Cape wind bites in Argus 2005
Brad Morgan
15 March 2005
Britain's Russel Downing produced something of a surprise to win the Cape Argus Pick 'n Pay Argus Cycle Tour, which also doubles as the final stage of the five-day Giro Del Capo, on the weekend. Tiaan Kannemeyer finished in the bunch sprint to secure his first Giro title.
Conditions were tough. A persistent south-easterly wind prevented any strong breakaways during the men's race as riders elected to stay together.
That bunched-up strategy had its downside, however, as three-time Giro champion David George discovered when he was involved in an accident with Ben Swanepoel as the pace picked up in preparation for the sprint finish.
"There was no way any rider could have gotten away from the bunch today, it was too windy, which also made the ride more aggressive", Kannemeyer said.
Ladies' race drama
The greatest drama came in the ladies' race, about halfway through, when four-time winner Anriette Schoeman
crashed out. SA Road Race champion Ronel van Wyk suffered a puncture in the same accident, opening up the way for Anke Erlank to land the victory.
Erlank described the race as "a war of attrition", with "lots of pushing and shoving". Some of the men riding with the ladies were also involved in rough tactics, she claimed.
"I got a lot of support from Dianne [Emery] to get my best finish in a long time", Erlank added.
A real test
For the 35 000 cyclists it was a real test as the winds reached gale force around Cape Point. Not only did it severely examine their endurance levels, it also led to a number of accidents. In total there were 164 injuries, and 56 cyclists were hospitalised.
Event director Anton Groenewald reckoned the high winds were responsible for the fact that far more people finished after the cut-off time than had been the case in 2004.
"People were more tired because they were forced to work twice as hard on
their bikes", Groenewald said.
Temperatures also soared, although the wind helped on that count. The mercury rose as high as 36 degrees at the dreaded Suikerbossie Hill, but riders were well supported by the enthusiastic crowds who supplied them with ice cubes.
'A really great race'
Despite the harsh conditions, race winner Downing thoroughly enjoyed his outing. "It was a really great race", he enthused afterwards. "The course is really amazing. I'm going to come back to Cape Town - I'm always a winner here."
Following Downing across the finish line was 18-year-old Juan van Heerden and James Ball, who first rode the Giro when he was 12 years old.
In the women's race, Erlank finished ahead of Lisa Serfontein, with Dianne Emery in third place.
The hand cycling race, which was held for the first time, was won by multiple Boston Marathon champion Ernst van Dyk ahead of the Swiss pair of Cefas Bouman and Thami Rudy.
Dedicated to his father
Giro winner Tiaan Kannemeyer dedicated his victory to his father, who passed away a year ago. His Barloworld-Valsir teammate Ryan Cox claimed second spot, with Team Wiesenhof's David Kopp in third.
Speaking after his victory, Kannemeyer said his success came down to exercising patience, and it that had happened over the course of the past three years when he supported David George to a hat-trick of Giro titles.
He acknowledged the support of his Barloworld teammates this time around, saying: "Cycling is a team sport. I definitely would not have won without their support."
Big race invitations
The South African-based team has begun to catch the eye with their impressive exploits both locally and abroad, and the invitations to contest some big races have started to come in. Barloworld's chief director, John Robertson, said: "We have accepted invitations to take part in the Milan-San Remo
race, Amstel Gold and one of Belgium's Classic races this year."
Kannemeyer also topped the Pickford Points Competition, with Kopp in second and Downing in third. The King of the Mountains went to Cox. Waylon Woolcock claimed second and Bartosz Huzarski third.
Surprisingly, Team Barloworld-Valsir, despite their wins in the overall classification, the points competition, and the King of the Mountains, didn't feature in the top three of the Team Competition. The honours went to Poland's Inter-Action. Second was Germany's Lamonta, and third was South African outfit Konica-Minolta.
Oldest finisher
79-year-old Robert Allan was the oldest finisher, completing the race for the sixth time, and his third in succession.
Allan took up cycling 10 years ago when he retired, and has been taking part in the sport despite suffering from osteoporosis. His family believes cycling has helped him fight the degenerative bone disease.
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