The 37th The Herald Cycle Tour, hosted by Nelson Mandela Municipality, will offer something for everyone as organisers aim to offer the ultimate family day/s out. Photo: Richard Pearce

With entries officially opening today, around 3 000 participants are set to head to the shores of Gqeberha for the 37th The Herald Cycle Tour, hosted by Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM).

The 2023 action starts with the mountain bike races at the Addo Polo Club on February 12, after which the road events will take over Pollok Beach on February 18 and 19.

The Herald and Weekend Post editor Rochelle de Kock said the event would offer a "wholesome experience for everyone" and encouraged cyclists and their families to take part in the festivities.

She said there would be more entertainment and stalls as well as lots to do for kids to ensure that everyone could enjoy the experience while cheering on the riders.

As a flagship event on the Bay's calendar, De Kock said the aim was to expand it without compromising on professionalism or standard of health and safety protocols.

The municipality's director of sports, recreation, arts and culture, Charmaine Williams, said the city was proud to be associated with the event because of the economic and tourism spin-offs.

She said The Herald Cycle Tour offered an opportunity to position the metro as a preferred hosting destination for sport and recreation events.

The 80km Extreme is the feature event on the off-road programme. It is supported by the 60km Adventure, 30km Leisure, 30km Tandem, 5km Kiddies' Ride and 500m Toddlers' Dash.

The road programme is anchored by the 106km Classic for various racing categories on the Sunday with the 55km Adventure for age groups and tandems completing the action-packed day. The 2km Kiddies' Ride and 500m Toddlers' Dash are scheduled for the Saturday.

Those with designs on racing the feature events in both disciplines can target the Ultimate Quest title.

The race villages will have family picnic zones (lunch baskets will be available), a family tent, beer garden, kids' play park, live entertainment on stage and VIP lounges.

The race has drawn support from a wide range of businesses including the Eastern Cape Motor Group, Standard Bank, Powerade, Radisson Blu Hotel, Zuurberg Mountain Village, Relay EMS, Talisman Hire, K&W, Trek and Cyclo Pro, Thule, Wayne Pheiffer Cycles, Coimbra Cycle Centre and Goshawk.

It supports the Smile Foundation, Reach for a Dream, The Herald Christmas Cheer Fund and Uthando Youth Cycling Academy.

Entrants can also support the Helmet Heroes initiative, which is aimed at increasing the safety of those who commute by bicycle.

The goal is to distribute 100 helmets to people on the race route. Riders can make a token donation when entering or drop off pre-loved helmets at registration.

Entries are open on www.heraldcycletour.co.za until midnight on February 5. For other information, contact The Herald marketing manager Berna Ulay-Walters at ulayb@theherald.co.za.

Team Aluwani pro Reynard Butler (right) sprints to victory ahead of teammate Nolan Hoffman (left) and Team Madmacs' Ben Fish in the 36th edition of the The Herald Cycle Tour road race at Pollok Beach in Gqeberha on Sunday. Photo: Richard Pearce

Team Aluwani pro Reynard Butler held his nerve in a three-man sprint to claim the 36th edition of the The Herald Cycle Tour road race at Pollok Beach in Gqeberha on Sunday morning.

The 32-year-old crossed the line in two hours, 41 minutes and 50 seconds to claim his first victory in the 106km Classic.

He was followed home by teammate and former winner Nolan Hoffman and Team Madmacs' Ben Fish as the top three completed the race in identical times.

In the women's race, Team Reach for Rainbows rider Maroeskja Matthee took top honours in 3:15.35, followed by teammate Hazel Magill (3:15.56) and Valley Electrical Titan Racing's Tiffany Keep (3:15.57).

"In past years we usually had a quick, frenetic start, but this year I think it was more of an easing into the race from the beginning," said Butler.

"We basically come here every year knowing what the conditions will be like. If it is windy, we know where to execute our plans, if not, we still know the route quite well.

"Going into the headwind for the sprinters was a bit tough because it slows the pace down and allowed us to ease into the race somewhat," explained Butler.

Meanwhile, the 33-year-old Matthee wore a broad smile as she came home to claim her second title at the event after her 2018 triumph.

"Despite the windy conditions, it was great to be out there again and to come home to take top spot is just the cherry on top.

"Coming into it, we knew it would be a hard race. There were some very strong women in the field.

"I wasn't too sure about my climbing legs so I went early and managed to get a considerable gap on the climb, which I just tried my best to sustain.

"I was cramping so much at the end because I am a sprinter and not a breakaway rider.

"I have to say a big thanks to my teammates who controlled things nicely at the back and it if was not for them I would not have taken this win," she said.

Using this race as a form guide for upcoming events, Matthee was happy with where she was in racing terms but still felt some work could be done to go even faster.

"Both times I have won The Herald Cycle Tour I have ended up on the podium at the Cape Town Cycle Tour," she said.

"As a team, we want to take the win at the Cape Town Cycle Tour, no matter who claims the win itself.

"As a team it would be great for us to be able to pick up a win there and, with the race three weeks away, I think our confidence is pretty high at the moment."

The Herald and Weekend Post editor Rochelle de Kock said she was proud to be part of the prestigious event, hosted by Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality.

"This is the 36th instalment of this race and it is a big flagship event for us," she said.

"The event also encourages community spirit and that is what you see here today - people from different communities coming together to celebrate what is a big event in Gqeberha every year.

"To all our riders who came out, participated and enjoyed themselves, they are the real champions of this event, especially after the tough times we have experienced during the pandemic."

Anriette Schoeman will make her return to competitive road cycling in the Herald Cycle Tour road race in Gqeberha on Sunday. Image: Supplied

Road cyclists from across South Africa will descend on Gqeberha's stunning coastline for the 36th edition of the The Herald Cycle Tour on Sunday.

After missing the 2021 event due to the Covid-19 pandemic, some of the country's finest professional riders are set to battle it out in the traditional feature race – the 106km Classic – that gets underway at 6am.

The event, hosted by Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality, will take place over two days, featuring 2km and 500m junior races as well as a special activation on Saturday before the attention turns to the 106km and 55km Pursuit events on Sunday.

"We are delighted to be hosting The Herald Cycle Tour together with the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality after a break of one year due to Covid-19 restrictions," The Herald general manager Ryan Megaw said this week.

"The support from riders this year has been phenomenal, which shows that there is a pent-up need to get out and compete again after the recent restrictions.

"Our aim over the next few years is to continue the event's growth trajectory with the support of our committed sponsors and ensure that we continue to give back to the community that supports us by making this a world-class event."

The 2018 Classic winner, Clint Hendricks, will be aiming to add another title to his collection in one of his favourite races.

"As I said in 2018 when I won the race, this is such a special race and I believe that it should be talked about alongside some of the other big races we have on the cycling calendar in SA. It is certainly one of my favourite races to be a part of," he said.

With precious little racing on his plate over the last two years, Hendricks said it was mentally very tough to deal with.

"I went through a very bad patch when the pandemic hit and we were put into lockdown.

"I always knew that I would ride again, but I wasn't sure of the extent or if I would race professionally.

"It did cross my mind to retire from the sport completely, but it was not the way I wanted to exit the sport, I didn't want to be forced out by a pandemic, I wanted to leave on my own terms," the Team Enza Pro Cycling rider said.

Hendricks is pleased with his form coming into the event and the Paarl-based sprinter hopes to put all his skills on show.

Meanwhile, well-known Gqeberha cyclist Anriette Schoeman, who won the race in 2017 before three second-place finishes in 2018, 2019 and 2020, claimed second place at the Herald Cycle Tour Mountain Bike Race at the weekend and will test her limits as she goes for title number 18 in the 106km event.

"I am very excited to do the race but, to be honest, I have not really done any racing since last year March.

"It's also my first road race since my knee operation in September which had me on crutches for six weeks till the end of October," the Strada Solar-Africa Silks rider said.

Schoeman, who has begun her transition away from the realm of professional cycling to focus on her new career, said she did not have the preparation she would like going into the race, but was still looking forward to going out and having a good race.

"I am busy studying and working at the same time to become a piano technician and tuner.

"I honestly did not have any expectations going into the mountain bike race last week and it will be the same this week. I want to support the events because I just love The Herald Cycle Tour," she said.

"As the race got going last week, I tried to figure out what I did have and what I didn't, then just raced with that, spread the effort nice and evenly, and it all worked out in the end.

"This weekend will be a different race entirely. It will require a lot more high-end anaerobic effort, almost like 110 per cent effort a lot of the time."

Gqeberha's Marco Joubert (right) and defending champion Yolande de Villiers celebrate dominant victories in the 80km Extreme MTB Race at The Herald Cycle Tour in Addo yesterday. Photo: Richard Pearce

Professional mountain biker Marco Joubert says his preparations for the Cape Epic are well on track after he claimed the 2022 Herald Cycle Tour mountain bike title in Addo on Sunday morning.

Joubert, who placed third in 2020, finished in three hours, one minute and 39 seconds, almost 20 minutes ahead of Rogan Smart (3:20.48), with Matthew Leppan (3:24.29) claiming the final podium spot.

In the women's race, Yolande de Villiers rode a near-perfect race, coming home in 3:29.13 to successfully defend the title she had won in 2020.

She was followed by 2020 runner-up Anriette Schoeman (3:46.44) and Mandi Augustyn (3:50.05).

The King and Queen of the Mountain titles went to Joubert and De Villiers, pocketing an additional R1 000 to go with their R4 000 winners' prizes.

Joubert said while he'd a challenging start in the 80km Extreme race at The Herald Cycle Tour, hosted by Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality, things had got a bit lonely near the end.

"Pulling off the win in front of my home crowd is always special," he said.

"It is always nice being here in Addo because this is pretty much where I started my cycling career on the Hayterdale Trails.

"I am feeling really good, the form is looking good and I think it is a good sign for the next half [preparations for the Cape Epic]."

The Imbuko TypeDev rider said that despite the jostling for positions at the start of the race, once he managed to open up a gap to the rest of the field, it was all about managing his race effectively.

"In the start, especially around the corners, I tried to open up and saw that we had got away, so we rode hard for the next 10 minutes to try to extend the gap.

"I always felt it would be three of us gunning for the top spots.

"I managed to drop them just before the big climb and from there it was solo to the finish," he said.

"I think I took about 400mg of caffeine [during the race] today with the early start, but once I line up for a race it is always about getting into a zone, whether there is competition or not, pushing the body and seeing what you can achieve."

De Villiers, who wore a broad smile as she crossed the line, was happy with her performance in claiming her second The Herald Cycle Tour mountain bike title.

"I am very happy to be back racing on these beautiful trails and I thoroughly enjoyed the day out there," she said.

"It was quite dusty and the pace was quite high in the beginning, so I took to the single track just to keep my own pace.

"The last section was also quite hard, flat going into the finish, but I managed to keep it together and finish strong."

Leading results:

80km

Men: Marco Joubert (3:01.39); Rogan Smart (3: 20.48); Matthew Leppan (3:24.29).

Women: Yolande de Villiers (3:29.13); Anriette Schoeman (3:46.44); Mandi Augustyn (3:50.05).

60km

Men: Victor Olckers (2:14.32); Luthando Fatyi (2:19.36); Richard Wyngaard (2:19.45).

Women: Michelle Howes (2:28.30); Nina Chambers (2:38.16); Lauren Smith (2:45.34).

30km

Men: Rhys Burrell (1:02.01); Craig Townsend (1:02.04); Morne Botha (1:04.57).

Women: Rebecca Jopson (1:08.25), Nicolene Wilkinson (1:10.35); Lara Lotter (1:10.37).

Gqeberha pro Marco Joubert will be eyeing the top step of the podium in the 80km Extreme event at The Herald Cycle Tour MTB Race from the Addo Polo Club on Sunday. Photo: Eugene Coetzee

All roads will lead to Addo when mountain biking enthusiasts gear up for the return of the The Herald Cycle Tour Mountain Bike Race from the Addo Polo Club at 6am on Sunday.

After its postponement due to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021, the race returns to the beautiful mountains of the Addo region as South Africa's top athletes tackle the gruelling 80km Extreme race.

The event - hosted by Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality - will also feature the 60km Adventure and 30km Leisure as well as the 5km and 500m junior races.

Gqeberha pro Marco Joubert, who finished third in 2020 behind Gert Heyns and Nicol Carstens, will be looking to go even better.

Earlier this week, the Imbuko-TypeDev rider said he felt happy with some of the performances he had put up of late.

"It is so great to see that the race is returning this year," he said.

"The last two years have been difficult, but for the locals to have The Herald race return is awesome because we have missed it."

When the initial lockdown began in 2020, Joubert said, it had given him a chance to step back and refocus.

"When the first wave hit, we still continued to train . . . but I don't think people anticipated how long the lockdown would be.

"In 2021, my focus switched away from pushing the body too hard and just focusing on the smaller things, before we started working on getting back the speed as 2021 came around.

"Now I am feeling quite confident with my form and will be ready to race come Sunday."

Joubert claimed third place overall in the recent Tankwa Trek four-day race in a field that included world champion cross country rider Nino Schurter and defending Cape Epic champion Matt Beers.

"There was some good competition in that [Tankwa] race and I was so glad I managed to stick with the big boys.

"Now, a week later, we are preparing for another tough race, so hopefully the fatigue from the last race will not have too much of an effect on my race," he said.

Defending women's champion Yolande de Villiers will also be itching to get back on the start line as she looks to defend the title she won in early January, 2020.

"It is great that the race will finally take place again after missing last year, that things are slowly starting to go back to normal, but also that we are being able to race again more regularly," she said on Thursday.

Having already achieved two wins - at the Attakwas Extreme and Tankwa Trek four-day race - this season, De Villiers said she was feeling in fine form heading into the weekend.

"The competition is going to be tough for sure, so it will force me to leave it all out on the course," she said.

"I am sure there will be quite a few competitive ladies who will be looking to take the title from me.

"Cycling is always difficult and anything can happen on a mountain bike but, in saying that, my preparations have been good and I am definitely up for a fight and ready to give my best to defend the title."

Late MTB entries will be accepted at the registration venue at R650 an entry (excluding children's races) and only MTB race packs may be collected this weekend.

Road packs will be distributed on the following weekend only.

Powerade – and Bonaqua still water – will again be on the drinks menu at The Herald Cycle Tour, hosted by Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality. Photo: Supplied

Participants in the 36th edition of The Herald Cycle Tour will be assured of all the liquid sustenance they need when they tackle the iconic Eastern Cape mountain bike and road races later this month.

Powerade has reaffirmed its long-time association with the cycle tour, hosted by Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality – a partnership that has been in place for more than a quarter of a century.

The festival of cycling starts with the mountain bike races at the Addo Polo Club on February 13, followed by the road programme at Pollok Beach in Gqeberha on February 19 and 20.

And, with roasty conditions likely to prevail, Powerade will be by the riders’ sides to ensure they stay hydrated.

Sanri Engelbrecht, Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa district manager for Nelson Mandela Bay, said the company was thrilled to be able to support the highly popular EC event again.

“It is very important to be involved in local events of this magnitude and heritage,” she said, “both for the development of the area and for people to experience sports activities alongside our relevant brands.

“We are excited to be part of this event, to refresh you with an ice-cold product on-route. Give your best but, most importantly, enjoy the day and be safe.”

She added that Powerade was the ideal sports drink before, during and after workouts.

“We encourage you to Move #AlwaysForward with Powerade. We want to be part of your fitness journey so that we can celebrate your personal best, no matter how big or small.

“The Herald Cycle Tour is the perfect platform for you to experience what we have to offer.”

Engelbrecht confirmed that the sports drink would be available at all waterpoints and race finish areas, while Bonaqua still water would be an additional thirst-quenching option at race villages.

Both products would ensure hydration while Powerade had the functional benefit of providing energy as it contained Vitamin B, she explained.

The Herald Cycle Tour, hosted by NMBM, traditionally offers something for everyone and this year is no different.

On Sunday, February 13, the 80km Extreme provides the ultimate test on the off-road programme. Other options are the 60km Adventure, 30km Leisure, 30km Tandem, 5km Kiddies’ Ride and 500m Toddlers’ Dash.

The following Sunday, the 106km Classic provides an equally challenging outing on the road. The 55km Adventure for age groups and tandems is the support race.

On the day before, the 2km Kiddies’ Ride and 500m Toddlers’ Dash are the prelude to the great finale.

The Ultimate Quest title will be bestowed on the men’s and women’s rider placing highest across the mountain bike and road feature races.

Entries close at midnight on February 6.

Visit www.heraldcycletour.co.za to enter – and remember to support the Helmet Heroes initiative on the same portal.