Khanya Xhapha was second in the 14 years and older girls category.
Race Report by Bradley Stow.
The first BMX National of 2025 took place this past weekend, 5 & 6 April, at the Overberg BMX club in Hermanus. Songo.info was fortunate enough to be able to select 12 riders from the programme to participate in the race. Usually we can only take 5 or 6 riders to Nationals, but because this one was held in the Western Cape we could up the number of riders, which is great!
The Songo team met myself and Svig at the clubhouse on Friday morning, and after loading the bikes and kit, we headed through to Hermanus for official practice. The Overberg track has seen some upgrades recently, so it was vital that the kids got some time on the track even though they have raced on it many times before. We were very grateful to have the use of Specialized Bicycles’ Toyota Quantum minibus. This ensured that the hour-and-a-half drive to Hermanus was a comfortable one for the kids.
Thanks to Specialized Bicycles South Africa for the use of their Quantum minivan.
The afternoon before a National BMX race is often the most stressful time for myself and the team. There are often a few last minute challenges to deal with but as soon as we are on the track for official gate practice the tension begins to ease and the fun starts. Gate practice went fairly well for the team and at about 4pm Svig drove the team back to the songo.info clubhouse in Kayamandi.
We unfortunately couldn’t get accomodation for the kids in Hermanus so they needed to be driven in and out each day. This meant it was a very early start for them on Saturday and Sunday morning. I was concerned that they might be late for the start but I was very relieved and impressed to see the Specialized Van arrive at the track before 8am. For most people this might not sound like much but for these young kids to wake up, get dressed, hopefully have breakfast and then walk to the clubhouse in the dark to be there before 6am is impressive.
The Overberg BMX Track has been upgraded recently.
After a team ride by and riders briefing the racing started. National BMX events always feel like a step up in intensity compared to our provincial races. Racing was close from the get go and a few of the Songo riders had extremely tough categories but they showed lots of determination and we had some great results in the end. Over the course of the weekend the kids raced hard and gained a lot of valuable experience. The top Songo performers for the weekend were Khanya Xhapha who finished 2nd in the 14 years and over girls category, Mihlali Stuurman who finished 3rd in an extremely competitive 11 year old boys class and Ovayo Ntsege who won the 15 year old boys category with some impressive racing. The other medal winners from the Songo.info team were Alunamida Madlatu who finished 3rd in the 11-13 year old girls class, Nicole Stow who finished 2nd in the 16 and over ladies Cruiser class and myself who finished 3rd in the 16 and over men’s Cruiser class. One of the highlights of the weekend for me was witnessing the Western Cape BMX team win the trophy for the top province. This was the first time in over 30 years that this award went to the WC. This was a massive achievement for WCBMX seeing as BMX racing was only revived again in the Western Cape in 2019 after a 20 year absence.
Overall, we had a successful weekend. The Songo.info team raced really well and showed great team spirit by supporting and helping each other. There are areas that need improving and we will aim to work on these before the next provincial race.
Ovayo Ntsege was third in his age category.
I would like to say a big thank you to our sponsors Specialized Bicycles and Ninety One. Without their continued support this trip would not have been possible. I would also like to thank everyone who helped and supported myself and the Songo team at the race. It is greatly appreciated.