Category: Features

Razaan Kamaldien has shown amazing juggling skills as she manages the busy life of a top Western Province junior runner and a University of Cape Town law student, and is now really starting to fly in her running. – BY PJ MOSES

In between a heavy academic workload, training for the UCT hockey team and hours of training as a runner, young Capetonian Razaan Kamaldien excels at all she does. “I always want to be as good as I can be at everything I try, and be the best version of me in all I do!” she says. And she has certainly excelled at running, since deciding to take it seriously four years ago, having become a regular podium finisher at road races all over the Cape. Recently, she raised the bar for herself still higher by winning the junior title at the 2018 Old Mutual Two Oceans Half Marathon, heading a very strong field of junior girls from across the country.

According to Razaan, the support and encouragement of her Dad, who is also a runner, has given her the wings to fly. “My parents have been very supportive in all that I do, but especially my Dad, because he runs too, and he knows how much work it takes. When he introduced me to running it was only for fun and keeping fit, but when I realised that I may have some potential for being good at it, he was willing to drive me around to races, even when he wasn’t running.”

She also credits a move to the Carbineers WP Athletic Club as a catalyst in her becoming mentally and physically stronger. “My coach Candyce Hall has been great with the advice and support she has given me, including teaching me about being patient when I have setbacks, or how to be a leader among the junior girls that I compete with. Still, I wasn’t expecting to do as well as I did at Two Oceans, because I was sick with the flu just two weeks before the race. I thought that I wouldn’t have anything in my legs, but it all worked out and I surprised myself with finishing strongly and taking the win in a time of 1:40!”

BALANCED APPROACH
Even though her life is busy, Razaan makes the time to spend with family and friends. “Find time for yourself and do not allow a busy life to overwhelm you. One of my favourite quotes says, ‘If it’s important, you’ll find a way; if it’s not, you’ll find an excuse.’ To me, prioritising my life is second nature. I set a schedule for myself and stick to it. I think proper time management is an important key to success.”

The youngest of four kids, Razaan’s family is what keeps her grounded and focused on her goals when a lot of other young people are caught up in the distractions the world has to offer. “I think especially girls need to find out what makes them happy and give their dreams 100 percent effort. Running made me a better person because it gave me a place to be me, but also to be surrounded by a new family in my club and the Cape Town running community. I don’t judge other people and the way they live their lives, but I prefer spending my time with family, training, studying or going to the movies. It keeps me on the right track.”

Another favourite pastime when she needs a break from running and studying sees Razaan take out her fishing rod and head to the nearest jetty with her Dad. “I love fishing. People often laugh when I tell them this, but it is a normal part of my life, and I don’t even mind the smell of fish on me,” she giggles. “Okay maybe I don’t love smelling like fish, but it doesn’t bother me much. I love just being close to the ocean – and I don’t eat what I catch, but release it back into the water.”

RUNNING GOALS
As she moves up to the senior level, Razaan is looking forward to the challenges ahead. “I’ll be running against my heroes, women who have blazed a trail for me and other young female runners. I hope their knowledge rubs off on me, as we compete and run together.” For now, her racing preference is the half marathon, but she says she can’t wait to be old enough to take on marathons and then ultra-distances. “I enjoy the longer distances, but I know that I still need to do the shorter ones to get faster. My goal is to run a sub-40 10km in the next five years, and by the time I hit my mid-20s, and with my coach’s blessing, I can run marathons. I will be more than ready.”

IMAGES: Running Ninja Photography, Moegsien Ebrahim & courtesy Nicki Hill

A love for picturesque nature and breathtaking mountains is what propelled Bernard Rukadza into running back in 1999. Fast forward to 2018 and he is a three-time AfricanX Trailrun Champion and one of the top trail runners on the South African running scene. – BY REGINALD HUFKIE

Over the long weekend at the end of April, Bernard ‘Bernie’ Rukadza and K-Way Wintergreen teammate AJ Calitz once again dominated the AfricanX Trailrun presented by Asics, winning the first two of three stages and running away with the overall title for the third time as a pairing. Having also won in 2014 and 2015, they are the only men’s team to score a hat-trick of AfricanX wins in the 10-year history of this prestigious event.

“The AfricanX is the biggest stage race in South Africa and is attracting a lot of top people. The scenery of the race is wonderful, the vibe and the organization are great, and it keeps you going back,” says Bernie. “Winning this year was a great pleasure, and it shows that AJ and I are still a great team. We didn’t plan to win the first stage, as stage two was always our main focus, but we were happy to win both stages, and then we just protected our lead on day three.”

The 38-year-old Cape Town-based Zimbabwean pro runner met AJ through his then running partner, Eddie Lambert, at the 2013 AfricanX. “From there we met up, chatted, and then teamed up for our first AfricanX. We won it and have never looked back.” When asked what makes their team so strong, Bernie humbly answers, “It’s nothing much, but if you are determined and focused, that’s the thing that makes us a very good, strong team. Teaming up with AJ is awesome, because he’s a really supportive guy who is very humble and likes running very much.”

TAKING UP RUNNING
Born in Nyanga in the mountainous Manicaland province of Zimbabwe, Bernard didn’t take running seriously until after school. He saw that his older brother Axson and others were making a living from running, so he decided to give it a try himself, and then moved to SA in 2008 to run professionally. “My brother is the one who introduced me to running. He participated in many races and got his job through running, but he never won because of limited time due to work. He always said he believed I will definitely win a big race one day.”

Bernie’s initial focus was on the road, and he notched his first win at the West Coast Half Marathon in Langebaan in 2009, in a 1:06 course record that still stands. However, his focus changed later in 2009 when Eddie introduced him to trail running. “I was not even running with the right equipment – I was using road shoes – but then I started winning races, and I won the Spur Cape Winter Trail Series for the first time in 2010, so I started taking it more seriously,” says Bernard.

Over the years, Bernie has amassed an impressive list of race wins, not only dominating the Trail Series for many years, but stepping it up to win multiple titles at all three of the Mountain Challenge Series races (Jonkershoek, Helderberg and Marloth), and also claiming wins in both the Old Mutual Two Oceans Trail Run long and short races, the once-off Old Mutual Two Oceans Beast 47km Ultra Trail, the Richtersveld Transfrontier race and the three-day SOX stage race (again partnered with AJ).

LOVING THE MOUNTAINS
Trail running comes naturally to Bernard, but what really makes him so good is his strength on the climbs to go with his natural speed on the flats. “Trail running is tough, but when it comes to more climbing, it becomes easier and more enjoyable, because I love mountains and nature,” he says, but he is quick to add that his running success stems from the support he received from his wife Sharon and two young kids. “My family is my number one supporter. Whatever I do, they always believe I will come through, and they give me much support, so I always make sure that I never disappoint them.”

While Bernie’s immediate goal is the 2018 Mountain Challenge series, he says he would love to win a major marathon on the road. He has also steadily been improving in the Old Mutual Two Oceans Ultra, finishing 14th this year in 3:19:35 to improve on his previous best 23rd in 3:29:41. “I’m looking forward to the Mountain Series, but my big goal is to win a major marathon so that I will get a nice sponsorship and can go compete abroad. I feel that I can still conquer a lot of mountains if I can get a great partnership. Then the sky is the limit.”

IMAGES: Tobias Ginsberg, Volume Photography & Jeff Ayliffe

With a passion for running, exploring, drinking beer and having fun, Shawn Combrink travels the world in search of new adventures, and along the way he has put together an impressive running streak that defies the doctors who said he may never run again. – BY LAUREN SMITHERS

Shawn Combrink’s running journey began in Cape Town back in the early 80s when he found a training plan for the Two Oceans Marathon in a newspaper. He was already a social runner, regularly doing Saturday morning 5km Heart Foundation Fun Runs with a group of mates, but admits “this was more an excuse to enjoy a few post-run beers with the boys.” However, when he started following the Oceans training plan, he says he was hooked. “Unfortunately, I had to relocate to Johannesburg for work, which meant that I was not able to run that year’s Oceans after all, but in Joburg I continued running, joining a group of colleagues for a 10km run every lunch time.”

In 1987 Shawn ran his first marathon – the old Pick n Pay Hyper to Hyper in Pretoria – which he managed to finish in 3:25, even after arriving late to the start line thanks to the dodgy navigation skills of his running partner. He chuckles as he remembers painfully running the last bit of that race on the yellow emergency lane line. “I was convinced that the paint would stop my feet burning, because it wasn’t as rough as the tar!”

Where’s Wally?
At that stage, Shawn says he didn’t have any intention to run Comrades, and actually knew very little about the race, but a year after his first marathon, when a friend wanted to run Comrades before emigrating, Shawn agreed to run a section of it with him. They therefore started training and running races together, one of which was finally Two Oceans, and then they lined up at Comrades together. Content with the idea of running just the first 20km or so, Shawn says he actually got to the start line not really knowing what he was doing – mostly because he and his friends had enjoyed a great night out after experiencing the vibe at registration…

By the time Shawn and his friend got to Pinetown, he felt strong, so he told their seconders that he would continue running and meet them a bit further along. “That was the year that Wally Hayward was making his long-awaited return to Comrades at the age of 79, so I suggested to my friend that he only needed to run consistently until Wally caught up to us, and then he could just follow his pace, which would ensure that he finished on time.” However, they had just crossed the little bridge in Camperdown when they asked a spectator if he had seen Wally, and were told the great man had already passed that point about an hour before!

Seriously disgruntled, Shawn and his friend walked the next 5km trying to fathom what had happened to their strategy, but they continued running, and Shawn landed up crossing the finish line in 10:37:45 – nearly an hour after Wally – after deciding at each landmark to just go on just a bit further. “I have to admit, I was overcome with emotion as I got to the top of the grass embankment overlooking all the gazebos at the finish line, just before entering the stadium. I realised that if I could do that, I could do anything,” says Shawn, and it was exactly this attitude that saw him reach the Comrades finish another 11 times – and later saw him return to running again, when he thought he never would.

Back to Basics
Years later, after completing the amazing Marathon du Medoc (a.k.a. The Wine Marathon) in France, Shawn and his partner in life and adventure, Paula, were spending a few days on a barge in the French countryside, when he accidentally took a tumble from a jetty. Having seriously hurt his back, he resisted seeing a doctor for almost two months when back in South Africa, but says “not even a brandy-painkiller combo could numb the pain, and so I was off to the surgeon, who explained that surgery was my only option, and that it would be a long road back to health. He added that I would be the only one to determine whether or not I would run again.”

As so many injured runners experience when they can’t hit the road, Shawn suffered a bit of depression after his surgery, but he was determined not to be another complacent couch-surfing-former-marathon-runner, as he puts it. He was advised by his physiotherapist to walk as much as possible, so he took to hobbling around the house and was soon venturing outside to see how he would manage a kilometre. “It was 14 minutes of pain and discomfort, and I was flat on my back for the rest of the day, but it was also the beginning of my road back to running,” says Shawn.

He challenged himself to complete a kilometre every day for two weeks, which then turned into a month, and then the distance grew by a block at a time until he was walking the Johnson Crane Half Marathon soon thereafter. That also started a streak that Shawn has kept going: To date, he has walked or run at least a kilometre every day since that December morning first walk. That’s over 1600 consecutive days now, and he says, “It’s something everyone can do with a bit of effort. There are always excuses, but you can’t just give up.”

If it’s raining hard, he has been known to go out late at night, once the rain has stopped, and he even does his kay when travelling abroad, but jokes that he hasn’t yet been brave enough to actually run in an international airport building, as he fears he might be shot at. Still, to get in his daily kay, he has walked from terminal to terminal during lay-over stops.

Collecting parkruns
During his rehabilitation, Shawn discovered the parkrun concept and began joining the then small groups of people who would run on Saturday mornings at nearby Delta Park. Since then, he has completed a parkrun at 68 different venues, including two international parkruns. “At the heart of my passion for running, and what has made the journey back to completing marathons all the more enjoyable, is my desire to travel and experience all that is beautiful in the world, so parkrun has been just another great way to combine my two great loves.”

One of the international parkruns he and Paula did was in Waterford, Ireland, and says they were astounded to see that the whole thing was over and packed up in 45 minutes. “Their emphasis is very much on the ‘run’ in parkrun there. On the opposite side of the spectrum was the fun and sense of community we enjoyed after the Treviso parkrun just outside of Venice, in Italy – once we finally found the venue. We then ran through the most beautiful forest, and suddenly a man with a guitar appeared out of nowhere at the finish to serenade us all while we enjoyed what seemed to be warmed ice tea.”

Shawn’s whole face actually smiles when he tells of the places he and Paula have discovered and the people they have met along the way, thanks to running. They scour the race calendar to find different, new races or parkruns to do while they explore the country, and they have been everywhere, from running majestic Cannibal’s Cave parkrun in the Drakensburg, to the Screaming Monster race that takes you into the Sudwala Caves in Mpumalanga.

They have also stumbled upon some real running gems, says Shawn. “En route to Phalaborwa for a race and getaway, we escaped the frustration of a stop/go delay on the Magoebaskloof Pass by stopping for a cold one in a little town called Haenertsburg. While chatting to the locals in the pub, we learnt about the Iron Crown Trail Run organised by the Haenertsburg Rotary Club, which takes participants to the highest point in Limpopo, where a man hands out shots of OB’s to ease the cold. We just had to come back to do that!”

Next Round
Added to travel and running on Shawn’s list of interests is craft beer. When he injured his back, Paula bought him a beer brewing kit for Christmas, and spurred on by a friend who is a craft beer connoisseur, Shawn’s curiosity began to grow. With the help of Paula’s skilful researching, the couple have now discovered craft beer breweries in the most interesting places, including the Kebenja Brewery in an old car dealership workshop in Welkom. They now often combine a running trip with a visit to a new brewery, and Shawn says, “It’s all about embracing the local culture and community. Cheers!”

Another goal is to run 100 different marathons worldwide – at the time of writing he had done 84, including 15 international races – before he takes it a step further to completing 100 different standard South African marathons. For that reason, top of his current bucket list is the Swakopmund to Walvis Bay Marathon in Namibia, which is run at the same time as the Oktober Beer Fest, so it will be perfect timing for some post-run beer tasting!

Looking ahead, Shawn says he wants to continue his streak of walking or running at least a kilometre a day, wherever he is, while another goal is to add the Boston and Tokyo Marathons to his done list, to round off his collection of Major Marathons medals. “Paula really has her eye on the special medal you get for completing all six,” he adds. “But my ultimate goal is to run until I die, and to continue exploring the world, completing races and parkruns, finding breweries, and making memories.”

IMAGES: David Papenfus & courtesy Shawn Combrink

Two-time Olympian Richard Murray posted his most prestigious victory yet in early June, becoming the first South African triathlete to win an Olympic distance World Triathlon Series (WTS) event, and we caught up with him for a quick Q&A after his win. – BY DOUG CAREW & SEAN FALCONER

Earlier this year Richard Murray not only overcame a painful back injury, but also switched coaching staff – he is now working closely with the Dutch national coaching team – and the move appears to be paying dividends, as he won the AJ Bell World Triathlon Leeds in the UK in June. This was his first ever win over the Olympic distance of 1.5km swim, 40km cycle and 10km run on the global stage, and he used his famed running speed to brilliant effect, making his break at the start of the run leg to pull clear of the pack and win in an impressive 1 hour 45 minutes and 52 seconds. Answering a few questions after the race, Richard was understandably ecstatic about his victory.

MA: You must be on a winning high right now?
RM: I can’t really say I expected it to come now, but I’m super, super happy I’ve finally done it! This has eluded me since I’ve started WTS racing. I’ve won two sprints before, and I’ve had one or two second places over the Olympic distance, but never managed to get on top of the podium, so this feels magical. At last, all the hard work and training has paid off. It’s been 10 years in the making… In fact, it’s been my biggest goal since I was 18 years old.

MA: Were you confident going into the race against a stellar field, including world number one Mario Mola, two-time Olympic medallist Jonathan Brownlee and your SA teammate, Olympic bronze medallist and Commonwealth Games gold medallist Henri Schoeman?
RM: I was confident. I have had a few bad races in a row and it has been a tough past three months, but I never doubt myself and know when it all comes together I can have a great day out.

MA: Briefly take us through your race.
RM: My swim wasn’t great, but I tried to stay in contention and was 50 seconds back into T1. On the bike, I pulled back and ended up with the second-fastest split, and then on the run, the legs felt really great. I’m not sure why I battled in the swim. Sometimes I just don’t feel great and battle to find a good stroke. I got very weak and was falling off the back of the pack. I need to find out the cause, with my coaches.

MA: Weren’t you afraid that cycling so hard would leave nothing in the tank for the run?
RM: I never really thought of that, as my legs felt really good, and I just focused on cornering well, as there were so many corners. The tight course really played to my strengths. After the bike, I didn’t feel that tired, which helped me on the run. Around 7km into the run Mario started to close in and was only nine seconds behind, but I put the hammer down and held him off.

MA: When the pain hits during a tough event, where do you find inspiration?
RM: In this race, I knew this was my moment and I could not let it go. I just believe that if I’m hurting the guys behind me must be in agony as well, so just handle business! It’s always going to hurt, but who can handle the hurt the longest wins.

MA: On a related note, what do you think about when you are competing?
RM: It’s like meditation and complete focus; there’s a lot happening when you are flying around corners and have to focus 100 percent on the bike!

MA: And after the race, what is the best way to treat a sore body?
RM: Massage, burgers, milkshake, friends, family, hydration and a hot bath.

MA: What do you eat and drink before, during and after the race?
RM: I stick to a similar diet leading into races and test what I’ll eat in the days leading up to race day. It’s good to get my digestive system to train on the food that I will be competing on, and don’t try new things. No garlic, spicy stuff or sea food, and not too much veggies or bran the night before a race!

MA: You run in a pair of PUMA Speed 300 IGNITE 3. What makes them perfect for you?
RM: They are soft, responsive, medium weight, have enough support and a good toe-off for fast running. I looked for a shoe that I can race a lot in, and this shoe with its 8mm drop from heel to toe is perfect.

MA: What attracted you to PUMA?
RM: I have been working with PUMA for eight years. I love this brand and have gone through three different phases of running shoe developments with the company. It’s a brand that’s laid back and fun, and works well with my personality. I love to give feedback on the technical running shoes and how to improve things, and it’s a treat that the company uses my feedback.

MA: While you were winning in England, your fellow PUMA athlete Ann Ashworth was winning the iconic Comrades Marathon. Is that on your bucket list?
RM: I do enjoy long runs, but I’m not much of an extreme distance runner, so Comrades is not really on my radar.

MA: So what’s next on your racing programme?
RM: Next up is a Bundesliga event in Düsseldorf in July, followed by Hamburg, the next stop for the World Triathlon Series. I just hope I can continue in this way and head towards my next big goal, the Tokyo Olympics, two years down the line.

MA: And finally, your advice for young athletes considering the triathlon path?
RM: Believe in yourself, find good coaches, don’t be soft, but listen to your body and take recovery days. And don’t be too serious, have fun!

IMAGES: Getty Images, Chris Hitchcock & Craig Kolesky/Red Bull Content pool

On Sunday 10 June, the 93rd Comrades Marathon will again once see thousands of runners take on the Ultimate Human Race, with all those runners hoping to make it all the way from Piermaritzburg to Durban to claim that coveted little medal. And once again, many will be relying on the Modern Athlete Comrades Marathon Pacesetters to get them home on time. – BY SEAN FALCONER

If you’ve ever seen one of the Modern Athlete Comrades Marathon Pacesetters bring a bus into the finish of the race, you’ll know that singing, dancing, crying, high-fiving, fist-pumping, hugging and kissing are the order of the day. It remains one of the highlights of the race to see these large groups finishing, and many a spectator has been seen to wipe away a little tear of emotion at the sight of all those happy runners.

These are the only official pacing ‘buses’ at Comrades, run with the permission of the Comrades Marathon Association, and the volunteer ‘bus drivers’ carry flags with their target time so that runners can easily spot them, hop on the bus of their choice and rely on the Pacesetter to guide them home on time. The buses have become a huge part of the race, and while some runners complain about the huge groups blocking the road and making overtaking difficult, many more love the vibe created in these buses.

For many years Modern Athlete organised the standard sub-9:00 (Bill Rowan cut-off), sub-11:00 (Bronze cut-off) and sub-12:00 (Vic Clapham cut-off) buses, and in 2016 we added a sub-10:00 bus, which proved just as popular as the more established buses. Then in 2017 we brought Gauteng Pacesetters co-ordinator Buks van Heerden on board and went still bigger, adding sub-8:30, sub-9:30, sub-11:30 and sub-11:45 buses, but this did unfortunately lead to some confusion out on the road, as various pacers were running on different race-day strategies, with different fade differentials, and thus some of the buses were a bit mixed up in the early stages of the race. To solve that problem, the 2018 buses, co-ordinated by Buks and Mindlo Mdhluli of KZN Pacesetters, will run with similar strategies, all sticking as close as possible to pacing charts created by Western Province Pacesetter Rassie Pretorius.

Tried and Trusted Pacers
The 2018 Comrades Pacesetters will be captained by Madoko Ndlovu, driver of the hugely popular Madoko’s Bus for many years and one of the most experienced Pacers in SA, and the list of bus drivers once again features many well-known and highly experienced stalwarts of previous Comrades, such as Johan van Tonder, Linda Hlophe, Jeff Ramokoka and Derrick Rondganger. For the first time ever, we will offer a sub-7:30 silver medal bus, and it is also brilliant to see that the Pacesetters hail from all over the country. Most have been running as Pacesetters regularly this year in build-up races to Comrades, so many runners around the country already know and trust their pacing. These, then, are the men and women who will be carrying the flags in this year’s Comrades:

Sub-7:30 (Silver medal)
Tshililo Ngwana (Gauteng, 11 medals)

Sub-9:00 (Bill Rowan medal)
Johan van Tonder (Gauteng, 16 medals)
Joe Faber (KwaZulu-Natal (21 medals)

Sub-10:00 (Safe Bronze medal)
Linda Hlophe (Gauteng, 14 medals)
James Nkosi (KwaZulu-Natal, 12 medals)
George Mojela (Limpopo, 9 medals)

Sub-10:30 (Safe Bronze medal)
Sibusiso Mlangeni (Gauteng, 2 medals)

Sub-11:00 (Bronze medal)
Madoko Ndlovu (Gauteng, 13 medals)
Jeff Ramokoka (Gauteng, 19 medals)
Arnold Nkosi (Gauteng, 10 medals)

Sub-11:30 (Safe Vic Clapham medal)
Gerald Pavel (KwaZulu-Natal, 6 medals)
Charl Whitaker (Gauteng, 11 medals)
Gary Dixon (UK Guest Pacer, 2 medals)

Sub-11:45 (Vic Clapham medal)
Claus Kempen (Free State, 13 medals)

Sub-12:00 (Vic Clapham medal)
Derrick Rondganger (Western Province, 11 medals)
Lucas Seleka (Limpopo, 11 medals)
Shahieda Thungo (Gauteng, 2 medals)

There will also be a few ‘back-up drivers’ on race day, who will be running with the buses to gain experience of pacing at Comrades, and who will be on hand to take over should one of the official Pacers run into trouble:

Sub-10:00 Siyabonga Khumalo (Gauteng, 3 medals)
Sub-11:00 Mkhokheli Malghas (Eastern Cape, 2 medals)
Sub-11:45 Pieter Schoeman (Gauteng, 6 medals)
Sub-12:00 Andrew Mashiane (Gauteng, 3 medals)
Sub-12:00 Virgulle Steenkamp (Gauteng, 1 medal)

Please note that specific buses or drivers may still change between the time of writing and race day, and Modern Athlete will post updated info on social media where applicable. Also, one of the 'rules' of Pacesetting is that should a Pacer be unable to keep the pace for their target time, they must discard their flag, or hand over the flag to somebody that can keep the bus going. In a race as tough and long as Comrades, even the most experienced runner could exprience a bad day in the office, and thus having more than one Pacer for most target times makes sense, as well as back-up drivers, should something go wrong. Thankfully, over the years most of our Modern Athlete Comrades Pacesetters have done a sterling job of bringing their buses home on time!

Modern Athlete would like to thank our Comrades Pacesetters for their incredible spirit and camaraderie, and being willing to volunteer and take on the responsibility of helping fellow runners. We look forward to welcoming all the buses home on Comrades race day.

The peak training for the Comrades Marathon is now over, and while we enjoy the extra hours of the taper period, it is time to use the ‘calm before the storm’ to develop our battle strategy and set our race day goals. Here’s how to work out what your realistic Comrades finish time goal should be. – BY NORRIE WILLIAMSON

No battle was won without a strategy or a game plan, and distance running is similar… Comrades cannot be conquered with a ‘see how it goes on race day’ approach. No matter how fit and fast you are on race day, those who don’t have a logical pacing plan, or rely solely on others for their pacing, will pay the price and fail to achieve. So here’s how you should go about working out your game plan.

Step 1: Know your Ability
As of the third week in May, the die for your potential finish time has been cast. Based on the combination of best raced 5km, best raced marathon, and total distance from January to June, it is possible to accurately calculate your 2018 Down Run finish time. An easier rule of thumb is to multiply your best 10k time in minutes by 11.55, and you will get a Comrades finish time potential in minutes. From this it shows that:
•  Silver medals go to those who can run 10km in under 38:50,
•  Bill Rowan requires 46:20,
•  10-hour runners must better 51:30,
•  11-hour bronze requires you to be faster than 57 minutes,
•  And to beat the 12-hour cut-off, you must be able to run 10km in 61 minutes. (This latter barrier being set by the CMA’s intermediate cut-off times, not by normal pacing logic.)

Another handy way to work out your potential Comrades time is to use your mile time (four laps of an athletics track), working it up with the Comparison of Performance & Distance table below to a projected marathon and/or Comrades potential time.

1600m Best	Marathon Time	Comrades Time
5:20	2:55	7:03
5:30	3:00	7:15
5:40	3:05	7:27
5:50	3:10	7:39
6:00	3:15	7:51
6:08	3:20	8:04
6:18	3:25	8:16
6:30	3:30	8:28
6:40	3:35	8:40
6:49	3:40	8:52
6:58	3:45	9:04
7:08	3:50	9:16
7:18	3:55	9:28
7:28	4:00	9:40
7:50	4:10	10:05
8:15	4:20	10:29
8:30	4:30	10:53
8:50	4:40	11:17
9:11	4:50	11:41

Step 2: Select a Logical Goal
Once you know your potential, the focus is on achieving it! Some races are meant to be enjoyed, and Comrades is one such event. Yes, the top 50 runners will ‘race’ for the sniff of a gold medal, and around 50 more are borderline for the 7:30 silver cut-off. About 150 may have a potential of 8:50 to 9:10, and so race for the 9-hour Bill, then 300 will be between 4:25 and 4:35 marathoners who will race the Bronze cut-off, while there are probably 1000 whose 4:45 to 4:59 marathon puts them in a race for the finish.

That’s 1550 racers, which is only 10% of the starters; the rest are ‘safe’ – safe silvers, safe Bill Rowans, safe bronzes or safe Vic Claphams. These runners should initially target a time that will allow them more tolerance in the race, and keep them away from ‘red-lining’ the whole way.

For example a runner with a 48-minute 10km best in the last six to nine months has a potential finish of 9 hours 15 minutes. This is well outside Bill Rowan potential, and what does a 9:15 mean compared to say 9:25, 9:35, or even 9:55? In fact, the medal will be the same right up to and past 10:55, so why race it? Some may say for a Personal Best, and that is credible, but the fact is the time will be a PB for the course anyway, as the 2018 race features a new course, new venue and longer distance than the last 40 years of Down Runs!

Of course, we all want to do the best we can, but look at all the distance world records: They are not achieved by running to a schedule from the beginning, they are run and raced over the final quarter, or even final sixth, of the race. That’s where the ‘excellence’ and extra 5% to 10% performance is earned.

Therefore, the advice to the mass of Comrades runners is to select three goals: The first is your realistic potential based on the formula (say 9:15 in the example), then an acceptable goal (perhaps 9:29 in this example), and thirdly, a fallback point if things go wrong (perhaps 9:59 for this runner, but it may even be over 10 hours if this was a novice).

Look closely at the ‘accuracy’ of achieving these goals: The difference between the average pace for this runner’s ‘top desire’ (6:04 per km) and satisfactory secondary goal is only nine seconds per km! And just 19 seconds per km to the ‘fallback’ goal.

Debatably, on one of the longest and most emotional running days of your career, achieving such accuracy of pacing is no easy task. This challenge is exacerbated by the ever-changing terrain: There are no major flat roads where you can check your pace, or get the feel of your average pace, because Comrades is either up or down, and the only flat you experience between the start and finish lines are the final 2.7km in the city centre and along that long wide dual carriageway to the massive icon of Moses Mabhida Stadium. By the time you reach this point, your finishing pace will have long since been set, and average pace will mean nothing, only finishing will!

PS: Don’t miss next week’s article!
Next week’s follow-up article discusses how to pace the Comrades, and will explain why your Comrades race day outcome will have been determined before you leave Maritzburg. It will also show why the English poet Kipling has more in common with Comrades than Gunga Din (The Team trophy for men at Comrades).

About the Author
Norrie has represented Scotland, Great Britain and later his adopted South Africa in ultra-distance running and triathlon. He is an IAAF-accredited coach and course measurer, has authored two books on running, and counts 21 Comrades medals amongst his more than 150 ultra-marathon medals. You can read more from him at www.coachnorrie.co.za.

IMAGE: Courtesy Comrades Marathon Association

After 35 years of running, with much of it done on the trails around Cape Town, Allan Ryninks can not only look back on a glittering running career, but can also share a wealth of running wisdom with fellow runners and administrators, which is why he is playing a leading role in the development of trail running in SA. – BY KIM STEPHENS

Allan is a familiar face on both trail and tar in the Cape, regularly challenging for line honours in the grandmaster category after pinning on his number 60 age category tags last year. Before that he spent the previous 10 years rocking top spot in the master’s category of trail events such as the PUFfeR Ultra, Helderberg and Jonkershhoek Mountain Challenges, Hout Bay Trail Challenge and VWS Trail Run. His credentials also include 31 Old Mutual Two Oceans Ultra medals, with 13 consecutive silvers and a PB of 3:27:41, which placed him 14th overall in 1986, and has completed more than 180 marathons, with a lifetime marathon PB at Cango of 2:30:59.

Even after so many years of running, Allan says his desire to keep running is undiminished. “After turning 60 in July 2017, and still feeling insanely passionate about my running after 35 years, there is no limitation between me and the next runner’s high waiting on trail or road. My passion and pleasure has been derived in both arenas over the years,” he says.

HITTING THE TRAILS
A former founder and Chairman of Hout Bay Harriers, Allan is currently the Chairman of Wild Runner Athletic Club, and until recently was Chair of the Trail Running Association of the Western Province (Trail WP). He continues to serve on the national steering committee of ASA’s Mountain and Trail Running division. He only officially took up trail racing in 2005, but says he had been running trail for many years before that.

“In the early 1980s, we used to run all the well-known trail runs of today as training runs, just not with all the bumph that is used today! Our gear included shorts, shirt, running shoes, and a bank bag – the original collapsible water cup. The Boland 80km Trail and the likes were favourites for Comrades training, and trail running has actually been the backbone of training and success for many runners over many decades.”

“Trail running only really formalised in SA into races during the early 2000s, but since then it has boomed into an international industry and sport. My belief is that trail opens a door to a multitude of fresh young talent, and has helped SA to identify latent talent in so many athletes that road or otherwise would not have noticed, due to all the administrative red tape, and at times bungling.”

LOSING THE PASSION…
Although Allan’s running career has been impressively consistent, there was a dark patch that began at the end of 1993. “I reached a point where my belief in the training and my ambition just took a number of steps sideways. Training was too intense, and the self-imposed pressure to do better got way ahead of me, to the extent that I started Oceans in 1994 and ran to halfway in 1:44:16. By then I had pit-stopped twice, and was feeling sick and overwhelmed that I had to finish this race in a good time. I knew that all I really had to do was to run easy for the remaining 28km, and it would be another Silver medal in the bag, but I came to a sudden decision to just quit and go home. And not just quit for the day, but to walk away from the sport that I loved so much. I was done, and no convincing could change that.”

He says this feeling prevailed all the way into 1996, by which time he was very unfit, but also content. “I played lots of golf, and got down to a handicap of nine. Then in 1997 I was living in Constantia and working from my office at home, directly behind the VOB sports grounds, and day after day I witnessed these folks meeting for their club runs, and just having fun, with no pressure. The thought of running again popped into my head, only this time I knew I can do this, and I knew I want to do this again, but this time I would be smart.”

That saw Allan join VOB and soon he was back in the swing of running. “I just let it happen naturally. I met up with old running mates and competitors from years before, and slowly allowed the desire and the passion to creep back in. The rest is history. What I have learnt from it all is that running is a huge part of my life. I am passionate about it, and I have a very strong will and drive to achieve at it. As long as I keep it a passion and not an obsession, then I will be okay.”

SAGE ADVICE
Having begun running in 1983, Allan has also been coaching since 1986 – he is an ASA Level II Long & Middle-Distance Coach – and of all the advice he has for runners, this remains his personal go-to: “You do not know it all. I certainly don’t. Every day is a learning opportunity. No matter what, there is always something positive to take away from your experience. A bad run or race is part of growing – if you don’t crash and burn, you don’t learn. Consistency is your key to being a better runner, and my pearl of wisdom is that you build a strong endurance foundation, no matter the intended race distance. Think of it as the foundation to your pyramid. A bigger foundation provides a bigger pyramid, and the bigger the base, the higher the peak.”

Adapted and reproduced with permission from an original article written for www.wildrunner.co.za.

Sidebar: On the Right Trail

As a member of ASA’s Mountain and Trail Running Committee, Allan is part of the ongoing efforts to regulate and manage trail running in a way that benefits the runners, organisers and administrators, so we asked him a few questions about the way forward. – BY SEAN FALCONER

MA: Where do you think trail running is headed in SA?
AR: There is a lot of confusion in the athletic arena, particularly from athletes, who just know that the request has been made for some level of functionality within the country, but all they really care about is being able to run freely, not being regulated by the national body.

MA: So is ASA now in charge of trail running?
AR: It’s only by virtue of the IAAF giving the mandate for trail running to be included in national athletics codes that ASA even became involved in trail running, but the status quo has been maintained, with trail still effectively separate. It is thus linked to ASA as an associated body instead of an official commission. Jakes Jacobs is heading up ASA’s Cross Country and Off-road Commission, which trail now falls under, but he and others at ASA have said they want to let trail running sort itself out, without putting too much pressure on the discipline.

Meanwhile, Altus Schreuder is back in charge of the ASA Mountain & Trail Running Committee, with the mandate to promote and organise trail running on a national level, including regular SA Champs and teams being selected for international events. Granted, the last SA Champs at Addo earlier this year were organised at very short notice, but I still think the progress made thus far is positive.

Ideally, I think we need a South African Trail Running Association (SATRA), with each provincial trail body under this umbrella and then also associated with its provincial athletic body. The IAAF has already said it will recognise such a body, as it does with the International Trail Running Association (ITRA), but in SA we’re not there yet. My biggest fear is that people in trail running dragging their heels too long will end up with ASA getting more involved than the trail people want, because to date Western Province is the only province that has been proactive on this front, with its own governing body for trail.

However, Trail WP’s membership is still low, as trail runners and event organisers in general don’t want regulation, but they need to understand that Trail WP is not looking to regulate the sport, rather to function as a mouthpiece and go-between for runners and organisers with the governing bodies, while trying to do what is best for both sides of the fence.

MA: How has all this affected the average trail runner, if at all?
AR: Nothing has changed for most trail runners, and ASA is continuing to leave them to do what they want. No club colours or licence numbers, none of the strict rules of road running… so trail runners can still do their own thing, and the discipline is still growing and going forward. In fact, it’s booming.

MA: What about regulation of event organisation?
AR: Fortunately many players in the sport have been around for a while and most do a good job, but there is a concern that fly-by-night operators can put on events without due diligence, and I dread the day that something big goes wrong at an event. That said, many new organisers are approaching us for advice on putting on events.

MA: And the problem of over-saturation of the market, with events clashing?
AR: Currently there is no control in place, but I do foresee that may be on the menu soon, and it needs to be addressed on a national level. In road running in previous years, we had events that clashed and suffered with reduced numbers as a result, and the same is happening in trail. I’ve spent the last three years trying to get event organisers on a national basis to provide event dates and results, so that we can build a national database for the sport, which will also help with selections of SA teams, but that’s still a long way off.

IMAGES: Dylan Haskin, Hayley Hagen & courtesy Allan Ryninks

Thanks to running, I have overcome osteoporosis, an eating disorder and depression, and while I was never an athlete before, I am now working up to my first full marathon. Has it been easy? Hell no, but I keep moving forward! – BY CHERYL GREEN

When I fell and broke my wrist in 2006, I thought nothing of it… just another broken bone. Two years later I twisted the same wrist and landed up in theatre with another broken bone. Then I had a major shoulder operation, and discovered that I had all kinds of aches and pains, stiffness in the joints, and regular health problems. After many tests and scans over the years, I was finally diagnosed with osteoporosis, also known as brittle bone disease.

At first I did not tell anyone, not even the people closest to me, because I did not want people to make a fuss about it. After all, I was only 35 at that stage! Slowly, however, I fell into depression, and that led to binge eating. Then in 2013, my family was faced by the suicide of a very close family member, which led me to fall even deeper into depression. My life became a living hell, and my relationships, work and financial state were all affected.

Then one day in October 2016, just by fate, as I was looking to get McDonald’s in Green Point to feed my emotional hunger, I found myself in the middle of one of the larger running events in Cape Town, the Gun Run. Surrounded by happy runners, I pondered whether I would ever be able to do just a 5km fun run.

Hitting the Road
That same week I decided to dust off my old training shoes and go for a run around the block. I managed about 800m before my body could no longer take the strain, and ended up on crutches, because of my weight. Reality struck when the doctor told me I would be facing a depression clinic soon, and a wheelchair by the age of 40, so that day I promised myself I would start looking after myself, so that my children can grow up with a healthy mother.

In January 2017, when I weighed in at 107kg, my work decided to start a weight-loss challenge, and with a lot of motivation from my colleagues, I forced myself to join a gym. I had never seen the inside of a gym before! I lost 8kg during that challenge, and for the first time started thinking it would be possible to do a 5km. And so I entered the Spar Women’s 5km in April 2017, which I completed in just over an hour and held my medal with pride, as if I had just won the lottery. I also fell in love with the running community and decided that this is what I want to do.

Around that time I started posting about my journey on Facebook, and in one post I asked, “Is it possible to run the 21km Two Oceans once in my life?” In response, the CEO of Run/Walk For Life contacted me and offered me a year’s membership to assist in this goal. I was over the moon, but also sceptical, as I knew my condition wouldn’t always allow me to run. Nevertheless, in June I attended my first training session with a well-qualified coach, Paul Kelly, at RWFL Table View, and started setting myself new goals.

Going the Distance
By August I was ready to line up for my first 10km race in Pinelands, and I cried my way through the race, as I never thought this would be possible. That was followed by a 15km race, and then my first half marathon in October 2017. Each time I reached a goal, I would set myself another, and recently I completed my first 30km. Now I’m training for my first full marathon in September. I have always had it in the back of my mind to run a marathon before the age of 40, and I will be attempting it three months before my 40th.

My journey is far from over. I want to inspires those around me, and tell them that it is possible to change your life. I am now the proud owner of 60 medals of different races, and to date I have lost 27kg. I’m one of the slower runners on the road, but without the slower ones, there wouldn’t be races. I also recently became an Ambassador for Run Walk for Life and Asics, something that I never thought would happen to me!

Whenever I’m feeling down, I go for a jog to clear my mind and breath in fresh air. Support is also very important, and since I started telling my story, my support system has grown from strength from strength. My depression and eating disorder are now under control, and while I will always have osteoporosis, I have decided to live with it in a healthy way. I now dedicate every step I run to those that suffer with a condition, be it depression or a disease, and I believe that the main thing is to find what you love and run with it!

IMAGES: Courtesy Cheryl Green

Having recently won her first SA senior title, pole vaulter Jodie Sedras is ready to push on to see just how high she can go in this technically challenging field event. – BY ADNAAN MOHAMED

Sitting on the couch in the hotel foyer in Pretoria, the diminutive Jodie Sedras smiles shyly as she answers questions about her latest success in athletics, looking more like a schoolgirl than her actual age of 23. Just a few hours earlier she had been crowned the South African Champion in the women’s pole vault at the South African National Track and Field Championships at the Tuks Stadium in Tshwane. However, it seems reality still hadn’t sunk in for the dynamic little athlete from Strand in the Western Cape.

Standing just 1.5m tall in her socks, Jodie blew away the competition at the Champs, leaping to an outstanding 3.90m to beat Nicole Janse van Rensburg (3.80m) and Tonet Tallie (3.50m), both from the Boland, who claimed bronze and silver respectively. This made Jodie the first Western Province athlete ever to bag a gold medal in the women’s pole vault, and her winning jump also improved her previous best of 3.80m by a huge 10cm.

LATE STARTER
What makes her performance so astonishing is that she only started doing pole vault after she left school four years ago. “I was a gymnast when I was at school, and I had always heard that gymnasts make good pole-vaulters, so, I thought I would just try it out when I started studying at Stellenbosch University,” says Jodie.

“Initially, my intention was just to do it for fun, and it was only when I cleared three metres that I decided to take it seriously. All I knew was that three metres is the first big milestone, and everybody was getting excited about it, so when I cleared the height I thought I was amazing. However, I quickly realised that I am actually not that amazing, so I decided to work harder. The Maties Athletics Manager Mohamed Ally then introduced me to the club’s pole vault coach and I took it from there.”

“Pole vaulting is not an easy discipline. It is extremely challenging, but when you finally get it right, it is very rewarding, because you know you had to work hard for it. To run with a four-meter pole in your hand is hard as it is, let alone jumping. To be successful in pole vaulting is not only about speed, it is more about rhythm. You have to start slower and gradually accelerate, and end as fast as you can,” she explains.

DOMINANT FORM
With her B.Sc degree complete, Jodie is currently studying sports conditioning at the ETA College, in Stellenbosch, and also putting a lot of time into her jumping. “I train twice a day with a gym session in the morning and a vaulting session later in the evening.” This has seen her dominate the discipline in SA for the past two years, having previously won the SA Junior title, but until 2018 she had not managed to win the senior title. The win in Tshwane therefore meant a lot to her, she says.

“Winning gold at the SA Seniors has always been my goal. When I started out four years ago, I knew that I would eventually achieve this, because I consider myself to be someone who works extremely hard. My next goal is to reach 4.10m, and I am confident that I will get there. I also know that I will eventually get to the Olympic qualifier of 4.50m,” That would also see her eclipse the SA Record of 4.42m, set by Elmarie Gerryts in June 2000 in Germany, but Jodie just shrugs and confidently adds, “I think I have accomplished quite a lot in a short period of time, and I am really excited about what I can achieve in the future.”

Sidebar: Pole Vaulting Pointers
•  Pole jumping competitions were known to the ancient Greeks, Cretans and Celts. It has been a full medal event at the Olympic Games since 1896 for men, and 2000 for women.
•  Initially, vaulting poles were made from stiff materials such as bamboo or aluminium. The introduction of flexible vaulting poles in the early 1950s, made from composites such as fibreglass or carbon fibre, allowed vaulters to achieve greater heights.
•  Only three women have cleared five metres: Russia’s Yelena Isinbayeva and the two Americans, Jenn Suhr and Sandi Morris. The World Record is held by the Russian at 5.06m.
•  A number of elite pole vaulters have had backgrounds in gymnastics, including Yelena Isinbayeva.

IMAGES: Roger Sedres/ImageSA

As Gerda Steyn pulled up next to Polish race leader Dominika Stelmach-Stawczyk around the 45km mark of the 2018 Old Mutual Two Oceans Marathon, she did something that had many a pundit thinking back to the days of Bruce Fordyce in his prime. She turned to her opponent and congratulated her on a good run, then went past her and never looked back. Not once! – BY SEAN FALCONER

The famous story of the Fordyce Handshake has become part of South African racing folklore. In the 1980s, the nine-time winner of the Comrades Marathon would pull up alongside the leader of the race, give him a solid clap on the back, congratulate him on a great run and tell him he looked great, crunch his hand in a strong handshake, and then rapidly pull away. The idea was to psychologically tell the now former leader, you may be strong, but I’m stronger, and I’m going to win. And that’s what it looked like Gerda had done to the Pole, but she just laughs when asked if that was her plan. “I actually didn’t shake her hand, because I was worried that she could still catch me again in the last 10km!” explains Gerda.

“Coming down Chappies, I heard she was 800m ahead, and as we got into Hout Bay and hit the marathon mark, I could see her just ahead of me. I kept gaining on her up the Constantia Nek climb and caught her just before the top, and that’s when I said a few words to her, and congratulated her on a great run. She asked me where the other women were, which I couldn’t make out at first, but she repeated, ‘How far behind?’ I told her to relax, she still had a big gap, but that’s when I knew I could win it. Still, I thought she would be chasing me, because she still looked good, so I never turned around again and just ran for my life. I decided I’m going to give it my all, and if she still catches me, she deserves the win. The last five kays were especially hard, and I was not feeling the love in my legs, but that’s how I planned it. The Two Oceans is back-loaded in terms of the hills, so I knew it would be hard and I felt destroyed by the end.”

However, that couldn’t stop a massive smile appearing as Gerda came hurtling down the home straight at UCT, waving to the crowd and punching the air in delight as she broke the tape in 3:39:31. “I was so tired at the end, but that crowd gave me new energy and it felt like I was doing a 100m sprint. Finishing fourth at Comrades last year was incredible, but this is by far the highlight of my running career so far. Actually, of my life!” Remarkably, her winning time not only beat her own previous best for the race by more than 36 minutes, it was also the third-fastest ever by a South African woman at Two Oceans – only Frith van der Merwe’s race record 3:30:36 from 1989 (on the old, faster course) and Azwindini (Gladys) Lukhwareni’s 3:38:56 in 2004 were faster.

RAPID PROGRESS
It’s been a positively meteoric rise to ultra-stardom for 28-year-old Gerda. Born and raised in the Free State, she had always loved sport at school, trying everything, but had never been a runner. Then at university she took up recreational running with a friend for general fitness, and even did a few half marathons, but nothing serious. Having qualified as a quantity surveyor, she moved to Dubai for work in 2014, and it was there that she began to take running a bit more seriously.

“After two months in Dubai I decided to join a running club to make friends and stay healthy. The first time I joined the Desert Road Runners, I met a large group of South African Expats who regularly come back to SA to run the Comrades. They invited me to join them and I said maybe one day, because I had watched the race on TV with my mom when I was young, but just seven months later I was on a plane to SA to attempt my first Comrades. Around the same time I met my fiancé, Duncan Ross, who works for Emirates Airline and is also a Comrades runner.

It was at that 2015 Comrades that her life began to change, when she met Nedbank Running Club manager Nick Bester two days before the race at a pre-race function. “We chatted when I asked him for his autograph and he told me to go enjoy the Comrades, but afterwards I should train specifically for a marathon, and if I can run sub-3:00, he will train me and help me, and even consider adding me to the Nedbank Development Team.” Having run an impressive 8:19:08 to finish 56th in that first Comrades, Gerda then headed to France a few months later for the Nice Marathon and posted a 2:59:54.

“That was the moment that my running career really began. I mailed Nick that same week, then came to see him in December and he signed me on. Initially he coached me online, sending me programmes via mail, but I was back in SA so often that I could train with the local runners – Duncan works for Emirates Airlines, so it was easy to get flights home – and I was already thinking that if it went well I would quit my job to pursue running.

A NEW CAREER
The focused approach to training saw Gerda post eye-catching times in 2016. She finished 13th in the Dublin Marathon with a 2:51:31, was 14th at Two Oceans in 4:15:44, and then took 14th position at Comrades in 7:08:23. In 2017 she won the mass race at the Great North Run Half Marathon in the UK in 1:17:47 and shot up to fourth at Comrades in 6:45:45, and that led her to decide to go all-in with her running. “I had never known I had a talent for running, because I was never exposed to endurance training, but with the success I was enjoying, I decided to resign my job and see where running could take me. I felt I had nothing to lose, because I can always go back to my job.”

That saw her blitz a 2:37:22 PB to finish 12th at the Valencia Marathon in Spain late last year, and this year, prior to her Oceans win, she won the Standard Chartered Dubai 10km in a huge PB of 34:35, and with Oceans now behind her, the focus has shifted back to Comrades. “It’s a huge dream of mine to win Comrades, but I can’t say for sure now if I can do it this year. If not this year, then next year, or the year after that… I will keep on trying, but will have to see how I recover from Two Oceans first, because it’s a dangerous trap to fall into pushing too hard, too quickly. Luckily we have 10 weeks between the two big races this year, so there is enough time for recovery and no need to rush back into training.

Another factor counting in Gerda’s favour is her balanced approach to training. She doesn’t believe in just doing high mileage, preferring to run a steady, manageable amount of kays and supplementing that with cross-training in the form of cycling, swimming, walking and hiking. “I still run six days a week, but the cross-training helps me to save my legs. It works for me, so I’m sticking to that plan for Comrades. I also incorporate a lot of trail running in my programme, especially when I’m recovering, because the impact is less, and I use steep trails for strength work. I think that should be an important part of any runner’s routine, even if you’re training for a flat marathon.”

MAKING PLANS
Looking ahead, Gerda says she is planning a big announcement soon about her plans for later this year – it sounds like a ‘Big City Marathon’ is on the cards, and she says she is equally excited about pursuing the marathon as she is about ultras, thanks to that 2:37 in Spain. “I went into ultras immediately when I discovered I could run, and while I do believe that ultras can kill your speed for marathons, I also believe it comes down to your training, and how you manage your body. Some women could maintain speed for the shorter distances even though they ran ultras, like Frith, and given my training methodology, I think I can too, so I am certainly looking forward to my next marathon.”

Gerda and Duncan are currently living in SA for a while, but will be moving to France in June, after the Comrades. They have been renovating a house in Sainte Foy, in the French Alps region, so she will have plenty of mountain trails to run, hike and mountain bike on. “I enjoy the mountains and I spend as much time outdoors as I can. I don’t like sitting around. In Dubai, there are mountains about one and a half hours’ drive from the city, where it looks like a Mars landscape. We did our best to escape the city often for camping weekends away, but in summer it is impossible to go outside, let alone train, so I am actually fortunate now to escape that heat and am looking forward to training in the Alps… But first I am focusing on the Comrades. Really looking forward to the race.”

Images: Jetline Action Photo, Shaun Roy/ImageSA & Roger Sedres/ImageSA