Vaal River Race prepares local canoeists for the upcoming Dusi
PARKHURST – Clinton Cook commented on the event saying that he was pleased to win the event after completing his first Vaal River Canoe Marathon at age 14.
Local paddlers excelled in the Vaal River Canoe Marathon on 5 and 6 December.
The two-day 70km race was a seeding event for the upcoming Dusi Canoe Marathon in February – the world’s toughest canoe endurance marathon.
Parkhurst resident Clinton Cook finished in first place in a time of 05:20:00 while Roger Stubbs from Forest Town was first in the sub-master age group podium position in a time of 05:50:00.
Jennie Dallas of the Gauteng Canoe Union said with lockdown restrictions, many canoe racing events had been cancelled or postponed, however, with the Dusi taking place at the end of February, training and race points would be vital to river canoeists.
In Gauteng, the Liebenbergsvlei Marathon at the end of November followed by the two-day Vaal River Race in early December and then the two-day Klip River Race scheduled for the end of January would be good training.
According to Dallas, the Vaal River Canoe Marathon is well recognised as a tough grinding slog of a river race. The race is good preparation as the Vaal River is wide and shallow, with sections that have little flow to push canoes.
The start of the event was rainy, overcast and cloudy with low water levels and the Vaal Dam just above 30 per cent.
Cook said he was pleased to win the event after completing his first Vaal River Canoe Marathon at age 14.
“The water level was slightly low which made it a bit technical in the top section of day one and two… The Vaal has offered a chance to get some good distance for the Dusi. It’s important to be paddling and running fit for such an event,” added Cook.
Stubbs said he was pleased with his performance and looking to prepare for the Dusi it was necessary to up the intensity and link running and paddling in early January.
“Running with the boat on your shoulders is very different to running. It’s a great challenge and with the high water levels in the dams in KZN, it looks like it’s going to be a great race. Let’s hope the Covid scenario doesn’t interfere too much with the race,” added Stubbs.
