{"id":61637,"date":"2023-02-26T11:01:32","date_gmt":"2023-02-26T11:01:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/?p=61637"},"modified":"2023-03-20T08:50:24","modified_gmt":"2023-03-20T06:50:24","slug":"day-and-de-villiers-battle-headwinds-to-win-2023-news24-karoo-burn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/day-and-de-villiers-battle-headwinds-to-win-2023-news24-karoo-burn\/","title":{"rendered":"Day and De Villiers Battle Headwinds to Win 2023 News24 Karoo Burn"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Dusty Day and Yolande de Villiers emerged victorious in a war of attrition against the wind, as much as against the brutal R355 gravel road, at the 2023 News24 Karoo Burn; on Saturday, 25 February. The 242 kilometre long race, from Calvinia to Kaleo Guest Farm, near Ceres, took on the longest, straight, uninterrupted gravel road in the country. If that was not challenge enough a southerly wind blew all day, providing a stiff headwind for the entire course.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Dusty Day (leading) worked his way into a leading quartet \u2013 who worked together until the 168 kilometre mark, at the Tankwa Padstal \u2013 before launching the race winning move. Photo by Seamus Allardice.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLong\u2026 headwind\u2026 hot\u2026. tough\u2026.\u201d Day puffed on the finish line. \u201cJa, dit was hard!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe [Day, CP van Wyk, Jaco Davel and Bennie Viljoen] all worked together against the wind,\u201d Day expanded. \u201cThere was no point in trying to do anything alone. We all know the race would be made after the Tankwa Padstal on Katbakkies Pass.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the famous Padstal Day made a rapid stop, while Van Wyk, Davel and Viljoen took more time to refuel. \u201cI made a quick stop and then just went because these guys climb a bit quicker than me. I knew I had to get a gap for the Pass and they never caught again,\u201d Day said, sounding a touch surprised. \u201cBut ja, well done to Jaco [Davel] and the other guys, it was really tough out there!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Yolande de Villiers rode to sixth overall and victory in the solo women\u2019s category at the 2023 News24 Karoo Burn. Photo by Oakpics.com.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Day\u2019s winning time was 9 hours, 26 minutes and 20 seconds. This was an hour and 21 minutes slower than Davel\u2019s 2022 course record, which illustrates how difficult the wind made life on the bike during the 2023 race. Davel was second, 2 minutes and 9 seconds behind Day. Van Wyk completed the solo men\u2019s podium saying: \u201cI think we averaged 20 kilometres per hour, working together and taking turns on the front! That\u2019s how relentless the wind was.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

De Villiers rode to a dominant victory in the solo women\u2019s category. The woman for Oudtshoorn found herself in a strong group with Luca Stermin, Jacques Steyn, Brian Brummer, Regis Maniora and Catherine Colyn. They were the second group on the road for the opening 100 kilometres of the route, until the group began to splinter. Maniora was the first to drop off. Then Colyn lost contact with the group when she stopped to fill bottles at Water Point 2, 111 kilometres in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Gravel bikes were certainly the faster choice on race day, as they provided a significant aerodynamic advantage into the headwind, but also because they were able to benefit from the freshly graded R355 gravel road. Photo by Oakpics.com.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

From there Colyn was chasing alone and it eventually told as she began to cough from the dust and exertion. The gravel and eSports racer from Paarl eventually withdrew at the 168 kilometre mark. There was no stopping De Villiers however. Despite riding the final 40 kilometres solo, after Brummer forged on she distanced Steyn, De Villers still continued to extend her advantage over Bianca Silberbauer, who had inherited second after the Tankwa Padstal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s always tough!\u201d the women\u2019s champion exclaimed on the finish line. \u201cI forgot how tough this race is. It\u2019s beautiful. But I won\u2019t lie, I\u2019m really happy to be finished now\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Catherine Colyn (rear), took the battle to Yolande de Villiers (second from the front) but lost touch with a powerful group when she stopped to refill her bottles at Water Point 2. Photo by Oakpics.com.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

De Villiers\u2019 winning time was 10 hours, 36 minutes and 19 seconds. Not only did she win the women\u2019s race but De Villiers was also sixth overall. Silberbauer crossed the line second in the women\u2019s race and nineth overall, 43 minutes and 7 seconds down on the winner. Magan Hanekom completed the solo women\u2019s podium standings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was an absolutely brutal day with virtually no free kilometres,\u201d News24 Cycling Editor, Lance Branquinho said. \u201cWind is any rider\u2019s worst adversary and it was relentless to the end. Even the strongest riders finished way slower than they anticipated.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The R355 is unerringly straight as it cuts across the Tankwa Karoo from Calvinia towards Ceres. Photo by Oakpics.com.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Despite the challenging conditions the News24 Karoo Burn was undoubtedly a success. Ultra-endurance racing is not meant to be easy after all and the weather is one of the unpredictable factors which can turn against competitors unexpectedly. Every rider who showed the mental and physical fortitude to finish the 2023 edition can rest assured that they more than earned their finishers\u2019 medals and bragging rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Katbakkies Pass, from the Tankwa Karoo into the Koue Bokkeveld was the News24 Karoo Burn\u2019s most significant climb. Photo by Oakpics.com.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2023 News24 Karoo Burn Results
Solo Men<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Dusty Day (9:26:20)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Jaco Davel (9:28:29 | +2:09)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. CP van Wyk (9:59:29 | +33:09)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Solo Women<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    1. Yolande de Villers (10:36:19)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    2. Bianca Silberbauer (11:16:26 | +43:07)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    3. Magan Hanekom (13:20:16 | +2:43:57)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      Men\u2019s Teams<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
      1. DVCC Kirkmack Racing: Shawn Kirschner & Andrew Stam (12:15:45)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      2. DVCC Kirkmack Racing: Jacques de Bruyn & Willie van Heerden (12:33:40 | +17:55<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      3. Kirkmack Gravel: Leon Erasmus & Wilmar Gouws (12:54:38 | +39:53)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

        Mixed Teams<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n
        1. All Gold: Cristelle Snyman & Nico van der Merwe (13:24:57)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

          Women\u2019s Teams<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \n
          1. Nortje & de Villiers Consulting Engineers: Maureen Jordaan & Charlene Vernooy (14:08:43)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          2. I Be Pro Fun: Nicole Morse & Marelise Badenhorst (16:50:52 | +2:42:09)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

            For the full results please visit www.karooburn.co.za<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            Dusty Day and Yolande de Villiers emerged victorious in a war of attrition against the wind, as much as against the brutal R355 gravel road, at the 2023 News24 Karoo Burn; on Saturday, 25 February. The 242 kilometre long race, from Calvinia to Kaleo Guest Farm, near Ceres, took on the longest, straight, uninterrupted gravel […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":61642,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[5316],"featured_location":[337],"class_list":["post-61637","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-events","tag-karoo-burn","featured_location-top-row"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61637","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=61637"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61637\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":61645,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61637\/revisions\/61645"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61637"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61637"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61637"},{"taxonomy":"featured_location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/featured_location?post=61637"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}