Louis Trichardt duo take on gruelling 3 Towers

Date: 09 October 2016 By: Isabel Venter

Two local mountain bikers put the Soutpansberg on the map by participating in the 2016 Isuzu 3 Towers MTB Stage Race hosted at Mankele this past weekend.

Team mates Gehart Meyer and Kombo Bere participated in this gruelling race and had pro teams asking in awe about their climbing abilities. This was just on day one, when they managed to clinch a first place with a two-minute lead ahead of the nearest pro-team. “We were feeling great, and halfway through the race we ditched the leading bunch of pros and cycled for the finish,” said Gehart.

Sadly, tragedy struck on day two of the race. About 11km into the race, Kombo got a side-wall cut in his back tyre. “This was shortly after we managed to pull ahead of the lead bunch again,” explained Gehart. “After the tyre problems, the rest of the race was a nightmare,” he added.

They went through nearly 20 air bombs, two tubes, plugs, and slime and tried switching the two tyres. In the end, they finished 13^th overall in the senior men’s category, 01:18 behind the leading bunch.

On day three, both Kombo and Gehart were determined to close the gap to at least ensure an overall podium finish. During the first climb the leading bunch nearly left them behind, but during the second climb the duo proved their mettle and set a fast pace.

During the last climb of the stage, about 12km before the finish line, tragedy struck again.  First Gehart’s bike got a puncture in the front wheel. They struggled on, but 7km later Kombo’s bike got a puncture in the back wheel. “We ended the race with a sprint finish against the leading girls…luckily they did not beat us,” said Gehart.

In the end they managed an overall 10^th position in their category, finishing the three stages in a combined time of 08:06:01.

“We had so much bad luck, and lost the race we had trained so hard for. At the end of the day we still managed to learn from the race, especially how hard one can actually race under pressure. Mentally and physically we walk away much stronger and ever so much more determined,” said Kombo.

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Isabel Venter

Isabel joined the Zoutpansberger and Limpopo Mirror in 2009 as a reporter. She holds a BA Degree in Communication Sciences from the University of South Africa. Her beat is mainly crime and court reporting.

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