Great Outdoors. Great Indoors. Great Impact.
Great Zuurberg trek
e-edition
Date: TBC
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change the cycling landscape
Great Outdoors
In 2018, an e-bike category was included in a mainstream, multiday race for the first time in South Africa.
In 2020, the international cycling governing body (UCI) held the first e-bike world championships, with gold going to SA’s Alan Hatherly.
In China, the world’s largest consumer of electric bikes, more than 30-million units were sold in 2016. In the same year Europe enjoyed the second largest market share with 1.6m units sold, with sales rocketing by 121 per cent in Italy.
E-bikes have been a worldwide hit and South Africans are joining the trend at lightening speed. There are two distinct audiences: those who want to take part in events but don’t have the physical ability and those who want to commute.
The Great Zuurberg Trek E-edition not only taps into the former but, like the UCI, the organisers are recognising an e-bike market that is set to change the cycling landscape
GREAT OUTDOORS
Great Indoors
Ensconced above the Zuurberg Pass, the charming Zuurberg Mountain Village houses a four-star country retreat that is home to the race.
Riders enjoy fine dining and all the comforts of a relaxing weekend getaway at the end of a hard day’s riding.
For those who opt to stay in the onsite tented village, the luxury safari tents offer beds and fine linen for a restful night’s sleep.
GREAT INDOORS
Great Impact
Along with its strategic partners, the Great Zuurberg Trek has been driving upliftment in the local community and the E-edition will follow suit.
Two notable projects are the formation of Hermitage House, an independent school, and Kids on the Move, a bus service for schools.
To deliver on its promise of serving the Addo and Zuurberg communities while promoting nature conservation, organisers have partnered
with South African National Parks and the Sundays River Citrus Company Foundation.
Let’s GO
Electric start
Since 2014, pushing boundaries and moving mountains have been synonymous with the Great Zuurberg Trek brand and the new E-edition will follow in the same gravel tracks.
It has been a story of testing physical limits and organisers leaving no rock unturned in their mission to capture the imagination of a discerning audience.
The next chapter – which embraces advances in technology – aims to make the original GZT relevant to a broader audience and a pacesetter in the ever-changing landscape of boutique mountain biking.
With its birth in 2021, the Great Zuurberg Trek E-edition is a leap into the future by Addo-based adventure and lifestyle company Hayterdale Trails as it embraces one of the fastest growing sectors of the sport.
The collective mindset of events has always been to “accommodate” rather than “welcome” e-bikers, but the organisers of the GZT E-edition aim to turn chance into opportunity.
With e-bikers seeking a thrill-a-minute experience rather than spending long hours under the African sun, organisers can hand-pick the very best trails from the traditional GZT route for the E-edition.
The GZT-E stage race will be presented over three days, from 10-12 September 2021. Teams of two will line up for consecutive stages of approximately 63km, 55km and 50km respectively. In order to allow riders of varying skill- and fitness levels to ride together, organisers have agreed to accommodate traditional mountain bikes, either as teams or paired with the e-bikes.
Change might be in the air, but the promise remains: Great Outdoors. Great Indoors. Great Impact.
All forms of Energy Welcome
Don’t have an Ebike? No problem, any and all forms of bicycles and teams are welcome to compete. Whether only one of you has an Ebike or neither of you has an Ebike, you are still welcome to enter and enjoy the fun with everyone!
Need more info?
LET’S CHAT
Hayterdale Team
admin@hayterdale.co.za