Barzani Pro’s Tyler Day is confident ahead of the 175km Kremetart Cycle Race which takes place in Louis Trichardt, Limpopo, on Saturday.
Day said most riders, especially in South Africa, were not used to longer races like this one and he aimed to capitalise on that.
“I prefer most of the longer races [like this one]. I feel like it suits me,” Day told In the Bunch today. “I will have the opportunity to get most of the riders tired and then the endurance guys will come out.
“It will be a real power ride – the ones who have trained the hardest in the week [leading up to the race] and the ones who have endurance fitness in them will stand the best chance.
“Whoever can conserve the most [energy] on the day should come out on top.
“I know a lot of guys take off this time of the year before the second half of the season starts.”
Barzani Pro will only field three riders for the race – Day, his brother Dusty Day and Jason Oosthuizen. He feels the three of them will make a strong combination.
“Jason is in good form,” Day said. “He is heading to Europe in a couple of weeks and he has been putting in his five to seven hours of riding [per day].
“Dusty has been good on the mountain bike, so he will be strong as well. If either of us get away, it will be very good for our team’s chances.
“I won the Kremetart a few years ago when it was still a stage race,” he added.
The race this time, however, will comprise one long route for the elite riders as opposed to previous years when it was broken up into four stages.
Day looks forward to the one long tester they will be up against. “The four separate stages made it easier for the other riders to recover and start again.
“But often with cold legs each time you could also get tired easier, so the long race will not necessarily bring out the strong riders, but rather the most clever ones and the ones who trained the most throughout winter.”
The team would aim to pace themselves carefully throughout the race, Day added. “All three of us are flat riders, so after the hills early on there are downhill flats for quite a while.
“We will try to catch whoever is in front and then take it easier, wait and follow wheels.
“I am sure we will not make the race in the first 100km, but rather in the last 50km where we will become a bit more active.
“We [Barzani Pro] are going to check out the finish of the race on Friday. I expect only about five to 10 riders maximum, if not less, to take it to the line.”
