Underdog Kent Main wins Cape Cycle Tour
The Northcliff High School Old Boy won the competitive race against the odds after humble beginnings when he shared a bike with his brother.
Kent Main, a former learner at Northcliff High School, has won the Cape Cycle Tour race.
He struggled to properly express how happy he was to win the competition. “It’s something that I think every cyclist in the country wants to win at some stage of their career. So to be able to have done it this year against a very tough field of competitors is a feeling I can’t really describe.”
Headmaster Walter Essex-Clark said, “Congratulations to our Old Boy on his superb achievement this past weekend! It is always exciting to see Northcliff alumni succeeding in their chosen profession. Keep up the good work and all the best for future tours.”
The difficult terrain and windy weather made for a very difficult race but those conditions suited Main and his team.
“The race played in our favour quite well because we are a small team, only four of us, which means that the race won’t need to be controlled or anything like that. There was no real pressure on us to achieve anything because we were seen as the underdogs.”
He says the others had to do a lot of controlling of the race and by taking control of the breakaway left Kent and his team to ride with an open card.
“We didn’t have one clear leader among the four of us. We essentially had four options for riders who could win the race on the day depending on how the race panned out.
“I think the race was decided early on. The rest of my teammates weren’t doing so well and they decided to help me as much as they could in terms of their positioning and in terms of keeping me in the right places on the road. From there the race got really, really turned up. I think the hesitation from the other guys played in my favour. Cycling is a really tactical sport.”
Kent says the idea of competing began as a dream last year. “Throughout the year we have been racing pretty much every weekend in Joburg but I have also not let things and pressure get into my head too much. I just want to enjoy the sport and give it my best.”
When asked about how he feels about the role he is playing to inspire future cyclists, Kent said he is happy to just be playing a part in cycling in South Africa.
“I am putting together a small team, a start team. At the end of last year, we found ourselves without a new ride for 2024, so the four of us came together and decided to create the team out of the letters of their names RKC Collective.”
Luckily he says they have a few major sponsors joining them from South African companies.
His father taught him to cycle when he was young. “I remember starting to cycle when my brother and I shared the bike. I’d ride only on the weekends but eventually, my parents had to get me my own bike and I have never looked back.”
He was a member of the local club, Northcliff Cycles, with whom he still has a good relationship.
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