WINDHOEK, June 9 — With only 190 days to go, the Nedbank Desert Dash returns for the 18th consecutive year with entries to Namibia’s most gruelling mountain bike ride opening its entries next week Monday.
This year Nedbank will be sponsoring the Desert Dash for the eighth year in a row and cyclists will once again take centre stage in the longest single-stage mountain bike race in the world on 09 and 10 December 2022. The race which covers 393km will start at the Grove Mall in Windhoek and end in Swakopmund at the Platz Am Meer Mall with cyclists travelling over the Khomas Hochland Mountains and through the Namib Desert to the Atlantic coast.
On the day of the event, riders will depart from Grove Mall on Friday 9 December from 14h30 with Solo Riders, 15h00 Two Person teams and the Four Person team will be the last to depart from the Grove at 15h30. Entries to the 2022 edition of the Nedbank Desert Dash will open on 06 June 2022, with the Solo Riders category at 10h00 Namibian time, while the Two-Person team’s (women, men and mixed) registration will be opened on 13 June 2022, and lastly, the four-person team registration will be open on 20 June 2022 also at 10h00 Namibian time.
Registration for the Solo Riders (woman & men), will cost N$ 3500 per rider, the Two-Person team (woman, men, mixed), will be N$ 6500 per team, and the Four-Person team (woman, men, mixed), will be N$ 12 000 per team.
In 2021, Namibian cyclist, Tristan de Lange, was crowned champion of the men’s solo category when he beat six-time Nedbank Desert Dash winner Konny Looser, in a photo finish after 14 hours and 55 minutes of riding. Looser was 30 seconds behind De Lange.
The women’s category was won by Irene Steyn, after 19 hours and 25 minutes and 43 seconds of riding.
The 2021 Nedbank Desert Dash attracted cyclists from Namibia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Botswana, Germany, Portugal, the United States of America and Switzerland.
Nedbank Namibia’s Head of Marketing and Communications, Gernot de Klerk, said since acquiring the ownership status of the race, Nedbank Namibia has invested well over N$9-million.
“The Nedbank Desert Dash is an iconic event and considered by many, who have either completed the race or intend to tackle it, as a bucket-list challenge. It also is the icing on the cake of Nedbank Namibia’s complete cycling portfolio, which includes legendary local races like the Nedbank Cycle Challenge (our country’s oldest competitive cycling race), as well as international events hosted on Namibian shores,” he said.
De Klerk added that the real value, however, is unlocked through the ancillary services that Dash participation has always enabled.
“Servicing of bicycles to ensure that the equipment for the arduous race is in tip-top shape, hiring back-up vehicles for support drivers, sustenance and support for the participants along the 393-km-long route, flights and accommodation for international riders, who always extend their stay in the country, restaurants in Windhoek and Swakopmund filled to capacity, and celebrating the natural beauty of our country are all elements that contribute to the legacy of the Nedbank Desert Dash,” De Klerk said.
He also stated that the challenges of organising such a mega event are plentiful, but their organising teams have done an amazing job year on year to have the race hosted as safely as possible.
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