![\"ccs-62657-0-61149700-1521910126.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.bikehub.co.za\/production\/uploads\/2023\/02\/ccs-62657-0-61149700-1521910126.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/a>Annika Langvad & Kate Courtney during stage 6 of the 2018 Absa Cape Epic Mountain Bike stage race held from Huguenot High in Wellington, South Africa on the 24th March 2018. Photo by Ewald Sadie\/Cape Epic\/SPORTZPICS<\/span><\/p>\nAs Annika Langvad and Kate Courtney (Investec Songo Specialized) have been charging inexorably to victory, their rivals have been battling just to stay in the event, let alone remain competitive in the ever-changing fight for the second step of the podium.<\/p>\n
On Saturday, as Langvad and Courtney moved to within one stage of a clean-sweep by winning the 76km out-and back race from Wellington, it was the turn of Strauss to fall victim to illness and she had to dig deep to just reach the finish line. The South African and her Silverback-KMC partner Annie Last finished sixth on the stage, a distant 16 minutes behind the rampant leaders.<\/p>\n
Their result, in conjunction with an impressive ride by second-placed Robyn de Groot and Sabine Spitz on Saturday, means the Ascendis Health pair have moved into second overall, a distant 46 minutes back from Investec Songo Specialized but six minutes up on Strauss and Last. Margot Moschetti and Raiza Goulao (PMRA\/CST Racing) finished third on the stage.<\/p>\n Last was full of praise for her ill partner who was rushed straight from the finish line to the medical facilities.<\/p>\n \u201cMariske was not well before she started, so to finish was a really good job,\u201d said Last. \u201cShe wanted to finish and she is being taken to the Mediclinic now \u2013 hopefully she will be okay for tomorrow.<\/p>\n \u201cShe did the 76 kays basically with no food inside her. It was impressive \u2013 she had to dig very deep.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have lost second, but that is life. The Absa Cape Epic is about getting through eight days consistently. Anything can happen, you can have a mechanical, you can get ill, you can have a crash. You can have problems and other teams can have problems. Team Spur had to pull out the other day \u2013 It is just one of those things. Since defending champion Jennie Stenerhag was forced to withdraw with injury two weeks before the start of the 2018 event, all the potential rivals for Investec Songo Specialized have been battling illness: Stenerhag was replaced by Angelika Tazreiter in the Meerendal CBC team, but then Esther S\u00fcss was left riding solo when the Austrian was forced out; Spitz struggled on the opening few days with a virus; Team Spur (Ariane L\u00fcthi and Githa Michiels) were lying second on Wednesday when Michiels was advised to retire by the medical team at Mediclinic; and now Silverback-KMC have been forced to give up second position and Strauss is struggling to stay in the race. \u201cI felt so good today!\u201d said Kate as she got off her bike. \u201cAnnika and I really executed as a team today. I think we have gotten better and better as a team every day. We are getting better at working together and reading each other\u2019s body language, and better at knowing when to lead and when to be behind. I think it has been a real team effort.<\/p>\n \u201cBut this race is hard, very hard. It is an incredibly big challenge. I think it is hard to explain how difficult it is if you have not ridden the tough single tracks, and been out there all day long.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it is one of the most magical mountain bike races. There is so much hype and so many people paying attention. You also get to do it in a team which is very special.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/a>Sabine Spitz & Robyn de Groot during stage 6 of the 2018 Absa Cape Epic Mountain Bike stage race held from Huguenot High in Wellington, South Africa on the 24th March 2018. Photo by Ewald Sadie\/Cape Epic\/SPORTZPICS<\/span><\/p>\n<\/a>Mariske Strauss during stage 6 of the 2018 Absa Cape Epic Mountain Bike stage race held from Huguenot High in Wellington, South Africa on the 24th March 2018. Photo by Ewald Sadie\/Cape Epic\/SPORTZPICS<\/span><\/p>\n
\u201cRight now I just hope Mariske is going to be okay.\u201d<\/p>\n
The one team that looks like it is running on rails are the leaders, but even Courtney acknowledged that this was no easy ride to the finish.<\/p>\n