Hugo, Wasle to Defend XTERRA Titles

Carina Wasle

Reigning 2011 XTERRA Grabouw Champions Dan Hugo (Stellenbosch, South Africa) and Carina Wasle (Austria) will have to keep their wits about them on Sunday, 26 February 2012 when they return to Grabouw Country Club to defend their titles at the 2012 Totalsports XTERRA South African Championship presented by REHIDRAT® SPORT.

According to Hugo, XTERRA Grabouw remains his favourite local XTERRA. “Grabouw is 30 minutes from home, which means I get to wake up in my own bed the morning of the race. My training buddies will be taking part, while my family will be out showing support on the day, making it extra special. This will also be the first time that an XTERRA is hosted over a two day period, the XTERRA Lite on the Saturday and the XTERRA Full on the Sunday, making it the largest XTERRA in the world. XTERRA Lite newcomers can relax as the event is catered just for them. It is less demanding and less risky. Participants taking on the XTERRA Full for the first time can expect a fun day. If coming from a road background my advice is to shift your expectation, there are no tar roads and the route includes a lot of single track. The XTERRA spirit is adventurous, being faced with challenges is all part of XTERRA. Just allow the race to awe you. The venue is ideal for family and friends to show support pre and post race. I’ll be racing against the best on Sunday. When Conrad Stoltz races he is always expected to win, that expectation has not yet shifted to me. When in great form the race is his. I however, won’t be the only one to mix it up on the day,” says Hugo.

For Wasle winning at XTERRA Grabouw was the highlight of her 2011 season. “Last year I had quite a lot of ups and downs. The highlight was of course my win at XTERRA Grabouw. It is always hard to say how my fitness will be in Grabouw as it is my first race of the year. Austria had a very strong winter this year, it was freezing cold and as a result it was sometimes impossible for me to run outside with -20°C. We had so much snow and such cold weather that I decided to go to Fuerteventura for ten days for training. It is always a pleasure for me to fly down to South Africa. The course features a bit of everything. The Mountainbike starts off very fast, gradually getting harder and harder with lots of steep hills and technical trails. The running course is perfect for me with lots of climbing. XTERRA Grabouw is a fun race with a perfect course and amazing people,” says Wasle.

Other top contenders to look out for will include: Conrad Stoltz, Nico Pfitzenmaier, Stuart Marais, Tyronne White, Daniel Carleton, Justin Porteous and Carla van Huyssteen.

Kahuna Dave visits XTERRA Grabouw: It is with great excitement that the organisers of the Totalsports XTERRA presented by REHIDRAT® SPORT welcome Dave Nicholas a.k.a ‘Kahuna Dave’ Race Director XTERRA International to the 2012 XTERRA South African Championship.

Feedback on the 2012 XTERRA Grabouw Route: German XTERRA Warrior, Nico Pfitzenmaier recently took a couple of athletes out on a mountain bike skills clinic in Grabouw, pre riding the XTERRA course. Pfitzenmaier had the following to say about the 2012 course, “In my XTERRA career I have competed all over the world from Japan to Lake Tahoe, but what I saw today was the nicest XTERRA mountain bike course ever. Besides the amazing views and landscapes, the course offers such a unique variety of terrain, from sand, rock, roots to gravel, sure to challenge all skill levels. I think that the exploding number of entries for XTERRA races in South Africa are the result of a perfectly organized event, which allows the XTERRA spirit to step up to the next level! I recon these events can be seen as a benchmark internationally”.

New Balance Trail Run: Reigning ProNutro AfricanX Trailrun champion Dawid Visser will be aiming for gold when he takes part in the inaugural New Balance 10km Trail Run on Saturday, 25 February 2012.

EVENT INFORMATION:

Date: Saturday, 25 February 2012
Venue: Grabouw Country Club, Western Province
Event Format: 07h00: New Balance 5km and 10km Trail Run
09h00: TOTALSPORTS XTERRA Lite – 400m swim, 12.5km mountain bike and 5km trail run

Date: Sunday, 26 February 2012
Venue: Grabouw Country Club, Western Province
Event Format: 08h30: TOTALSPORTS XTERRA Full – 1.5km swim, 25km mountain bike and 10km trail run