It was a week before Leadville and my friend Tricia was over visiting. She had just finished her trip to the BC Bike Race and was telling me about our friend Debra Doss who might get into the Cape Epic race. “You know, she is looking for a teammate," she said. “Really??” my ears perked up as this was one of those bucket list races that was first of all hard to get into and second of all, involved having a teammate for the entire race. The Cape Epic was known as the Tour de France of Mountain bike stage racing as it is one of the hardest mountain bike races in the world. Eight days of racing with over 60,000ft of climbing. You have to ride with a partner and stay within 2 minutes of that person at all times. This makes it a very dynamic event. It also keeps riders safe since you are in very remote areas. I had ridden with Debra several times and raced against her too. When I found out Debra was looking for someone I just knew this was an opportunity I could not pass up as I thought we would make an amazing team! Not only a strong and competitive rider, Debra is easy going and loves to have a good time! That's the kind of person I want to spend my long rides with!

This is me racing the Cave Creek Cactus Classic just over a week ago.  I placed 2nd overall in the women's category! — This is me racing the Cave Creek Cactus Classic just over a week ago. I placed 2nd overall in the women's category!

So immediately I text Debra, "I hear you are looking for a teammate for Cape Epic. If you get in, I am very interested!" To make a long story short, I got permission from Aaron to do the race even though it was a very big financial commitment as he was fully supportive of this dream (he always is!). Debra was on a wait list so wasn't sure if or when it would happen but the week of Leadville Trail 100, I got the most exciting email. Debra forwarded me her official invite into the race and said, "If you are interested still, I'd love to have you as my teammate." I jumped up and down like an excited 6 year old and ran around the house! I was going to South Africa!

This is a recent commissioned piece I finished, titled "Victory", stands 4.5ftx6ft and is an oil on canvas. My artwork is helping support my races this season!

Since our exciting news in August, Debra and I have been very busy working on sponsors for our team, Bitty Bitty, and have been training our butts off! We both attended Interbike to establish some product sponsors whom we have some exciting partners such as Rotor, Osprey Packs, Swiftwick, SportsTag ID, RockTape, and Klean Athlete sports nutrition. There are a few others in the works! I have also been selling more of my cycling artwork and prints to help cover my expenses through my own website www.bikeartbymelissa.com.

The ABSA Cape Epic will take place March 15th -21st. Three weeks ago, the Absa Cape Epic released the official course profile and map. When I watched the video, my adrenaline started racing as suddenly it became very real. "Holy s$#t! This is going to be extremely challenging so we have to be ready!"

Find unique gifts for your cycling friends and family on my site www.bikeartbymelissa.com from original paintings, fine art prints to stationary!  Your purchases help support my upcoming cycling season! — Find unique gifts for your cycling friends and family on my site www.bikeartbymelissa.com from original paintings, fine art prints to stationary! Your purchases help support my upcoming cycling season!

ABSA Cape Epic Stages:

Prologue: 20k/600m = 12miles / 2,000ft

Stage 1: 113km/2800m = 70miles / 9,000ft

Stage 2: 92k/2300m = 57miles / 7,500ft

Stage 3: 128k/2300m = 80miles / 7,500ft

Stage 4: 111k/2000m = 69miles / 6,500ft

Stage 5: 117k/2500m = 73miles / 8,200ft

Stage 6: 71k/2000m = 44miles / 6,500ft

Stage 7: 87k/1500m = 54miles / 4,900ft

Debra and I will be the only American women's team out of a total of 11 women's teams! Debra's husband Jeff and his partner Randall will also be racing. The ABSA Cape Epic draws over 600 teams from around the globe and is the most televised mountain bike race in the world! We are very excited to be representing US women! Debra has designed our kits which are going to be quite flattering and classic as they reflect the colors of the world, the US and will have a touch of South African flavor!

Our training is starting to ramp up from months of resistance training and core strength to lots of endurance riding as we prepare for the biggest challenge of our careers!

Just over a week ago, we both raced a 23 mile mountain bike race, the Cave Creek Cactus Classic, followed by riding Four Peaks the next day, where we climbed over 5,000ft in 4 hours. We will be spending many hours on the bike together during these next few months learning how to work as a team, push our physical limits, and pace one another. We have even registered for some endurance events where we will ride together the entire race to practice working together.

I am very excited about the upcoming 2015 season and my journey to South Africa where we will tackle one of the most challenging mountain bike races in the world! The race will be epic for sure but the journey getting there will be an experience in itself.

I hope you will join us on our epic journey as I will be posting updates, pictures, and videos on our training. Thank you all for your support!

SAVE 15% on your Klean orders by clicking HERE! A portion of your order will help support our Absa Cape Epic endeavors!

Klean Athlete is a line of daily nutritional supplements specifically created to give you a safer, effective foundation to live healthy, train smart and compete at your best.

Proud to sport the World Edition SportsTag ID.  I feel safe knowing that if there were an emergency, my family would be contacted and I would get the care needed to get me back out on the trails! — Proud to sport the World Edition SportsTag ID. I feel safe knowing that if there were an emergency, my family would be contacted and I would get the care needed to get me back out on the trails!