A classic highveld winter\u2019s day started cool, then warmed throughout the morning, providing perfect
\nriding conditions for 2\u00a0000 avid mountain bikers who took on round 2 of the Ford Trailseeker Series
\non Saturday, 2 May 2026. South African Marathon Champion, Marc Pritzen, dominated the Cradle
\nMoon trails, winning the elite men\u2019s race over Jaedon Terlouw and Ignatius du Preez. In the elite
\nwomen\u2019s race, African Marathon Champion, Vera Looser, emerged from a race-long battle with her
\nEfficient Infiniti Insure teammate, Samantha Sanders, to win by just 36 seconds.<\/p>\n
Header Image: Vera Looser won round 2 of the Ford Trailseeker Series, in the Cradle of Humankind, on<\/em> Pritzen was able to establish an early lead, within the first 15 kilometres of the 62-kilometre course, Sanders crossed the line 36 seconds behind Looser. A resurgent Danielle du Toit finished third on the Ford Trailseeker Series | Round 2 Results<\/strong><\/p>\n Elite Men\u2019s Marathon Results: Elite Women\u2019s Marathon Results:
\nSaturday, 2 May 2026. Photo by Anthony Churchyard.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nescaping off the front of a strong men\u2019s field with Terlouw and Arno du Toit. \u201cI haven\u2019t ridden a
\nsingletrack since March,\u201d the race winner laughed. \u201cSo, I had to get out in front and set my own
\npace, rather than stay in the group where the yo-yo effect would have taken its toll.\u201d
\n\u201cI managed my first proper training ride on Monday, after travelling back from California and the
\nLifetime Grand Prix. This whole week, my legs had been nowhere, so I didn\u2019t know how I\u2019d feel this
\nmorning,\u201d Pritzen confessed. Despite this uncertainty, once it was clear that he was on a good day,
\nPritzen put the hammer down.
\nWith short and sharp climbs coming back to back, the Honeycomb 226ers rider accelerated away
\nfrom his breakaway companions, Terlouw and Du Toit, with 37 kilometres remaining. \u201cI pushed to
\nget away early, and I\u2019m happy to have been able to take the victory here at the Ford Trailseeker
\nSeries,\u201d Pritzen concluded.
\nBehind Pritzen, Terlouw kept pushing to remain ahead of the chasers and finished 3 minutes down.
\nDu Preez rode his way into podium contention in the back half of the course. Having reeled in Insect
\nScience\u2019s Du Toit, Du Preez showed his formidable finishing kick to out-sprint the rider who had held
\nthird for much of the day.
\nDu Toit had to be content with fourth. His Insect Science teammate, Jan Withaar, completed the top
\nfive places. Travis Rademan-Ludeke was sixth, ahead of Wessel Botha, Tayne Rudling, Jordan
\nBoshoff, and Keagan Bontekoning.
\nIn the women\u2019s race, Looser and Sanders were a cut above their competition. Sarah Mar\u00e9 aided her
\nEfficient Infiniti Insure teammates in the first 10 kilometres, setting the early tempo, but when the
\nclimbing began in earnest, Looser and Sanders ascended into an unassailable lead.
\nAfter racing together for 25 kilometres, Sanders established what could have been a vital advantage
\nnear the end of the Ford Raptor Rampage segment, with 27 kilometres remaining. Yet Looser dug
\ndeep to close the gap and keep the battle alive. At the top of the final climb, 3 kilometres from the
\nfinish, Looser made the race-winning move.
\n\u201cI managed to get into the last singletrack, at the summit of the last climb, ahead of Sam [Sanders],\u201d
\nLooser explained. In the mud, you really had to focus on riding clean, so being in front was a big
\nadvantage. I tried to put pressure on her on the descent towards the finish, and I\u2019m happy to take
\nthe win. But I\u2019m also really happy to see Sam so strong, as we\u2019ll be teaming up next week, and Dani
\n[Danielle du Toit] coming back to form.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nday, seeing off Mar\u00e9 and Frances Jansen van Rensburg. Luzaan Durand, Tania Bester, Roxanne Kemp,
\nCaitlin Mee, and Karlise Scheepers completed the top ten places in the elite women\u2019s competition.
\nTo recap on the action from the race and to see the beautiful scenery of Cradle Moon Lakeside
\nGame Lodge, follow @trailseekerseriesmtb on Instagram and like the Ford Trailseeker MTB Series
\nFacebook page. Highlights from the race and the series can be viewed on the Ford Trailseeker Series
\nYouTube channel. For more information, visit www.trailseeker.co.za.<\/p>\n
\n1. Marc Pritzen: Honeycomb 226ers (2:31:24)
\n2. Jaedon Terlouw: Toyota Specialized Imbuko (2:34:24 | +3:00)
\n3. Ignatius du Preez: Toyota Specialized Imbuko (2:34:59 | +3:35)
\n4. Arno du Toit: Insect Science (2:35:03 | +3:39)
\n5. Jan Withaar: Insect Science (2:36:21 | +4:57)<\/p>\n
\n1. Vera Looser: Efficient Infiniti Insure (3:04:34)
\n2. Samantha Sanders: Efficient Infiniti Insure (3:05:10 | +36)
\n3. Danielle du Toit: Safari Essence (3:15:09 | +10:35)
\n4. Sarah Mar\u00e9: Efficient Infiniti Insure (3:18:47 | +14:13)
\n5. Frances Jansen van Rensburg (3:23:40 | +19:06)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"