COMRADES Marathon veteran, Basil Kok,56, has reached a milestone of his 30th completed Comrades marathon on Sunday, 29 May.
Surrounded by family, friends and strangers turned supporters, Kok never had a doubt in his mind about finishing his 30th run. “It was an awesome feeling as I ran because everywhere I looked there was someone who cheered me on,” he said. Armed with a banner, the runner proudly displayed his achievement for the world to see.
The down run from Pietermaritzburg was not an easy task. The ice cold weather of 6 degrees threatened every runner with sore muscles but for Kok it was not difficult. Months of hard training and years of experience helped him with the gruelling run. “It’s an adrenaline rush once the excitement from the race kicks in. Throughout the day I made a lot of friends and I learn from other people and their experiences during the race,” added Kok.
With his 30th run milestone being reached, the Comrades runner can now focus on his next goal of training novice runners. “I would love to do that, I want to help them with training and also run alongside them in the Comrades. But they must know there will be pain, especially if you are doing it for the first time. But don’t let that stop you,” he said.
He advises new runners to start off small and work their way up. “Start with a 5km run and build up from there. Even if you start with walking, then easing into running – it’s all about keeping active and fit all the time,” said the runner.
He would like to thank Tyron Kopman from the Melron Group for sponsoring a bus so the whole family could go up to Pietermaritzburg.
