Kristen Louw wants to keep up with the leading male cyclists when she competes in the 70km Summer Fast One MTB race in Johannesburg on Sunday.
Louw won the women’s category by six and a half minutes last year and hopes to do well again this weekend.
“I don’t know yet which women are taking part,” she said today. “But I really want to try keeping up with the men at the front.
“I hope there are some big-name women too, so that I can assess the results of my hard work during the festive season.”
Kristen Louw wants to challenge the leading male cyclists at the Summer Fast One on Sunday. Photo: Supplied
Louw said she would probably have to approach the Fast One differently to most other mountain-bike races.
“There’s not a lot of climbing, which is my strength,” she said. “The race is very fast, so I will have to stay hydrated.
“I’m comfortable riding hard, but mentally I will have to stay focused and positive.”
Although she has an idea of the likely race conditions, Louw, who rides for Team Bestmed, said cyclists never really knew what to expect.
“Routes usually change, so I think there could be a bit more single track along the first part this year. It may then become flat and drag along.
“I’m also not sure when we will approach climbs. We’ll have to see,” said Louw, who turns 20 next week.
Last year, her first in the under-23 category, she won the Cycle4Cansa Championship in August, the USSA Cycling Championships in July and the Summer Fast One.
Riding for NWU-Pukke, she finished third in the Varsity MTB Challenge in October. She was second in the Winter Fast One in May and in the top 10 of the overall National MTB Series in September.
“The Fast One will be a good way to start to 2018,” Louw said. “There’s never a dull moment in the Fast One, and I’m positive about what’s to come. I have become a lot stronger, mentally and physically.”
Pierre Smith hopes to rectify a previous mistake to finish on the overall podium in the men’s Fast One this weekend.
