Racing for Revenge 

ORBEA LEATT Speed Company

Georg Egger and Lukas Baum lit up the 2022 Absa Cape Epic with their aggressive style of racing, winning fans and followers at every turn. In 2023 they returned as ORBEA LEATT Speed Company and did the same, fighting their way into the race lead after the Queen Stage. Then it all fell apart in the mud on Lourensford, as a wire destroyed a rear derailleur and their chances of overall victory. 2024’s return, for Egger and Baum, is sure to be explosive. Only the top step of the podium will do…

“We come to our third Absa Cape Epic with winning ambitions, again,” Egger confirmed. “It’s hard to make any tactical predictions pre-race, because it really depends on how the others ride and how good we feel from day to day. But we’ll be going all in!”

“If the level is as high and the field as compact as the last two years, we are sure that it will be a hard fight until the finish line of the final stage once again,” he added. “We are calculating and preparing for a hard race from the Prologue until Stage 7. Let’s see how it unfolds. An interesting aspect of this year’s race is that almost none of the top teams are starting with the same riders, as last year, except us.”

The Germain pair started their inaugural Untamed African Mountain Bike Race as not only underdogs but also as relative novices to mountain bike stage racing. Yet their fresh approach and never-say-die attitudes more than made up for any lack of experience. With sixteen epic race days and four stage victories behind them they are now more experienced than some of their key rivals.

“We took a lot of learnings from the past two years and we will definitely profit from that this time out,” Egger noted. “Nevertheless, you never finish learning and we are quite sure there will be new challenges this year again. Hopefully not challenges as hard as fixing a whole drivetrain with the mini tool, like in 2023!”

Instantly recognisable for their purple kits, Egger and Baum are mixing it up in 2024. “Our kit will change a bit this year and we're going to have a special Absa Cape Epic jersey,” the former hinted. “We will probably have pictures ready by mid-February, so keep an eye on @speedcompanyracing on Instagram.”

“We keep on riding with ORBEA bikes and wearing LEATT apparel again,” Egger stated. “Fulcrum is our new wheel sponsor and has quite a big involvement in the team. We’re also bringing more support crew this time, but there will be no dads involved. Moritz, our photographer, Jens our mechanic, and Tanya, who helped us as a physio in 2023 are joining for the Absa Cape Epic, as is Felicitas, who is former racer from Germany and is also good friend of Tanya’s.”

Despite an expanded support team and a fresh look, ORBEA LEATT Speed Company will undoubtedly bring their usual flair to the Absa Cape Epic. Mountain biking fans can look out for a classic Egger and Baum long-range attack or two, and they are undoubtedly plotting those moves already.