Craig Uria: May Be The Rider Everyone Wants To Be

Craig Uria has a busy life. A full-time chiropractic business, two kids – and a dedication to being the best he can be on a bicycle.

- MIKE FINCH

The 41-year-old is one of the few riders in South Africa who can rightly claim to have mastered the art of competitive cycling while balancing the responsibilities that every cyclist must consider. Keep an eye on the standings during any of the most recent Absa Cape Epics, and you’ll see that Uria, along with his partner Andrew Duvenhage, is mixing it with some of the best pro riders in the world.

And often coming out ahead. In 2021 the two won the competitive Masters category, and then finished third in 2022, racing neck and neck with the likes of legends such as five-time winners Karl Platt and Christoph Sauser.

In January 2023, Uria went on to take 15th overall at the 123km Attakwas Extreme, reeling in many former and current pros along the way.

Now he’s teaming up with legendary coach and Masters rider Mike Posthumus, and the two look set to be top contenders in the 40+ category at this year’s Epic.

Bicycling: Were you a competitive cyclist when you were a kid?

Uria: Nah. I grew up on a skateboard, and then moved on to inline skating and wakeboarding. I got to national level in skateboarding, and competed internationally in inline skating and nationally in wakeboarding.

I was never much of a school sports kind of guy, and my school – King David, Victory Park – was never big enough to be good at things like rugby, cricket and soccer. I was very nervous around those sports, but things like skateboarding had no structure. That appealed to me.

So how did the cycling journey begin?