Mountain bike riders from around the world will start their epic journey later this month to get to Knysna (the starting point of the Absa Cape Epic presented by adidas) and will travel from as far afield as China, Finland, New Zealand, the USA and Venezuela.

From 28 March to 5 April, 1 200 riders representing more than 40 countries will test their strength and endurance in the largest full-service mountain bike stage race in the world.

The route starts in the beautiful Garden Route town of Knysna and finishes 966 kilometers and nine days later at Lourensford Wine Estate near Cape Town. The race is off-road with the most beautiful, unspoilt and remote scenery, climbing some 18 529m.

Kim Kreb (39 years old) lives in Manitou Springs, USA, which is at the base of Pikes Peak (a 14,000+ foot peak). Kim and her team mate, Terrie Clouse, have a challenging travel agenda. "We'll be in transit from Colorado Springs to Cape Town for a total of 30.5 hours, if all goes well. We plan to take the shuttle from Cape Town to the start in Knysna, another 6 hours drive. We shall change planes three times and stop four times during our journey. Our first plane change is in Atlanta. That flight stops in Dakar, Senegal briefly. Then we are on to Johannesburg for the third change to Cape Town. We arrive in Cape Town the evening of 24 March, which gives us three full days (not including Friday) to adjust." Kreb has been doing 100 mile mountain bike races for the past 13 years. In 2005, she partnered with a fellow racer to ride the Transalp. After hearing about the Absa Cape Epic through a friend, watching the slide show she prepared, and getting the daily updates from her race, she decided it was something she had to participate in.

Forty-one-year old Chad Forrest and his riding partner Stuart Eunson live and train in Beijing, China. They participated in the Absa Cape Epic last year, after being introduced to it by other South Africans living in Beijing. It will take the two enthusiasts 20 hours to reach Cape Town, after which they need to drive to Knysna. Says Forrest: "Last year our flight arrived in the morning and we then drove to Knysna. We stopped along the way for lunch and ended up staying longer than expected. This year we plan to spend two days in Cape Town before the race. We spent a week in Cape Town last year after the race and really enjoyed the city - it's a special place." They will take two flights to get to the race, first from Beijing to Singapore and then on to Cape Town. He adds: "Due to our flights, we'll be arriving on the Monday before the race and will spend 2 days in Cape Town before driving to Knysna."

For Daniel Moreno (37 years old) of Merida in the Venezuelan Andes, it will also take a great deal of time to get to Cape Town. "We'll leave Caracas on 21 March and arrive in Cape Town on 23 March, after a total flight time of 22 hours, and a 9 hour connecting time. We are scheduled to fly via Frankfurt, which is an over ten-hour flight from Caracas. The flight from Frankfurt to Cape Town will be just under twelve hours." Moreno's team mate is Ruben Parra, one of the finest young Venezuelan riders and they train together at least four times a week. "I first heard about the race two years ago, through an article in a Spanish magazine. I was immediately interested in participating. Last year we managed to get a last minute entry in the mixed category, and although we didn't have much time to prepare ourselves properly, we were able to finish the race in 33rd place in the mixed category, and 299th overall."

Kreu Maisniemi, a medical doctor from Helsinki, and his team mate Euro Japanned, the best marathon mountain biker in Finland, will also travel for 22 hours before arriving at their destination. They need to stop off in London on their way.

Fifty-two year old Jurgen Weidig of Dubai will only need one day to get to his destination. He flies from Dubai via Johannesburg to George and then transfers to Knysna. "I mostly train on a road bike. We have only a few possibilities for off-road cycling. There are some good mountain trails in the Oman Mountains about 2 hours from Dubai." He read an article in a South African cycling magazine and decided it was something he wanted to do. His teammate is Wolfgang (Wolfe) Holman, also originally from Germany.

Teams of two riders will compete in one of four different categories including Men, Ladies, Mixed and Masters (both riders must be 40 years or older). Team members must remain together at all times during the race.

The organisers of the Absa Cape Epic are also putting out a call for entries into the Cape Times Vigne à Vigne and Vineyard Run. Interested riders and runners can register online at http://www.vigne-a-vigne.comand http://www.vineyard-run.com.

Visit http://www.CapeEpic.comfor more details.

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