This was it, the Queen stage, the longest and hardest, with Groenlandberg thrown into the equation. After a fast start on tar road out of Worcester, we hit a long sandy climb and then a swooping downhill where we came across a seriously crumpled rider who had fallen really hard. He was certainly not going to finish. Somehow, this stage did not seem that hard. However, the tone for the next three days was being set. All those stories about how you need a dual suspension for the Cape Epic started playing itself out. On the first few days I felt strong, springy, now, the battering from an aluminium hard tail was starting to take its toll. My core strength started to disappear, it felt like my back was breaking and I could't get the bike to flow on the single track. Such is the appeal of carbon and a fully suspended rig. However, we were flying in comparison to previous days. In the last two kilometers, our good placing nearly took a tumble. Crossing a bridge I hit something that punctured both tyres. The front sealed quickly, but, the rear started going flat slowly. Along the way I saw I was not alone. Bombs, spent tubes and cyclists riding on bare rims were all over the place. My Continentals held through to the end and our best finish so far, 74th on GC and 13th in Masters.
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