REDHOUSE RIVER MILE
SUNDAY 20 FEBRUARY 2005.
We had been in East London for the Surfers Marathon the previous Saturday and so had left EL at 04.30 to be on time for church on Sunday. The service was in induction service for the new minister, Jonathan Hobson.
After the service we rushed home and then to the river to get there by 12.00 when our daughter, Ally was due to swim her event, which was a 100meter swim across the river. There were 13 girls in the under 10’s and Ally swam this in about 2min30.
The men’s mile was due to start at 15.30 so I had time for a hamburger, cold drink and a good sleep in the shade while the children (Ally and Jessica) continued to swim in the river under Barbara’s watchful eye. Tim, Suzanne, Emma and Tim’s mother, Anne joined us at about 14.30 and we sat and watched the ladies mile. The first lady finished in about 18mins.
It is a tradition that participants walk to the start. This takes about 15 mins and so at about 15.10 Tim and I walked along the riverside (watch out for the thorns, this is also part of the tradition). Some of the houses along this river are really beautiful and the residents make a day of it on this day with braais and lunches.
Other Achilleans who I saw at the event were Steve Douglas, Craig Wilson, and Jock Sutherland. Apologies to anyone else from the club who I have not mentioned. I also missed my daughter Jacqui (London) and her husband Michael who have swum the event with me in previous years.
Once Tim & I got to the start we were separated in the crowd of men lining up and swimming as they waited for the start. Often this event is swum with a strong following tide. This was not to be the case today as the tide was already high and may have even being against us to an extent. Fortunately the wind was Easterly and helped us along.
Once the gun was fired the men sped off and I was soon being battered by the arms and legs of fellow swimmers. I tried to find a free path and was soon able to settle into a steady stroke. Having trained for triathlons this would be the first year that I did not come last or close to last (there is this bloke with no arms and no legs---they call him Bob--- who I am generally able to beat). I was able to swim the crawl the whole way whereas in previous years I was mainly a doggy paddle swimmer. I finished in 48 mins. I think that Jock and Steve were there about as well. I am sure that Craig was way ahead of us. The cut off time for medals is 45 mins but they felt sorry for me and still handed me this most important memento. I was gratified to see that I had beaten Marcus Burri’s son, MC (7 years old) who finished just after me. Tim had swum a 37mins, which was a very respectable time.
It had been a long hot afternoon and we left immediately after the swim. This event is a part of Port Elizabeth and should be done by everyone. My training in previous years has been my daily bath so I really do not consider myself to be a swimmer, just a participant. Put this one on your event calendar for 2006.
Peter Giddy
20 February 2005.
Sunday, February 20, 2005
Saturday, February 19, 2005
SURFERS MARATHON EAST LONDON FEBRUARY 2005.
SURFERS MARATHON
EAST LONDON
SATURDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2005.
The Surfers is about 18kays of mainly beach running. The event starts at 14.30 from a point along the East Coast resorts road. There are three events. The paddlers, the runners and the walkers. It is a tough event even for the walkers who start after the runners. Barbara & Dawn have walked this event before and will agree that it is not for the faint hearted. The event has been going for about 30 years and is well established in East London as a “must do” event. It is not organised by a running club and so does not fall under ASA. The participants do not wear club colours or licence numbers. The entry fee is a flat R35.00 for all participants and no temporary licence fee is payable.
Mark and Ewan from East London gave me a lift to the start and Richard drove the vehicle back to EL. The road is very busy and narrow and motorists have to allow extra time to get there. I take a bottle of water to the start of this event as the wait for the start can be quite long and dehydrating. I am not sure of the number of runners who tale part but is seems like at least 1000. The start is a narrow path with runners jostling for a good start position.
The starting gun gets the runners going, but anyone who is not right in front has to walk, as the path is far too narrow to accommodate all the participants. Soon after the start there is a choice of the high road or the low road. I personally take the high road but am not sure that it is the best option. Then the runners merge again and now begins the real fun with the route taking runners over some of the worst soft sand and rocks that can be imagined. I try to step in to the footsteps of other runners but this is not as easy as it sounds. Then I run right at the waters edge thinking that the sand will be firmer and this is also not always the case. There are also a lot of loose rocks and fallen trees to cross. The first section is the toughest with slow runners to contend with as well.
I think that the idea is really to watch carefully where you are going and to try to avoid slipping and causing an injury to yourself. This sounds fine in theory but not always possible to concentrate as the lady runners tend to wear as close to nothing as possible and even the quickest of glances can cause the runner to be distracted and lose his footing.
Today we were quite fortunate as there was a steady rain for the first part of the run. This event tends to be very humid and often quite dehydrating as the first watering point is in Gonubie. After about 45mins of running the route takes the runner to the Gonubie River, which has to be swum. Here is the dilemma: if you take your oldest shoes then you tend to slip and slide on the rocks but if you take newer shoes just know that they are going to be full of sand at the end. At the river it is best to jump in shoes and all. The lifesavers have a rope across to assist as the tide can quite easily sweep a runner away from the crossing. You do not need to be a swimmer as there is plenty of assistance at hand.
Having crossed this river there is a boardwalk that leads the runner to Gonubie. From here there is about 4 or 5 kays of tar running. Along this section is where all the supporters stand and drink beers and seconding is done. It seems that last year one runner’s wife was frantic at the finish when her beloved did not arrive at the finish. He was found at about 8 that night still drinking at the Gonubie Pub in his running clothes. It was in Gonubie that I saw Elaine Burger, an ex PE runner from Crusaders.
Somewhere along the Gonubie section is the half way mark of this race. There are no Kay markers and so for me who does not wear a watch this is mainly guesswork. The toughest section of the run is now behind. Once the runners gets back on to the beach there is still a lot of soft sand but not nearly as difficult as the first half and also there are no more boulder sections to cross. So here I was able to get into a rhythm and when Robin Fourie said hello to me I was at first able to keep up with him and then to get ahead of him. I was making the most of the fact that he had run 42 of the Bay Ultra in the morning. This was the first and last time that I would ever have Robin behind me.
The next river is the Quilera River, which was running just over ankle deep, and here we were treated to some water and power aid. From Beacon Bay it is not far to the finish at Nahoon. The only problem is that there is the Nahoon River to cross. This river is also one that has to be swum but as soon as the runner is across the finish is a mere 200 meters away. I was greeted by Ally, Barbara, Dawn and Mark’s Family who had been waiting at the river. Of course Ally had to show me what a good runner she was by beating me to the finish!
I was able to finish in 1h50, which I consider to be a respectable time for this event. After collecting a T-shirt and cold drink I saw Robin sitting in the Beer tent with his head hung in total exhaustion. I do not think that he will do the two events in one day again. I am not certain but I think that Robin & I were the only two Achilleans there for this year’s event. Brian James used to be a regular but as he now lives in Durban he did not take part this year.
For those who like to party, this event offers the necessary elements of: beer, common interest, beer, music, athletic bodies and beer. For my own part I was quite happy to get home to a shower, snack and couch where I promptly fell asleep.
This is a real adventure race, put this one on your calendar for 2006. A lot more fun than the Bay Ultra and we do too many long distance runs anyway.
Peter Giddy
19 February 2005.
EAST LONDON
SATURDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2005.
The Surfers is about 18kays of mainly beach running. The event starts at 14.30 from a point along the East Coast resorts road. There are three events. The paddlers, the runners and the walkers. It is a tough event even for the walkers who start after the runners. Barbara & Dawn have walked this event before and will agree that it is not for the faint hearted. The event has been going for about 30 years and is well established in East London as a “must do” event. It is not organised by a running club and so does not fall under ASA. The participants do not wear club colours or licence numbers. The entry fee is a flat R35.00 for all participants and no temporary licence fee is payable.
Mark and Ewan from East London gave me a lift to the start and Richard drove the vehicle back to EL. The road is very busy and narrow and motorists have to allow extra time to get there. I take a bottle of water to the start of this event as the wait for the start can be quite long and dehydrating. I am not sure of the number of runners who tale part but is seems like at least 1000. The start is a narrow path with runners jostling for a good start position.
The starting gun gets the runners going, but anyone who is not right in front has to walk, as the path is far too narrow to accommodate all the participants. Soon after the start there is a choice of the high road or the low road. I personally take the high road but am not sure that it is the best option. Then the runners merge again and now begins the real fun with the route taking runners over some of the worst soft sand and rocks that can be imagined. I try to step in to the footsteps of other runners but this is not as easy as it sounds. Then I run right at the waters edge thinking that the sand will be firmer and this is also not always the case. There are also a lot of loose rocks and fallen trees to cross. The first section is the toughest with slow runners to contend with as well.
I think that the idea is really to watch carefully where you are going and to try to avoid slipping and causing an injury to yourself. This sounds fine in theory but not always possible to concentrate as the lady runners tend to wear as close to nothing as possible and even the quickest of glances can cause the runner to be distracted and lose his footing.
Today we were quite fortunate as there was a steady rain for the first part of the run. This event tends to be very humid and often quite dehydrating as the first watering point is in Gonubie. After about 45mins of running the route takes the runner to the Gonubie River, which has to be swum. Here is the dilemma: if you take your oldest shoes then you tend to slip and slide on the rocks but if you take newer shoes just know that they are going to be full of sand at the end. At the river it is best to jump in shoes and all. The lifesavers have a rope across to assist as the tide can quite easily sweep a runner away from the crossing. You do not need to be a swimmer as there is plenty of assistance at hand.
Having crossed this river there is a boardwalk that leads the runner to Gonubie. From here there is about 4 or 5 kays of tar running. Along this section is where all the supporters stand and drink beers and seconding is done. It seems that last year one runner’s wife was frantic at the finish when her beloved did not arrive at the finish. He was found at about 8 that night still drinking at the Gonubie Pub in his running clothes. It was in Gonubie that I saw Elaine Burger, an ex PE runner from Crusaders.
Somewhere along the Gonubie section is the half way mark of this race. There are no Kay markers and so for me who does not wear a watch this is mainly guesswork. The toughest section of the run is now behind. Once the runners gets back on to the beach there is still a lot of soft sand but not nearly as difficult as the first half and also there are no more boulder sections to cross. So here I was able to get into a rhythm and when Robin Fourie said hello to me I was at first able to keep up with him and then to get ahead of him. I was making the most of the fact that he had run 42 of the Bay Ultra in the morning. This was the first and last time that I would ever have Robin behind me.
The next river is the Quilera River, which was running just over ankle deep, and here we were treated to some water and power aid. From Beacon Bay it is not far to the finish at Nahoon. The only problem is that there is the Nahoon River to cross. This river is also one that has to be swum but as soon as the runner is across the finish is a mere 200 meters away. I was greeted by Ally, Barbara, Dawn and Mark’s Family who had been waiting at the river. Of course Ally had to show me what a good runner she was by beating me to the finish!
I was able to finish in 1h50, which I consider to be a respectable time for this event. After collecting a T-shirt and cold drink I saw Robin sitting in the Beer tent with his head hung in total exhaustion. I do not think that he will do the two events in one day again. I am not certain but I think that Robin & I were the only two Achilleans there for this year’s event. Brian James used to be a regular but as he now lives in Durban he did not take part this year.
For those who like to party, this event offers the necessary elements of: beer, common interest, beer, music, athletic bodies and beer. For my own part I was quite happy to get home to a shower, snack and couch where I promptly fell asleep.
This is a real adventure race, put this one on your calendar for 2006. A lot more fun than the Bay Ultra and we do too many long distance runs anyway.
Peter Giddy
19 February 2005.
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