Nino Schurter seizes win, but not lead in heat-shortened Cape Epic stage
No team can get rid of Ghost Factory Racing
Photo by:
Epic Series / YouTube
The 2024 Cape Epic passed the half-way mark Thursday and the race leaders are feeling the heat in South Africa. Literally and figuratively. Stage four had to be shortened from 88km to 73km due to soaring temperatures above 35-degrees Celsius. That didn’t stop Nino Schurter and teammate Sebastian Fini from pouring on the pressure. The World Bicycle Relief team just edged out the Specialized duo in a sprint finish after an intense day of racing.
The women’s race was even more hotly contested. A trio of teams arrived in the finish area together for a six-rider sprint finish. Ghost Factory Racing continue to show steely resolve, refusing to bend to pressure from rivals or extreme weather.
Stage 3 – Canyon Sidi steal podium while Ghost continues to haunt women’s field
Before Thursday’s sweaty epic, Stage 3 saw Canyon Sidi’s Andreas Seewald and Marc Stutzmann strike for their first stage win of ’24. Behind, more mechanical difficulty saw Schurter and Fini lose more time. So did Stage 2 winners and race leaders Hans Becking and Wout Alleman of Buff Megamo, but not enough to relinquish their zebra jerseys.
While the men’s lead is under pressure, Ghost Factory Racing remain unassailable. Despite the efforts of an elite field, Anne Terpstra and Nicole Koller kept an undefeated streak going winning a fourth-straight day of racing to remain undefeated. Specialized-NinetyOne and Cannondale Factory Racing continue to fight it out for the places, with Cannondale taking second place on Stage 3.
Stage 4: Schurter steals sprint while Specialized take GC lead
Shortening Thursday’s Queen stage from 88 to 73km didn’t make racing any less intense. Canyon Sidi, riding high off of momentum from a stage win the day prior, attacked again on Stage four. It took most of the day for Nino Schurter and Sebastian Fini (World Bicycle Relief) to reel in the leaders.
“Canyon went super hard from the start and we had to hang on,” said Schurter after the stage. “We eventually found our legs and we knew the last climb would suit us quite well, so we went to the front and then also on the downhill we tried to force the pace a bit. It was nice, a good race.”
Schurter and Fini did eventually catch and pass Canyon Sidi to arrive at the finish with Specialized-NinetyOne-Songo’s South African/U.S. combo of Matt Beers and Howard Grotts. The Swiss/Danish team earned the win in the sprint. Added to a prolog win, it’s their second stage win of the 2024 Cape Epic.
“We gained some time and now I think we’re in for a tough battle with Specialized. We are back in the overall battle. We lost a lot of time the past two days with bad luck. I hope from now on we have luck on our side.”
As Schurter stated, the World Bicycle Relief Team took the stage win, but the zebra leader’s jersey’s go to Specialized. The veteran team, Grotts and Beers are both Cape Epic winners, have slowly moved through the ranks all week.
“It was just a real nice, hard stage. I mean, we had proper climbing, I knew it would be selective and I’m glad me and Howard both had the legs to make that group early. Andreas Seewald really pushed the pace like crazy during the first two hours. We were just hanging on and I’m just glad we could stick with it” Beers said after the stage.
After moving into the lead, the Specialized team is sticking with its so-far-successful strategy.
“Being in Yellow is awesome motivation. It won’t change our tactics though,” Beers shared. “We’re still going to attack. We’re still going to race from the front. That’s the only way you can do this race, otherwise you’re in trouble.”
Previous leader’s jersey wearers Buff Megamo lose mega time, dropping seven minutes behind the front of the race. The Dutch/Belgian duo cling to third overall, still, but with Orbea Speed Company and Canyon Sidi now breathing down their necks.
Ghost Factory Racing stay steady under pressure
The women’s win also went down to the wire on Thursday, with a sensational six-rider sprint.
It was New Zealand’s Samara Sheppard (Toyota-Specialized-NinetyOne) who animated the race, attacking in the dwindling kilometres of the stage. Terpstra and Koller, despite already winning four stages, were still fresh enough to respond to the attack and then counter with a sprint of their own for a fifth win.
“I was prepared for more attacks to be honest,” said Terpstra after the stage. “I think both Specialized and Cannondale wanted to make the pace high from the beginning but it turned out that actually Nicole and I were the fastest, which was nice! It was nice to know that they could try, but we’re still there, we’re hanging on. It was a very cool stage and a lot of fun.”
Specialized’s Sofia Gomez-Villafane and Samara Sheppard settle for second on the stage. They still sit third overall behind Cannondale Factory Racing’s Mona Mitterwallner and Candice Lill. Despite not having a win to their name, yet, Cannondale are still just 2:31 behind the thus far dominant Ghost pair. With four stages still remaining, the race is far from over.
