April 3, 2007 — Canada’s Jean Ann McKirdy, 23, placed third in the Mixed category of the Absa Cape Epic as part of Team Absa with her South African partner, Geddan Ruddock. The Absa Cape Epic, an eight-day mountain bike stage race through South Africa, took place March 24-31 and covered 886 kilometers with 15,045 vertical metres of climbing. McKirdy and Ruddock’s final time was 40:27.16. McKirdy, who is still in South Africa, finally had some time to reflect on what was one of the biggest challenges of her life.

Racing as a Team
It was an amazing experience and although I knew that I would be pushed beyond my limits, there was not a lot I could do to be completely prepared for the experience. My partner, Geddan Ruddock, has raced in all of the [Cape] Epics since the race started [in 2004] and was an excellent teammate. He knew the course well from all the riding and racing that he had done in the area, and knew how to race hard while still having the patience required for the mixed category.

The Race
Day one was a bit of a learning experience for us, as it was the first day we ever raced together. We had been able to do a few training rides, but racing is a much more demanding challenge. We also had a puncture that day, and due to some malfunction with our CO2 cartridge, lost a lot of time fixing it. We caught a lot of teams throughout the rest of the day, but still came up short of the podium.

The days following went much more smoothly. We came third on five out of the eight stages, as well as second on the fourth stage. The riding was spectacular, through rocky passes, lush valleys and arid desert. The race was much more of a mountain bike race than I expected, with hike-a-bikes on many days and loose rocky climbs and descents. Each day I was pushed beyond what I thought that my limits were. Each day was a challenge and an amazing experience. We finished up third in the mixed category.

Race Support
Geddan Ruddock is the owner of a bike shop, Manic Cycles, in Franschhoek, South Africa. He has raced as an amateur in the pro class XC for many years and has raced every Cape Epic. We raced under the ABSA banner on Rocky Mountain Bicycles. ABSA took great care of us and put on a great event. They put us up in motor homes each night, with a full support crew and physio as well. This was a great help and made a big difference in helping us to be prepared for the demands of the race each day while the bikes were perfect for the race conditions.

Looking Back
I am still beat from the Absa Cape Epic. We both got sick after — me a little during. It was fun though and a great experience — definitely the hardest racing that I have ever done. I cannot say that I did not break down a few times during the event just from pushing so hard. But I would love to do it again….

Click here to read a profile on McKirdy and her Absa Cape Epic challenge published in The Robson Valley Times – a paper from the area in B.C. where she grew up.