Approximately 10 men and 5 women take part in the race (i am not one of them). Of these 15 people, there is a group of 5 racers that are far better than the rest. They often leave in the morning after me, and they pass me after half an hour. For some weeks now I call them The Wolfpack, because when I see them approaching in my rearview mirror they look like a bunch of hungry wolves, ready to attack.
Who are these wolves? (from left to right):
Jos: A dutch IT-consultant from the eastern part of the country. He has raced as an competitive amateur-cyclist in many places in the world. Jos is by far the best racer of the Wolfpack, if he really puts the pressure on, nobody can follow. If he stays in one piece, Jos will win.
Bernd: The youngest (27 yr) member of the Wolfpack is fom Austria, and has recently finished his education in sports science at the university. He is the only Wolfpack-member riding a mountain bike, the others all use cross bikes.. In the beginning Bernd had problems with his knees, but now he is top fit, and ready to challenge Jos.
Chris: Lives in Victoria, BC, Canada. He is manager of a company n transmissions, and has completed several full-triathlons and marathons. Chris is a real fast-rider and can keep up a high pace very long. The first few days in Egypt he lost some time because his bike did not arrive, and he had to ride on somebody else's bike. During the intermezzo because of the Kenyan situation Chris will be taking part in the Kilimanjaro-marathon in Tanzania.
Bent: Is from Denmark, and is the oldest Wolfpack-member (60 yr). Bent has been racing on a bike all his life, and has also completed full triathlons.He is a youth racing-coach (and has trained a.o. Tour de France winner Bjarne Ris) and is working for the Danish Cycling association. The last few weeks the high Wolfpack-speed is getting a bit to much for Bent.
Janet: is the only female Wolfpack-member. She comes from New Zealand, but lives and works as a fitness trainer and -coach in Los Angeles, USA. Janet is by far the best femle rider on the Tour. She took part in the precious edition of the Tour d'Afrique, but broke her wrist in Ethiopia. This year she came back especially because she wanted to ride the part in Northern Kenya. You can imagine her disappointment when Kenya turned out to be nogo-area.