MCC Cycling weekend | 20 – 24 September

When we connected with the MCC Cycling club from Secunda earlier this year, we started thinking about planning a weekend of riding with them and the KZN Midlands was an easy choice to host this riding/social weekend!

The Plan

We decided on the long weekend in September, from the 20th to the 24st. The plan was to do 3 days of riding – 1 long gravel ride and 2 days of trail riding and skills training on the stunning Karkloof trails.

With spring in full swing we were in for a real treat. 

And then we had a look at the weather forecast, with predicted heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures it was suddenly looking more like a ski weekend in the Alps rather than a cycling weekend in sunny South Africa… We were up for a typical Absolute Motion adventure!

Nevertheless, spirits were high and everyone was excited for it.

The Adventure began

We based ourselves at Hebron Haven, a lovely country hotel in the heart of the Midlands. Some of our guests started arriving on Thursday, but the majority traveled down on Friday morning from Secunda. Things very quickly got interesting when heavy snowfall started on Van Reenens Pass. The 5 hour drive from Secunda to KZN suddenly turned into a 9hr+ trip! Thankfully, all our guests arrived safely at Hebron Haven, just as the N3 got closed off and motorists were to be stuck for 2 days in heavy snow and freezing temperatures.

The rain continued throughout Friday night and Saturday morning. With a trail ride planned and weather conditions not improving, we decided to stay off our bikes on Saturday and instead went snow and coffee hunting around the Midlands. A winter wonderland awaited us just up the road from where we stayed! Coffee and hot chocolate warmed us up and everyone loved the different experience.

We headed back to Hebron Haven for a lovely dinner and cycling chats with the legendary Mr Arthur Duncan, who inspired everyone with his incredible life story and determination at the age of nearly 90! 

The sun greeted us on Sunday morning and we set off on an 80km gravel ride up towards Nottingham road, where the snow was still lying thick and the air crisp! No ride in the Midlands is ever flat, quite a contrast from the very flat riding in Secunda! There were some sore legs and tired bodies, but big smiles at the end of our ride! We had another special guest coming out to share inspiring cycling stories – Mr Jason Wesson. Jason completed 3 Freedom Challenge events, a real legend of the RASA( race across South Africa)! Everyone listened in awe as Jason told us about his jaw-dropping experiences in this brutal event that challenges your mental strength like very few other things do. Just as we all thought we were super heroes after riding 80km in the snow earlier that morning, Jason made us all realize we were not that tough after all!

 Karkloof trails awaited us on Monday morning. The terrain tested our guests’ technical abilities, but after some skills tips and advice, everyone felt much more confident and had a blast sending it through the trails!  

Sharing experiences over a final dinner, followed by insightful coaching and nutritional discussions with coach Johann Wykerd, brought an end to an epic weekend of riding and adventuring with a great group of people.

It is always a privilege to connect with so many people through the bicycle and this was again a reminder of why we do what we do.

#LOVETHERIDE