The other
morning I was reminded of some the added benefits of early morning exercise.
Running to work via a local forest, I recalled a conversation
I had with a former top rider a few years back. He commented that with his
public speaking engagements, some of his best ideas for these speeches come
from running solo in his local forest in rural Germany.
Having just
returned from another adventure working as soigneur at the 2014 ABSA Cape Epic,
I’ve been unsure how to document this experience. There are so many things to
write about and in various formats, diary form being one those. As with these
sorts of trips, I could write a book but time and inclination would prevent
such a literary undertaking.
As I cruised
through the damp forest with soft pine needles underfoot, it occurred to me
that a race diary, whilst entertaining, didn’t really appeal to me. There are
enough those writing forms, so this piece intends to capture the week in
slightly different way and around a central theme: the people of Team RECM. More flowing
paragraphs than the standard point form journals; at least that is the idea
anyway.
Whilst Team
RECM is a professional mountain biking team, the riders and fulltime staff seem
more like a family, which is in stark contrast to some of my previous
experiences over the years. This makes freelancers or privateers like me feel
comfortable and welcome in the camp, with no traces of the cliques that can
form in various sporting teams. A happy atmosphere certainly lends itself to
achieving peak performance, in this case the 2014 ABSA Cape Epic overall
women’s title.
Not that the
team were any less serious about achieving their goal; far from it in fact. Ariane
Kleinhans and Annika Langvad and already proved their innate compatibility at
the 2013
Cape Pioneer Trek and it was always going be difficult for their competition
to topple them. Not that they (the competition) were anything to sneeze at. Witnessing
the evergreen Esther Suss and partner Sally Bigham warming up on the
rollers before the Meerendal prologue dispelled any notion of a one-sided race.
Their desire was most certainly evident in their poise and body language
together with the unmistakable intensity that the humming of the stationary
rollers exudes.
It is not
that long ago that Ariane was competing at the sharp end of the Epic all the
while sleeping in the tented village. Her rise to the most dominant female
marathon rider in South Africa has brought her the reward of a solid team
contract, which in turn provides the luxury that is guest house accommodation
in an event of such magnitude.
Recovery is
everything in endurance sports, no matter the level. Ariane certainly
understands the benefits of this and commented that when aspiring riders ask
her for training advice, she advocates recovery in the form of proper sleep as
priority number one. Our accommodation throughout the week could best be
described as exceedingly tranquil, thus affording Ariane and her fellow
teammates proper rest and recuperation away from the hustle and bustle of the
race village. From the secluded and rugged setting of the Buitenskloof Mountain
Cottages above Robertson to the verdant retreat-like accommodation in Greyton
and Grabouw, good food, massage and siestas were the order post-race after the
hustle and bustle upon crossing the finish line.
Elite sport attracts people from all walks of life. Annika Langvad is from Denmark and exudes the cool and calm demeanour so evident in many Scandinavians. An Olympic level cyclist, Annika is in the final few semesters of her dentistry studies, of which she has put on hold to pursue her dream of riding fulltime. It never ceases to amaze me how many could athletes that the far northern countries with proper (read: severe) winters produce. But then they have proper seasons, where the weather and darkness really does force these athletes to observe a proper off-season, hibernate and follow their circadian rhythm, all the while pursuing alternative means of building or maintaining fitness. In short, truly refreshed and ready for key training camps in sunnier climes like the Canary Islands.
Many of the amateur riders in the ABSA Cape Epic enjoy great family support during the event and this also extends to some of the professionals. Nadia and Jessica travelled with us for the first few days supporting their husband and dad Nico Bell, who partnered Erik Kleinhans as one of the backup teams for Team Meerendal Songo Specialized. Nico and Nadia run a bike shop in Nelspruit juggling work and family with the rigours of professional cycling.
There are a myriad of personalities in sports and our camp was no different. Magnus Gouws and Morne Van Rensburg are fulltime mechanics for Team RECM and Bonitas Pro Cycling. Morne’s entertaining chirping complements Magnus’ quieter nature in their quest to effectively maintain race-ready bicycles. A mechanics job is a pressurized (sic) one, with the added challenges of bad weather whilst working under a gazebo.
An interesting member of the Specialized camp is Christine, who is one of the team’s permanent soigneurs. Christine is one of those multi-qualified people of found in the professional sporting sphere. A physiotherapist with training in psychology, she is currently studying osteopathy and was of great help to Team RECM in helping Annika to overcome some stomach issues. Eastern Medicine is gaining acceptance in the Western world owing to its preventative properties. Christine inserted special seeds on Annika’s outer calf muscles at a specific location known as the Three Mile Accupuncture point, thus helping to alleviate the gastronomical issues she was experiencing.
As mentioned
earlier, recovery is the number one priority in races of this length and
magnitude and can sometimes be difficult to achieve amid the pressure and noise
once crossing the finish line. As team soigneurs, Dr. Kate Kelly and I were
there to help the riders 24/7, particularly from the moment they crossed the
finish line. A fellow tea connoisseur and Bryan Adams fan, Kate is a
Pietermaritzburg-based chiropractor and attended to the more specific aches and
pains via spinal adjustments and dry needling to complement our daily massage
duties. Each night before the following day’s stage, we would prepare race
bottles and post-race recovery shakes to be handed to our respective teams as
they finished each stage. There was quite a lot of pressure imposed upon the
top riders post-race. A specially allocated elapsed time is imposed between
finishing the stage and the awards presentation, not leaving much breathing space
between press interviews, cleaning up, eating and drinking, and attending dope
control. This hustle and bustle can be quite intimidating to the uninitiated
and does require a certain amount of calmness amongst riders and staff alike.
Team RECM manager Kandice Buys certainly epitomizes that lovely borrowed French term sangfroid. As a fulltime employee of Lange Sports, Kandice is possibly one of the most experienced team managers in South African cycling. Dividing her time between Teams RECM and Bonitas as well as event management, running the show whilst away on a stage race takes some doing. There was possibly not a minute of a day during the Epic where she wasn’t attending to something media, administrative, rider or logistically related. To excel in a male-dominated environment such as pro cycling says a lot of Kandice’s personality, not to mention her sheer compassion and caring nature for all of her riders.
Racing cyclists need caring people whilst away on tour as the elite component of the sport is so all-consuming. Ordinary folk may find this difficult to understand but sporting professionals are under pressure from all directions, the most often coming from within. For every victor on the podium are several nearly-men and women who resolve to try again the following day in their pursuit for sporting glory. Resilience is key attribute to succeed.
My roommate for the week, Theo Blignaut, is resilient and then some. An
elite triathlete originally hailing from the North West province, Theo was
partnering Cherise Stander in the mixed category in his maiden ABSA Cape Epic
and second or third ever mountain bike race.
A well-travelled fellow, Theo has spent several seasons racing possibly
the toughest of all professional triathlon circuits, the German Bundesliga.
European triathlon is steeped in many cycling traditions, one of those being
the extensive club scene. Many Southern Hemisphere athletes have done the hard
yards in Germany or France, racing every weekend – sometimes twice - on a
shoestring with the intention of getting noticed by a professional club. In
contrast to their cycling counterparts though, elite triathletes are very
self-reliant in everything from travelling to training. Theo commented many
times how cool it was to be part of cycling team where you don't have to worry
about lugging your own bike and bags to the train station.
Athletes unwind in different ways, with Theo's love of guitar being his form of relaxation. Far from the stereotypical athlete downtime of DVDs and Playstation, his ballads on our stoep in Greyton made us feel like we were in a tranquil retreat. Riding the Epic with Cherise Stander was a highlight for him, the dynamic of mixed team always being an interesting one when compared to the other categories. Having won the Argus Cycle Tour two weeks previously, Cherise was indeed in good shape and the pair had a good chance of an overall podium. Her unfortunate asthma attack on the Thursday was not the way things were envisaged. Cherise's years on the professional road racing circuit would shine through daily, her effortless easing through the bunch and general savvy being the envy of many a male rider. A race like the Epic takes so much out of a person physically, mentally and emotionally. The fact that Theo managed to source an asthma pump as quickly as did and not leave Cherise's side until in safe hands speaks volumes for his resourcefulness, not to mention his maturity.
Thinking back to my 2013 adventure, I can never forget the help some of
my fellow soigneurs lent given the fact that I was on my own looking after two
teams. Irrespective of inter-team rivalries, there is a definite bond between
the staff of many teams. A small favour goes a long way in this game, giving
credence to notion of working together instead of against each other.
Whilst being a one-man-band last year certainly had its benefits, being
part of a team in 2014 was more rewarding. I view going away for an extended
work trip in the company of total strangers as one of the greatest and most
valuable experiences a person can have. Add in the travel, interesting
locations, reuniting with some old faces as well as some curtailed daily
training and I don’t need much else.
I was reminded of that by a fellow therapist just before the Epic.
Working together at a waterpolo tournament, this guy commented that he had
recently provided massage at a secluded yoga camp, where the participants lived
in tents and consumed basic meals. “You don’t need much to get by, Jason” he
professed, outlining the essentials of food in your stomach and a roof over one’s
head as pretty much enough in the greater scheme of things.
As I exited the local forest in the morning sunrise with ideas for this blog post in place, his statement came into my head. Endurance sports are a great leveller, especially in their simplest form. Professional riders train and compete for a living but are also people; the guys and girls of Team RECM certainly love what they do, results aside. Pedalling with passion and winning with grace.
Thanks for the working privilege.
