Wines2Whales: Meet the Unexpected Leaders of the Pinotage

At the sharp end of the E-Bike racing, at FNB Wines2Whales, there are some very familiar faces. Joris Ryf is a former World Champion, Benjamin [Benno] Willeit has been at the forefront of the bike industry for two decades, and the Mixed category leaders, Santina Malacarne and Lukas Dennda, are elite E-Bike racers. Heather Collen and Kerry Ould, the women’s race leaders meanwhile, are unexpected heroines of the Pinotage.

Heather Collen and Kerry Ould are no strangers to FNB Wines2Whales. The women from Cape Town have taken part, numerous times, on analogue bikes in the past, but are newcomers to the Pinotage and E-Bike racing. They were thus surprised when they crossed the line on Monday and heard Max Cluer proclaim them the women’s category stage winners.

The humorously named Trail Tarts do Turbo team doubled up on Stage 2, extending their general classification advantage. “We absolutely did not expect to be competitive at FNB Wines2Whales,” Collen confessed. “The Pinotage is actually the first race we’ve done on our E-Bikes. We’ve done the Chardonnay and Shiraz many, many times and absolutely loved it every time. So, we thought we should give the E-Bikes a shot.”

Heather Collen and Kerry Ould got so into the FNB Wines2Whales Pinotage spirit that they painted their fingernails FNB turquoise in anticipation of the race. Photo by Sam Clark/Wines2Whales.

“We came over the line yesterday and Max [Cluer] said ‘leading ladies’ and we were shocked!”

“It’s been very cool!” Collen continued. “The last couple of days have been quite exciting. Yesterday was freezing cold, wet, muddy, more cold, and freezing hail. It was a long day out and I’ve never been colder in my life. But today was awesome!”

“There was some mud, as we had expected. But it was rad and fast. It was still a bit chilly on the higher points of the course. Overall, we had so much fun.”

Despite Monday’s rain the trails were not overly muddy on Stage 2. Photo by Max Sullivan/Wines2Whales.

Both Collen and Kerry are fully in the FNB W2W spirit, and even had their nails done in FNB turquoise for the event. “You have to match the kit,” Collen laughed, pressing her nails against the CIOVITA E-Bike Leaders’ Jersey.

The women’s race leaders were hardly the only riders absolutely loving the trails. “We had a really, really good day out there,” Matthew Lombardi, who finished fourth alongside Dewald Oosthuizen on Stage 2, said. “The trails were pretty much perfect, a bit wet in patches. We had a jol! No bike issues, which is fabulous. we could just roll the power, roll the speed all day, which is cool.”

“Now it’s time for a beer!” he concluded showing off a pair of Devil’s Peak Lagers.

Matthew Lombardi racing through the Oak Valley trails. Photo by Max Sullivan / Wines2Whales.

After what should be a festive afternoon and evening in the Oak Valley race village the Pinotage riders will complete their FNB Wines2Whales adventure with a 64 kilometres stage to Benguela Cove on Wednesday. With the fastest teams with only 950 metres of climbing on the cards it is possible that the Specialized Racing team may challenge the 2 hour mark. To see if they can average 32 kilometres per hour watch the race coverage on social media. Regular updates will be posted to the @wines_2_whales Instagram and Wines2Whales Facebook stories. Post-stage highlight videos will be uploaded to the Epic Series YouTube channel. For more information visit www.epic-series.com/wines2whales or download the Epics Series mobile application.

Joris Ryf blitzed the Stage 2 course, alongside Benno Willeit, and could challenge the 2 hour mark on Sunday’s final stage. Photo by Max Sullivan/Wines2Whales.

2024 FNB Wines2Whales Chardonnay Results:

E-Bike Men | Stage 2:

Specialized Racing: Benjamin Willeit & Joris Ryf (2:16:08)
Toyota Specialized: Bobby Behan & Giniel de Villiers (2:27:37 | +11:28)
XTREME RACING: Leeroy & Lyle Poulter (2:27:41 | +11:33)
Uncles: Matthew Lombardi & Dewald Oosthuizen (2:32:51 | +16:42)
Greatsoft Cylon: Robert Briggs & Colin Morgan (2:38:40 | +22:31)

E-Bike Women | Stage 2:

Trail Tarts do Turbo: Heather Collen & Kerry Ould (3:10:19)
Mountainbike-Südafrika.ch-6: Nicole Schumacher & Monika Walther (3:58:59 | +48:40)
Desert Roses: Connie-Marlene Theyse & Hanli Jacobs (5:01:56 | +1:51:37)

E-Bike Mixed | Stage 2:

Bergstrom Factory Racing: Santina Malacarne & Lukas Dennda (2:33:08)
Thundervyver: Werner & Marlize van der Vyver (3:02:05 | +28:56)
Team Prescient: Carla Beyers & Dawie Carstens (3:06:34 | +33:26)
W2W Pino Champs: Johan Kriegler & Reinette Geldenhuis (3:10:18 | +37:10)
Last Minute.com: Gareth Neill & Lexi Bird (3:29:24 | +56:16)

Santina Malacarne has won both stages in the Mixed category, alongside Lukas Dennda, thus far. Photo by Max Sullivan/Wines2Whales.

Men’s E-Bike General Classification after Stage 2:

Specialized Racing: Benjamin Willeit & Joris Ryf (4:53:46)
Toyota Specialized: Bobby Behan & Giniel de Villiers (5:22:02 | +28:15)
XTREME RACING: Leeroy & Lyle Poulter (5:26:37 | +32:50)

Women’s E-Bike General Classification after Stage 2:

Trail Tarts do Turbo: Heather Collen & Kerry Ould (6:56:34)
Mountainbike-Südafrika.ch-6: Nicole Schumacher & Monika Walther (8:34:50 | +1:38:15)
Desert Roses: Connie-Marlene Theyse & Hanli Jacobs (11:41:41 | +4:45:07)

Mixed E-Bike General Classification after Stage 2: