Bruce and second-placed Bob De La Motte after their epic duel in the 1984 Comrades
INSPIRATION
medals, just points for your team. We raced these so hard that it made us so strong.
I remember the Issy Marks Cross Country 12 kays in 1983. It was four laps around Zoo Lake, and when we started the last lap, I was leading, but with about two kays to go, the fast boys kicked for home, and I finished fifth or sixth. The late, great Kenny Jacobs told me afterwards,“ Bruce you’ re going to win Comrades this year, you just did not have that last, fast gear today,” and that was the year I had my best Comrades run! Incidentally Wits won the league title twice and do you know what we got? A Parker ballpoint pen with‘ Transvaal XC’ engraved on it!
The controversial black armband run in 1981, to protest apartheid
In’ 81, I was most hated with the black armband, and that was a really tough race for me. But Madiba once told me,“ Bruce, we took note. We saw what you did.”
My strongest run ever was in’ 83( although’ 88 was pretty good too), when I won by 15 minutes. What was amazing about that run was that if you told me on the finish line to do two more kays, I would have been able to. I cannot tell you what it was on that day, but it was a super run. I must have been tired, but I don’ t recall being‘ moeg’ like you normally would be at the finish. I was so pumped after that race that I could not sleep, and walked around the hotel corridors until 12 at night because I still had so much adrenaline!
I also remember charging up Polly’ s and former winner Manie Kuhn shouted at me that if I’ d cut my long hair, I’ d run faster. I was able to shout back:“ No. It’ s because of my long hair. I’ m as strong as Samson!”
AG: You’ ve become a valued and much-loved member of the television commentary team. Have you found this role challenging?
BF: Arnie, you know it yourself, it’ s very challenging. You also know that when it’ s live, it’ s quite daunting. If I commentate on Two Oceans and Comrades, that’ s where I’ m needed. I know both races so well, and when we do the post-race run-through of the route off tape, I get to do the voice over. This year at TOM the rest of the commentary team clapped for me when I’ d finished it, because I know the route so well.
joined him. Now she’ s a podium finisher in her age group at most races! There’ s also the other side of the coin:‘# comradestoparkun, and I’ m leading that lot! Danny Oosthuizen is an example here: He ran 25 Comrades and got a whole lot of silvers and bronzes, but then he got bored and stopped running for 15 years. He is now a parkrun regular and does the odd 10-kay race, and he’ s done close to 500 parkruns in the meantime.
AG: Do the runners of today train harder than what you did?
BF: I don’ t believe so, but I do think that today’ s athletes rely too much on coaches. Alan Robb did what the Germiston Callies lads did, and I trained the way the Witsies did. I can tell you, there’ s too much thinking. We always get asked what is the least amount you have to do to complete the race, and Alan said an interesting thing the other day:“ Just get on with it!” Isn’ t that brilliant?
Today’ s runners train more scientifically, the shoes are much better, and they have gels, and recovery aids. But I know that the backbone for us was cross country... Cecil Payne Stadium, in and over the mine dumps, Gillooly’ s Farm, wherever, in the winter afternoon heat. It was 12 kays on a Saturday afternoon as hard as you could go. No prizes, no
About the Author
AG: Your thoughts on the times that the women are clocking today?
BF: I can’ t believe it, hey. The legendary Frith van der Merwe opened the door and she showed us what was possible. A few years ago, when I think it was Gerda Steyn’ s first or second victory, the’ 74 and’ 75 winner Derek Preiss and I were watching, and he said,“ Bruce, she’ s running more or less the same times I ran to win, and when I finished in’ 74, I was a basket case and my dad led me away to get a drip. Look at Gerda? She’ s running back out, blowing kisses, celebrating.” I had to laugh. No, the times that we are seeing from the women, and Gerda in particular, are just astounding. And it’ s great!
AG: Lastly, any Comrades regrets? BF: Not many, but perhaps I would have done it differently in 1980... If I’ d been a bit more courageous, I could possibly have won. I gave Alan Robb seven minutes at halfway, but at the end had closed it to two minutes. But then again, he had three wins and was going for the win on the Down Run, his favourite. I could see Al down the road, but he just would not slow down … very selfish of him!
But here’ s the thing: I’ ve got my 11 gold medals, and the silver and bronze medals. The gold and the bronze stays the same, but the silver, I have to polish every two weeks … and it reminds you of how you screwed up! On that, when Gerda was second to Ann Ashworth, she came to me afterwards and said,“ Hey Bruce, second sucks, hey?” I agree.
Arnold‘ Arnie’ Geerdts is a well-known television and radio presenter and host, and also works as an event commentator at many running and sports events. In a former lifetime, he was also a running journalist and magazine editor. He has run the Comrades 10 times, with a best of 7:19:34, and is the proud owner of Green Number 1120
Comrades is always fantastic to talk about. There’ s this intense human drama. The different medal struggles, and the silver medal cut-off. But without being condescending, it’ s difficult to commentate about people mostly walking for four hours. That’ s when we do lots of interviews. And then in that last hour, the excitement ramps up again. It is a long day, though, and I even take my own good coffee to help me through. Because we work in shifts, I do break away to hand over some Green Numbers, and that is really refreshing to do.
AG: Right at the other end of the spectrum, has
your parkrun movement influenced the Comrades?
BF: Oh, no doubt about it. It’ s helped to grow
the numbers. We’ ve now got something called # parkruntocomrades’ and‘# parkruntocomradesinayear. For instance, our friend Jo van der Walt is a good example. She got irritated with her husband, Jaco, who would go out to run parkruns on Saturdays, so she
Bruce’ s winning streak in the 1980s inspired a whole generation of South Africans
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