By The CrankMart Team

South Africa has a cycle race for almost every weekend of the year. Road classics fill the summer, mountain bike stage races run from the Winelands to the Drakensberg, and gravel events keep popping up on farm roads in every province. Whether you're lining up for your first fun ride or planning a season around a big stage race, the hard part is usually finding out what's on, where and when.

That's what the CrankMart events page is for. It brings cycling events across South Africa together in one place. Right now it lists close to 100 upcoming races, sportives, fun rides and charity rides in all nine provinces, from this weekend through to August 2027.

What's on: cycling events in South Africa, 2026–27

Here are ten highlights from the calendar, in date order, as listed at the time of writing:

  • Wines2Whales, 6–15 November 2026, starting in Somerset West, Western Cape: a three-day mountain bike stage race from the Winelands towards the coast, and one of the big MTB races of the Western Cape season.
  • Ride Joburg, Sunday 22 November 2026, Johannesburg, Gauteng: the city's big November road ride, formerly the 94.7 Cycle Challenge.
  • Jar from Dirt Gravel Weekend, 28 November 2026, Villiersdorp, Western Cape: a gravel festival on a family wine farm, with 100km, 60km and 40km gravel routes and a 15km fun ride.
  • Longmore Classic MTB, Sunday 6 December 2026, Thornhill (Nelson Mandela Bay), Eastern Cape: forest singletrack in the Longmore plantations, with 50km, 30km, 15km and 5km loops. A good one to round off the year with the family.
  • The Herald Cycle Tour Road, 13–14 February 2027, Gqeberha, Eastern Cape: a coastal road classic from Pollok Beach, with a 106km race and a 55km option.
  • Cape Town Cycle Tour, Sunday 14 March 2027, Cape Town, Western Cape: 109km around the Cape Peninsula, and the road cycling event most South Africans have on their list.
  • Absa Cape Epic, 21–28 March 2027, starting in Somerset West, Western Cape: the eight-day team mountain bike stage race, ridden in pairs, with a prologue and seven stages from Lourensford to Wellington.
  • Sabie Xperience, 29 April to 1 May 2027, Sabie, Mpumalanga: a three-day MTB stage event in the forests of the escarpment, with full, Lite and XLite formats.
  • Crater Cruise Gravel, Sunday 16 May 2027, in the Vredefort Dome area: a gravel ride through World Heritage meteor-crater scenery.
  • Berg & Bush 2-Day, 29–30 May 2027, Winterton, KwaZulu-Natal: a social two-day, 110km MTB stage race on farm singletrack below the central Drakensberg.

Also on the list: the Attakwas Extreme on 16 January 2027, the Tankwa Trek from 11 to 14 February 2027, KAP sani2c from 6 to 8 May 2027 and the Amashova National Classic on 8 August 2027.

Looking for MTB races in the Western Cape, gravel races in KZN or road cycling races in Gauteng for 2026 and 2027? Use the province filter (below) and you'll see every listed event in your part of the country. November and March are the busiest months on the calendar, so it pays to look early.

Road, MTB or gravel: picking your kind of event

Not sure where to start? Here's a rough guide to the main types of event you'll find on the calendar.

  • Road races and sportives. Many big road rides run on closed or partly closed roads, with several distances on the day. They're a great first event: you can ride at your own pace in a big bunch, and the shorter distances suit newer riders. The Cape Town Cycle Tour, Ride Joburg and The Herald Cycle Tour all fall in this group.
  • MTB marathons and fun rides. One-day mountain bike events, usually with a long race route and shorter loops for families and newer riders. Look for the shorter distances on the event page if you're just starting out.
  • MTB stage races. Two to eight days of riding, often in teams of two, with a race village and meals laid on. They take more planning, more training and earlier entries, so check entry dates as soon as an event catches your eye.
  • Gravel events. You will find more and more gravel races in South Africa, on farm and mountain roads across the country. Most have a choice of distances, and many are as much about the scenery and the race village as the clock. A gravel bike is ideal, but plenty of riders take a hardtail.

Whatever you choose, start with the distance you can ride comfortably today, then build up over the season. Plenty of riders start with a local fun ride, move up to a marathon or a road classic, and line up for a stage race the year after.

How to find a cycle race on CrankMart

  1. Open the events page. Go to crankmart.com/za/events, or tap Events in the menu.
  2. Search by name or town. Type into the search box. Try "Epic", "gravel", "Drakensberg" or your nearest town.
  3. Jump to a month. Use the month strip (Jan to Dec) to see only that month's events. Tap All to go back.
  4. Narrow it down with Filters. Tap Filters and choose:
    • Event Type: Race, Sportive, Fun Ride, Social Ride, Training Camp, Expo, Club Event or Charity Ride.
    • Province: any of the nine, from the Eastern Cape to the Western Cape.
    • Month: if you didn't pick one from the strip.

    Tap Show to see the results, or Clear all to start again.

  5. Pick a view.
    • List shows event cards with the date, town, province, distances and entry fee.
    • Calendar lays the season out month by month.
    • Map puts every event on a map of South Africa, so you can see what's on near you.
  6. Browse by organiser. The Organisers tab lists event organisers with a profile on CrankMart.
  7. Open the event. Each event page shows the dates, location, distances, entry fee and a description. Use Share to send it to your riding mates, and ask questions in the Event discussion.
  8. Save it for later. Tap Save to keep an event on your shortlist. You'll need a free CrankMart account.
  9. Enter with the organiser. Tap Enter Now or Visit Official Event Website to go to the organiser's own site.

Before you enter: check with the organiser

Every event belongs to its organiser. Dates, routes, categories and entry fees can change, and popular races sell out. Always confirm the details on the organiser's website before you book travel or leave, and enter directly with them.

Getting ready for race day

A bit of preparation makes race day more fun:

Organising an event?

If you run a race, sportive, fun ride, club event or charity ride anywhere in South Africa, we'd love to list it. It's free. Use the Submit your event → link at the bottom of the events page or go straight to the submission form. Every submission is reviewed before it goes live. If your event is already listed and something needs updating, email us at support@crankmart.com.

See you at the start line.

The CrankMart Team