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Your Guide to Cape Town Cycle Tour Taper and Race Day Success

Pedalling your way around the picturesque Cape Peninsula on car-free roads is a highlight on the cycling calendar of thousands of passionate riders, which is what makes the Cape Town Cycle Tour such an iconic event.

The biggest timed bike race in the world, which takes place on Sunday, 9 March 2025, offers riders full road closure around the Mother City, boisterous roadside support and glistening ocean views from Chapman’s Peak. 

Freshen those legs

The 109km race distance coupled with the big climbs make it a stern test of fitness and perseverance, requiring fresh legs to conquer the challenge. The key to lining up at the start fully recovered and ready to race following all the training is a proper training taper.

Following weeks of hard work, an adequate training taper gives your body the time it needs to recover and adapt to the training.

When planning your taper, consider your preceding training load. Most recreational cyclists should benefit from a week-long taper, but higher training volumes may require longer tapers.

A taper aims to decrease training volume while keeping the intensity at a moderate to high level to keep your legs feeling sharp and maintain those training-induced adaptations.

A typical pre-race taper week can follow this structure:

  • Day 1: Rest.
  • Day 2: 90-120 minutes easy at a low intensity and high cadence (>90rpm).
  • Day 3: Rest.
  • Day 4: 30-minute warm-up at a low intensity. 4 x 4-minute intervals at threshold. 10-minute active recovery between intervals. 30-minute cool-down.
  • Day 5: Rest.
  • Day 6: 60-90 minutes easy ride at a low intensity with 5 x 2-minute accelerations. Active recovery for 5 minutes between accelerations.
  • Day 7: Race day.
The expo experience

The final rest day is the ideal opportunity to visit the race expo. The Cape Town Cycle Tour Expo is an unmissable part of the race experience, allowing riders to immerse themselves in the latest innovations in cycling gear, technology, and nutrition while meeting experts and fellow riders who share the same passion. 

It also serves as the only registration venue for the Cape Town Cycle Tour, which means you must attend. However, it is important to avoid spending too much time there walking around all day because it is important to stay off your legs as much as possible before race day.

When you get to the expo, get your race pack, enjoy the experience and see the stalls, but get back to your accommodation as soon as possible.

It is also important to avoid the temptation to try new gels or energy drinks that you find at the expo or add the extras from the goodie bag to your race-day nutrition.

Race day tips

Even with a proper taper, a successful race hinges on numerous factors coming together on the day. Consider these race-day tips to power you all the way to the finish line.

#1. Fill your tank

The early start to get to the Grand Parade Start Precinct to get into the start pen means you may decide to skip breakfast. 

It is vital to eat something when you wake up. A balanced breakfast rich in complex carbohydrates such as oats, whole grain toast, or quinoa will replenish glycogen stores to provide sustained energy throughout the race.

Stick with the breakfast you have used throughout your training to ensure you don’t experience any tummy issues on race day. 

With so many people converging on a central point, there is always traffic congestion. Don’t stress yourself out or miss your start time by arriving late.

Rather wake up and leave a little earlier to enjoy a hassle-free and stress-free warm up pedal to the start. 

Consult the Start Line Pre-Race Information guide on the Cape Town Cycle Tour webpage to know where to park and how to get the start with ample time to spare so you can enjoy every moment of the experience.

Depending on your start time, you could wait minutes to hours before getting underway. It is advisable to top up your energy stores if a few hours have passed since breakfast.

Pack an extra Biogen Energy Nougat Bar to snack on while waiting in the start pen. Aim to eat it 10 minutes before your start.

Once out on the road, start to eat and drink early – within the first hour – and often to ensure you don’t fall into an energy deficit. Aim is to ingest around 60-90g of carbs per hour, roughly 240-360 calories. This figure will vary based on numerous factors, such as effort, digestibility, palatability and tolerance.

A combination of energy drinks and solid foods like bars, chews and gels offers the ideal approach to meet your energy requirements:

Clock feeding according to a set schedule is a good idea as it provides specific guidelines on when and exactly how much to eat or drink. 

Drip feeding every 20-30 minutes helps to keep energy levels stable and can support better absorption, especially later in the race when digestive system function is compromised. 

While the route and iconic setting provides a glorious day out for tens of thousands of cyclists, the weather is often a factor with strong winds not uncommon on the day.

It is vital to find the right group and settle in as early as possible, especially if it is windy to benefit from the slipstream effect, as this conserves energy. 

Riding in a large peloton during a mass participation race demands a high level of awareness and skill. Maintain a consistent line and avoid sudden movements. If you need to move, do so smoothly and predictably. Signal or announce your intentions if you must.

Riders in the bunch typically spread the workload as they take turns ‘pulling’ the peloton along while in the front – do your best to contribute to this collaborative effort if you can. 

However, don’t feel pressured to go to the front if you don’t feel confident. Find a position where you feel comfortable and in control. Mid-pack is often a good place for beginners.

If you lose the bunch, slow down and wait for the next group to pass, until you latch onto one that is travelling at your ideal pace. Don’t try to ride solo for too long.

If you have a later start time and are out on the route into the late afternoon, consider carrying a few Biogen Electrolyte tabs or an extra sachet of Biogen Hydrate Powder to rehydrate as temperatures rise and your sweat rate increases to cool you down.

You trained according to a set plan to condition your body and mind to sustain a certain level of effort and intensity over the race distance to achieve your target time.

However, it is easy to get caught up in the excitement of the mass start and go out too fast with a faster bunch. This is a recipe for disaster because a harder effort in the first half of a race will sap your energy reserves for the remaining kilometres. 

Whatever approach you take or position you find yourself in, stick to your pacing plan from the first kilometre to have the best chance of achieving your goal time. Only if you’re feeling good in the closing stages of the race should you up the pace. 

SHOP RACE DAY