Franschoek - A hill of Alpine proportions....

Sadly the pictures will have to wait until I return but I did capture some good one's as Bigman's rehabilitation allowed a venture out on the bikes.

I go back to Friday. It was damp and cool as Bigman and I ventured out of our fab hotel and packed the bikes into the car. We've learned that nothing is safe in the car and therefore have become very skilled at stripping down and re-building bikes.

We set off to the foodies paradice of Franschoek. It's another stunning village at the base of another set of stunning hills. South Africa is similar to Scotland except we don't get the wide expanse of valley floor between imposing hills. The pass achieved 3 dots on the map and we were reliably advised by our host Nick that it was the toughest hill climb in the county. There was one other that was equally tough but he wasn't absolutely convinced the car would be there at the end of the hill climb so after a nano second's consideration the idea was consigned to the bin.

I wouldn't say that the Bigman was 100% but he was keen to try out the bits that were still causing discomfort. So we set off on a 1,800 feet ascent. It actually proved to be fairly simple but we both enjoyed getting out on the bikes and I'll forward the pictures later to show the hill and the climb.

The blast back down was great fun and we rolled up to the cafe with pancakes at the forefront of our minds. No pancakes. Disappointed tea and coffee was ordered.

We sat watching the rain fall on the bikes when a local walked past and did a double take on the numbers - we still have the Cape Epic numbers stuck to the bikes. He stopped and spoke to us at length about biking, the race and he was interested in our story. He was genuinely impressed that we had taken part. It didn't matter to him that it was only one day. What mattered was that we had made the start line and had taken part. It was a brilliant boost to the pair of us and when he shook our hands to leave our heads were held high and I certainly felt pride at what we achieved not only in racing but making the start.

We felt so encouraged we decided to go and find a pancake place. The Cape Epic has certainly added a few more pounds than anticipated!!!

I'll blog the story of the Argus Route tomorrow.....