BATTLE ROYAL
The Queen Stage. The Tough Stage. One Stage to Conquer Them All. This will include two of the toughest climbs of the 15th Absa Cape Epic and the terrain will leave riders exasperated at times. There will be more singletrack than you could wish for. The testing Rawsonville and Smablaar River trails will prepare riders for one of the iconic sections of the 2018 route: The Slanghoek Valley trails, a throwback to the early days of mountain biking, before trails became smooth and “manicured”. The Slanghoek Traverse is a testing descent, while the Thudbuster is a loose and sandy climb that points to heaven but never seems to leave hell. The 9km of the historic Bain’s Kloof Pass is on tar, but feels like it is never-ending. The last 15km takes in the Welvanpas trails and is, mostly, a downhill roll to Wellington.
Land Rover Technical Terrain: Goudini Spa Singletrack – brand new, purpose built mountain trail that viciously links Goudini with the Slanghoek Valley and its renowned trails, including the Land Rover Technical Terrain: a white-knuckle six-kilometre traverse across the valley where rogue rocks and bar-snatching brush lie in wait.