SPRING Day this year will trigger the start of an off-road adventure frenzy in the Southern Drakensberg.
Thursday 22 September’s Rhino Peak Challenge sees an exclusive group of some of the country’s top trail runners and sporting and conservation personalities come together in the Maloti-Drakensberg Park to contribute towards the saving of two critically endangered species – the rhino and the bearded vulture.
In celebration of World Rhino Day, the Rhino Peak Challenge’s 24 invited participants will be locked in a ‘race against the clock’ as they attempt to summit and descend the iconic Rhino Peak as quickly as possible.
The 12 elite trail runners are tasked with beating the respective three and half hour and four hour men’s and women’s cut-off marks while the twelve ‘VIP’ participants do battle against their own self-determined cut-off time.
By utilising their public profile, participants seek to secure pre-race pledges from individuals and corporates alike.
Each pledge is then multiplied by the difference between participants’ cut-off time and their actual race time, with the group’s sum total going to the event’s official beneficiary, the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) – split between the EWT Sniffer Dog Programme and the EWT Bearded Vulture Captive Breeding Programme on a 50/50 basis.
Then just over a week later the Fedauto Sani Dragon then sees Underberg, Himeville and surrounds welcome a gathering of elite and social cyclists to the region on Friday 30 September and Saturday 1 October for the two-stage Sani Dragon and Sani Dragon Lite MTB events.
Taking place during the annual Underberg Farmer’s Association (UFA) Agricultural Show, the Sani Dragon starts and finishes at the UFA showgrounds just outside Himeville daily.
The opening day incorporates some of the most scenic district roads, jeep tracks and single track in the Underberg and Himeville area, paving the way for day two’s unique highlight – the opportunity to summit the renowned Sani Pass.
Compared to the Sani Dragon’s approximate 60km daily distances, the Sani Dragon Lite offers participants a shorter, 40km per day option that on day two goes to the SA Border Post without going all the way up Sani Pass.
The 2016 Rhino Peak Challenge takes place on World Rhino Day on Thursday 22 September. Participation is by invitation only however pledges can be submitted and more information found at www.rhinopeakchallenge.co.za.
The 2016 Fedauto Sani Dragon in association with Mortimer Toyota takes place on Friday 30 September and Saturday 1 October. Entries can be submitted and more information found at www.sanidragon.co.za.
