Nice Guys Finish Last, Or Do They?

Press Release : Advendurance Media

This question will be answered on Sunday when the best of the best in South African mountain biking will get onto their bikes to compete in the MTN Blockhouse, the fifth event of the MTN National Series.

Before the first four races, a big hoo-ha was made about the winning prospects of the likes of Kevin Evans (MTN), Brandon Stewart, Jacques Janse van Rensburg and Max Knox (DCM Chrome) and Marc Bassingthwaighte, Francois Theron and Philip Buys (Garmin adidas).

But Ben-Melt Swanepoel (Specialized) was never, or very seldom, singled out as a potential winner.  However, a look at Swanepoel’s recent results shows that he is currently one of the most consistent riders in South Africa.

During the past eight weeks he actually finished on the podium every time he competed.  He finished in second position most of the time, just losing out on the top spot of the winner’s podium.  However, everything changed this past weekend, when he won the Lost City Mountain Bike Race.

Swanepoel is seen by his rivals as the gentleman of South African mountain biking.  He always has a smile on his face, never has anything bad to say about anybody else and very seldom loses his temper.

But these good qualities turned out to be Swanepoel’s downfall when he was part of a team, because time and again he would sacrifice himself for the benefit of the team.

However, since Swanepoel’s accident during the Sani2Sea in which he broke his elbow, it has become a different matter.  He is now a lone crusader – somewhat like the Lone Ranger, but without a Tonto by his side.  This means that Swanepoel is now racing solely for Swanepoel and it is just question of time before he will win one of the big events.

He has already surprised many riders by finishing 2nd overall in the MTN National South African Championships – N3TC Dirty Harry Marathon Event.  

The people who know, say that the MTN Blockhouse over 110km suites Swanepoel to the tee.  He has had some of his best results in this area where the climbs are no very long, especially because there is never quite enough time for a rider to recover during the constant up and down sections.

What makes Swanepoel a firm favourite, is the fact that he is not intimidated by his rivals.  Swanepoel has learned to race within his own limitations, which means that he can ride at a consistent pace for hours on end. That is how he managed to finish 2nd in Harrismith.

By riding at his own tempo, he just caught up with all the hot heads who took off like rockets, but ended up paying the price.

As usual Swanepoel hesitates to speculate about winning beforehand.

“I am really feeling good, but mountain biking is a funny sport and the MTN Blockhouse is a race with a difference.  I have spoken to Fritz Pienaar, organiser, and he reckons that it will be one of fastest races in the MTN Series. Fritz predicts a winning time of under four hours.

“This means that one mistake or serious mechanical failure, could be the end of a rider’s race because there won’t be time to recover. I have heard people saying that teamwork will be of cardinal importance. Yes, in the flat sections team-mates might use each other’s slipstream to recover. But being a lone rider does not worry me.

“I think the MTN Blockhouse will be won by the rider who can out-think the rest.  At the end of the race, there will probably still be a big group of us left to battle it out to be the first across the finishing line. I will be ready.”

As usual, Kevin Evans (MTN) is the other firm favourite. He has just come back from Austria where he competed in the World Marathon Championship. He finished 8th overall.

After his mechanical fiasco in Harrismith which prevented him from defending his SA title, Evans certainly has something to prove.

Photo credit: Zoon Cronje