{"id":15242,"date":"2020-01-30T13:05:00","date_gmt":"2020-01-30T13:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/2020\/01\/30\/kulhavy-and-grotts-get-the-band-back-together-r8049\/"},"modified":"2023-02-08T19:46:17","modified_gmt":"2023-02-08T19:46:17","slug":"kulhavy-and-grotts-get-the-band-back-together-r8049","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/kulhavy-and-grotts-get-the-band-back-together-r8049\/","title":{"rendered":"Kulhavy and Grotts Get the Band Back Together"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Specialized Racing duo of Jaroslav Kulhav\u00fd and Howard Grotts missed their chance to defend their 2018 Absa Cape Epic title last year. Grotts\u2019 late withdrawal, due to illness kicked off a year of disappointing results for Kulhav\u00fd and of soul searching for Grotts. 12 months on they are refreshed and ready to take on the Absa Cape Epic once again, approaching it as a fresh start and a new challenge; to take the battle to SCOTT-SRAM MTB-Racing, Cannondale Factory Racing and Co.<\/p>\n

\"ccs-62657-0-03727100-1580389795.jpg\"<\/a>Grotts and Kulhavy\u0301 will race as Ninety One – Songo – Specialized 1 in the 2020 Absa Cape Epic. Photo by Sam Clark.<\/span><\/p>\n

Kulhav\u00fd, in particular, has always performed well in The Race That Measures All. From five starts, the Czech Express has three victories and a second-place finish to his name. \u201cThe long-distance events are good for me and I like these multi-stage events\u201d Kulhav\u00fd explained, of his success at the Untamed African MTB Race. \u201cThe Absa Cape Epic is the Queen of the stage races and it\u2019s also my favourite stage race.\u201d<\/p>\n

The disappointment of 2019 is still fresh in his memory. After Grotts\u2019 withdrawal, Kulhav\u00fd was partnered by Sam Gaze; but a crash, which left the Kiwi with a concussion, on Stage 1 meant the pair never really got going. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to say if Sam and I would have made a good team or not\u201d Kulhav\u00fd mused. \u201cWe didn\u2019t really have the chance to try it, but I am sure about Howie\u2019s [Grotts] quality. He is really strong on the climbs and consistent on the flats. That combination was perfect for our attacks two years ago. This year he is also more experienced.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ccs-62657-0-20793100-1580389796.jpg\"<\/a>Howard Grotts leads the charge during the 2018 Absa Cape Epic. Photo by Nick Muzik.<\/span><\/p>\n

Grotts\u2019 experience is not just in bike racing, however. The American underwent a year of personal growth and reflection, leaving him arguably better prepared for the emotional and psychological challenges of the Absa Cape Epic. Explaining his 2019 step back from racing, Grotts said: \u201cLast year I ended up burning out before the season even really began. So, I knew it was time to take a step back and re-evaluate my approach to training and racing. I ended up coaching with the local youth programme, Durango Devo, and that was largely what helped rekindle my joy for just riding my bike.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis year, the Absa Cape Epic will be my biggest race, and the rest will be relatively low-key in comparison\u201d he continued. \u201cBut I’m looking forward to having more time to coach and to not travelling as much. I’ve also applied to two Universities for graduate programmes in Mathematics. If I were to get accepted, that would begin in the fall.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2018, Grotts came into his own as the race progressed. By the time the route crossed Bainskloof to Wellington, he was arguably the strongest rider in the field, eclipsing even his powerful partner. \u201cI think the smoother trails and the amount of climbing suited me well in the latter half of the race\u201d Grotts stated.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe early stages featured a lot of sand and gravel which is hard for a smaller guy like me\u201d he added. In 2020, the early stages will once again feature a fair amount of sand, but the additional element will be rocks rather than gravel. It could again make the going tough for Grotts, but the two stages in Wellington will suit him perfectly.<\/p>\n

\"ccs-62657-0-98132200-1580389796.jpg\"<\/a>Jaroslav Kulhavy\u0301 will be partnered by his 2018 teammate, Howard Grotts and the pair is eager to challenge for the overall Men’s category title. Photo by Ewald Sadie.<\/span><\/p>\n

During the 2020 Absa Cape Epic, the Specialized teams will be turning out in a range of jerseys. Kulhav\u00fd and Grotts will wear the Ninety One \u2013 Songo \u2013 Specialized 1 colours, while Annika Langvad and Jenny Rissveds will represent Team 31: Outride. Christoph Sauser and his South African partner, NAD Pro MTB\u2019s Wessel Botha, will represent Ninety One \u2013 Songo \u2013 Specialized 2. All the teams will still have a link to Sauser\u2019s songo.info programme however, as the American bicycle manufacturer continues their support of the Kayamandi based education and cycling charity.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe collaboration with songo.info is a good idea, especially for a big event like the Absa Cape Epic; where we can really help raise funds\u201d Kulhav\u00fd reflected. \u201cI\u2019m glad we can help with the promotion of the charity and serve as a source of motivation for the children in the programme too.\u201d For Grotts, the songo.info link is equally important. \u201cUltimately, my motivation for bike racing has to be intrinsic, but racing to support the songo.info program is certainly one of the worthiest causes out there\u201d the American pointed out. \u201cPersonally, really just seeing anyone discover the joy of riding a bike is gratifying.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Specialized Racing duo of Jaroslav Kulhav\u00fd and Howard Grotts missed their chance to defend their 2018 Absa Cape Epic title last year. Grotts\u2019 late withdrawal, due to illness kicked off a year of disappointing results for Kulhav\u00fd and of soul searching for Grotts. 12 months on they are refreshed and ready to take on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":61066,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[24],"featured_location":[],"class_list":["post-15242","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-events","tag-cape-epic"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15242","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15242"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15242\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61066"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15242"},{"taxonomy":"featured_location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/featured_location?post=15242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}