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I had only taken a couple of tentative steps on that hamster wheel, when it suddenly took on a life of its own.
That last peaceful week of the holiday seems like a distant memory, and there is so much on the go, I don’t really know where to start.
Firstly, a quick wrap up on the N3TC Drak Challenge.
Lots of leg injuries for those who elected to stay at home due to the low river level. They will have kicked themselves the entire weekend when they heard that a last-minute storm had brought the level up to the best that has been experienced in the last 10 years.
They would have kept on kicking when they heard that the weather had been absolutely sublime for the entire weekend as well.
After a small, Hamish Lovemore-inspired speedhump last year, Andy Birkett eventually managed his 10th win.
He broke away on the first day and never looked back.
His “Slummies” teammate, Matt Fenn, made it a 1-2 for East London when he passed Hamish on the second day and established an impressive gap, to claim silver.
Hamish had to settle for the bottom step on the podium, with Hank behind him.
The women’s race was a far tighter affair, with a carbon copy of last years race, when Christie MacKenzie outsprinted Nix Birkett.
Saskia Hockly had made an impressive charge on the 2nd day to join the front two, but burnt a few too many matches in the process and paid the price closer to the finish line.
KZN salvaged a semblance of pride in the main event of the weekend, when the Fouche / Fouche / Simpkins / Simpkins fourball lifted the golf trophy.
The efforts of the small, local, organising committee are almost beyond words. They do such an amazing job and make everyone feel so welcome.
An inaugural CSA kayak cross event was held at Glenhaven rapid on Saturday afternoon.
The organisers were forced to move the venue from the Thrombosis gorge due to the high water level.
The men’s event was won by Brandon Orpwood, from Andrew Kellet, and the women’s event was won by Tess Haremsa, with Emmi Wood coming second.
The next kayak cross event will be the SA Championships, which is scheduled to take place on the Umzimkulu river near Creighton on Sunday the March 9th.
CSA held its Annual General Meeting the Monday after the Drak.
The federation leadership is in committed hands, as, for the second year in a row, there have been no resignations from the board.
The main news coming out of the meeting is that Canoeing South Africa is no more. The board voted unanimously in favour of the proposal to change the name of the federation to Paddlesport South Africa. This will bring us in line with the decision by the International Canoe Federation to change their name to Paddle Worldwide.
The change will also allow the surfski, canoe polo, SUP, Waveski, and dragonboat paddlers not to feel ostracised.
Our new name will come into effect on the April 1st.
The board also ratified the proposal by the surfski committee (also about to have a name change to Ocean Paddling), to hold the SA SS1 Surfski Championships on April 25th at Fish Hoek, the coastal suburb of Cape Town. The race will double as the selection race for the team to represent SA at the World Ocean Racing Championships, to be held in Durban in October. Entries are already open on the CSA (PSA) portal. Please remember to tick the nomination box if you feel that you would look dapper in green and gold.
The SA SS2 Champs will follow a couple of days later when the traditionally large field of paddlers lines up for the Prescient Freedom Paddle around the iconic Robben Island on Freedom Day.
The Freedom Paddle has very quickly established itself as one of the “must do” races on the calendar.
So, it appears that there may be a mass exodus to the shade of the mountain in late April.
In two weeks time, the majority of the competitors will have completed the first day of the Dusi.
The three-day classic sets off from Bishopstowe Hall on Thursday Feb 20th, and finishes at the Blue Lagoon in Durban on Saturday Feb 22nd.
Andy Birkett must surely start out as the odds-on favourite. He stands on the brink of equalling the Pope’s record of 15 wins – a record which most of us, at the time, said would never be broken.
Standing in his way is his training partner and co-winner in a K2 12 months ago, Matt Fenn, as well as a host of valley locals, including Sbonelo Khwela, Msawenkosi Mtolo and Gauteng’s Siseko Ntondini, who will keep the East London ace on his toes.
Looking at the results of the warm up races, there does not appear to be anyone who will come close to Christie MacKenzie in the women’s race, as she heads for a record equalling fourth K1 Dusi title in a row.
There is good water in the system, with both the Midmar and Inanda dams overflowing. So, any significant storms in the catchment area could spice things up.
The SA Marathon Champs organisers are in full swing for the June 13-15 event in Upington. They have already brought out their first bulletin. Time to start planning your trip to the Northern Cape. It promises to be a memorable event.
And for those of you looking for a bargain, the Berg River Canoe Marathon – which takes place from July 2-5 this year – opens entries on Friday (Feb 7th) with some big discounts. Juniors will get a whopping 52% off the normal entry fee and seniors can reduce the entry costs by 33%, but the catch is that you have to enter before midnight on Monday. Entries at the CSA (PSA) entry portal.
That’s all for now. |
