Bell, Sanders pin it and win it
It was a flat and fast showdown in Pretoria this past weekend. The fourth round of the Gauteng-based marathon mountain bike series, the Nissan TrailSeeker took place in Hazeldean.
The man who managed to blaze his way across the finish line first was Nico Bell (Team NAD) while the in-form MTB star Sam Sanders (Valencia) snatched up the women’s title.
It was a heated race for the title from start to finish, and it seemed that Pretoria-favourite Phillip Buys (Pyga Euro Steel) was positioned to come out on top. After a slight technical climb in the first 20 kilometres, the group of Bell, Wessel Botha (Lynnwood Cyclery), and Gawie Combrink (Team NAD) took the lead.
Lodged in a four-way battle for most of the race, Buys could not seem to successfully launch a high-speed attack to escape his fierce competition.
“The pace was hot. We all threw in as many attacks as we could, aware that Phillip wouldn’t like the constant pressure. And it worked!” said an elated Bell.
Combrink took some powerful punches up front, to pave the way for teammate Bell.
A technical issue later left Combrink chasing the group, but Bell kept his eyes on the podium and stood tall for Team NAD. He came storming through the last five kilometres in first place, and managed to maintain his gap all the way to the finish.
“It was full gas all the way, and the ride of the day goes to Wessel. Sticking with us wasn’t easy, and he held his pace,” said Combrink.
In the women’s race, Sanders set off, guns blazing right from the start.
It was clear that she was there to win, and nothing was going to get in the way of that.
The competition was always going to be tight with 2017 series leader, Theresa Ralph (Galileo Risk-NavWorld) and Vanessa Bell (Bells Cycling) in the mix.
It was not all smooth sailing for Sanders. She punctured on a climb in the first 20 kilometres, and was quickly passed by a determined Ralph.
This was the third consecutive victory for Sanders, who has raised her hand as the woman to take the Nissan TrailSeeker Gauteng title this season.
“A win is always good! The Nissan TrailSeeker routes never fail to excite me. It’s been a nice hard session for me, and it’s done my form well before 3 Towers this weekend,” said Sanders.
