Team Pragma, who will be participating in the 2011 ABSA Cape Epic mountain bike race, will truly commence on an Epic Journey.
Gerrie Olivier, Pragma’s most experienced and daring (maybe crazy at
times) cyclist has invited Hein Wagner, adventurer and motivational
speaker, to be his partner. If you know who Hein is, you have already
come to the conclusion that he is beyond adventures to enroll in
something as extreme as a 900km off road race. For you who do not know
Hein, he is an admirable person who has set aside the fact that he has
been totally blind from birth, to live an abundant life and never
hesitate and stand back for any challenge.
The two lads met at the 2010 PAMTL Conference, found common adventure s
ground and agreed to tackle the Epic on a tandem mountain bike (yes, it
is doable) with the goal to just comfortably complete each race day.
During the next seven months, Team Pragma’s training routine will be a
blend of indoor and off-road saddle time. Computerised indoor trainers
will allow them to synchronise their remote daily training via the
internet whilst simulating the same routes and difficulty levels and
comparing their heart rates. The off road training will entail a mix of
flat dirt roads for them to gel as a racing team and ‘dungeon
explorations’ to master the technical challenges that the Epic route
will definitely present.
One challenge that the team faces is getting hold of an audible Polar
heart monitor that can keep Hein posted on his heart condition.
Team Pragma’s first endeavor will be the Karoo to Coast in the latter end of September.
You will be able to closely follow the team’s preparation and Epic
participation on the Pragma Website, You Tube and in the media.
You can read more about Hein and his endeavours on www.visiontree.co.za.
