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Jeep Team Geared for Glory

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Jeep Team South Africa is geared for another weekend of podium wins, with Hank McGregor and Barry Lewin racing the Varsity College Surfski Series (6 February), Mikaela Jonnson and Michael Lord taking on Race#1 of the Momentum Health Dual X series (7 February) and Gregg Brown competing in the first leg of the KZN Provincial Downhill Championships (8 February).

Surfski

On Friday, Jeep Team’s Hank McGregor and Barry Lewin will be competing in the Bay Union Surfski Challenge – Race#5 of the Varsity College Surfski Series. McGregor is a firm favourite, having won Race#1 and claiming victory at last weekend’s SA K1 River Championships at the Two Day Klip River Canoe Marathon in Gauteng.

After a solid start to the season, Lewin will be aiming to remain in the top 3; he has finished third in the previous two Varsity College Surfski Series races.

Multisport

In Multisport, Jeep Team’s rising star, Mikaela Jonnson, and Michael Lord (one of the team’s newest athletes) will be travelling to Gauteng to compete in Race#1 of the Momentum Health Dual X series, taking place on Saturday, 7 February, at Hakahana.

Jonnson (17) has had an impressive start to 2015; coming second overall in the Elite Women’s Category at Totalsports XTERRA Buffelspoort on 25 January. Jonnson was also first in the U18 category. A week previously, she won the KZN Triathlon Championships in her age category.

Lord (19) will be geared for gold in his new Jeep Team colours after an outstanding 2014 saw him finish in second place at the 2014 World Cross Triathlon Championships in Germany. Lord is also the 2015 SA and African Cross Triathlon champion.

The season-opener of the Dual X series will see athletes take on a 5km run, 30km MTB ride and then a further 2.5km run.
MTB

Jeep Team’s Gregg Brown (18) will be competing in Series 1 of the KZN Provincial Downhill Championships, taking place at the Karkloof MTB Club on Sunday, 8 February.

Brown will be racing for victory after a successful 2014 saw the young Downhill star represent South Africa at the 2014 DHI World Championships in Norway and place second in the Junior category at the 2014 SA National DHI Championships.

Hank McGregor Shortlisted for Sportsman of the Year

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2016 Rio Olympic-contender and South Africa’s Multiple World Marathon Champion paddler, Hank McGregor (Jeep Team South Africa), has been shortlisted for the World Paddle Awards’ Sportsman of the Year Award.

McGregor is the only South African who has been nominated for an award. The other two contenders in the category are: the United States’ Fabien Lefevre (Slalom Canoe World Champion) and Germany’s Sebastian Brendel (reigning Olympic champion in sprint canoeing).

The nomination adds to McGregor’s already star-studded list of achievements, including winning the SA K1 River Championships, which took place from 31 January to 1 February, at the Two Day Klip River Canoe Marathon, in Gauteng. McGregor finished in 4:40:56, followed by Siseko Ntondini (4:43:54) and Thando Ngamlana (4:43:55).

In September last year, McGregor rewrote the history books by becoming the first South African paddler to win both K1 and K2 gold medals at the ICF Canoe Marathon World Championships in the United States.

Says McGregor of his win at the weekend, “I went into the race blind but I had a really great time! It was super fun with surprises around every corner, which was something that I really appreciated. It was a great adventure!”

Later this month, McGregor will be competing in the Dusi Cano Marathon, happening from 19 – 21 February. The 2015 event is set to be a very different experience for the Dusi veteran as he will be racing in the
Mixed Socials category with his wife, Pippa. This is due to McGregor’s shift in focus away from races such as the Dusi Canoe Marathon, instead focusing on purist river marathons, flatwater marathons and surfski races as well as a bid to claim a sixth ICF Canoe Marathon world title.

“I don’t think I have ever started a paddling event socially. Ever. So it is going to be something new for me. If we can possibly win the husband-and-wife prize that would be a real cherry on the top!” says McGregor, who finished second in the 2014 K2 Dusi with partner Jasper Mocke and first in the Non-stop Dusi with partner, Sbonelo Zondi.

The winner of the Sportsman of the Year Award will be announced at the World Paddle Awards ceremony, taking place on 9 May in Augsburg, Germany.

New Jeep Team Start Season Off Well

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An epic weekend for the all-new Jeep Team SA saw the athletes representing across the country in the various sporting codes and living the Jeep brand to the full.

Thomas van Tonder and Jay Jay Deysel claimed first and second in Race#1 of the Jeep Warrior Series; while Hank McGregor won the SA K1 River Championships and was shortlisted for the World Paddle Awards’ Sportsman of the Year. In BMX, 15-year-old Alex Dolman raced to a second place finish at Kempton Park, Gauteng, in the Elite Men’s category, while Jeep Team’s MTB athletes, Dylan Rebello and Thinus Redelinghuys, both finished in the Top 20 after facing fierce international and local competition in Race#1 of Ashburton Investments’ National MTB Series.

JEEP TEAM RESULTS:

Obstacle Course Racing (OCR)

Jeep Team’s Thomas van Tonder dominated Race#1 of the Jeep Warrior Race from start to finish, claiming victory in one hour, 54 minutes – the only athlete to finish in less than 2 hours. Team mate, Jay Jay Deysel, clawed his way back to the front of the field after a consistent start to take 2nd place on the podium to give the newly formed professional Jeep Team SA OCR squad the best result that they could have hoped for going into the 2015 Jeep Warrior Season.

Says Van Tonder, “The first half of the race was very close. I thought to myself, ‘Everyone put in a lot of training this December; it’s going to be a hard one.’ But then I was in front and kept telling myself, ‘You trained hard, you trained hard, you’re not going to slack, you trained hard.’ My mantra paid off.”

Obstacle course racing is a new, but fast growing sports discipline in South Africa, with the Jeep Team being the only professional OCR team in the world. In the Jeep Warrior Series, obstacles range from insane body twisters, rope climbs, log flipping, sand bag carrying, muddy barbed wire crawls, jumping from high towers, larger-than-life mud pits, climbing over walls, jumping over fire, climbing over high nets and much more.

Says Van Tonder, “The way this event, and the sport has grown over the last two years has been amazing. Companies like Jeep jumping on board, pushing it along, definitely goes a long way.”

Unfortunately, Dominique D’Oliveira, Jeep Team’s female OCR athlete and last year’s Jeep Warrior Series Elite Ladies winner, had to pull out within the first 100m of the start line due to a calf muscle injury.

Jeep Team’s Hlubi Mboya showed pure class in the Warrior Series’ Commando Race, storming across the finish line in just over 1 hour and 44 minutes with a huge smile on her face and nothing but good things to say about her Jeep Warrior Race experience.

Paddling

Jeep Team’s Multiple World Marathon Champion, Hank McGregor, has been shortlisted for the Sportsman of the Year Award in the 2014 World Paddle Awards as voted by the public and Awards committee. The other two contenders are Fabien Lefevre (Slalom Canoe World Champion) and

Sebastian Brendel (reigning Olympic champion in sprint canoeing). Winners will be announced at the World Paddle Awards ceremony, taking place on 9 May in Augsburg, Germany.

On the racing front, McGregor continues to shine; this weekend winning the two-day SA K1 River Championships in a time of 4:40:56 on the Klip River Race in Gauteng. Siseko Ntondini (4:43:54) finished second, followed by Thando Ngamlana (4:43:55).

Says McGregor, “I went into the race blind but I had a really great time! It was super fun with surprises around every corner which was something that I really appreciated; it was a great adventure!”

In surfski, Jeep Team’s Barry Lewin finished third at the Thule Surfski Challenge (part of the Varsity College Marine Surfski Series) that took place on Friday, 30 January in Durban. Lewin finished in a time of 00:39:26, behind Matthew Bouman (00:37:26) and Wade Krieger (00:38:32).

BMX

Alex Dolman raced to a second place finish at Kempton Park, Gauteng, in the Elite Men’s category. This was another exceptional result for the 15-year-old racing out of category against South Africa’s best.

MTB

In MTB, Jeep Team’s Dylan Rebello, Pierre Smith and Thinus Redelinghuys finished an impressive 16th, 19th and 22nd respectively at Race#1 of Ashburton Investments’ National MTB Series, which took place at the Meerendal Wine Estate on Saturday, 31 January.

The three athletes were racing against a star-studded cast of some of the best MTB endurance athletes in the world, including former world champion Alban Lakata of Austria and his Topeak Ergon team mate, Kristian Hynek (Czech Republic), as well as South Africa’s Erik Kleinhans (Team RECM), Nico Bell (Team RECM) and Lourens Luus (Contego Swift).

In the 107-km Men’s Elite race, Lakata finished top of the podium in 4hrs38min16sec, Kleinhans in second (04:39:49) and Hynek in third (04:40:19). With 2900m of climbing, this route compares with some of the toughest one-day events in the world.

Awesome Old Mutual-Comrades Women Seminar in Cape Town

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The Comrades Marathon Association (CMA) hosted the Cape Town leg of the Old Mutual-Comrades Women Seminars at the Garden Court-Nelson Mandela Boulevard this past weekend.

With a sold-out venue and three hours of gripping presentations from the Comrades Coach, Lindsey Parry and other professionals, including a sports psychologist, medical doctor and a nutritionist, the ladies attending were left informed and empowered to take on the Comrades Marathon on Sunday, 31 May 2015.

Four similar seminars will be held in other major cities during February and March, with Johannesburg hosting the next sold-out seminar this coming Saturday (7.2.2015).
The sessions are aimed at providing technical as well as professional support to the female participants in this year’s Ultimate Human Race and those aiming to do so in the near future. It’s fun, interactive and packed with expert advice, tailor-made for the ultra-runner.

CMA Marketing Coordinator, Thami Vilakazi says, “Our aim is for all ladies taking part in this year’s Comrades Marathon to be adequately prepared for it. At these women-specific seminars, they are empowered with the technical and professional support that they require to train well and run a good race.”


A delicious breakfast is part of the deal.
Cost: R75 per person (breakfast included).
Bookings are on a first come first served basis and are going fast! Seats are limited to 100 people per venue and bookings are essential!


Bookings for Pretoria, Durban and Nelspruit can be done online at: https://secure.onreg.com/onreg2/front/step1.php?id=2593

Next Events:

7 February – Johannesburg – 10am – Southern Sun, Monte Casino

14 February – Pretoria – Southern Sun, Pretoria

21 February – Durban – 10am – Southern Sun, Elangeni, Durban

7 March – Nelspruit – 10am – Southern Sun, Emnotweni

 

 

 

Jeep Team Announces its Formidable 2015 Squad

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Jeep Team SA is going to be a force to be reckoned with in 2015 as they announce a change in focus to Junior, Under 23 and Elite sports men and women by forming a smaller, more compact squad of 15 world-beating, South African athletes.

Started in 2001 as an adventure racing team of six athletes, Jeep Team SA has become one of the most successful teams of its kind, producing local, national and world champions across eight sports disciplines – Adventure Racing, Mountain Biking, BMX, Surfski, Canoeing, Multisport and Extreme Sport with Trail Running and Obstacle Course Racing (OCR) added to the 2015 portfolio with the explosion of these two sporting codes across South Africa.

Says Max Cluer, co-founder and manager of Jeep Team SA, “Jeep Team SA continues to evolve in 2015 with a whole new look and feel. The core focus will be on showcasing up-and-coming Junior athletes while continuing to mentor and work with the Under 23 athletes and Elite athletes at the top of their game while teaching them the business of sport, media, sponsorships and relationships.

“We’ve re-signed a new three-year contract with our Title Partners Jeep Apparel SA and Jeep Vehicles – ensuring incredible support and security in the years ahead for Jeep Team SA. Jeep has been supporting us now for nearly 14 years, which is nearly unheard of in modern day sponsorships. We are fortunate to have such an incredible relationship with them where they understand our passion and vision for the team and they support us 100%.”

2014 in review:

In 2014, the Team achieved success across all disciplines. Highlights include Jeep Team’s Hank McGregor rewriting the history books in September by becoming the first South African paddler to win both K1 and K2 gold medals at the ICF Canoe Marathon World Championships in the United States.

Barry Lewin continues to impress with his vast experience and media presence in the world of paddling with his core focus on surfski both locally and internationally. He continues to travel around the world on his quest to document and compete in the sport that he loves so much while still remaining competitive in the elite bunch.

Jeep Team’s rising multisport star, Mikaela Jonsson (17), won the KZN Triathlon Championships in the Junior category, finished on the podium at both the ATU Cross Tri and SA Triathlon Championships, and represented South Africa at the ITU Cross Tri World Champs in Germany.

Jeep Team mountain biker, Matthew Beers (20), was crowned overall U23 winner of the MTN National MTB Series, with Pierre Smith (22) finishing second. Seventeen-year-old Julian Jessop is the 2014 SA Junior MTB Marathon Champion and 2014 Junior SA Cup Series winner in the competitive cross-country discipline, while his younger brother, Tom Jessop, is currently SA’s Youth Marathon champion. Gregg Brown represented South Africa at the UCI MTB World Championships in Hafjel, Norway, while Dylan Rebello took part in 2 UCI MTB World Cup Races in Germany and the Czech Republic.

In BMX, Jeep Team’s youngest athlete, Alex Dolman (15), was named Gauteng’s BMX Provincial Champion for 2014, won both the South African and All African Continental Championships and represented South Africa at the UCI BMX World Championships in Rotterdam, Holland.

Jeep Team CSI

The team continues their support of Qhubeka and remains firm on their stance of zero tolerance in sport surrounding doping and drugs in sport with their allegiance to Bike Pure.

Qhubeka is a South African NPO that helps disadvantaged communities “move forward and progress” by giving them bicycles in return for work done to improve communities, the environment or academic results. Since 2005, the NPO has distributed 51 000 bikes to people across South Africa.

Bike Pure is a global NPO that promotes honest and ethical cycling. The organisation has become the independent voice for honest, ethical cycling on a global scale, sending a powerful message that athletes don’t have to resort to taking illegal performance-enhancing drugs to compete.

Jeep Team “Ghost Athlete” Program
In 2015 a “Ghost Athlete” Program will also be introduced into the Jeep Team stable whereby elite athletes, celebrities or specialist athletes will be brought into the team for a short period of time under ring-fenced terms and conditions. The first athlete to fill this position in 2015 is the talented actress, DJ and athlete, Hlubi Mboya, who will be representing the team in the Jeep Warrior Race Series.

The seven new athletes on Jeep Team SA are:
Michael Lord, Multisport
Dominique D’Oliveira, OCR and Trail Running
Claudia Richard, OCR and Trail Running
Thomas van Tonder, OCR and Trail Running
Jay Jay Deysel, OCR and Trail Running
Thinus Redelinghys, MTB Marathon
Kyle Dodd, BMX

The seven returning athletes are:

Dylan Rebello, MTB Cross-country and Marathon
Pierre Smith, MTB Marathon
Gregg Brown, MTB Downhill
Alex Dolman, BMX
Mikaela Jonsson, Multisport and Trail Running
Barry Lewin, Surfski
Hank McGregor, Surfski and Canoeing

“Ghost Athlete”
Hlubi Mboya, OCR

Have a look at the following platforms to keep up to date with the Jeep Team SA’s antics in 2015.
Website: www.jeepteam.co.za
Facebook: www.facebook.com/jeepteamsa
Twitter: @jeepteamsa
Instagram: JeepTeamSA

Jeep Team SA Title Partners:

Jeep Apparel
Jeep Vehicles
Jeep Team SA Partner:

Salomon
Jeep Team SA Product Partners:
Puermotion Sports (POC, ICEdot & Muc-off)
Luksbrands (Skull Candy & Ogio)
Schwalbe
GoPro & RED-E
Thule

Possible slight change in 2015 Comrades Marathon Route

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The Comrades Marathon Association (CMA) has announced that it is considering a marginal change in the race route for the 90th Comrades Marathon to be held on Sunday, 31 May 2015.

CMA Race Director, Rowyn James has explained that due to the GO!Durban Integrated Rapid Public Transport Network road-works in Josiah Gumede Road (Old Main Road), Pinetown, a slight route deviation is being considered for Comrades race day. This is in keeping with the CMA’s strict protocol on runner safety.

James says, “The eThekwini Municipality and its contractors had met with CMA representatives prior to the 2014 Comrades Marathon to discuss any potential disruptions that such construction would have on the Comrades Marathon race route. The CMA has therefore decided to consider amending the route accordingly and will communicate the final outcome to our runners and other stakeholders in due course.”

James continues, “The construction in Pinetown does not adversely affect the route or the race and everything is being done by ourselves and the Municipality to minimise the impact on the race. We understand the importance of the development of the GO!Durban Integrated Rapid Public Transport Network which we fully support for the citizens of Durban; and will be looking at how best we can re-route the Pinetown section with minimal impact to the athletes.”

James adds, “We will be holding further discussions with the Municipality to start finalising plans but these plans are also determined by construction progress, so we will only be able to release any developments in this regard closer to the time. After all, the safety of our runners is of paramount importance; hence the possible route deviation.”

James concludes, “As the CMA, we will also be working closely with our provincial athletics federation, KwaZulu-Natal Athletics in terms of route measurement and other related contingencies. We look forward to an amazing race day for our runners and supporters alike.”

The 90th running of the world’s biggest and oldest ultra-marathon will be an ‘up-run’ from Durban to Pietermaritzburg. More than 22-thousand runners are signed up for this year’s race.

Ethiopian Adventure

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During November I had the great privilege to join Julia Bleasdale from the UK at the Yaya Village for some altitude training in Ethiopia. Julia finished seventh in both the 5000m and 10,000m at the 2012 Olympics and has been going to Ethiopia since 2006. She is one of the most adventurous and interesting runners I have met, and gets very excited about contours on Google maps and new routes waiting to be explored!
– BY RENE KALMER

I’m sure most of you have heard about altitude training, where athletes train at altitudes of 2000m and more above sea level. The thinner air has a lower oxygen content, which causes a shortness in breath and forces the body to form more red blood cells to deliver oxygen in the blood. The formation of haemoglobin, the oxygen-binding part of red blood cells, also increases. The result is that a runner can now deliver more oxygen to working muscles and remove waste products, like lactic acid, more effectively, and when returning to lower altitude, you can perform at a much higher level than before. The ideal is to train at altitude for at least four to six weeks, but the gain unfortunately only lasts between two and four weeks.
The secret is not to train too hard, too soon, so the first three days we took it really easy, adapting to the high altitude of 2700m. It is quite a shock to suddenly run 5:30min/km whilst it feels like running sub-4:00min/km. It feels like your lungs want to climb out of your chest, and when running uphill, my upper body would just go lame. Julia, a.k.a. Mountain Heidi, just kept reminding me that “altitude is my friend” and that I had to accept kilometre splits as slow as 7:00min/km going uphill. I must confess, the first week my eyes were just glued to her footsteps in order not to take a plunge on the trails. It was a great adjustment to do most of my training off-road, compared to running mostly on tar roads in SA.

After a week, we felt brave enough to join one of the main marathon groups in Ethiopia for training. We organised a driver to pick us up at 5am and after an hour’s drive we were in Sebata, where 90 runners met at 6am for the Saturday session. All the runners were very friendly, welcoming the two “forengi’s,” and we were more than 30 girls attending the session, so the coach divided us into three groups. I was more than happy to be in the slowest group, and the session for the day was 3km, 4km, 3km, 4km and 3km. I averaged 3:25min/km in this session and had to give it my all to keep up with the ‘slow group’ – a real eye-opener for me!

Every run in Ethiopia was a great adventure, but what I will treasure most is all the kids we encountered on our runs. Some were walking as far as 6km to school, and it is so special to hear their laughter echoing through the valleys. I’m grateful for the joy that Ethiopia brought back to my running, and I learnt to appreciate the small things again… like opening a tap with clean running water. Ameseghinallehu (thank you in amharic) for the humbling experience, Ethiopia, I look forward to seeing you again soon.

Shooting Star

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When Hanneké Dannhauser entered her first obstacle course race last March, she put herself on a startlingly fast track to the World Champs of obstacle racing just seven months later, despite breaking her ankle along the way. No wonder she’s earned the nickname GI Jane!
– BY SEAN FALCONER

Having heard about the Jeep Warrior Series in February 2014, Hanneké just knew that obstacle course racing was meant for her. The 26-year-old from Bloemfontein was working part-time as a personal trainer and had spent a lot of time in the gym herself, and the challenge appealed to her – but not some entry-level starter course… No, she entered the Black Ops elite race at Warrior #2 in Midrand on 2 March! “I come from the farm, so I went straight for the hardest option,” she says with a little giggle – and she proceeded to finish third in the women’s field, but realised where she could improve in order to be more competitive.

“In February I was running over seven minutes a kay, so I started training athletics with coach Rufus Botha, who has coached many top runners, including Zola Pieterse, and now I am running four minutes a kay,” says Hanneké, who used her steadily improving pace and stamina to win the next Warrior event in Irene. Then she also won in Hartbeespoort (May) and Ballito (July), but in September the Tarzan Swing obstacle at Warrior #6 in Hartbeespoort took its toll, and after numerous attempts at swinging across, an exhausted Hanneke fell and fractured her ankle. Undaunted, she carried on trying until she made it through the obstacle, then limped home in third position.

That saw her miss the Stellenbosch leg of the Warrior series in early October, but she had enough points in the bag to be selected to go to the OCR World Champs in Cincinatti, USA, in late October, and just eight weeks after her injury, she finished fifth out of 70 elite women. “The World Champs was a bit intimidating, especially since I had recently been out injured, but I really enjoyed the event,” says Hanneké. “The obstacles were not as tough as in SA, but there was a lot of up and down in the running. Overall, I think our SA obstacle racers are right up there with the best in the world – so I think we should invite them to come compete here in our races!”

Brutal conditions
A few weeks after the World Champs, Hanneké was back in action at the Warrior Nationals in Gauteng, looking for another win and the points to clinch the 2014 series win. She led for much of the race, but on a brutally cold and wet day, she couldn’t match Dominique D’Oliveira’s strength towards the end of the course and had to settle for second place on the day and in the series. The decisive moment came on the third-last obstacle, appropriately named Breaking Point, a tough combination of ropes, rings, chains and monkey bars.

“It was terrible out there for all of us, with many athletes unable to finish the course. We were so cold that they eventually gave us space blankets to wrap around ourselves while we were waiting at some of the obstacles,” recalls Hanneké. “Dom was breathing down my neck all race, but I thought I was going to win it, so I went into that obstacle without resting. I’ve learnt this year to do races at my own pace, and I made the mistake of pushing too hard at that point. So it was really hard to watch Dom get through it before me and disappear up the trail, but we have really bonded this year and have a wonderful friendly rivalry going. The best athlete on the day won – I gave it my all and was happy with second.”

I want more!
Unsurprisingly, Hanneké is now raring to go with the 2015 season, with all the Warrior, Impi, Gladiator and Spartan events pencilled in on her calendar. “Obstacle course racing has become my passion, and I feel I have always had the talent, but am only just discovering how good I can be. I also love that I can see my success and my healthy lifestyle inspiring others, especially younger girls. As I always say, look up, get up and never give up – because that’s where success comes from.”

She Showed Them

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Growing up in the 8In 1996 the South African athletic authorities selected a team to run in SA colours in the Comrades Marathon, to take on the growing contingent of international entrants, but one athlete they overlooked was Jowaine. She had finished second in the Two Oceans Marathon in 1992, then sixth in both the Two Oceans and Comrades in 1994, and she added another second at Oceans in 1995, the same year she won the All Africa Games Marathon title, but her 1995 Comrades had delivered a disappointing 219th position, hence she was not selected.

However, after years of overcoming obstacles in pre-1994 athletics, Jowaine reacted by running with a point to prove. “I decided to go out there and show them what I can do, and I finished fourth in 6:55:19, and was the first South African woman home. I beat all the runners selected to run for the SA Team.” Her day got even better when State President Nelson Mandela was once again on hand at the Comrades prize-giving. “It was a real privilege to be handed my gold medal by Madiba, and I gave him a hug. I was the first runner to do so that day, and after me, everybody else also wanted a hug from him, too!”

Born to Run
Born in 1966 in Stellenbosch, Jowaine began running in high school. “I did fairly well, and realised I’m one of those ‘slow-twitch people’ that will do better at longer distances,” she says. She earned Western Province colours from 1984 to 1987 as well as Western Province Schools colours in 1986, which then saw her made the captain of the SA Schools Cross Country Team under the pre-1994 SACOS council for so-called coloured sports. Next Jowaine attended college to study teaching, and while there she made the SA Colleges Cross Country team in 1988 under the SATISA umbrella, and was again made team captain.

In 1989 she married Allan, who had started as a training partner, then become her coach and manager, and it was then that Jowaine became motivated to see how good she really was. “My times were more or less the same as the top white athletes, but this was all before the merging of racial sporting codes, and things were very different then. Our SACOS races were often run in the afternoon, separate from white SARRA events. Even though SARRA races were open to all races, there was pressure not to run there, but I decided I had to take on the best white athletes. I didn’t want to be known as a controversial person, and some said it was a political statement, but my attitude was that if we start and finish at the same points, let’s see who is best.”

One of the Best
Jowaine did part-time teaching in between training, and her most successful years were between 1992 and 1996, with her turning professional in 1994, the year she was also runner-up in the SA Marathon Champs. In 1995 she finished third in both the SA Marathon and Half Marathon Champs, and with the 1996 Olympic Marathon in her sights, Jowaine then won the 1995 All Africa Games Marathon, and is still the only female South African to win a major championship marathon. “That was one of the highlights of my career, because I showed that I could beat the Ethiopians and Kenyans. I qualified for the Olympic squad, but my time was unfortunately only a B qualifier, while Elana Meyer had an A qualifier, and the selectors decided to send only her.” Putting that disappointment behind her, Jowaine refocused on the ultra scene and was rewarded with her brilliant fourth at Comrades.

Today, living and teaching in Westville, Durban, with two sons aged 21 and 14, she is still running, and has a few landmark races planned in 2015. “I ran my ninth Two Oceans last year, so I will be going for my permanent number in 2015. I also tried my 10th Comrades again in 2014, but when I got to 85km, I just couldn’t keep anything down, and I would have had to run 4:30 per kay into the wind to make it, so I called it quits. Now my goal for the year is those two permanent numbers.”
0s as a non-white runner meant overcoming challenges for Jowaine Parrot, but with determination, talent and courage, she became one of SA’s top female long distance runners of the 90s.
– BY SEAN FALCONER

Jogging’ In The Jungle

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Voted by CNN as ‘the most difficult and wildest eco race on the planet’, The Jungle Marathon is an extreme seven-day 275km footrace through the Amazon Jungle in Brazil, and SA’s Anthony Erasmus was there to experience it. Here are some extracts from his ‘race diary.’

Arriving via river boat at base camp in the Flona Tapajos National Park, surrounded by unspoilt jungle on the banks of the Amazon River, the Bombeiros (jungle military firemen) briefed us on a list of warnings: Plants to avoid, creatures we may encounter and what to do if lost. Our race packs were kitted with food, hammock, T-shirt, shorts, socks and 2½ litres of water – all weighing in at 13kg.

Stage 1 – 27km (Running time: 7:51)
The terrain was undulating, with 14 steep hills of 50 to 250m, roots of the massive trees forming vertical buttresses 40cm high, and muddy marshes in between. The leaves fill the spaces between trees, making the jungle track look flat! The going was tough and slow…

Stage 2 – 28km (8:54)
Water points were stationed every 10km with dehydration a major threat, as you sweat profusely. I found myself taking in 15 litres of water, electrolyte drinks and energy supplements in water! I made a point of stopping every hour to check the colour of my urine. You learn to read your body.

Stage 3 – 34km (8:39)
In the second half the terrain eased and it actually became a ‘run’, not a hike/power walk. You’re told to shuffle your feet when entering rivers to chase away electric rays, but thankfully the Anacondas are shy and hide in the swamps. Ticks, however, are not shy, and infest your legs and nether regions.

Stage 4 – 42.2km (11:43)
Suddenly, I felt as though a spear had been launched into my leg. A half-metre long tree branch was protruding at right angles from my shin, and whilst removing it, the point broke off in my calf, but I was fortunate to have Cody from Texas with me. I massaged the foreign body below the muscle while Cody guided the broken end up towards the shin wound. It moved up slowly, with Cody wanting to pass out, but after guiding it up, Cody managed to pull it out thanks to a Swiss army knife.

I realised there must be small bits of bark in the tissue tunnel, so I placed the nozzle of my water bottle into the wound and flushed about 800ml of water through it, then packed it with an antibiotic ointment and wrapped it with a bandage and zinc oxide tape. I immediately started a course of antibiotics. Couldn’t have come at a worse time, with the 128km night stage next.

Stage 5 – 128km (36:05)
We were told the night stage had been lengthened by 20-odd kilometres! Setting off at 4am, we had to reach checkpoint six by 3pm, otherwise we were not allowed to continue until the following morning, because it was considered too dangerous to traverse after dark! Nearly half the field didn’t make it. Cody and I pushed ourselves and made it at 2:30pm, then got to checkpoint seven at 4:30pm and decided to take a break. There was a ‘foot medic’ there, and I needed him – I had five toenails wanting to come off!

We left an hour later and then Cody’s headlight packed up, so I gave him a little LED light. We got lost so many times! The trail is marked every 30m by ribbons, but they’re not particularly visible at night. At 10:30pm, we reached a muddy marsh that I can only describe as a quicksand bog. It took us two hours to get through 2km of swamp! We ran through the next day, passing the villages and schools that benefit from the money raised by the race, making it huge for the locals, and finished late that afternoon. Nothing felt as good as a swim in the warm, green river water.

Stage 6 – 16km (2:27)
My backpack had been reduced to 6kg as we ran along the ‘beach’ of the Tapajos River, and I reached the finish in a total time of 75 hours 39 minutes, in 14th position. If I had entered the Jungle Run knowing what to expect, I think the achievement would not so much be in finishing as in the courage it would take to enter it. What an experience!