Desert Dash cyclists ready for action
The 13th annual Nedbank Desert Dash will take place tomorrow.
Around 900 hardcore cyclists will strap on helmets, stretch calves and pump up tyres for one of Namibia's most intense mountain-biking events of the year.
The cycling marathon covers 369 kilometres of mainly gravel road and must be completed within 24 hours. It starts at Grove Mall in Windhoek and ends at Tiger Reef in Swakopmund.
The cycling marathon has grown from strength to strength and has more than doubled in recent years.
This year, riders from Namibia, South Africa, Germany, Spain, India, Australia, Colombia, Austria and Poland will participate.
Most riders entered the marathon online, selling out entries for the four-man teams within seconds, something the organisers applauded.
The prize money amounts to about N$370 000 in total, with the winning solo riders in the men's and women's categories receiving N$34 000 each. Two-person teams can win N$20 000, and the winning four-person team will walk away with N$13 000. Those in second and third place will also win prizes.
In a statement earlier this year, Nedbank Namibia said the format for 2017 remained the same as last year, when they changed the two-person team format from a normal relay system to one rider doing one half of the race and the other the second half.
“The only real change as far as rules are concerned is that we now require a minimum of two woman riders in a four-person team to qualify for mixed team status, as in previous years one woman rider was the minimum requirement.”
It also said that the Desert Dash had grown from strength to strength in terms of race entries. To ensure that a high calibre event is provided, the race entries are capped to accommodate a total of 1 000 riders.
Today at 14:30 cyclists are expected to register at the Grove Mall.
LIMBA MUPETAMI
The cycling marathon covers 369 kilometres of mainly gravel road and must be completed within 24 hours. It starts at Grove Mall in Windhoek and ends at Tiger Reef in Swakopmund.
The cycling marathon has grown from strength to strength and has more than doubled in recent years.
This year, riders from Namibia, South Africa, Germany, Spain, India, Australia, Colombia, Austria and Poland will participate.
Most riders entered the marathon online, selling out entries for the four-man teams within seconds, something the organisers applauded.
The prize money amounts to about N$370 000 in total, with the winning solo riders in the men's and women's categories receiving N$34 000 each. Two-person teams can win N$20 000, and the winning four-person team will walk away with N$13 000. Those in second and third place will also win prizes.
In a statement earlier this year, Nedbank Namibia said the format for 2017 remained the same as last year, when they changed the two-person team format from a normal relay system to one rider doing one half of the race and the other the second half.
“The only real change as far as rules are concerned is that we now require a minimum of two woman riders in a four-person team to qualify for mixed team status, as in previous years one woman rider was the minimum requirement.”
It also said that the Desert Dash had grown from strength to strength in terms of race entries. To ensure that a high calibre event is provided, the race entries are capped to accommodate a total of 1 000 riders.
Today at 14:30 cyclists are expected to register at the Grove Mall.
LIMBA MUPETAMI
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