Newsletter - #4
7th August 2012
Read previous newsletters : 1  2  3

Dear all

Well it’s nearly here – the 2012 UWCT Final is now only a couple of weeks away and the preparation of the event from all sides – riders and supporters as well as organisers is well underway. Those riders that have been able have been scoping out the route and have ridden it and people are really looking forward to testing themselves against the best in the world in each age category and on the roads in the region.

The information herein will hopefully assist you in making your planning for the event easier, and should you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to contact us. All correspondence should be sent to uwct@realem.co.za.

All that is left for me to do at this stage is to wish you well in your preparations and safe travels and we look forward to welcoming the world to Pietermaritzburg soon.


Alec Lenferna
Event Director

Event Schedule
The full event schedule including all start times etc is as follows:

Mon 20 Aug 9am - 4pm Registration & Race Pack Collection 4Ever Cycles - 39 Chief Albert Lethuli Street
10am 4Ever Cycles Hill Dash Old Howick Rd - Start at Royal Show Grounds /
Finish at Old Main Brewery in Hilton
Tues 21 Aug 9am - 4pm Registration & Race Pack Collection 4Ever Cycles - 39 Chief Albert Lethuli Street
2pm Mt Verde Challenge Mt Verde Estate - 36km, 48km or 60km race
6pm Traditional SA Braai Evening Event Central - Alexander Park
Wed 22 Aug 9am - 4pm Registration & Race Pack Collection 4Ever Cycles - 39 Chief Albert Lethuli Street
TT Set Up Wartburg
TT Route Recce Wartburg
Thurs 23 Aug 9am - 4pm Registration & Race Pack Collection 4Ever Cycles - 39 Chief Albert Lethuli Street
10am Time Trial Competition Start & Finish area outside Wartburg Hotel
Fri 24 Aug 9am - 4pm Registration & Race Pack Collection 4Ever Cycles - 39 Chief Albert Lethuli Street
Rest Day
RR Route Recce Pietermaritzburg & Surrounds
6pm Pasta Party Event Central - Alexander Park
Sat 25 Aug 9am 61km Road Race Start in Wartburg - Finish at Alexander Park
1pm 96km Road Race Start & Finish at Alexander Park
6pm Pasta Party Event Central - Alexander Park
Sun 26 Aug 10am 112km Race Start & Finish at Alexander Park
6pm Traditional SA Evening Event Central - Alexander Park


Protocol Ceremonies
The protocol ceremonies for each of the competitions will be as follows:
Time Trial Competition Wartburg Hotel Straight after completion of competition
61km Road Race Alexander Park 5pm
96km Road Race Alexander Park 5pm
112km Road Race Alexander Park Straight after completion of competition

Additional Events and Activities
Although the official UWCT Final schedule will include the Time Trial and Road Race competitions from the 23rd – 26th August 2012, the organisers also recognize that many people will have travelled a fair distance to get to Pietermaritzburg and have finalized arrangements for a number of additional sporting and cultural activities around the event.

We want all of our visitors and entrants to have a taste of what our region has to offer and to this end, a schedule of sporting and social events has been put together and the details of these are as follows:

4Ever Cycles Hill Dash
Monday 20th August 2012
10am Start

Old Howick Road is renowned as one of the most challenging hills in the 'Maritzburg area. We would like to invite you to test your legs on this scenic route as the 4ever Cycles Hill Dash takes you from the Royal Show grounds in 'Maritzburg to the Old Main Brewery in the little village of Hilton, the gateway to the beautiful Kwazulu Natal Midlands. The road will be closed by the Traffic Authorities for the duration of the event making it safe for all to ride!

The field will be batched and the choice is yours as to whether you would like to race, ride, warm up or just have an easy ride on your climb up to Hilton.
Distance: 7.6kms
Start time: 10.00am
Entry fee: R80.00

Entries open on 30th July 2012 and anyone interested in riding should make contact with Cathy at clubpmb@cyclelab.com.

Registration will take place at 4ever Cycles at 39 Chief Albert Luthuli Street from 8.00 am on Monday 20th August 2012.

Mt Verde Challenge
Tuesday 21st August
2pm Start

Mount Verde is a beautiful Country Estate just outside of 'Maritzburg and the residents of the estate are affording riders the unique opportunity of hosting the Mount Verde Challenge in this superb setting where we can share in the beauty of their Estate.

The Mount Verde Challenge will be ridden as a lap race with each lap being 12 kms long. This ride is open to riders of any ability and the choice between a 36, 48 or 60 km ride is yours so whether you are using it as a warm up, a training ride or an easy paced afternoon ride in the country, we hope to offer a memorable ride to all our local cyclists and international visitors.

Distances: 36kms, 48kms and 60kms
Start time: 14.00pm
Entry fee: R120.00

Entries open on 30th July 2012 and anyone interested in riding should make contact with Cathy at clubpmb@cyclelab.com.

Registration will be from 12.00pm at Mount Verde on the day of the event.

For further details or enquiries on either of the two events above, please contact Cathy on +2774 072 6268 or Debbie on +27 33 342 6005 or email Cathy at clubpmb@cyclelab.com.

Event Central
The organisers have created the “Event Central” concept that will be in place for the duration of the event in Pietermaritzburg in that in Alexander Park, an event village will be in place that will have bars, food venues and eating areas as well as entertainment so that international visitors to the city and locals alike can come together to meet, drink, eat and have a good time in a safe and convivial environment.

Event Central will not be operational every evening during the event but rather there will be various functions and activities staged on certain days thus allowing visitors to also explore the city and the areas surrounding on these “off’ days.

Please note that in order to prepare catering numbers etc, if you are planning on attending any of the functions below, please email Victoria at victoria@craevents.com  asap.

The functions that will be staged at Event Central will be as follows:

Traditional South African Braai
Tuesday 21st August
6pm Start

Despite a wide variety of cultural groups in the country with people of different colours, religions, social standings etc, the one thing that pulls us all together and that we all love is a good old fashioned “braai” – a barbeque.

The preparation of meat on the braai together with all its important accompaniments varies from region to region and even from household to household but what is common throughout are the good feelings that abound when there are fires going, the smell of meat is in the air, a favourite cold one is in hand and music and dancing abounds.

Everyone will be welcome to attend the braai evening at Event Central.

The cost of the braai evening is R 120.00 per head (approx. € 12.00) and for this you will receive a variety of meats and salads as well as entertainment on the main stage.

Tickets for the function will be available for collection at the event registration point at 4Ever Cycles and are available until midday on Tuesday 21st August.

Pasta Party
Friday 24th August & Saturday 25th August
6pm Start

The opportunity will be available for all riders and family members and locals alike to come together on Friday and Saturday evenings before the road races take place to relax and get some much needed carbo loading done before the races start the next day.

The cost of the pasta parties is R 100.00 per head per function (approx. € 10.00) and for this you will receive as many plates of pasta with a variety of sauces and salads as you wish as well as entertainment on the main stage.

Tickets for the function will be available for collection at the event registration point at 4Ever Cycles and are available until midday on each day of the function.

Traditional South African Evening
Sunday 26th August
6pm Start

One of the elements that makes South Africa the fantastic country it is is the cultural and ethnic diversity that prevails in the country. Kwazulu Natal has a rich history and although it has always been and still is the home of the proud Zulu Nation, it is also the region that has seen a huge amount of settlement from diverse ethnic and cultural groups over the last few hundred years.

Over the years, Kwazulu Natal became home to large groups of Indians, Afrikaners, English settlers as well as other population groups such as Mauritians, Greeks, Portuguese etc, etc and all of these population groups have lent flavours and textures to the rich tapestry of South African life as we know it today.

As the closing function, all event entrants and their families and friends are invited to enjoy a mix of regional food, music and dance that is sure to leave a lasting impression on all visitors and locals alike.

The cost of the Traditional South African evening is R 150.00 per head (approx. € 15.00) and for this you will be able to sample all of the different types of cuisine on offer as you wish as well as entertainment on the main stage.

Tickets for the function will be available for collection at the event registration point at 4Ever Cycles and are available until midday on Friday 24th August.

A composite functions ticket which will take all 4 x functions into consideration is also available and the cost of this will be R 440.00 per head (approx. € 44.00) and this too will be available at the registration area at 4Ever Cycles.

We look forward to having as many of you at these events so that you can not only experience some of the tastes and sounds of Kwazulu – Natal, but you will also be able to meet and mix with some of your fellow competitors.

Event Website
A new feature on the site is a training blog that is being updated by Kathy Doherty – Bigara who is a local rider from Pietermaritzburg and who has qualified to compete in the Final and she and her training buddies are on the courses on a regular basis and she is giving her insight into the course and how best to tackle it.

For more comprehensive information about the event and the linked entities, the official event website can be viewed at www.uwctfinal.co.za . This site will be the best place to get updated information on the event and all developments between now and the event itself. The site will be updated regularly so make it one of your favourites!!

Travelling to Pietermaritzburg
There are still a few questions coming through about how best to get to Pietermaritzburg. Here are the suggestions.

There are a number of ways to get to Pietermaritzburg and South Africa now has three international airports – OR Tambo in Johannesburg (450km from Pmb), Cape Town (1400km from Pmb) and King Shaka International in Durban (90km away) as well as Oribi Airport in the city. This is a regional airport and can be reached on a connection from Johannesburg with a number of daily flights between the two centres.

Most international airlines fly into South Africa and nearly all of them arrive into OR Tambo in Johannesburg or Cape Town. King Shaka International airport has limited international flights arriving there but all domestic airlines fly into King Shaka in Durban.

The best suggested option for teams is to fly into Johannesburg and then either fly directly to Pietermaritzburg, or if schedules do not allow, to Durban and travel by car or with the official transport to the city. Another option is to collect vehicles in Johannesburg and drive to Pietermaritzburg which is situated 450km from Johannesburg and is an easy 4 - 5 hour drive on excellent highways.

Accommodation Options
Pietermaritzburg and surrounds is blessed with a large variety of accommodation options to suit most if not all needs of teams and individuals. There are a number of hotels ranging from 2 stars to 4 star grades within the city as well as an extensive mix of Bed and Breakfast establishments and Guest Houses.

If you have still not arranged your accommodation for the event, Ecco Tours are best positioned to assist riders and family members that need accommodation and the person to make contact at Ecco Tours is Nathan Levendall and he can be contacted at nlevendall@eccotours.biz . Ecco’s details will also be on the event website.

Accommodation venues will also be able to assist any riders and families that would like to come to the region for an extended time period in the lead up to the event for training in the area or who would like to stay on after the event.

For those people that are only competing in the Time Trial competition, it may be an option to look at staying at the Orion Wartburg Hotel which is situated in Wartburg which is the venue for the TT competition. Nathan and the team at Ecco will be able to assist you with this too.

Official Vehicle Partner

The organisers are very happy to announce that the official car hire partner for the event is Europcar.

It should be noted that although there are lots of taxis and buses to assist you in getting around Pietermaritzburg, the public transport system here in nowhere near as advanced as many towns and cities in Europe and USA so it may be a good idea to hire a vehicle for the duration of your stay here.

The best person to speak to at Europcar about vehicle hire is Deirdre Deetlefs who is based at the Europcar office at Oribi Airport in Pietermaritzburg and she can be emailed at pmb@europcar.co.za . She will also be able to assist you with vehicles in Durban or even Johannesburg.

Routes
The route maps and profiles can be viewed on the official event website at www.uwctfinal.co.za  under route maps.

Rider’s Guide
The rider’s guide will be ready for publication by Friday 10th August and will be available to all as a PDF download from the event website and pertinent portions will also be included in all riders’ race packs that will be collected at registration.

Race Groups
A number of queries have been received relative to the race groups. Please note that these groups will not be able to be finalized until all entries have been finalized on the 17th August 2012 and will be published thereafter once ratified by the President Commissaire and his panel and the UWCT officials.

Event Merchandising
A range of event merchandising will be available to purchase at the event and will include caps and long sleeve T shirts thus allowing you to have a memento of your participation in the event.

Medical Insurance
Although it is not something that is desired, it is known that with the nature of the sport and competition, that accidents and injuries may happen during the event. ER 24 are the event medical provider and they will be able to provide excellent medical assistance on site and during the event and all costs attached to such care is the responsibility of the organisers.

However, it must noted that should any injury or illness require “off site” care at a doctor’s office or in a hospital, these charges are the responsibility of the participant as well as any transport to these facilities. Therefore, all entrants are urged to ensure that all their medical insurance arrangements are in order prior to arriving at the event.

All entrants will then need to go to the 4Ever Cycles shop in Chief Albert Lethuli Street in the centre of town to register and collect their race pack including race numbers etc otherwise they will not be able to compete. Registration at 4Ever Cycles will be open from Monday 20th – Friday 24th August.

Technical Support - 4Ever Cycles
4Ever Cycles is one of the leading bike shops in Pietermaritzburg and apart from being the venue of the event registration where you will need to collect your race packs prior to competing, they will also be able to offer technical support to you so should you need any adjustments to your bike or spares or your racing “bits and pieces”, their staff will be available to assist.