A very cold Pietermaritzburg welcomed the cyclist for the Engen Dynamics Cycle Challenge to a very testing route with many rolling hills, drawing a few Pro Teams from Gauteng to Pietermaritzburg, including Medscheme, Neotel, Cycle Lab, Nashua Telecoms and the local, House of Paints outfit from Durban.
The temperature on the start line was 2 degrees when the ladies started with the 50+ Men, but cold weather did not stop the riders from starting the race at a fast pace, with the Foxhill climb the first obstacle to face the riders.
This climb is very well known in the Amashovashova, and the leading bunch was quickly whittled down to three ladies, An-Li Pretorius, Anriette Schoeman, Sanet Smal all of the Nashua Telecoms Ladies Cycling Team.
The testing route, which went pass Richmond, Eston and Umlass Road, must have been on the minds of the chasing peloton, but the gap between the two groups quickly went up to 5 minutes, with all the riders in the break contributed to the pace making in the lead bunch.
The crosswinds and steady pace by Pretorius and Schoeman wore their break-away companions down, with a few of the guys dropped on the climb heading into Richmond.
The sugar cane fields were a spectacular backdrop as the leading riders set a very demanding pace as Sanet Smal was dropped on the Talla Valley climb following a surge by Anriette Schoeman.
The Nashua Telecoms duo of An-Li Pretorius and Anriette Schoeman then took up the majority of the pace work, looking effortless as they tapped out a rhythm which could not be matched by any of the trailing ladies.
The two riders built up a 6-minute lead on Smal at the summit of Poly Shorts climb, which is made famous by the Comrades Marathon. This demanding climb, which is only 4km from the finish-line, added a bit more spice to this very testing route, before the sprint was won by An-Li Pretorius followed by Anriette Schoeman.
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