10 and in contention of the overall jersey.