DURBAN North resident Trish Eksteen and Morningside resident Celine Cloete were among the top finishers at this year’s Red Bull Quicksand event in Durban.
The event, now in its second year, saw more than 500 athletes take to the sands of New Beach for a unique, custom-designed one-mile course up and down sand dunes.
The duo, who train at Adventure Obstacle Training (AOT) in La Lucia, were part of a diverse and talented group of athletes to take part in the event.
For Eksteen, a seasoned veteran of Obstacle Course Racing (OCR), the race was one of the hardest miles she’s run.
“The beach sand just sucks the living daylights out of you. Navigating the dunes and the flats on soft sand just burns the quads and calves. I think I bear-crawled up a few hills as the race went on. It is one of the hardest miles I’ve ever completed. Having said that, it was so much fun. It has definitely motivated me to do it next year. I always say, to grow as an athlete, you have to try adventurous events like this. If there is anything that is challenging, that’s where you’ll find the AOT team. My husband, Claude, also did extremely well at the event, finishing fourth,” she said.
Eksteen’s focus now turns to the OCR World Champs where she and Claude will represent South Africa later this year.
For fellow AOT member, Celine Cloete, not having any expectations helped her navigate the terrain on the day.
“I knew it was going to be hard and painful, but I never had expectations of finishing on the podium. It is quite intense running on soft sand but a great challenge. I hope to enter again next year. I always push myself to do better, so we’ll see how the body acts on the day,” she said.
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