Tim Smeenge and Teus Ruijter kick off the mountain bike season under the South African sun by riding the Tankwa Trek. From February 9-12, they will ride an ever-expanding network of singletrack around Kaleo, where the race village is located. “We are very much looking forward to this four-day race and our stay in South Africa up to and including the Absa Cape Epic,” said Dutch Marathon Champion Tim Smeenge.
Before the start of the Cape Epic, the duo Gerben Mos and Ramses Bekkenk will join Smeenge and Ruijter. This year’s Cape Epic will take place from 19 to 26 March and will start with a prologue in Meerendal Wine Estate before passing through Hermanus, Oak Vally and Lourensford Wine Estate. The finish is in Val de Vie Estate. The Cape Epic is new to the men, but South Africa is certainly not. Bekkenk won the Munga and the 36One Challenge, among other things, and Mos finished second in the Cape Pioneer Trek with Smeenge in 2019.