This year's Absa Cape Epic is over and we bring you a short look back at one of the toughest stage races on mountain bikes. As we have already informed you, the Czech team Canyon Sidi, which we support, also took part in the race and we are glad that during eight difficult stages both teams left a significant mark in this race.
The elite duo of Andreas Seewald (GER) and Marc Stutzmann (SUI), after a rather slower start, asserted themselves in the third stage, when they won with the significant help of the second duo, then in the fourth stage they finished in third place and in the fifth stage they completed the podium placings with a second place.
They moved up to fourth place in the standings after five stages and were about 6 minutes short of bronze. The podium was still real and the whole team was determined to fight for every second. Nevertheless, they did not manage to move up the overall standings any further, but fourth place is still a great result for the whole team.
The Czech duo of Martin Stošek and Petr Vakoč achieved the best position in the second stage, finishing in sixth place just behind the elite team. In the third stage Martin Stošek had his share of bad luck when he struggled with technical problems and from the fourth stage onwards they focused more on supporting the elite team, yet they maintained a great eighth place in the overall standings until the end of the race. The boys evaluated the last stage and the whole race as follows, "I had fun today. We helped the guys from Team 1 and then we just drove to the finish. We are happy with Epic. We went into it as Team 2, without much ambition for a result. But in the end we finished eighth and did a lot of work for the guys, plus we were without any major technical problems, which I rate positively," said Martin Stošek.
Petr Vakoč also evaluated the last stage and the whole race positively: "We rode together on the road and then we took the boys to the terrain to the first position. We still rode the beginning of the hill with them, but then I paid for it. Still, I rode better than the previous days and I quite enjoyed the stage. It hurt a lot, but I enjoyed it and I definitely want to come back to Epic." Congratulations to the other pair on their elite ten finish as well.
We also bring you a look behind the scenes of the team, where recovery after each stage is essential, as well as a relaxed mood and stress relief.
Equally important is the care of the bikes and all the equipment, which often extended well into the evening hours.
We wish the whole team to continue to do well and we will of course keep you informed about their further results.
