Addo awaits as elite riders tackle reversed MTB routes in milestone edition
Gqeberha's Kelsey van Schoor will tackle the Herald Cycle Tour mountain bike race in Addo on Sunday. Photo: Richard Pearce
A host of elite mountain bikers will line up in Addo on a mission to conquer the Ultimate Quest at the 40th milestone edition of The Herald Cycle Tour, made possible by Telkom, on Sunday.
Among the leading competitors in the women’s category is Gqeberha’s Kelsey van Schoor, who aims to achieve the fastest combined times for the 80km Mountain Bike Extreme and next weekend’s 106km Classic to win the Ultimate Quest.
The 24-year-old will start her pursuit of the 80km event at the Addo Polo Club on Sunday.
“The Herald Cycle Tour is always a highlight,” Van Schoor said.
“There’s a bit more pressure to perform well at a home event than an event elsewhere, but being surrounded by people I know makes me dig deeper.
“There’s just something special about the event atmosphere in the Eastern Cape.
“Addo can get very hot, so I have been doing some rides midday in the heat to get familiar with the climate.
“I was also able to go and do a route recon this past weekend to familiarise myself with the awesome trails.
“The single track this year looks absolutely amazing, and it’s going to be fun on race day.
“Sunday’s race will be my first outdoor event of the season.”
For the first time, the MTB routes will run anti-clockwise.
When asked how this reversal affected her strategy for the Zuurberg range climbs, Van Schoor responded, “I think it’s a positive change.
“This year’s route has a bit of everything — open gravel roads, hard, compact single track, and some rocky trails.
“I love it, and I think it’s a very entertaining route that everyone else will love too.”
Van Schoor came in second in the 106km Classic in 2025 and when asked how she planned to balance her intensity on Sunday in Addo to keep her road legs for the 106km Classic next weekend, she replied: “I’m taking each race as a separate challenge, and I won’t think during the MTB race about how my legs will feel for the road.
“Because there is more opportunity to make up time in the MTB race than in the 106km road Classic. Both are going to be tough events.”
Sunday’s programme will include a 60km Adventure, 30km Leisure, 5km Family Ride and 500m Junior race.
The Herald marketing manager Berna Ulay-Walters said the team had worked hard in the last eight months in preparation for the event.
“As we draw closer to race day, we look forward to having families locally and from afar experience the excitement of the race with this year’s mountain bike routes tackled in reverse to challenge even the most seasoned riders.
“Spectators can look forward to a fun-filled family race village outdoor setup — with pop-up food stalls and farmers’ markets, kids’ entertainment and a special pop-up family activation, compliments of our partners, Telkom.
“We’d like to encourage the whole family to come out and experience the beautiful landscapes of Addo and all that the event has to offer.”
The race village will be full of activities for the family to enjoy, like pop-up coffee and food trucks, a play park, a farmer’s market and stalls.
There will also be a pop-up activation by top-tier sponsor Telkom.
The sponsors for the event include:
Top-tier platinum sponsor: Telkom
Additional sponsors: Tshedo Impact, Sarah Baartman District Municipality, Eastern Cape Motors Group; Standard Bank; Powerade; Town Lodge Hotel Group; Relay EMS, Talisman Hire & K & W; Trek and Cyclo Pro; Thule; Wayne Pheiffer; Coimbra; Goshawk; Omega Security.