The Ashburton Investment National MTB series concluded this weekend when the seventh and final leg saw cyclists exhibit far more mettle than average.
For the first time in the history of the National MTB Series, there was an exciting hilltop finish.

Cyclists in the marathon category were pushed to the limit as it consisted of rough terrain, a distance of 70 to 75 kilometres and an ascent ranging from 1 000 to 2 000 metres.
Riders were, however, rewarded with a descent down the escarpment featuring
one of the longest downhills of the year, at 10 kilometres.  After rolling dirt roads and dual track, passing dams and crossing streams, the climb back to the top of the escarpment awaited. Measuring 12 kilometres with a 1 000-metre vertical ascent, this was the mother of all the climbs the cyclists have done this year.
The climb was, however, no match for Matthys Beukes and Candice Lill, who took the spoils.
Pyga Euro Steel’s Philip Buys led the overall standings as riders lined up for the start of the misty 64,6-kilometre opening stage on Saturday, but it was his teammate and runner-up who made his presence felt first.
Beukes put his climbing skills to good use as he quickly made his way to the finish, completing the opening stage in 2:41:13, two minutes ahead of Buys.
He admitted that his victory did not come easy. “I had to push extremely hard in those final two kilometres and just managed to come out on top,” he said. “All I can say is well done to Matthys. He had a rough season last year and he made sure to make up for everything he missed out on,” said Buys.
Nico Bell, who was third on the overall standings, did not take part in the event, and it was HB Kruger who quickly filled the void. The BCX rider was not far behind the pair and finished third in 2:51:40. Bell is currently strutting his stuff at the Cape Pioneer Trek, along with other local riders like Gawie Combrink and Amy McDougall.
Rising star Wessel Botha proved to South Africa’s mountain-biking giants that he is a force to be reckoned with, and finished the stage in a well-deserved fourth place.
Like Beukes, Lill made the most of the challenging first day and easily outpaced the women to claim second place in the popular series. The Dormakaba rider won stage one with a time of 3:13:01, 10 minutes ahead of Yolandi du Toit. Vanessa Bell completed the podium.
The second day saw the sun come out as riders tackled the 56,3-kilometre route, but little changed in terms of results.
Beukes proved once again to be the man to beat as he crossed the line one minute ahead of Buys. Kruger was a few seconds off the pace as he completed the top three for the day and the weekend.
After 120,9 kilometres of racing, Beukes was the champion of the weekend with a total time of 4:57:29.
Lill extended her lead as she made it two from two and took the overall title for the weekend, finishing 14th overall, with a time of 5:57:46.

Full marathon – Men
1 – Matthys Beukes (Team Pyga Euro Steel) 4:57:29
2 – Philip Buys (Team Pyga Euro Steel) 5:00:42
3 – HB Kruger (Team BCX) 5:09:15
4 – Waylon Woolcock (Team BCX) 5:14:11
5 – Shaun-Nick Bester 5:15:06

Full marathon – Women
1 – Candice Lill (Dormakaba) 5:57:46
2 – Yolandi du Toit (Garmin) 6:13:55
3 – Vanessa Bell (Bell’s Cycling) 6:52:23
4 – Dalene van der Leek 7:00:37
5 – Melanie Roux 7:14:02.

• Please note that the overall results of the Ahsburton Series has not yet been announced.