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Atleet oorleef aanval deur swerm bye
Die voormalige Suid-Afrikaanse Driekamp-atleet, Sylvia van Tromp van Vanderbijlpark, het gister in Buffelspoort ‘n noue ontkoming gehad toe ‘n swerm bye haar tydens die Woolworths X Tri Buffelspoort Driekampbyeenkoms aangeval het.
Die nagmerrie-aanval het tydens die bergfietsskof gebeur, maar sy is gelukkig deur bemanning van Wild Air Sport gered. Die ystervrou wat sy is, het sy na die aanval deurgedruk om die wedloop te voltooi.
Hiernaas volg die inskrywing op haar Facebookblad wat die nagmerrie-ervaring in haar eie woorde beskryf:
Yesterday’s inaugural Buffelspoort @ww_xtri was overshadowed by a near-death experience for me. I know it may sound dramatic but it was truly terrifying.
I was attacked by a swarm of bees on the mountain bike leg. As the black cloud descended on me and the relentless stinging continued, all I could think to do was protect my face and chest.
I couldn’t outride them, there was nowhere to hide. At this point unbeknownst to me, the race had been diverted away from where I was. There was literally no one in sight, no help on the way.
What do you do? Pray!
God kept me calm and sent me angels. Sean Henderson came past but couldn’t come close to me but his mere presence was reassuring.
The Wild Air Sports crew came out of nowhere to my rescue. Fearlessly they loaded me into their car and sped away without a thought for their own safety. Thank you, guys.
But what about my bike, left abandoned up the road?
In my mind, there was only one option. Finish what you started.
So out of the car I got and headed back to my bike. There were still so many bees around and there was a moment when I felt instant regret.
After getting back on the route I was still picking bees out of my hair for about 5 minutes.
My head, ears, back, and arms bore the brunt of the attack.
What made me continue? My mom taught me that bee stings are lucky. Apart from the obvious pain, I didn’t have any tightness in my throat or chest, so why not? I kept up a reasonable pace on the bike but the run was a different story.
By the time I reached 3 km on the run, the adrenaline had stopped surging and I had some seriously wobbly legs for a few kilometers.
Buffelspoort is renowned for its tough terrain and as I crossed the finish line I was overwhelmed by what I had accomplished.
The support I received from the race organizers and the medical crew was amazing.
Thank you, Woolworths for the incredible goodie bag that included socks, cap, hat, t-shirt, chocolates, flowers, and lots of other treats. You have set the bar very high for future events.
I am tremendously grateful that I was able to win despite my ordeal.
Although at that moment it was terrifying, I am thankful that it happened to me and not to someone who is allergic to bees.
What kept me going was a quote I read in the week: “Do hard things, with great joy.”
It could be easy not to see the joy in this experience. I experienced the closeness of God. He was with me in this fire with me.
Hier is ‘n skakel na die oorspronklike berig op die webwerf van die Herald se susterkoerant Vaalweekblad:
Valie oorleef aanval deur swerm bye | Vaalweekblad
