Solo racers rejoice – one of the bastions of the ride-as-a-team stage races in South Africa, the KAP sani2c, has finally relented… you no longer have to spend three days being nice to somebody else and can now limit your personality clashes to internal ones.

Historically, the vast majority of stage races in South Africa followed the Absa Cape Epic’s system of pairing riders – with time penalties if they are caught more than a minute apart – ostensibly for safety reasons; every single rider in the field has at least one person who knows where they are at all times, so getting lost is less likely, and less dramatic in the wilds of Africa.

There has been a swing away from this format of late, as reliable GPS technology and wider cellular coverage have become more commonplace, and with this in mind (and due to popular demand), the KAP sani2c organisers have made it possible for riders to enter a new solo category for the 2020 events, though this is only available for the Trail and the Race, as the Adventure entries have sold out. The sani2c takes place between 12 and 16 May 2020.

If you have been contemplating taking the journey from the Underberg area in KwaZulu-Natal down to Scottburgh on the South Coast, but your regular riding partner is not available, you can now consider this option.

Riding the sani2c as a team is a fun and rewarding experience and this will remain, but we don’t want to be turning people away who just don’t have a compatible rider they can enter with.”

“Farmer” Glen Haw, Race Founder, says they are happy to host solo riders, but emphasised that sani2c remains strongly a team event. “Riding with friends and having a good time together on the bike was a core reason for us starting the sani2c, and we don’t want this to change. Also, the sani2c is tough and travels through some remote areas, so the buddy system helps to make sure each rider has someone looking out for them,” he says.

But, says Farmer Glen, the solo entry will assist a range of riders: “Mates who want to travel to the event together may be at different levels of fitness or technical ability, and having solo entries will mean they can start out together, and enjoy the race as a group if it works out that way. But they will have the freedom to split up at different paces during the course of the day if that is how it pans out.”

“This category will also cater to riders who have partners pull out close to the race and they cannot find a replacement, or for those who just prefer to ride their own race.”

The three versions of the sani2c, the Trail, Adventure and Race, make the event one of the largest stage races in the world, covering 263km from the foothills of the Drakensburg to the Indian Ocean. It is also one of the oldest stage races in the country, with a rich tradition of providing three days of exceptional riding and hospitality, while also fulfilling its commitment to uplift the many communities along its route.

Enter the KAP sani2c here

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