The POINT2POINT Challenge
- NEW! The Experience
- The Challenge
- Rules & Getting Started
- En Route
- WALL of FAME
- …
- NEW! The Experience
- The Challenge
- Rules & Getting Started
- En Route
- WALL of FAME
The POINT2POINT Challenge
- NEW! The Experience
- The Challenge
- Rules & Getting Started
- En Route
- WALL of FAME
- …
- NEW! The Experience
- The Challenge
- Rules & Getting Started
- En Route
- WALL of FAME
The Back Story
It was December 2015...
We were on a regular 'round the mountain' ride, training for the upcoming Cape Town Cycle Tour...As we rode past Green Point Lighthouse direction the Waterfront I looked up at Table Mountain and had a thought …
'What would it be like to ride down that mountain...?'Awesome idea... could even be part of the Cape Epic or perhaps a stand alone event …
And on subsequent rides, I found myself coming back to the same idea…
But with the scope of the idea growing...What if we set up a MTB bike event from some point over Table Mountain ending at the Waterfront...
What if it started more South... taking in some of the Tokai MTB trails that we all know and love...What if, what if it took in some of trails even deeper in the south...
What if it started in Cape Point... through TMNP including Tokai, Constantia, KB Loop and then across Table Mountain, over Lions Head...ending in Green Point...Point to Point!
March 2020, COVID 19 arrived and with it the concept of lockdown…
But as lockdown eased, more and more people, including me, found ourselves spending more time on various of the different trails of the beautiful Table Mountain…And with COVID, more and more people started being creative about 'events' were considered...
Enter Ryan Sandes, the inimitable extreme trail athlete and the invention of ' 13 Peaks Trail Running Challenge'....
And after seeing what he had created, there rest, as they say, was history...
after some more talking, thinking, riding, scheming and planning the POINT2POINT MTB Challenge was born!But....
Sadly the August 2021 fires across the Devil's Peak section of Table Mountain delayed both my attempting and launching the full MTB route until mid November when the mountain was reopened...
But, never waste a crisis...
During that time the POINT2POINT Challenge ROAD and LITE were born - same idea, just road and hill friendlier routes.So now there are three options and all three are 'up', ‘always on’ and 'always free'!
I'm super grateful to a number of people who've helped and support me in getting the POINT2POINT Challenge concept off the ground.
Thanks, in no particular order, to...
My Hood MTB riding mates...
Sam - Diesel - Penney, Mark - Bash - Barratt, Ali Noyce, Ant Miller, Stu McDonald, Brian - Rhino - Thomas, Pete Brook, Rob Dower, Dean Hyde and Jimmy Easterbrook as well as Darren Lill and Jeremy - Tigger - Valeri who joined the Hoods on the IMANA Wild Ride during which much of the idea was crystalised, over a few too many beers!Rafeeq Safodien, Deisel Penney and John Slingsby who have joined me in riding/recce’ing each of the MTB, ROAD and LITE routes,
Alan Hammond for tips and insights around building the web presence, audience and community,
Michael Soltynski (in Canada), remote chief website copy editor at large and great creative counsel,
Antonie van der Hoek in Cape Town- financial, business model and governance counsel,
Bex van der Linde from the IMANA Wild Ride and Mike - Spider - Clark for knowledge and advice on setting up these kinds of cycling events,
Neil Scheibe, Marcus & Team at Dragons Sports Distribution for the loan of a GIANT Trance Ebike to support a final full MTB route recce, as well as Max Sullivan, GIANT South Africa brand lead, for a wealth of insight, advice and encouragement!
Sharon, my longsuffering wife, for ongoing support and encouragement of yet another of my crazy projects as well as shuttling me and my Challenge recce partners to the Cape Point car park multiple times for multiple route recce’s and taking many of the pictures that grace this site and currently dominate @point2pointChallenge social media channels.
And last, but not least, Gemma and Erin for their social media management input, skills and boundless youthful encouragement.
I do hope that you take up the Challenge and attempt #CapeTownsmostbeautifulcyclingchallenge and look forward to seeing your achievement logged on the POINT2POINT Challenge Wall of Fame!
Cheers have a great, safe ride!
Tim
aka navigate change design and strategy
PS... Please do upload your result to the overall POINT2POINT WALL of FAME even if you choose not to become a member of the ‘Challenge Category Leaderboard.
PPS Even if you aren't up for the Challenge right now, do stay in touch with us ... Instagram is best here
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