IRONMAN 19 MARCH 2006.

This year I had far less focus on Ironman than I had last year. Tim was now an experienced Ironman and was training with a man far more qualified to keep up with him in Bradley Joubert. However I was a member of the EP Triathlon as I had hoped to be able to compete for the EP team. The events clashed with other commitments so I was unable to focus on triathlon and the training that it demands.

But I still decided to compete in the Corporate Triathlon, which is one tenth of the main event. It was held on the Thursday before Ironman at 16h00. I rushed out of work and put my stuff together. I had one cycle the week before and had trained a bit of swimming for Biathlon so felt that I should be able to do this. Triathlon is a fussy sport with so many rules and regulations and so much stuff required to do the sport so I put everything in the car and we drove down in plenty of time for the event.

As I got to the start I realised that I had left my running shoes at home. Barbara agreed to fetch them for me as I went into the transition area. But what she actually did was to phone Suzanne who was coming down anyway and asked to her go to our house and find them for me. Oops. This allowed her to see what a mess my stuff at home is. How embarrassing!

I walked down to the start of the swim and was chatting there to others doing the event when I saw Sue running down with the shoes so I was able to run back up and put them with my stuff in transition. There were a good number of people doing the event so when the swim started there were legs and arms flying everywhere and as we rounded the first buoy a few were pushed under and there was lot of swearing and moaning. I took a slightly wider berth and pressed on. I had a reasonable swim and was far from last out of the water. I had a good bike ride (18kays). Just as we approached the University it started to rain but this did not last long. I met up with Roz Gerber at the turn. Roz had been off for a few years due to injuries and I had not seen her for ages. So I urged her to stick with me on the way back which she did and we had an excellent return with the wind.

Back at transition I quickly changed into those elusive running shoes and started the 4kay run. This is the part where I feel most comfortable about my ability and was able to overtake a number of people and had a good finish. About 1 hour 13 minutes.

That evening we had cell group at Charles and Ingrid. Being a member of the EP triathlon, I had been asked and agreed to host an out of towner for the Ironman. On Monday I had collected our guest, Gerrit Schellens, from the airport, taken him home and gone back to work. After work on Monday, Barbara, Ally & I took him for a drive around the cycle route and familiarised him with the town and where we lived. He had already been for a bike ride and looked at home. On the way home we agreed that it was to be spaghetti Boglonaise for supper so we stopped at the Spar for groceries and soon cooked up a simple meal with Gerrit doing the vegetables.

This evening I realised how much he was training as he told us that he had been in Potchefstroom for the past three weeks in a training camp. He had done something like 2400kays of cycle, 400kays of running and 100kays of swimming. The amount of supper that he ate confirmed how much he was burning up. I also learned that there is an annual Training camp in Potch. Something like 30 to 50 athletes from all over the world use this facility. This was the fourth year that Gerrit had been there for training. I wondered why they should not use Port Elizabeth, the Triathlon Center of South Africa for their training?

Over the next few days we became friends and Gerrit agreed to come to our cell group. Charles and Ingrid had prepared an appropriate evening with songs of praise as well as talking about how Jesus wanted us to be the best that we can. Gerrit felt quite at home and later commented that he did not realise how Catholic us Africans were. He also said (a few times) how much he had enjoyed the evening. As we left their home Gerrit offered (much to Ally’s delight) to buy Pizzas for supper.

The following day (Friday) we had our own little pasta party at Tim & Suzanne. Before this we had been at Nippers training and I had purchased a few cans of spray paint. So after Nippers we drove to the University back entrance and painted the road with names such as Tim, Bradley, Achilles, Gerrrit, (oops. Three r’s), Paula, Jonty, Alan & Dom. We ran out of paint and time before we could paint all the names that we had planned.

Bradley and Charmaine as well as Alan & Dominique from Durban were at Tim’s for supper. As it turned out they are almost next door neighbours of my brother, Patrick, in Westville. On Saturday morning we did our long run and then later in the afternoon we took Ally down to Nippers training while Gerrit rode down to Bike Check In and met us at Summerstrand. That afternoon the Easterly was blowing the surf up into a Boiling Pot and prospects did not look good for the next day.

We were in bed early but none of us slept well as we heard the wind blowing all night and we had visions of a cancelled swim and horrific bike conditions. But as it turned out the wind had turned in the night and a Westerly was blowing. The sea was relatively calm and the race would proceed as planned. We got to the start at 05.30 and plenty of time for preparations for the event. Here we saw all kinds of people that we were able to greet and give our best wishes. I decided to stay at the water's edge until the last swimmer came out. I met Adrienne there and she was shouting for Paula.

The race started at 07.00 with the guns of the ship at sea. Gerrit, being a professional, was in the front and off they went. It was a two-lap event and by the time the second lap started I was beginning to be hoarse from all the shouting. Incredible how many local athletes were taking part. I felt a sense of pride for all of them. Of course I told everyone that I met that Gerrit was staying with us and that he was going for a top five position. We had arranged to go to breakfast at Elize but the activity and excitement of the morning was just too much for us. It was not long after the last of the swimmers was out of the water than the first of the cyclists was coming round for the first lap. And did we cheer!

And so the day went on. The West wind was blowing quite strongly and this put a lot of strain on the cycle in particular. Lots of cheering and fun. I was on duty in the transition area in the afternoon but could not stay away from the finish as the top athletes were approaching the last lap. Suddenly we started hearing Gerrit’s name. He was closing in on the local hero, Raynard Tissink. Then he passed him! Then he was three hundred meters ahead of him. Then he won the event. Amazing!

Gerrit had this small group of people who he had met over the past few days as his only support group but they made enough noise for all the Raynard supporters. Later, Gerrit told us that he was confident that he could beat Raynard when he realised that there was only 8 minutes separating him from the front runners when he finished the cycle. He has done a 2H37marathon after the cycle and knew that this was his strongest discipline. Gerrit was a little known contender but has been European Ultra Distance Champion for two years and has won a number of these events but never an Ironman. It seems that in Europe there are ultra distance triathlons but these are not know as Ironman events. The name Ironman is a trade name and is a huge investment to stage. He had been 26th at the Hawaii Ironman event but had been ill and his doctor had advised him to take it easy.

Then it was back to cheering our other friends and club members. Some wonderful achievements were recorded that day. Paula, Tracey, Christoph, Mike, John, Deon & Tim friends and family just from the Mill Park Running Group all did well. Tim, as one of the few who were doing their second Ironman, had cut an hour of last years time. Then there were all our Achilles running friends. Paul was the very last man to make the cycle cut off and who wanted to bail. But he had me to contend with and I “forced” him to at least attempt the run. He did and finished! There was Dominique who had told us all how she hated running and walked the entire 42kay in a bit over 5 hours. There was Viv Francis who I have not seen for ages. I was able to run for a few kays with him on the final lap. He also finished the event. Too many people to name but so many heroes. Emotions were high. Spirits were high. What a day!

I had driven Gerrit home. He had hardly got home when the phone started to ring. It was his wife, friends and family from Belgium. They had rented a café and purchased a barrel of beer. It seems that they partied to 5.00am the next day. He also had reporters phoning him at that time. It was clear that he was a national hero back home. In fact from that time onwards, Gerrit could hardly walk anywhere without being stopped for a congratulations, a photo or an autograph.

Monday morning I was too tired to run but Stuart saw me at my desk early in the morning and asked to meet Gerrit later. So when I was able to get a break from work I phoned him, Mike and Tim and we spent some time chatting to him. I also phoned the Algoa radio station and they had an exclusive interview with Gerrit. Later in the day there was a plethora of reporters both on the phone and at our home with interviews and more photo’s. That evening was the gala awards dinner. We went along with Gerrit as his guests. It was great to be together with the people who he had got to know

Many people received awards and recognition that evening. And rightly so. They had achieved what most of us wish for. To be an Ironman! Tracey and Davera were both on the podium as age category winners as was Viv Francis. Standing ovations were accorded to many of these amazing athletes. Finally it was the turn of the winner to be recognized. Gerrit made a great speech where he acknowledged the support that he had received, the organisation and more important to us he acknowledged the table where his new friends were sitting.

The evening was spent with all kinds of admirers chatting to Gerrit, having Photographs taken & books signed. We left at about 11.00pm as I need to be home early. I had planned to go Kloofing in the Groot Rivier in the Tsitsikamma region on Tuesday morning. Tuesday was a holiday.

Fred picked me up just before 6am and we met Mike, Andy, Darryl, Mark & Matthew and set off at about 06.30. We went down in Fred’s Combi. We drove to Natures Valley where we met up with Wayne who was camping there. Interestingly, we had seen a bushbuck crossing the main road near to the Blaukrans River. We left the Combi there and Wayne drove us back to the Highway and the Groot Rivier Bridge on the N2 (just a little West of the Tollgate). He dropped us there at 08.30 and we immediately started our climb down the cliff side. I was wearing an old pair of sandals. These looked like they were going to fall apart. I must remember to wear genuine Rockies the next time I do this type of hike.

Mike seems to be able to find his way wherever we are and soon we were at a cliff face that seemed impossible to descend. But he showed us some webbing that had been left there and we used that to climb down this section. Then it was down to the river. It had been raining quite a bit recently and so the river was flowing fast. The first obstacle was to get into the water. Mike used some rope and we climbed onto a ledge. We had to leap into the water from here. The last time I had been Kloofing with Mike I had been terrified. Now I was determined to overcome this fear and without hesitation jumped. No trouble!

When you go Kloofing, you take a daypack with a few provisions, emergency stuff and something warm to wear. All of this has to be very well double wrapped in plastic bags otherwise everything is saturated and the weight of the backpack becomes unbearable. A wetsuit is a must as the water becomes so cold when you are in the river for long periods. I was wearing Nicci’s small wetsuit. And although I did get cold, it was adequate for the day. The river was very full and we spent most of the day swimming. Mostly I swam on my back, facing upstream, with the pack strapped on securely. There is a lot of buoyancy in the pack and with the water flowing strongly we moved at a good pace. Whenever we got to a rapid I would move into the “cocktail” position and rush down the rapid in what Mike calls a “Bumslide”. What an experience each rapid was. Better that a whole day at the superslides.

As the day wore on we were treated to all kinds of visual experiences: seeing the underside of the Groot Rivier Bridge, Cliff faces and rock formations that were absolutely awesome. We even swam through the spray of a waterfall. At one time the gorge was so narrow that we could almost reach to either side of the cliff face with outstretched arms. It was a tough day in the cold water with long swims, smooth rocks to walk on, heavy packs full of water and very little time to dry out. My backpack is made of some special material that is waterproof. Great if it is raining but it retains the water and I battled to stand up every time we had to walk through a rapid.

We stopped twice for something to eat. I had prepared some ham sandwiches, which I really enjoyed at the first stop but by the time we got to the second stop everything was wet. I also had a Power Gel, which helped me get through the last few hours. Towards the end of the day we were cramping, had sore backs, sore bums, hands were bruised and quite a few cuts and grazes. Eventually we were able to start walking. The walk was probably about 30 minutes and we finished back at camp at Nature’s Valley at 15.00. Of the total of six and a half-hours, we had been in the water for about five hours.

Nature’s Valley has a wonderful shower facility for campers and we made good use of them. Mike and I also saw a second bushbuck in the camp. On our way home we again stopped at the Storms River Bridge and were home before 6.00pm. Thank you Mike for organising a great day. This is a treat that only a very few people ever get to experience. My opinion is that you should be reasonably fit before attempting this. Also know that you are going to have a tough day where all kinds of things are possible. Nothing is certain. This is, by definition, “an adventure”. The activity and the outcome has to be experienced to appreciate what Kloofing is all about. There are no spectators, no awards, no medal and no T-Shirt. But what there is, is a memory that cannot be erased. Sunday had belonged to Ironman but today we were “watermen”! I was stiff and sore when I arrived home but had a good little sleep at the back of the Combi.

This morning Barbara & Suzanne had taken Gerrit to the airport where he had bought them breakfast. He was again swamped by well wishers and left for Belgium at 13.00. He would fly to Johannesburg, London and then home. We anticipated that he would receive a heroes welcome in Brussels and he told us how there were more press conferences and parties planned.

Peter Giddy
22.03.2006.