Teresa Coetzee is a lifestyle journalist for the Afrikaans newspaper Beeld and is currently taking part in the Old Mutual joBerg2c mountain bike race. She shares her experiences with us after the eighth day of the event.
Photo: Kelvin Trautman
To express what I experienced on my bike today, will be difficult.
No adjective, even in the superlative degree, will accurately describe it. Not even a photo or a video will do justice to what we experienced on day eight of the Old Mutual joBerg2c.
Long ago, my friend Isabel Prince told me about the Umkomaas Valley. Other people who took part in the Nedbank sani2c, which shares this stage with the joBerg2c, also tried to describe it to me, but I never realised it would be this beautiful.
I simply had to ride it to be able to comprehend it, but it still feels surreal.
Our day started at a slightly warmer MacKenzie Club (Ixopo) and after going through an amazing forest with beautiful single-track, we entered the mighty Nick’s pass, which looks down on the whole Umkomaas River Valley.
Here we rode for about 17km on a quick and perfect single track-descent. Fast – with adrenalin pumping through our veins.
Every time I looked to my left, I was breathless. Not just because we were up high, but because the valley was so very beautiful.
The first waterpoint came after 40km and then the hard work began. With less smooth single-track, we had some climbing and we often had to toil hard and sweat a lot to come out on top.
By now, everyone was more or less friends and it’s funny how the competition and rivalry at the beginning no longer counted.
Today we travelled in a large group. A Dutch doctor, called Frans (I have forgotten his surname), decided to accompany us today and we all waited for each other at the waterpoints.
I was again constantly aware of how fortunate I am to be fit and healthy enough to do an event like this. If you are on your mountain bike, you are not only surrounded by nature and its wonders, but you literally forget all the other trivialities that normally absorb you.
The tented village at Jolivet (Highflats) was again amazing. It looked like our tent was pitched right in the middle of an orchard.
And we had simply the most amazing steaks tonight, with fresh green salad and delicious vegetables.
I’m absolutely amazed at how well we were catered for over the past eight days. In the mornings there are such a large choice between Future Life, ProNutro, cereal, oatmeal, yogurt, breads, cold meats, muffins, and even bacon and eggs.
And at the waterpoints the feast simply continues.
When you talk to people, they all tell you that the Old Mutual joBerg2c is one of the events where you get the best value for money and now I understand why.
Tomorrow we tackle the last part of our journey and, in a way, it feels strange to think that I’ll be back at work on Monday.
Click here to read Teresa’s blog after day seven.
