The Cape to Cape is the oldest and largest of the Australian leg of the Epic Series, and the race from Cape Leeuwin to Cape Naturaliste is back for 2022.
Following on from a slightly truncated WA-only edition in 2021, Cape to Cape is full steam ahead for 2022, set to run October 20-23. After the Reef to Reef went ham in Tropical North Queensland in August, it seems folks missed their old mate Margaret because the field is looking sizable, with riders from all over Australia, New Zealand and Singapore headed for Western Australia.
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- Flow Destination Hub: Margaret River
What’s new for 2022?
The vast majority of this year’s Cape to Cape will look familiar to race veterans, but a few stages that haven’t made appearances for a number of years are coming out of hibernation for 2022.
Stage one | Cape Leeuwin | 39km, 949m vert
As they say in our favourite sitcom about rural Canada, “you don’t f*&$ with tradition,” and so the starting gun of the 2022 Cape to Cape will once again fire at the iconic Cape Leeuwin lighthouse.
Rolling out from the most south-western point in Australia, stage one covers 39km, with 949m of climbing and is basically a carbon copy of previous years. The bunch will thunder up Skippy Rock Road before diving into a mix of singletrack and gravel roads eventually looping back to the lighthouse. We’ve seen this stage sunny and dusty and we’ve seen it turn into an absolute mud fest, but the common thread is smiles at the end of the day.
This is the only stage that doesn’t have a wave start, but there is quite a climb early on which serves essentially the same purpose. There is a fair amount of gravel road and fire trail on this kick-off stage, so expect it to be fast, but don’t go too deep as there are still three days of racing to go!
Stage two | Boranup | 54km, 720m vert
Boranup is always a fan favourite and has not featured in the Cape to Cape since 2019. The longest of the four days, Boranup was severely damaged by the fires in late 2021 and so the route will look a little different to the last time C2C rolled through. Covering 54km with 720m of climbing, stage two starts from Mr Barval Fine Wines wines for a start and finish among the vines.
Making its way through the towering trees of Boranup Forest, the stage features plenty of old school trails and the Highway to Hell section, which ironically makes for heavenly views of the coast at Conto’s Beach, is also making an appearance.
Stage three | Margaret River | 42km, 763m vert
The third day of the Cape to Cape, heads for Margaret River, and the flowy goodness on offer at Compartment 10 and The Pines.
Rolling out from the GinIversity at Margaret River Distillery covering 42km with 763m of vert, stage three will hit basically every trail in both of these networks.
With a mix of the machine-built trails with gargantuan orange berms of Compartment 10, contrasted against the rougher and rooty singletrack in The Pines, this is a varied stage, and if the 2021 race is anything to go off of, it should be a ball of fun.
Stage four | Cape Naturaliste | 34km, 705m vert
Forming the second Cape, of the Cape to Cape, the finale of the 2022 event is once again headed for Cape Naturaliste.
Overlooking Eagle Bay, Meelup Beach and Castle Bay, Wise Winery will host the event village and the star/finish area. The 34km course with 705m of elevation is similar to last year, but a section near the start has been removed, which in combination with the wave start should alleviate the congestion that’s happened in the past.
The stage kicks off with a loop past Meelup Beach, and then takes riders over to the trails at Zone 6 and the Golf Course in Dunsborough. Keep your wits about you as there is a healthy heaping of rocks and pea gravel strewn about the course to keep you honest.
What to expect
Each stage will have a fully furnished race village where the daily awards and leader’s jerseys will be handed out. There will also be food trucks and cold beverages waiting to get you fueled up for the next day, as well as massage tents to ensure you’re legs are primed and ready.
Bike Dr will be at the event village every day providing mechanical support, and free race checks at its CBD workshop — you’ll need to book in for that second one.
For a $20 donation (or $60 for all four days), you can leave your bike in the capable hands of the Bike Dr crew, and they will give your steed a wash and lube and make sure everything is running smoothly for the next stage. If you’re more of the hands-on type, there’s also DIY bike washing facilities in the event village.
Super Sox Saturday
You may see a boatload of folks getting around in fluro socks at Cape to Cape. That’s because Bike Dr is raising money for its flagship community program, Bike Rescue. The donations from the bike cleaning service and the sock sales go towards this youth development program sees participants strip and fully rebuild two bikes — the first is donated to charity, while the second is for the budding mechanic to keep.
These same BikeRescue participants have been offered paid work to help with cleaning and lubing bikes at the race.
Who can race?
As per each Epic series race, there are solo men’s and women’s categories for riders from 15 to 60+ in both open and elite fields. There are also men’s pairs, women’s pairs and mixed pairs categories for the same age groups, again both open and elite.
We hear the elite categories are looking very strong, with almost all the podium sitters from Reef to Reef headed for Margaret River, as well as a few strong folks who were unable to make it to Queensland.
Cape to Cape also has a category for hand cycle and adaptive riders. Each stage is designed with diversions around trails too narrow for adaptive bikes and features like log rollovers to keep the good times rolling.
The overall winner of the Cape to Cape will receive the James Williamson Medal, in honour of its namesake, the biggest advocate for the race, who sadly passed away at the 2010 Cape Epic.
The race team will also present the Beacon Award to an individual who exemplifies the culture and spirit of the Cape to Cape. This award is in honour of friend of the race Johnny Waddell, who overcame a series injury, and is now back on the bike against all odds.
How to enter?
Entries are open now, so giddy up and head over to the Cape to Cape website to secure your spot!
