One loop, 361 kilometres, no stages: the 36ONE MTB Challenge circles the Klein Karoo from Oudtshoorn in a single ride, through the night, past Calitzdorp and under the Swartberg. It is South Africa's iconic ultra — a race against sleep as much as the clock.
Riders roll out of Oudtshoorn in the evening and ride into the sunrise somewhere deep in the Klein Karoo, the field strung out under a desert sky between water points at lonely farm gates. Solo or in teams, finishing is the achievement; the fastest do it in under fifteen hours, most take the best part of a day. Check the organisers, Dryland Event Management, for current editions and dates.
Dryland Event Management have run this since 2010 and entries are theirs, on the link above. If the 36ONE is the goal, the most useful thing we can do is put you on the route beforehand — a supported recon block, sleep strategy and all, so the dark hours are not the first time you meet them. And if you would rather see this country at a different pace, we run the same Klein Karoo roads as a multi-day journey: Swartberg Pass, Meiringspoort, De Rust, Calitzdorp. Different way to meet the same place.
Straight from the organiser, checked 13 August 2026. Always confirm on their own site before you plan around a date.
“South Africa's ultimate single-stage mountain bike race.”The 36ONE, in their own words
Mapmaker Collective does not organise, own or sell entries to this race. We are a Cape Town cycling tour operator who rides it, admires the people who put it on, and builds trips around it. Entries are handled entirely by the organiser on the links above.
21 to 23 May 2027, with the race itself starting on Saturday 22 May. The 2026 edition was cancelled twelve days beforehand when flooding made the Klein Karoo gravel impassable, and entrants were transferred or refunded.
The Challenge is 361km with around 5,600m of climbing and a 36.1 hour cut-off. The Half is 189km with a 16 hour cut-off. Both can be ridden solo or in pairs, and there are two and four-person relay options.
Kleinplaas Holiday Resort in Oudtshoorn. It is a single loop that circumnavigates the Klein Karoo and finishes back where it started.
Through Entry Ninja. Early bird entry is around R3,990 solo and R2,350 for The Half, and riders over 70 enter free. The field is limited to 1,000. Mapmaker Collective does not sell entries.