McGregor looking for new Comrades challenge

Benoni Northerns Athletic Club (BNAC) top runner Shane McGregor’s next Comrades Marathon goal is finishing the race in under six hours for a Wally Hayward medal.

This will add to his two silver, one bronze and Robert Mtshali medals.

McGregor shaved almost 44 minutes off his personal best time during the 96th Comrades Marathon on June 11 to finish in 06:13:27 for a new milestone.

“I couldn’t have dreamed or planned for a better day,” he said.

With the same conservative approach as last year’s race, McGregor’s pacing strategy was crucial as he arrived at the halfway mark in Drummond in 03:03:02.

Although the final third of the race was challenging, he reached the 45th Cutting in 05:44:54 and ran the final 9km gently to arrive at the finish unscathed, smashing his previous personal best of 06:57:17.

His training included three sub-3-hour marathons, individual runs and several parkruns, covering 2 600km from January. After his analysis with his coach, Ian Morshead, the target was a 6:30 finish.

“The time was never in the picture. Once the gun went off, I got into a rhythm. It was one of those incredible days where the rhythm was fast and I could run like that for the rest of the day.”

With that run, he dipped into the top 100 after placing 93rd overall and 68th in the senior category, an improvement from last year’s 146th overall finish.

“It was one of my strongest finishes. In any other year, I would probably have been in the top 50. It is still surreal that I finished in the top 100 of such an illustrious race. It is an incredible achievement,” he said.

While a sub-6:00 has been in the talk with Morshead for a while, this year’s performance has cemented the idea into his head.

“I think it’s achievable,” said McGregor.

“It has been in the talk with the coach since last year. It’s an illustrious category I would like to be a part of. In a year or two, I have to take six minutes off my time. It would be phenomenal.”

While he would love to break into the top 50 category and maybe challenge for a gold medal, he realises he can’t work full time and be a professional athlete.

“I’m not a professional athlete, but I have the potential. I would like to be in that category and be around the elite runners. I will keep pushing myself and working hard until I get there. My coach and I have set a road map, so let’s see what the future holds.”

Along with Nico Pretorius, they were the only BNAC silver medallists last year, but this year saw Northerns collect 10 with McGregor again opening the gates.

He said this milestone was inevitable because everyone pulled together in the months leading up to the race.

“I would like to believe last year’s results were a stepping stone. I noticed a massive step-up in the club with guys and ladies taking their running seriously and understanding that it’s six months of your life you are dedicating to Comrades. It was phenomenal to see,” he said.

McGregor will run again next year because ‘Comrades is like a drug you can’t shake off’.

“It is one of the biggest single-day events in the world. We always say we are fortunate our home ground is from Pietermaritzburg to Durban, with millions of spectators cheering us on and millions more watching at home. You cannot get that in any football, cricket or rugby match,” he said.

He will now take time to recover and then his next challenge is the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon in October.

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