![\"ccs-62657-0-01312100-1461138568.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.bikehub.co.za\/production\/uploads\/2023\/02\/ccs-62657-0-01312100-1461138568.jpg\")
<\/a>Britain\u2019s Catherine Williamson has set her sights on the mixed category title at this year\u2019s Old Mutual joBerg2c mountain bike race. Photo: Full Stop Communications<\/span><\/p>\nOutlining her change of focus, the 34-year-old from north Yorkshire \u2013 who will be riding for The Bicycle Company-Mitas team \u2013 said she was looking forward to the strong competition in the category.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere has always been a strong mixed field at joBerg2c and so the organisers have put more emphasis on this category. Though it makes for a harder week, it\u2019s much better to race in a competitive category.\u201d<\/p>\n
The organisers have announced that mixed teams will receive equal prize-money to men this year due to a sponsorship from commercial law firm Lanham-Love Attorneys.<\/p>\n
The move, which will see the top mixed team earn a R50 000 bonus, was aimed at attracting more female participants, said race director Craig Wapnick.<\/p>\n
Williamson has a fair amount of experience in mixed racing having podiumed in the joBerg2c, Berg and Bush and Cape Epic<\/p>\n
\u201cJohan has a lot more experience in the mixed category, so what he says goes. He managed the Sasol team last year and is the reason I\u2019m still racing in South Africa.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe is a very strong partner. He can drive the group along the flat and is also good to follow on the descents.\u201d<\/p>\n
While the pair will be looking to contend for the title, Williamson offered a note of caution.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe obviously want to race as hard as we can but, as with any stage race, there are many things that can go wrong. So it\u2019s best to go in there with the intention of enjoying the experience, while racing to your best ability.\u201d<\/p>\n
Williamson\u2019s attitude is indicative of her philosophy towards the joBerg2c.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has always been my favourite race on the calendar. I have missed one with a broken leg and it was the most depressing nine days of my life.<\/p>\n
\u201cRacing for me isn\u2019t just about the outcome and the result, it is about the memories you take from each race, the friendships you make, the scenery and the atmosphere in the camp.<\/p>\n
\u201cjoBerg2c ticks all the boxes for me, plus it\u2019s long enough to be totally exhausted by the end, which is always a nice feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n
Williamson has spent the last few weeks at home to prepare for the cold starts.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve stayed on the road to get a bit more speed in my legs for the flatter stages, plus the fact that any off-road training in Yorkshire at the moment requires a snorkel.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said she was pleased with the route changes, which includes a shortened day four and an entirely different sixth stage.<\/p>\n
\u201cEach year the route is slightly different, which is great. There is more single-track every year and while I haven\u2019t looked into each stage in detail, I\u2019m sure the tweaks will be for the better.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love the fact that joBerg2c traverses such different landscapes. From the flat farmlands to the mountains and then finally arriving at the coast feels like a real journey.\u201d<\/p>\n
Williamson regarded American Sonja Looney and Japan\u2019s Yuki Ikeda as one of the teams to watch.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think Sonja and Yuki will be very strong together. I have met them both \u2013 Sonja in Mongolia and Yuki in Canada. They have tons of stage race experience and I regard them as two of the best in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another team sure to be in the mix will be South Africans Grant Usher and Amy Beth McDougall. The Lanham-Love Valencia pairing placed second and first respectively in the inaugural Munga.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Former women\u2019s champion Catherine Williamson has set her sights on the mixed category title at this year\u2019s Old Mutual joBerg2c international mountain bike race that starts on Friday. The versatile Brit, who will ride alongside Johan Labuschagne, said she was fired up for the nine-day event that stretched over 900km from the Highveld town of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":43176,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[1403,286,1305],"featured_location":[],"class_list":["post-18309","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-events","tag-catherine-williamson","tag-joberg2c","tag-old-mutual-joberg2c"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18309","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=18309"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18309\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43176"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18309"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18309"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18309"},{"taxonomy":"featured_location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/featured_location?post=18309"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}