For a third consecutive year, CANSA is one of the official beneficiaries of funds raised by certain participants riding the Absa Cape Epic.
This year CANSA is represented at the event by 18 CANSA Active riders. Of those nine teams, one is the mother and daughter combo of Nicky and Mikayla Webb (Team CANSA Mother & Daughter), only the second mother-daughter team to take on the Cape Epic challenge in its 12-year history.
Nicky has completed one Absa Cape Epic, and together the pair has done a number of mountain bike stage races together, but this is the first Cape Epic they’ve undertaken as a team.
In hot and dusty conditions throughout the week, the Webbs have cycled on powerfully, finishing strongly in the last few stages. Nicky and Mikayla are raising funds online for CANSA, with an ultimate goal total of R100 000.
“We’re doing it for cancer research, education and support,” says Nicky. “The places that the race route takes us are remote and there are no clinics for screenings. Our fundraising will enable mobile health clinics to get to these areas.”
Nicky lost her father to cancer five years ago, so is well-acquainted with the toll that cancer takes on those suffering from the illnesses. “It’s just such a brutal disease and it takes away all your dignity. I saw that first hand with my father and that’s what pushed me towards the Cape Epic and to raise funds for CANSA.”
After a tough start in the sandy and rocky trails of Tulbagh, the Webbs have steadily moved up the field and now sit in 335th place overall. Thanks to their preparation, Nicky says they are well in tune as a team, but the daily challenges still manage to throw up surprises.
“The second day in Tulbagh was very hard for me. I found it very tough going,” says Webb. “Everything was going well, and I wasn’t worried about the climb up the wagon trail because I did it in 2011, but somewhere between Water Point 2 and 3 the wheels came off. It was very technical and really rocky. Mikayla was flying through that stuff, but I just struggled.”
Mikayla also found Stage 2 to be a toughie. “It was much harder than Stage 1,” she says. “I had to walk a lot and girls are not made for walking! On the first stage I thought this is too easy to be Epic, but after Stage 2 I was shot. That was Epic. All in all, though, it’s been a stunning route.”
Nicky adds that the camaraderie of the fellow riders has helped spur the Webbs on. “The atmosphere so far this year has been fantastic. Sometimes the guys can give you a hard time if you hold them up, especially on the singletrack, but the people have been amazing so far.”
CANSA is encouraging riders and spectators at the event to be SunSmart. The organisation has provided free sunscreen at the Prologue, Tulbagh and Wellington stages and will do so again on Stage 6 in Stellenbosch and the Grand Finale at Meerendal Wine Estate.
“The mountain bike race provides us with the perfect platform to create awareness of how to reduce the risk of skin cancer,” says CANSA CEO Elize Joubert.
With three stages to go, the Webbs are nearing their final destination and their fundraising amount, with the total sitting over R60 000 at present.
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