Spot Check: Klapperkop track preview
Dig out those soft springs, dust off that body armor, and get your forks in for a service… Klapperkop is going to be one rough ride. This coming weekend the DH Nationals are coming to the Klapperkop track in Pretoria. On Saturday we headed up there to take a look at the new track and here is a quick overview of what you can expect.
The track can basically be broken down into two sections. The first half which runs down to the road crossing, and then the second half which takes you through to the finish. Overall the track is pretty flat, and above all else is incredibly rough. The first half of the track has a nice mix of technical and high speed sections and is a lot of fun to ride.
You start off at the top of Klapperkop fort and roll down through a short rocky section before crossing a brick road and heading on towards the high speed section. This is probably the fastest section of the track with about 200m of smooth dirt broken up by three jumps all on a gradual decent. After that you fly through a gate and head left into the first stretch of rock garden. This is best hit as fast as possible which helps you skip over the top of the tightly packed rocks. From there you descend through a series of swithbacks, and then drop off down onto the road crossing. At this point you are pretty much halfway. Here are some pics of the first half of the track running from the start down to the half way point.
The 2nd half of the track is quite different from the first in that it offers less variety, and runs for the rest of the way as harsh rocky terrain. Its basically one long rock garden all the way to the end, with 3 or 4 stand out obstacles along the way. Once again the faster you go here the smoother it gets, but simply carrying your speed through here will be hard. I personally would not want to fall at any stage on the 2nd half of the track simply because the terrain is so unforgiving. Because the track is so rough and flat, keeping your momentum will be very important here, and the guys with properly tuned suspension will be at an advantage heading towards the finish. Pedalling will be difficult as well so it should make for some very interesting racing. Here are some pics of the 2nd half of the track running from the halfway point to the finish.
Tags: Klapperkop DH track
May 18th, 2009 at 1:55 pm
sweet shot boys im going to eat that shit up on sat and sunday
May 18th, 2009 at 10:41 pm
After the world cup track this looks not up to scratch,if pta doesn’t have mountains y is there even a national there. I want jumps so i can pull off tricks.thats wildee
May 19th, 2009 at 9:22 am
Sven dude the top part of the track has some sweet jumps the double alone is 10m and fast as. we have to make due with what we have up here, and it gives you guys a chance to see what rocks really are
May 19th, 2009 at 10:12 pm
Who is sean roodt anyway. The fact of the matter is if pta is lacking organisation and is unable to turn out a dh track that is up to standard with the likes of pmb,george or mankele then it should be moved from pta. Its in the interest of the sport but im sure we will here wat the riders hav to say after the weekend. But well done to the builders for the work put in.
May 20th, 2009 at 12:59 pm
Some of that could be uphill its so flat! Why not rather change the venue next year.. Rather let a place like pmb host two nationals cause at least there are proper downhill tracks… The world cup track and worlds view to name 2! Anyways nationals are always fun so lets try make the most of it!