Dan Nicholl reports in from day one of the 2009 Absa Cape Epic, a brutal opening stage taking the riders from Gordon?s Bay to Villiersdorp.

What is it about the Absa Cape Epic that makes it such a magnificent event? The international riders, including World and Olympic champions, who descend upon the race each year? The raw beauty of the stages that traverse the Cape? The brutally unforgiving nature of the challenge? Or the fact that stage one this year included a combination media centre/tractor museum, an absolute must for any self-respecting bicycle race? You don?t get that on day one of the Tour de France?

Most of the tractors on display are antiques built for the gentlest of speeds, which wouldn?t have put them out of place on Sunday, the first day proper of this year?s Epic. After Saturday?s prologue on the slopes of Table Mountain ? has any race on the planet ever enjoyed a more vividly arresting location? ? Sunday was a nasty introduction to a race that revels in torturing anyone silly enough to enter. 112 kilometres, vicious climbing, a hot sun and some very technical sections meant an hour?s extension to the cut-off time just to get the field home; Christoph Sauser, the reigning World Champion who?s ridden every Epic to date, reckoned this was the toughest stage he?s ever had.

He still managed to win the stage, though, with young South African partner Burry Stander (no, I don?t know what his parents were thinking either), confirming their status as favourites; Mark Fish confirmed that he?s not quite in such elevated company. The former Lazio and Bolton defender is riding with 5FM?s Owen Hannie, and while Owen looked alright after ten hours in the saddle, the Big Fish got off his bike, spread himself out on the ground, and didn?t get up for an hour. Slightly tougher than 90 minutes trailing Emile Heskey.

Fish made it through, though, as did the rest of the celebrity riders: Breyton Paulse was a bundle of nerves in the prologue, but made it home on stage one in ten hours; Marius Hurter walked most hills, but the ?95 World Cup winning prop also got home okay (the cow and the pig he had for breakfast clearly worked); and Mike Bayly and Braam van Straaten, also riding for the JAG All Stars (and cheered on by team managers Elana Meyer and Kasia Rutkowska), looked very comfortable. So far, so good?

Other highlights thus far? Host town Villiersdorp awarded the stage winners, all from assorted parts of South Africa or Europe, with vouchers for weekends away in Villiersdorp, to encourage them to return (Lufthansa?s weekly Frankfurt-Villiersdorp route begins in April). The Bulls managed second place on the stage, despite Stefan Sahm dislocating his shoulder during the prologue (partner Karl Platt simply shoved it back in, and on they went). And South Africans are in the Masters, Women?s and Africa leader jerseys after stage one.

But the real highlight, other than the collective sighs of relief at simply finishing a devilish introduction to the race, was the Flower Girls, one of 15 teams from Brazil this year, finishing in ten and a half hours ? and still pulling on their pink flower glasses (to match the pink outfits) and doing their post-race dance at the finish line. After ten and a half hours in the saddle, that?s quite an effort.

There?s another ten hours ahead tomorrow for the back of the field, as the race heads out on a 100 kilometre loop and then returns to Villiersdorp; if you?re at a loose end, why not head out this way? The world?s best mountain bikers, breathtaking scenery, and a tractor museum in the race village ? what more could you possibly want?

Follow the Absa Cape Epic at www.cape-epic.com. For more on the JAG Allstars, visit www.jagfoundation.com.