To get their club members and friends on the road safely after hard lockdown, Pirates Road Running recently launched the Pirates Home Run Series.
This involved choosing some of their famous and infamous race and club run routes starting from the club in Greenside to make up a total of 15 runs up to 21km in distance.
There are also two bonus routes, a 32km and the never-run-as-a-race Pirates Marathon.
Runners were encouraged to run these routes in their own time to encourage social distancing, and to fill in their completed runs which would earn them electronic baseball-type cards to complete the set.
Sponsored by Magwitch, the aim of the game was to run the most consistent pace across all distances from 7.5km all the way to the marathon with a cash prize of up to R5 000 for the deserved winner.
“It’s all in good fun, and while some runners are quite competitive it really brought everyone back out on the road and motivated them to up their game,” said Pirates Road Running chairperson, Natalie Mills.
With four 21km runs, including the famous Pirates 21km route affectionately referred to by Pirates members as ‘Over The Mountain’, runners who complete the 15 events get a silver badge to sew on their running kit, as it is no easy feat.
Runners who also do the two bonus routes get the sought-after gold badge and some serious bragging rights.
“With no races on the calendar, Pirates is very aware that we had to be inventive about how we got our members on the road in a safe and responsible manner,” added Mills.
“The Pirates Home Run Series has been a fantastic way to motivate our runners without drawing big crowds, and we’re getting fit in the process.”
With nearly 400 runs completed by almost 70 runners in their own time, the club will soon launch their 50 Club Run Series which will involve tackling some more iconic Pirates routes, some dating back to the 70s.
Non-members are welcome to take part but prizes are limited to Pirates members.
Details: Pirates Sports Club info@piratesclub.co.za; 011 646 5025.
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