Big and small brace muddy MTB track

People of all ages and skills levels can enjoy the fun of cross-country mountain biking. The second leg of the Mpumalanga Cross-Country Series took place at Uplands on Saturday.

Participants raced one another in laps around the muddy course, which was altered to specifically accommodate the very young riders.

Yet even they could not escape the mud on the course. The series is used to select the provincial team.

Max Knox was the only senior man who finished the five laps in a time of 01:15:14.

The u/23s were not far behind. Martin Oosthuizen finished in 01:20:16, followed by James Goosen in 01:26:40.

A number of 2015 provincial MTB Series champions featured on the course. Youth male Ryan Terry won his category in 01:04:26, sub-vet Dirk Lourens his in 01:08:58, and sprog boy Jooste Coetzee won in 00:21:12.

Ainsli de Beer, last year’s sprog girls’ champion, won the sub-junior female category in a time of 01:11:40.

• The next two legs of the series are scheduled to take place in Sabie on April 9 and Mankele on May 21.

Other category winners
• Junior female: Kirsty Shuttleworth
– 01:11:39
• Junior male: Armand Lombard – 01:20:17
• Master men: Tim James – 00:57:51
• Master ladies: Shirley Emmerick – 01:26:00
• Sub vet ladies: Elsabe Lourens – 01:09:37
• Veteran men: Burger Bester – 01:06:46
• Youth female: Zandri Strydom – 00:54:51
• Sub Junior male: Jean van der Merwe
– 00:53:46
• Nipper female: Danel de Jager – 00:23:13
• Nipper male: Francois de Jager – 00:18:22
• Sprog female: Jessica Svacha – 00:27:59.

•  See more pictures: Mpumalanga provincial cross-country series: Round two