Flückigers pull out a stage win

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Stage 6 took riders from Worcester to Oak Valley, a distance of 123km and 2,240m of climbing. After a neutral convoy out of Worcester, riders were soon hugging the shores of Brandvlei Dam. Then the ups and downs began; retracing some of the 2009 route in reverse. Climbs were short but some gradients reached up to 26%. A dead-straight chute took the field down to the canals, through the orchards, then into some singletrack and finally over the wall of the vast Theewaterskloof Dam.

The race then took a short-cut through a hidden valley to Porcupine Hills before reaching the foot of another monument of the Cape Epic, the Groenlandberg Cape Nature conservation area. Route designer "Dr Evil" found a new way for riders to conquer this beautiful beast. The first part followed a steep dirt road up to Water Point 3 and part two took riders into virgin Epic mountain biking territory and deep into nature, all the way to the Groenlandberg saddle. This offered views of the beautiful Elgin Valley, and the treat of the day was fast and smooth singletrack in Thandi and Oak Valley.

Flückiger brothers pedal to victory

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The Fluckiger brothers' team of 26-year-old Lukas and 21-year-old Mathias from Switzerland repeated last year’s final stage victory by winning stage 6 of this year's Cape Epic in 4:37.23. They were followed by the Swiss and South African duo of Christoph Sauser and Burry Stander (Songo-Specialized by DCM) in a time of 4:40.01 with the German Bulls Karl Platt and Stefan Sahm close on their heels a fraction of a second behind. Kevin Evans and Alban Lakata (Team MTN Qhubeka Topeak Ergon) finished fourth in a time of 4:43.36.

Max Knox and Brandon Stewart of DCM Chrome finished in 16th place today (5:05.14), successfully defending their African leaders' jerseys for the third day in a row. They have moved to the 11th place overall (24:03.03).

The Bulls Team successfully defended the leaders' jerseys with an overall time of 22:50.42. Songo-Specialized by DCM moved up one position overall to second place (22:57.37),while MTN Qhubeka Topeak Ergon moved to third position overall (23:00.41).The Flückiger brothers of Trek World Racing are in fourth position overall (23:14.13). The brothers finished in 8th overall last year, having improved by four places so far this year.

The Flückiger brothers rode with the other riders for most of the way. "Only when Songo-Specialized by DCM had a flat, we broke away - it was just before Groenlandberg," said brother Lukas. "We took yesterday easy and planned it as a rest day. We knew today was going to be tough and this was obviously a good option as it worked for us."

"At the beginning of the stage my legs were bad, but I felt better later in the stage. The Bulls really pushed today, and it was hard work to hang on to the lead. Our legs felt good near the finish and we’re very happy about the stage win. We also had no bad luck today. It's important for us to win a stage at the Cape Epic," said Matthias.

"I really want to thank the organisers for the first 25km today. It was a really nice gift," said Karl Platt of Team Bulls 1. "It was easy going and the first time during this year’s event we could warm up a bit more - not like the other days where we had to go from the word go. From the MTN Hotspot, the race really started and everyone was going fast. Christoph and Burry worked hard today and we were riding together from the start of the Groenlandberg to the finish.

"They made up some time on the GC (general classification). It's all okay – were really happy with where we are at the moment."

Platt's teammate Sahm added, "It was a good day. I was a bit afraid of the long stage especially the ugly climb in the last part. But the spirits of Groenlandberg must love me because I felt great and although Burry and Christoph tried to lose us, we could stay at their back wheels all the way to the finish."

"We had a flat and it took us about a minute to repair. It happened at a really crucial time on the fast gravel section," said Stander. "We worked hard to get to the start of the climb and spent some energy, so by the time we got to the Bulls, we gave them everything we had but couldn't break away. Hopefully we can still push for the next two days to secure another stage win."

"We all know the Flückigers are very fast riders and knew they were going to be strong today. They attacked super hard," said Stander's teammate Sauser. "I had a flat about 4km before the real race started and we couldn’t catch up. We wasted lot of energy as it was really hard all the way to the top – digging, digging. The downhill was fast to the finish, but the Bulls were very strong too. I’m very happy with our second place overall – we moved up one position which is pretty cool."

Sauser also said that his team is now so good at fixing technical problems on the fly that it takes them no longer than a toilet break. "We actually split up the tools, with Burry carrying tools we need for easy fixes, while I carry the other ones should we have more difficult challenges."

Alban Lakata of Team MTN Qhubeka Topeak Ergon was not at his best today, "I felt very bad today. I thought I had good legs in the morning, but it was different after warming up. Maybe the third stage had broken me. It was such a difficult day with all the running and perhaps the chasing was too much for my body. I'm still trying to recover from that. My biggest problem at the moment is to stay with the leaders as long as possible, but I’ll try my best and work hard for a podium finish."

Brandon Stewart of team DCM2 was incredibly disappointed after reaching the MTN Hotspot first. "We were so motivated and really gave it our all to ensure we reached the point first, thinking that we would be winning 3,000 Rand today. It was only after we reached the finish line that we heard that our reward was only a 30-second time bonus. Not what we had in mind at all," he said.

Rothaus-CUBE team is unstoppable in women's category

Kristine and Anna-Sofie Noergaard (team Rothaus-CUBE) won the Ladies for the fourth day in a row, finishing in a time of 5:41,42. They remain in first position overall (28:37.36). They were again followed by Hannele Steyn-Kotze and Ivonne Kraft (Team Sludge Ladies) in a time of 5:55.43, who are placed second overall (29:00.46). Giuliana Vitali and Tamara Horn (team bike2help.ch – Big Tree) finished third with their fifth podium finish in this year's race (6:29.22), placing them in third position overall (31:27.38).

"Today’s stage was fun. It was nice for us as we started very slow and had time to get warmed up," said Anna-Sofie Noergaard of team Rothaus-CUBE. "We stayed with Ivonne and Hannele for a long time, but broke away later in the race. We talk to each other a lot during the race. We cheered each other up, discussed how we’re feeling and really motivated each other. We'll just keep going the way we have been for the next two stages as it seems to work for us.

"We've been feeling stronger every day, and slept well last night," said her sister Kristine. "We'd really like to thank the people at the water points. They make things easy for us so that we can continue really fast. The mechanic will lube chains, while we get some drinks. Today's stage wasn't as steep or technical as I expected and I loved the vastness of the scenery."

"It was a very nice stage for us. We rode with the Danish girls for a lot of the way, but on the downhills they're just faster as a team. We can keep up with them on the uphills and flat sections," said Ivonne Kraft of the Sludge Ladies. "We also decided that it was more important to be safe than take any risks."

"I think that Anna-Sofie and Kristine are stronger than me, but maybe not stronger than Ivonne," said Hannele Steyn-Kotze. "I try to keep a consistent pace and can ride for long, but not any faster. Yesterday was really nice to sleep a bit later – I really enjoyed it."

MTN Business Qhubeka still dominate mixed category

Yolande Speedy and Paul Cordes (MTN Business Qhubeka) finished in first place again today, in a time of 5:19.15 and remain the overall leaders in their category (26:13.09). Bärti Bucher and Esther Süss (Wheeler – BIXS) finished second in 5:27.07 and remain in second place overall (26:45.44). They were followed by Nico Pfitzenmaier and Sally Bigham of the Adidas Big Tree team in third place (5:41.33) and are placed third overall (27:18.41). MTN Business Qhubeka also scored phenomenally well today by placing 20th on the GC, beating many of the top professional riders.

"We had a gap at the beginning of the race and pushed really hard. The long climb up Groenlandberg seemed as if it's going to go on forever, but we rode as hard as we could till the end," Adds Hannele Steyn-Kotze. "We also managed to stretch our lead, which is good. Yesterday helped our legs recover and it was also great to have some cloud cover today."

Her teammate Paul Cordes said, "We had no intention of opening the gap today. We wanted to ride fast and because the race concertinaed a bit, we couldn't always see the others. Esther and Bärti were riding really well today. We enjoyed the technical stuff and the last 15km suited us great. After yesterday's short stage, we're feeling a lot better today."

"I wasn't feeling well and had some health problems last night. Today was really tough as it was a very long stage. My legs were good but I had no energy," Ester Süss of the Wheeler – BIXS team says.

Partner Bärti Bucher said, "Today’s stage was a bit flat for us – I think for about 80km. We really like uphills and downhills, that's why we love mountain biking. It was a lot of work for us to follow the leaders. Fortunately we had no mechanical problems, and will take stage for stage until Sunday when we finish at Lourensford Wine Estate."

Cyclelab ahead of the rest of the masters by more than one and a half hours

Cyclelab's Shan Wilson and Andrew Mclean defended their leaders' jerseys for the fifth time by winning stage 6 in 5:16.28. They remain in the overall lead in the masters (25:55.12) by one hour and 36 minutes. They were followed by Corrie Muller and Robert Sim of the Big Tree Masters - their fourth podium finish in the year’s race (5:22.05). They have moved up one position to third place overall in this category (28:21.32). Adrian Enthoven and Gary Marescia (Cycle Lab Jag Foundation) finished third in 5:38.12 and maintain their second place overall (27:31.23). Pieter van Rooyen and Milan Spolc of Oleander (5:38.25) were fourth and are fifth overall (28:47.29). Geof Blance and Malcolm Mcleod of R & R Sport New Zealand finished fifth in 5:38.58 and have moved to fourth place overall (28:25.13).

"It was a nice course, but very tough with lots of singletrack and also lots of sand – we can't seem to get away from the sand this year," said Says Shan Wilson of Cyclelab. "We decided to be consistent today and arrived at Oak Valley feeling well. My legs are still sore and I'm really looking forward to the finish line now. We're very happy with our overall lead."

"I think the big mountain made everyone nervous," said McLean. "We have a good lead, so there was no pressure and we rode at our own steady pace. We also didn't have any mechanicals, the weather was nice and a lot cooler, but my legs are tired."

Rwanda athlete beats mountain bike icons in Stage 6

Apart from Kevin Evans and Alban Lakata of the MTN Qhubeka Topeak Ergon team the spotlight was on another MTN rider after today's stage. The 23-year-old Adrian Niyonshuti from Rwamagana (Rwanda), is part of the MTN Energade team who finished in sixth place today - 11:50 behind the Fluckiger brothers and ahead of top athletes like Jose Hermida, Bart Brentjens and Emil Lindgren. This is an incredible achievement considering that the team also had three flats during the stage.

Niyonshuti joined the MTN team in 2009. Prior to this, he competed in the Cape Epic as Team Rwanda (from 2007 to 2008). He started competitive cycling at age 19 and turned a professional rider at 22. His biggest successes include a fifth position at the 2010 MTN Attakwas MTB UltraMarathon, a fourth position at the 2010 MTN Barbeton MTB UltraMarathon, third overall at the Tour of Rwanda in 2009, a bronze medal in 2009 at the African Continental Championships (Under 23 Time Trial) and competing in the Cape Epic since 2007 (with two top 20 overall finishes on the GC). His role model is Lance Armstrong.

Stage 7 – Oak Valley to Oak Valley

Stage 7 will take riders over 99km and 2,160 of climbing. The short sharp hills early on will really burn with five minutes up and 15 seconds down making riders work hard. After the descent past Houwhoek Inn, riders will pass Botriver onto some fast gravel roads through the farmland. On the main obstacle of the day up to Lebanon Highlands Plantation, rocks and loose ground force riders to get off their bikes when it gets steep.

Dassenberg has been renamed The Beeatch because of its sandy surface as well as level of complexity. Not long in kilometers, this climb will take even the experienced participants more than half an hour to master. After crossing over to Houteq, it is singletrack time, heading into Lebanon for some of the most coveted trails in the Cape. More short, steep climbs stand in the way of a final stretch of swooping paths taking riders to their final night on tour.

Video from stage six is provided by www.rsaweb.co.za.

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