This special edition of The Breakaway explores the powerful connection between cycling, community and the lives changed by every race. Do cycling races really make a difference beyond the finish line? We travelled to the heart of rural South Africa to uncover the untold impact that events like Berg & Bush, Oxpecker and G2C have on local communities, speaking to farmers, residents and race organizers to hear their stories firsthand.

What we discovered challenged our assumptions, revealing how cycling creates jobs, builds schools, inspires young people and brings hope to places many riders never see.

These trips have direct costs we struggle to absorb and bicycle rental and car rental didn’t have to be one of them. Thank you to TOYOTA SA, Specialized and Complete Cyclist for helping us and supporting what we do!

#storiesmatter

=== CHAPTERS ===================================

00:00 Introduction

01:01 Why We Flew Across South Africa

03:17 The Question Nobody Is Asking

07:15 Farmer Gary Explains the Real Impact of Racing

22:32 Visiting a School Built Through Cycling

28:28 Asking the Community: Do Races Really Matter?

32:47 A Different Perspective from the Community

36:27 How Local Businesses Benefit

40:00 Our Biggest Takeaway

42:11 Seeing the Impact Firsthand

48:48 The Opinions We Didn't Expect

52:35 The Sponsors Behind These Events

54:17 Do Cycling Races Actually Change Communities?

55:11 Why This Story Matters

57:42 Final Thoughts

=== LISTEN ON THE GO ===========================

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5GselFm...

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...

=== FOLLOW ACTIVE HOBO =========================

Subscribe: / @activehobo

Website: https://activehobo.com/

Instagram: @theactivehobo

Strava: https://strava.app.link/ciVbx92FJ2b

=== THE CREW ===================================

Dave @davlewjenkins

Alec @alec.gates

=== MORE FROM ACTIVE HOBO ======================

🔗 Scicon Sports SA — Premium eyewear and luggage for cyclists who take their kit seriously. https://theactivehobo.short.gy/scicon...

=== WORK WITH US ===============================

Sponsorships & collabs: david@activehobo.com

Send a question for the show: noah@activehobo.com

#ActiveHobo #CyclingPodcast #SouthAfricanCycling

Cutting weight for the Nedbank Gravel Burn is only half the fight. The other half is not losing the strength to survive it.

Five weeks ago, Dave couldn't activate some of his own muscles. He didn't know where his body was in space. Now, deep into an 8-week calorie deficit ahead of a 750km gravel stage race across South Africa's Great Karoo, he heads to a biokineticist in Westlake, Cape Town, to build the functional strength his cycling alone can't give him — the kind that keeps a rider upright, pain-free, and strong on day six of seven. It's not about looking strong. It's about not falling apart.

What is a biokineticist?

An exercise-therapy professional who uses movement science to build strength, stability, and resilience — often used by cyclists and endurance athletes to complement on-bike training.

Why does strength training matter for a gravel stage race?

A seven-day event like the Nedbank Gravel Burn demands more than fitness — riders need the core, glute, and postural strength to hold form and avoid injury deep into repeated long days on rough terrain.

# === CHAPTERS ===================================

0:00 — The Weight Cut Wasn't Enough

1:55 — Why Cycling Fitness Isn't the Whole Picture

2:39 — Meeting the Biokineticist Building Him From the Ground Up

3:38 — Cycling First, Strength Second — Or the Other Way Around?

5:23 — Five Weeks In: The Body Awareness Turnaround

6:41 — Training That Complements, Not Competes With, the Bike

9:47 — Protecting Muscle While the Weight Comes Off

10:27 — Next Stop: Fuelling the Fight

# === LISTEN ON THE GO ===========================

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5GselFmeym7YgYXtcyPUXU

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/active-hobo/id1846864699

# === FOLLOW ACTIVE HOBO =========================

Subscribe: https://youtube.com/@activehobo?sub_confirmation=1

Website: https://activehobo.com/

Instagram: @theactivehobo

Strava: https://strava.app.link/ciVbx92FJ2b

# === THE CREW ===================================

Dave @davlewjenkins

Alec @alec.gates

Regardt @regardt.stander

# === MORE FROM ACTIVE HOBO ======================

Latest episode: https://youtu.be/VRIeP2JYf5U

Full podcast playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLc2XIoaiAXafwoZykJM-jg6HnrLkWlJXH

Related episode: https://youtu.be/lGfvanjllXY

🔗 Scicon Sports SA — Premium eyewear and luggage for cyclists who take their kit seriously. https://theactivehobo.short.gy/sciconsports-discount

# === WORK WITH US ===============================

Sponsorships & collabs: david@activehobo.com

Send a question for the show: noah@activehobo.com

#ActiveHobo #CyclingPodcast #podcast #toyota #gravelburn #gravelcyclist #enduranceathletes #mtb

The latest gravel superbike has arrived, and after spending time on the all-new Pinarello Grevil F9, it's safe to say this bike exceeded every expectation. In this review, we dive into its ride quality, comfort, handling, premium Italian craftsmanship, and whether its eye-watering price is truly justified. From high-speed gravel descents to technical terrain, we put the Grevil F9 through its paces to find out if it really is the ultimate gravel bike. Watch until the end to see who this bike is built for.

00:00 Introduction

01:00 First Impressions of the Pinarello Grevil F9

02:35 Why This Might Be the Best Gravel Bike Ever

04:45 Wheels, Tires & Cockpit Setup

07:15 SRAM, Frame Design & Premium Features

10:10 In-Frame Storage & Practical Details

12:40 Comfort, Geometry & Ride Position

16:20 The Beauty of Italian Design

19:30 Climbing & On-Trail Performance

22:50 Descending Confidence & Stability

26:15 Living With the Grevil F9

30:10 Is It Worth the Price?

33:40 Who Is This Bike For?

36:30 Final Verdict

38:45 Closing Thoughts

# === LISTEN ON THE GO ===========================

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5GselFmeym7YgYXtcyPUXU

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/active-hobo/id1846864699

# === FOLLOW ACTIVE HOBO =========================

Subscribe: https://youtube.com/@activehobo?sub_confirmation=1

Website: https://activehobo.com/

Instagram: @theactivehobo

Strava: https://strava.app.link/ciVbx92FJ2b

# === THE CREW ===================================

Dave @davlewjenkins

# === MORE FROM ACTIVE HOBO ======================

Latest episode: https://youtu.be/VRIeP2JYf5U

Full podcast playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLc2XIoaiAXafwoZykJM-jg6HnrLkWlJXH

Related episode: https://youtu.be/lGfvanjllXY

🔗 Scicon Sports SA — Premium eyewear and luggage for cyclists who take their kit seriously. https://theactivehobo.short.gy/sciconsports-discount

# === WORK WITH US ===============================

Sponsorships & collabs: david@activehobo.com

Send a question for the show: noah@activehobo.com

#ActiveHobo #CyclingPodcast #SouthAfricanCycling #gravelbike #giantrevoltreview #bikereview

At 13, she cried until the start gun went off — then she raced. At 17, she won the XTERRA Youth World Championship in

Italy. At 18, Nadia van Wyk is just getting started.

This is the intro. The full origin story episode drops very soon — subscribe so you don't miss it.

Nadia van Wyk is 18, from Durbanville in the Western Cape, and competes in more disciplines than most athletes manage in

a career: XCO mountain biking, road cycling, track, duathlon, XTERRA, and horse riding on the side. She's a reigning

XTERRA Youth World Champion, a U23 SA XCO MTB Champion, and a SA Duathlon Cross Champion. She homeschooled her matric

year to compete at world level, skipping Grade 8 along the way to give herself more time. This week on The Breakaway,

she talks about the mental cost of competing young, the nutrition challenges no one warns you about, why girls drop off

from cycling at Grade 10, and what South African youth cycling actually looks like from the inside. Plus: Tour de France

predictions, her favourite rider in the peloton, and what it was like to see Tadej Pogačar in person in Spain and

think, "How is that small?"

# === CHAPTERS ===================================

0:00 — Welcome: Meet Nadia van Wyk

1:13 — Cycling, XTERRA, Horses: Her Multi-Discipline Life

4:25 — Homeschooling to Compete at World Level

5:36 — The Mental Game: Crying on the Start Line at 13

6:13 — Pre-Race Nutrition: The Thing Nobody Talks About

10:14 — Why Homeschooling Works for Elite Young Athletes

20:11 — How to Get More Girls on Bikes

23:27 — What Titan Racing Is Doing for SA Youth Cycling

31:18 — Downhill MTB: What She's Watching Right Now

36:52 — XTERRA Explained + Worlds Qualification

42:46 — Training Camp in Spain: Life on the Road

45:08 — Tour de France: MvdP, Pogačar & Breakaway Love

49:54 — SA Road Champs: Negative Racing and What to Do About It

# === LISTEN ON THE GO ===========================

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5GselFmeym7YgYXtcyPUXU

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/active-hobo/id1846864699

# === FOLLOW ACTIVE HOBO =========================

Subscribe: https://youtube.com/@activehobo?sub_confirmation=1

Website: https://activehobo.com/

Instagram: @theactivehobo

Strava: https://strava.app.link/ciVbx92FJ2b

# === THE CREW ===================================

Dave @davlewjenkins

# === MORE FROM ACTIVE HOBO ======================

Latest episode: https://youtu.be/VRIeP2JYf5U

Full podcast playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLc2XIoaiAXafwoZykJM-jg6HnrLkWlJXH

Related episode: https://youtu.be/lGfvanjllXY

🔗 Scicon Sports SA — Premium eyewear and luggage for cyclists who take their kit seriously. https://theactivehobo.short.gy/sciconsports-discount

# === WORK WITH US ===============================

Sponsorships & collabs: david@activehobo.com

Send a question for the show: noah@activehobo.com

#ActiveHobo #CyclingPodcast #SouthAfricanCycling

Bertus van Zyl is the chairman of Western Cape Schools Cycling, the structure behind one

of the most overlooked grassroots sporting movements in South Africa. In this conversation

he traces the whole arc: how a hobby with his own kids turned into running a province's

entire schools cycling programme, the legacy of Meurant Botha and the Spur Schools MTB

League that built the foundation this all stands on, and what it actually takes —

logistically and financially — to run a race for a thousand riders on a single weekend.

He breaks down the gap that exists between mass-participation schools racing and the

provincial and international pathway, and why some of South Africa's most talented young

riders disappear from the sport entirely once school ends. He talks about the rivalry

between Paul Roos Gymnasium and Paarl Boys' High, the corporate sponsors stepping in

where Spur once stood, and his genuine belief that South Africa has the talent and the

landscape to build a fully professional domestic mountain biking circuit — if the right

investment shows up.

This is a story about what gets built when a parent just wants to help out on a Friday

afternoon, and it doesn't stop.

# === CHAPTERS ===================================

0:00 — Welcome and introducing Bertus van Zyl

0:45 — From Hermanus parent to Western Cape Schools Cycling chairman

2:33 — The legacy of Spur Schools MTB and Meurant Botha

9:08 — How school cycling became a formal national structure

12:39 — Formalising honorary colours and the safeguarding gap

18:39 — The rivalry: Paul Roos Gymnasium vs Paarl Boys' High

19:34 — Conrad Stoltz, Stellenbosch High, and the new wave of investment

25:41 — Why South Africa's talent disappears after school

30:56 — Insect Science, pro pathways, and what success could look like

37:53 — A sport bursting at the seams: numbers, demographics and growth

43:53 — Breaking out of "preaching to the choir"

49:33 — FOMO, school videography, and the media gap

60:00 — Inside race day: course design and what makes it fair for everyone

62:35 — Bloemendal, rivalries, and the riders to watch this season

69:32 — How a school joins Western Cape Schools Cycling

71:22 — How host venues get chosen

74:40 — Closing thoughts and the road to Nationals

# === LISTEN ON THE GO ===========================

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5GselFmeym7YgYXtcyPUXU

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/active-hobo/id1846864699

# === FOLLOW ACTIVE HOBO =========================

Subscribe: https://youtube.com/@activehobo?sub_confirmation=1

Website: https://activehobo.com/

Instagram: @theactivehobo

Strava: https://strava.app.link/ciVbx92FJ2b

# === THE CREW ===================================

Dave @davlewjenkins

# === MORE FROM ACTIVE HOBO ======================

Latest episode: https://youtu.be/VRIeP2JYf5U

Full podcast playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLc2XIoaiAXafwoZykJM-jg6HnrLkWlJXH

Related episode: https://youtu.be/lGfvanjllXY

🔗 Scicon Sports SA — Premium eyewear and luggage for cyclists who take their kit seriously. https://theactivehobo.short.gy/sciconsports-discount

# === WORK WITH US ===============================

Sponsorships & collabs: david@activehobo.com

Send a question for the show: noah@activehobo.com

#ActiveHobo #CyclingPodcast #SouthAfricanCycling

Before I can race 750km across the Karoo, I need to know exactly what I’m working with — so I head to the world renowned Sports Science Institute of South Africa in Newlands, Cape Town, for a full physiological baseline test with Reece McDonald and Mark Stevens of Science to Sport. Body composition, lactate accumulation, fat max, VO2 max, peak power — every number gets measured, and not all of them are kind. I’ve been focussed on a dramatic weight cut in the weeks leading up to this (bad idea). What follows is the 20-week countdown: the targets get set, the ego takes a hit, and the training begins.

What is the Nedbank Gravel Burn?

A 7-day, 750km+ international gravel stage race across South Africa's Great Karoo, from the Cape Epic's founder.

What is a lactate accumulation test?

A test that finds the power output where your body starts producing lactate faster than it can clear it — a key marker for endurance training.

Who is Dave training with?

Reece McDonald and Mark Stevens from Science to Sport, based at the Sports Science Institute of South Africa (SSISA) in Newlands, Cape Town.

# === CHAPTERS ===================================

0:00 — The Fear Before the Numbers

1:33 — The Weight He Already Cut

3:38 — Lactate, Fat Max & the Truth About Fuel

11:24 — Pushed to Failure: The Max Test

18:48 — Setting the Targets for 20 Weeks

20:38 — Why "Underwhelming" Was the Wake-Up Call

23:10 — What's Coming on the Road to Gravel Burn

# === LISTEN ON THE GO ===========================

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5GselFmeym7YgYXtcyPUXU

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/active-hobo/id1846864699

# === FOLLOW ACTIVE HOBO =========================

Subscribe: https://youtube.com/@activehobo?sub_confirmation=1

Website: https://activehobo.com/

Instagram: @theactivehobo

Strava: https://strava.app.link/ciVbx92FJ2b

# === THE CREW ===================================

Dave @davlewjenkins

Alec @alec.gates

Regardt @regardt.stander

# === MORE FROM ACTIVE HOBO ======================

Latest episode: https://youtu.be/VRIeP2JYf5U

Full podcast playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLc2XIoaiAXafwoZykJM-jg6HnrLkWlJXH

Related episode: https://youtu.be/lGfvanjllXY

🔗 Scicon Sports SA — Premium eyewear and luggage for cyclists who take their kit seriously. https://theactivehobo.short.gy/sciconsports-discount

# === WORK WITH US ===============================

Sponsorships & collabs: david@activehobo.com

Send a question for the show: noah@activehobo.com

#ActiveHobo #CyclingPodcast #podcast #toyota #gravelburn #gravelcyclist #enduranceathletes #mtb

South Africa's road cycling calendar is shrinking — and it's not because nobody wants to race. National commissaire

Stephan Aucamp breaks down exactly what it costs to put on a bike race in this country, where the money actually goes,

and why most events run at a loss every single year.

Stephan is a national road commissaire and works at Cycle Lab, giving him a rare view from both sides of South African

road cycling — as an official and as someone selling the sport every day. We get into the real cost of running a

Winter League race, why South African road teams can't pay their riders, what's been lost since cycling clubs started

dying out, and what it would actually take to fix it. Then we shift gears completely for a long, opinionated Tour de

France 2026 preview — Tadej Pogačar, Jonas Vingegaard, Remco Evenepoel, Tom Pidcock, and a teenage French rider named

Paul Seixas who might just blow the whole thing open.

# === CHAPTERS ===================================

0:00 — Cold Open: The Great Bike Weigh-In

3:17 — Meet Stephan Aucamp: National Commissaire & Cycle Lab

15:36 — Denis Human: SA Cycling's Unsung Hero

21:34 — What It Actually Costs to Run a Road Race

26:15 — Why SA's Top Teams Can't Pay Their Riders

31:54 — What Road Cycling Lost When the Clubs Faded

36:01 — The Fix: Filling the Winter League

50:38 — Building a Town Hall for SA Cycling

57:58 — Tour de France 2026 Predictions Begin

1:00:27 — Is Paul Seixas the Real Deal?

1:07:27 — The Marco Pantani Story

1:11:48 — Why Cycling Needs Its Rugby Moment

# === LISTEN ON THE GO ===========================

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5GselFmeym7YgYXtcyPUXU

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/active-hobo/id1846864699

# === FOLLOW ACTIVE HOBO =========================

Subscribe: https://youtube.com/@activehobo?sub_confirmation=1

Website: https://activehobo.com/

Instagram: @theactivehobo

Strava: https://strava.app.link/ciVbx92FJ2b

# === THE CREW ===================================

Dave @davlewjenkins

# === MORE FROM ACTIVE HOBO ======================

Latest episode: https://youtu.be/VRIeP2JYf5U

Full podcast playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLc2XIoaiAXafwoZykJM-jg6HnrLkWlJXH

Related episode: https://youtu.be/lGfvanjllXY

🔗 Scicon Sports SA — Premium eyewear and luggage for cyclists who take their kit seriously. https://theactivehobo.short.gy/sciconsports-discount

# === WORK WITH US ===============================

Sponsorships & collabs: david@activehobo.com

Send a question for the show: noah@activehobo.com

#ActiveHobo #CyclingPodcast #SouthAfricanCycling