HOEDSPRUIT: Conquering a mountain and then some
It was an epic two days with many people totally amazed at what we have right here in our backyard. Many runners had no idea of the magnitude of Mariepskop and vowed to be back to conquer the beast.
The multi-stage K2C trail run took place over the weekend with 150 runners participating in the 46 km Marathon and 70 people taking part in the 74 km Ultra event.
The 46 km event was split between a 26 km route on day one and a 20 km route on day two. The gruelling Ultra marathon had a challenging 44 km race on day one followed by a 30 km event on day two.
Day one saw the runners climbing up Mariepskop from Franklyn Park in the dark because of a 5:30 am start. The first climb was different to last year and proved to be the biggest factor in toughness.
The first 5 km saw the runners tackle climbing an HC category climb, the HC category is the toughest you can get, with the runners battling a 900 m elevation gain.
The route then took the runners in an anti-clockwise direction towards the Klaserie waterfall for some spectacular views.
Shortly after this the 44 km and 26 km runners split, the marathon distance heading towards the Western side of the mountain for a loop before the decent.
The Ultra runners headed back down the mountain towards the Blyde picnic spot to begin another brutal climb of approximately the same magnitude as the first.
After this second ascent, the runners joined the same loop back as the Marathon runners had taken.
Last year’s results:Â Kruger2Canyon Trail Run a huge success
The descent down the first hill that was climbed in the early hours of the morning proved to be the biggest challenge for many. Attempting that kind of descent on extremely tired legs is not an easy task. This was evident by the sweat, blood, bumps and bruises at the end.
The sense of achievement at the end was an unbelievable sight as you saw runners shedding the odd tear or two when they suddenly realised what they had achieved. Many overcoming some serious inner demons.
Day two was a far more manageable affair, however, still far from easy. The run takes you out of Franklyn park into the big 4 Madrid Game Reserve, part of the Blue Canyon Conservancy. The biggest challenge here was for runners to actually get to the start after the gruelling day one.
Many runners did however brave the day and once the legs got warm the race was on.
The Marathon distance runners were transported to Madrid gate via game viewer for their start and the Ultra distance runners started once again out of Frankyn Park and headed through ravines and bushveld to join up with the marathon runners in Madrid.
It was an epic two days with many people totally amazed at what we have right here in our backyard. Many runners had no idea of the magnitude of Mariepskop and vowed to be back to conquer the beast.
As well as the more above mentioned challenging trails, there were single day entries for the 5 km and 10 km Marepe Trail run on Sunday. Lowveld Trail Running and KZN Trail Running have partnered up to bring local events like Marepe to the Lowveld. This will later on become a stand alone event.
Read: Tzaneen’s Tuffy Marathon in the mist
For the Ultra distance event, the first placed men’s title went to Jock Green in a total time of 8:14:03.
The winner amongst the women participating in the Ultra event went to Karine Bezuidenhout in a total time of 9:33:14. Karen is a ex pupil of Laerskool Mariepskop.
It can be noted that on day one, the last person clocked in with a time of approximately 12 and a half hours, with the winner completing it in under six hours. This proves just how tough it really was.
The people that completed it can be extremely proud to have achieved something so special.
