Exciting new routes for the K-Way MaxiRace Cape Winelands
Five years of hard work and negotiations has paid off for the 2023 K-Way MaxiRace Cape Winelands presented by Banhoek Chili Oil and On Shoes, as they release, what they believe to be, the best possible sub-100km route in the Western Cape, if not South Africa!
“This year we have decided to focus our attention on our longest ultra route, the 75km race, and thanks to Cape Nature, we are able to offer one of the best that the Western Cape has to offer,” says race director, Andri Stander. “The new 75km route, will definitely be a tougher day out on the legs, with 4000m of total elevation, but it is completely worth it as you will run in the majestic Assegaaiboschkloof and Bergriver Neck into Jonkershoek!”
As in previous years, the 75km route will start at the Franschhoek NG Kerk and finish at the Maxi Vagabond Race Village at Stellenbosch High School. Runners will have a 5am start, with a cut off time of 17hours to complete the route.
“Our 45km route remains mostly unchanged to last year’s route, presenting an incredible introduction to entry lever ultra trail runners and a fast, exciting route for elites,” described Stander.
This route will also start at the Franschhoek NG Kerk and finish at the Maxi Vagabond Race Village at Stellenbosch High School, with runners starting at 7am and having 10 hours to complete the route.
This year also sees the introduction of the brand new 30km route, which MaxiRace has grouped as part of their ultra series. “We have intentionally grouped our new 30km route with our ultra routes, as we want this route to be a steppingstone race from the 20km to the 45km route and beyond,” says Stander. “This route will start at Banhoek Chili Oil in Kylemore at 8:30am, finishing at the Maxi Vagabond Race Village with a cut off time of 5.5hours.”
The popular shorter routes – 20km, 13km and 7km – which originally were held on the Sunday, will now be held on the Saturday to create an even more exciting race village experience. Each of the shorter routes start and finish at the Maxi Vagabond Race Village at Stellenbosch High School.
“Our 20km has some exciting changes, with an added 200m+ increase in elevation from our 2022 route,” says Stander. “The good news is that it is not a technical route, and all climbs are undulating switchback trails or jeep tracks with no steps or rocky inclines. We have also decided not to enforce a strict cut off time with this new route so that runners are able to take is easy if the going gets tough!”
The 13km and 7km routes have both been both been completely reworked with exciting new trails, and new views and scenery, a great excuse to get the whole family out for some fun!
There are still a few entries available, visit www.maxirace.co.za to get yours!
