Cape Epic

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The Cape Epic (under current sponsorship called the Absa Cape Epic) is an annual 8-stage (9-day) mountain bike team race through South Africa’s Western Cape. Each participating team consists of two riders. The Cape Epic is the largest full-service mountain bike stage race in the world and the most televised mountain bike race of all time. A new route is designed each year and the race is entirely off-road.

The Cape Epic was the first-ever team mountain bike stage race at which UCI points were awarded. Thus, the entrants include some of the best MTB Cross Country riders in the world like two time overall UCI World Cup winner, Olympic bronze medallist and World Cup champion Christoph Sauser, overall World Cup winner Bart Brentjens, the 2006 UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World champion Ralph Naef and World Cup champion and Olympic silver medallist José Antonio Hermida.

The Cape Epic is open to amateur racers, but there is high entrance fee usually requiring teams to find some sort of sponsorship. The number of entries are limited and in 2008 about 1,200 riders started the race.

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