The first Dirtopia Enduro for 2015 took place in the hills around the picturesque town of Wellington, about 1 hour drive from Cape Town. Welvanpas is nothing short of mountain biking motherland and with Jonkershoek suffering severe damage in the devastating fires it now stands head and shoulders above all other Western Cape trails for pure Enduro type riding.
The 2 day format saw riders complete 9 stages in total (although it seems stage 4 on day 1 was not recorded) and about 30 minutes of race time. The stages were a mixed bag with loose, steeps shoots, flat-out loose vineyard tracks, tight and twisty singletrack and some surprise hairpin bends, all of which featured the typical dry and dusty trails found in Wellington this time of year. A total of 68 riders took part on day 1, with only 45 attending on day 2.
Myles Kelsey | Trek Bikes South Africa | Bontrager | BOS
Despite the best efforts from Darryn Stow, Martin Zietsman and Daniel Dobinson, Gary Barnard managed to stay on the gas all day and put in consistently fast runs on the timed sections. Stage 5 saw Gary hit a spectator that was on the track, forcing him to eject of the trail and into the bushes down a steep embankment. Awarded a re-run, Barnard put in another adrenalin fuelled run only to hit a massive branch (more like a small tree) lying across the trail further down, dragging it for about 10 meters before it dislodged.
Having an Enduro on the trails that I love so much was very exciting and getting a new PYGA prototype two days before the event pushed that excitement to frightening levels. Meurant and the Dirtopia team did a great job creating some new stages in an area that most of the 80 odd riders had ridden before. #fullenduro #gottoloveit.
Gary Barnard | PYGA
Riders head out on liaison 1.
“Hey this liaison is pretty easy, and flat.”
Welcome to Welvanpas. It’s steep here.
Rupert von Tutschek dropping into SS1.
Darryn Stow, 2nd overall.
Jarryd Haley, 4th overall.
Myles Kelsey, 6th overall.
Riders take a breather after finishing SS2, about to head out on liaison 3.
Myles Kelsey taking a minute to check the live timing.
Gina Nixon, 1st lady overall.
Sara Muhl, 3rd lady overall.
Wildfires are a regular occurrence during summer times.
But nature will always bounce back stronger.
Martin Zietsman, 3rd overall.
Julien Louw, 5th overall.
Rika Olivier, 2nd lady overall.
King Gary Barnard, taking the top step on both days.
From left, Rika (2nd), Gina (1st), Sara (3rd).
From left. Darryn (2nd), Gary (1st), Martin (3rd).
Results:
Day 1 Men’s top 5:
1. Gary Barnard | SS1 – 00:05:04 SS2 – 00:01:39 SS3 – 00:02:50 SS5 – 00:02:24 Total – 00:11:57
2. Darryn Stow | SS1 – 00:05:06 SS2 – 00:01:41 SS3 – 00:02:45 SS5 – 00:02:35 Total – 00:12:07
3. Martin Zietsman | SS1 – 00:05:15 SS2 – 00:01:44 SS3 – 00:02:46 SS5 – 00:02:31 Total – 00:12:16
4. Jarryd Haley | SS1 – 00:05:23 SS2 – 00:01:46 SS3 – 00:02:57 SS5 – 00:02:34 Total – 00:12:40
5. Julien Louw | SS1 – 00:05:24 SS2 – 00:01:45 SS3 – 00:02:58 SS5 – 00:02:38 Total – 00:12:45
Day 1 Women’s top 5:
1. Gina Nixon SS1 – 00:05:56 SS2 – 00:01:59 SS3 – 00:03:12 SS5 – 00:03:13 Total – 00:14:20
2. Rika Olivier SS1 – 00:06:02 SS2 – 00:01:58 SS3 – 00:03:27 SS5 – 00:03:08 Total – 00:14:35
3. Sara Muhl SS1 – 00:06:16 SS2 – 00:02:07 SS3 – 00:03:14 SS5 – 00:03:12 Total – 00:14:49
4. Joanna Dobinson SS1 – 00:06:23 SS2 – 00:02:06 SS3 – 00:03:16 SS5 – 00:03:18 Total – 00:15:03
5 Jessi Nixon SS1 – 00:06:29 SS2 – 00:02:14 SS3 – 00:03:24 SS5 – 00:03:33 Total – 00:15:40
Day 2 Men’s top 5:
1. Gary Barnard SS6 – 00:05:40 SS7 – 00:08:11 SS8 – 00:03:18 SS9 – 00:02:01 Total – 00:19:10
2. Daniel Dobinson SS6 – 00:05:45 SS7 – 00:08:07 SS8 – 00:03:27 SS9 – 00:02:00 Total – 00:19:19
3. Darryn Stow SS6 – 00:05:41 SS7 – 00:08:11 SS8 – 00:03:24 SS9 – 00:02:04 Total – 00:19:20
4. Dane Olsen SS6 – 00:05:50 SS7 – 00:08:15 SS8 – 00:03:32 SS9 – 00:02:04 Total – 00:19:41
5. Myles Kelsey SS6 – 00:05:49 SS7 – 00:08:31 SS8 – 00:03:29 SS9 – 00:02:07 Total – 00:19:56
Day 2 Women’s top 5:
1. Rika Olivier SS6 – 00:06:34 SS7 – 00:09:24 SS8 – 00:03:52 SS9 – 00:02:22 Total – 00:22:12
2. Gina Nixon SS6 – 00:06:38 SS7 – 00:09:39 SS8 – 00:04:05 SS9 – 00:02:22 Total – 00:22:44
3. Sara Muhl SS6 – 00:06:38 SS7 – 00:10:12 SS8 – 00:04:27 SS9 – 00:02:32 Total – 00:23:49
4. Claudia Schonitz SS6 – 00:07:46 SS7 – 00:11:30 SS8 – 00:05:03 SS9 – 00:02:55 Total – 00:27:14
5. Kerry Gray SS6 – 00:08:01 SS7 – 00:11:50 SS8 – 00:05:15 SS9 – 00:02:57 Total – 00:28:03
Thanks to the product sponsors for helping the event take place: Giant Bicycles, Brunox, Falke, Red Bull, Coke/ Powerade.
Thanks to Pieter van Wyk for building the Welvanpas trails, Festa the venue host & all landowners allowing us to make use of their land.
Rad photos and rad report Ewald! Thanks for all you do for our sport!