Stage 3, Wednesday.  Fairview, Paarl

The original plan for the 90 km stage with 2,600 m of climbing was shortened to 78 km with 2,450 m due to extreme temperatures. A wise decision after the brutal heat of the Stage 2 time trial and one we both welcomed.

We started with a conservative pace on the opening climb, aiming to push forward later as other teams struggled in the intense conditions. This strategy paid off as we steadily moved up the rankings, progressing from 49th in our open men’s category to 47th, then 45th, 41st, 36th, and ultimately finishing the stage in 35th place.

However, these numbers don’t fully reflect the true battle of the day. Both of us faced tough moments. The heat was particularly punishing on the slower climbs, where there was little airflow. I stopped at every water station, taking extra time to cool down. On the final long climb, I felt the onset of what seemed like heat exhaustion, forcing me into “limp mode” for about 5 km before recovering near the top. A similar thing happened to me during the time trial – going from feeling great to suddenly drained.

Meanwhile, Johnny is getting stronger with each stage, especially excelling on these longer, hillier routes. This has undoubtedly been the hottest race conditions we’ve ever faced!

We have four more tough stages ahead, but the forecast suggests cooler weather for Stage 4, with rain expected on Friday and Saturday. Good thing we’ve spent 15 years training in Ireland’s wet conditions – this is exactly what we prepared for!

A huge shoutout to our team manager, JT Gallant, for looking after us this week. Without him, this wouldn’t have been possible.

Stage 4, Thursday.  Fairview, Paarl

With the Cape Epic now past the halfway mark, we face four tough stages to the finish. Stage 4 was an 80 km route with 1,750 m of climbing. On paper, an ‘easier’ stage before the brutal Queen’s Stage to come.

From the start, the pace was ferocious, with a 10 km flat loop on sand tracks and fire roads. Johnny was determined to get into a fast group early, and after a chaotic start, we managed to do just that as the race split apart. Unfortunately, Johnny’s rear mech got tangled in a wire, forcing us to stop and drop out of the group. We chased hard and managed to close the gap just before the climbing began. Although we were distanced on the ascent, we fought back on the beautiful trail network around Paarl.

Midway through the stage, Johnny’s rear tyre developed a slow puncture that wasn’t sealing. We stopped at the feed zone to get it plugged, pumped up, and to refill our bottles. Back on the trails, we pushed on, catching teams that had passed us earlier. But Johnny’s tyre started leaking again, forcing us to keep riding as long as possible before stopping to plug two more holes! While we didn’t lose much time, the effort to get going again in the warm conditions was tough.

The atmosphere on course was incredible, with spectators lining the route and an entire local school cheering us on and giving high-fives. I’ve never experienced anything like that during a race!

With plenty of climbing still to go, we paced ourselves on the ascents before flying down the descents, hitting a max speed of 43 mph on dirt fire roads. Having pre-ridden a lot of the descents the day before, we knew they were dusty with massive braking bumps into the berms, but we made good time and had a strong finish. We crossed the line in 44th place with a time of 4:15:43.

This evening, the rain has finally arrived, meaning the next few stages are likely to be damp. Both of us are excited for the cooler, wetter conditions ahead!