Do you have enough true grit to power through the poorts of the Karoo? Prepare yourself for some great biking. The Karoo is considered by some as the little Cinderella sister to the Garden Route. Well, the fairy godmother certainly waved her wand on the pretty town of Ladismith and little hamlet of Amalienstein. Three impressive passes link the Great and Little Karoo through the grandiose Swartberg Mountain Range. Seweweekspoort is the most rugged and isolated of these, presenting a stiff challenge for this mountainbike event with a climb of 600m over 26km.

The race starts in front of the old Lutheran Church at Amalienstein, 25 km from Ladismith, on Route 62 in the direction of Oudtshoorn. Cyclists will traverse the orchards of Amalienstein and then traverse the Swartberg Nature Reserve whilst negotiating the climb and exhilarating descent through Seweweekspoort. The last stage takes bikers through fruit orchards in the beautiful Hoeko valley and some lung burning climbs in the last 10km. It sounds irresistible!

Where can I stay? Book your bed in Ladismith
Need to know more? Enter online at https://www.gwim.biz/seweweeks1/entry.asp. Find out more at http://gardenroute.org/7weekspoort/