Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 157 Issue 157 - March 2023 | Page 57

MOUNTAIN BIKING

Sheeben stop on day one , and all the beer was finished , but Francois and Jacques came to the rescue with their bladder of brandy !

The bond you form in an event like this , it ’ s like hitting a reset button . This shared experience bonds you as few things in life can do , and it creates an imprint on you that you know will always stick in your memory . These teammates , and the bush we rode through , changed me , and in that I learnt that it wasn ’ t so much the challenges that would be driving me forward anymore , but rather the experiences .

Rewrite Your Goals

Since joining the Modern Athlete team , I have often heard runners use a common saying : “ You ’ re not a real runner until you ’ ve run the Comrades .” That irks me , because owing to my bad knees and my awful back , I am doubtful that I will ever run Comrades , but does that mean that I will never be a runner ? No ! Just as someone who is a mountain biker will still be a cyclist even if they never complete the Epic . And the same applies to the Ironman for triathletes . We get swept up by these pinnacle events , by the inspirational stories of the athletes who conquer so much to get to that finish line , and the incredible vibe , history and traditions of these events . But are they the be all and end all of those sports ? I don ’ t think so . Not anymore .

I was one of two girls in Team 18 , with the other one being Reinette , who I had met riding Epic . She is one of the strongest women I know , and she would not be one of the riders holding anyone back . Another friend , Francois , was also in our group , with his business partner Jacques , both there for the ‘ jol ,’ and these two would prove to be my best friends , especially on the last day , when they lent me an e-bike . I also found that Rene is someone that you become friends with quickly – a genuine guy looking for a genuine connection in life , always just being himself .

The rest – the ‘ At se Gat ’ crew – were the life and soul of Team 18 , a group of guys with friends for life vibes … The two Pauls had been school friends , where they were the naughty shits who caused mayhem , and they were keen to cause more while on tour , but the good type of fun . Business partners Stefan and Steve brought some stability to the mix , with Stefan always the bearer of much-needed coffee in the mornings , and Steve controlling the purse strings on the guys ’ drinking tabs . James , cousin to one of the Pauls , was one who you could just chat to with ease , an interesting person who made you feel comfortable , while Ben was a quiet and calming presence , but he could have a good time , and when I was in trouble , he was there for me .

We also had Dave , who had travelled all the way from Canada to do this and was out for a good adventure .

He had never done proper mountain biking , which we only found out on day two , but he had a proper sense of adventure . And last but not least , there was Marco , the Sicilian . He received the most abuse – I can ’ t say if it was because he was Italian , or because he was riding a gold bike – but he gave as good as he got , and that was the motley crew that made up Team 18 .

When the Going Gets Tough

Now , why have I told you all of this ? Well , it ’ s simple , and that is the true beauty of an experience like this , because while we were mostly strangers to each other when we started , we finished the Tour as friends … and it is this experience that taught me that there is more to life than bucket lists .

I by no means had an easy tour . I fell more times than I could count . I battled up climbs , feeling my weary , undertrained legs at every turn . I dreaded Matty saying we had gone wrong and had to turn around … which happened often . But at every point where I fell , when I had a touch of heat stroke , when I was ready to stop , Team 18 had me covered . They pushed me when I needed a push , gave a helping hand to get me back up when I fell , and were always encouraging . I might not have known most of them from a bar of soap at the start , but bit by bit , they put me back together in more ways than I can say .

Don ’ t get me wrong , I am not saying that you shouldn ’ t do them , or aspire to someday be able to tackle them . If that is a challenge you want to conquer , then by all means do so , and I will cheer you on , from start to finish , because I know what it takes to get yourself to that start line , and to push through the hard yards to make it to the finish . But riding the Tour de Tuli taught me something invaluable , which will drive me on from here , and that is that it ’ s not about the challenge anymore for me , it will be the experience .

I don ’ t feel the need to tick any specific event off my To Do list . I just want to experience a ride in the bush , where my heart and soul are lifted by the magnificence around me . I don ’ t mind being challenged , even put in the hurt locker , but that is not all I want anymore . I want so much more !

Roxanne Martin is one of the three Directors and Publishers of Modern Athlete , and is responsible for the digital side of the business , including running multi-faceted , multi-platform digital campaigns for events as diverse as the Soweto Marathon and the Midmar Mile . While her sporting background is predominantly in cycling , her work over the past six years in the running domain has given her great insight into what ‘ works ’ in the sport .

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