On a stage where rocky trails reign supreme the Toyota Tough segment offers an opportunity for unbridled fun. Golden Mile is fast and flowing, a treat rather than a test. The perfect tonic for tired legs in the final 10 kilometres of Stage 5.

Wild and UNTAMED

In the absence of a second transition stage, Stage 5 features a thrilling loop through the Wild Boar Trails. Home to technical climbs, traverses and descents it is a rare day at the Absa Cape Epic. One of flat out fun, but still with a challenge or two. A mix of district road and dual tracks starts the day, interrupted by the Roller Coaster singletrack, then it is on to Mischa and Welbedacht. The trails begin in earnest, for the second half of the stage, with Luislang, Happy Hog and a race into the rocky reaches of the Doolhof Valley. On the south-bound, return from the top of the valley True Grit awaits en route to Doolhof itself, then its home via Dirty Dancing, Welvanpas, the Golden Mile and Val du Charron. Wild and rocky at times, always untamed, it should be a faster stage, ahead of the bus journey to Stellenbosch for the final two stages of the race.

Don’t think you’ve done it all in Hermanus. We made the stage a little shorter but that’s so we could add more of the good stuff in the Hemel en Aarde valley – some superb singletrack awaits the riders. Some familiar, some fresh. They’re linked with some ‘Absa Cape Epic-specific’ trails that are unrideable outside of the event. Take note… steep climbs and long, technical descents.