The Cape’s premier three-day mountain bike stage race, the FNB Wines2Whales (W2W) Mountain Bike (MTB) Events, turns 9 in 2017!
With stunning views, mind-blowing routes, good food, amazing company and spectacular sponsor prizes on the check list for 2017, riders are in for a treat!
“Big Cats” still intrigued by W2W
A firm favorite of most of W2W’s riders, the Cape Leopard Trust (CLT) Boland Project has confirmed that two male leopards, Diego (Boland Male 27/BM27) and Bacardi (Boland Male 26/BM26) are still frequenting the W2W MTB routes.
W2W has supported the CLT Boland Project since 2011 when the event organizers first donated five digital camera traps for research.
“We are extremely grateful for the support received from the W2W over the past 7 years,” says Jeannie Hayward of the CLT Boland Project. “Although leopards are adept at traversing rough terrain and dense vegetation, they do like ‘the path of least resistance’.
“Placing the camera traps on the MTB routes has proven to be extremely useful in our research. In 2016 three leopards were recorded frequenting the W2W MTB Routes: 1. Bacardi wa- photographed both at Lourensford Wine Estate and Vergelegen Wine Estate. 2. Diego was photographed at Vergelegen and Paul Cluver. 3. Scott (Boland Male 12/BM12), an established, dominant male held a vast territory in the Kogelberg Biosphere.”
“The camera traps act like ‘permanent fieldworkers’, recording animal movement day and night, rain or shine,” continues Hayward. “The cameras give the Boland Project the opportunity to survey new locations within the study area, not only for leopard activity but also for the presence of other nocturnal and shy mammals like the Honey Badger, Cape Fox and Genet. Both Bacardi and Diego are still around and active in the W2W area. Hopefully once we’ve collected the latest data from the camera traps we will have new leopard pictures to share with the W2W riders.”
WIN with Specialized
One lucky rider (per event: Adventure, Ride and Race) will take home a magnificent 2018 Specialized Epic Comp Carbon mountain bike to the value of R59 000.
“We pride ourselves on being involved with world class events that promote an active lifestyle, while supporting the local community and its trail builders,” says Johan Badenhorst, Marketing Manager of Specialized Bicycles Africa. “The events tick all the boxes.”
“We’re excited to be giving away three bikes (one per event) in 2017. This year we chose the 2018 Specialized Epic Comp Carbon. Ideal for stage racing in South Africa, this model is a full carbon bike with updated geometry that features two bottle cages. It’s the perfect introduction to the world of XC riding and racing.”
“The bike giveaway competition will take place on Instagram and is open to all entrants,” confirms Badenhorst. “Be sure to monitor our social media platforms. Specialized will have a spectacular display in the race village where riders can view our latest range. We look forward to catching up with all riders at the Adventure, Ride and Race.”
DHL celebrates 9 years
DHL celebrates its 9th year as the logistics partner of W2W in 2017. “We are proud to have DHL as our logistics partner for 9 years running,” says Michael Meyer, FNB W2W MTB Director.
“The FNB W2W has come a long way since the inaugural event in 2009. From humble beginnings, it’s become a bucket list event for many if not all mountain biking enthusiasts. DHL was with us from the start. Their expertise and professional approach to business has helped establish the FNB W2W as the Western Cape’s premier three day MTB Stage Race. We value their support and look forward to hosting the best FNB W2W yet.”
“As official logistics partner to 100s of events across the globe, we know that great is in the detail. We are thrilled to provide our logistics expertise to the FNB W2W MTB Events as their official logistics partner,” says Megan Roper, Head of Marketing, DHL Sub-Saharan Africa. Our slogan at DHL Express is ‘Excellence, Simply Delivered’ and we aim to demonstrate this at every opportunity. Our partnership with the FNB W2W MTB Events provide a great platform for us to showcase our capabilities. We look forward to celebrating our 9th year with the riders and organizers at the FNB W2W MTB Events.”
DHL’s contribution towards the success of the event includes (but is not limited to) the allocation of trucks, panel vans, drivers and fuel, for the transport of infrastructure, rider luggage, branding and race pack collection elements as well as collections and deliveries prior, during and post event.
Help make a difference with MTO
Riders can ‘help make a difference’ by adopting a tree through MTO in support of the FNB W2W Crèche Educational Initiative.
“MTO would like to give back to its community,” says Lawrence Polkinghorne, MTO Group CEO. “Riders can adopt a tree for R50 at race pack collection. This process will be ‘virtual’. The interface will show the ‘Knysna Plantation’ that will be divided into blocks. We’ll allocate a block to W2W. The rider can then choose a location within that block where he/she would like to plant the tree. A form will need to be completed. When saved a tree will be allocated to the rider and saved in the exact location selected.”
“We lost a large part of our Knysna plantation during the June fires,” continues Polkinghorne. “We would like to invest in new and exciting trails on our Garden Route plantations as part of the restoration program. The idea is to create some new single tracks that will take riders past the trees that they adopted. All proceeds raised will go towards the FNB W2W Crèche Educational Initiative. We are really happy to be able to give back to the W2W communities. At the same time we will be able to restore MTO’s Knysna Plantations, creating something special for the Knysna community and their visitors to enjoy.”
FNB Wines2Whales MTB Events
Starting in the Winelands of Somerset West, riders will cross through (and over) 13 wineries, 26 private farms, six mountains, historic roads and mountain passes, nature conservation areas (including the Kogelberg Biosphere) before finishing within sight of the famous whales of Hermanus!
FNB Wines2Whales MTB Adventure: 27 – 29 October 2017
FNB Wines2Whales MTB Ride: 30 October 2017 – 1 November 2017
FNB Wines2Whales MTB Race: 3 – 5 November 2017
Facebook: Wines2Whales Twitter: @w2wmtb
For more information on the FNB Wines2Whales MTB events visit www.wines2whales.co.za
Source: https://www.intocycling.co.za/action-packed-fnb-wines2whales-2017-turns-9/
