Images : Courtesy René Kalmer

This parkrun is an out-and-back course and on my way back to the finish line I started to spot and count the running prams . I was a bit upset when I did not spot Andre and Karli in the top 10 , and thought they had perhaps opted to stay in bed , having been ‘ mentally prepared ’ earlier that morning by Andre not to be too upset if they were not on the start line . Then to my surprise ( or not ), I spotted father and daughter with the 12-hour Modern Athlete Comrades Pacesetter at the back of the parkrun pack … singing , clapping and having a great time along the beachfront .

I was the leading lady , cruising at four minutes a kay till the final homestretch , when I was passed by a really well built blonde girl . It bothered me for the rest of the day …. not the fact that I was beaten , but the fact that I thought I knew most of the competitive female runners . ( More about this mystery runner later …)

Out on the Road

Comrades Race day arrived , and this year we had been upgraded as official supporters and had the privilege of ‘ running ’ a water point for the KPMG team . Our point was set up just after Drummond , next to Arthur ’ s seat , so we were up at 4am to get to the point before the first runners passed us . We especially picked this point on the route so I could see the front runners passing , whilst Andre could also see his 12-hour bus mates passing a few hours later … a win-win for both of us ! As the leading

lady passed us at halfway , I realised the mysterious blonde parkrunner was Nina Zarina from Russia . She eventually finished in 22 nd place . Also , seeing the now legendary Xolani Luvuno passing us on his crutches at halfway is a memory I will treasure forever !

However , trust me , this kind of ‘ running ’ is also a long day at the office , and I have new respect for all the supporters that assist runners along the route . At our water point we had tables , a gazebo , water bottles , Vaseline , deep heat , plasters , ice , jelly babies , etc , etc , etc . It was quite a juggle to handle Karli whilst also handing out and assisting the passing runners . Luckily we were positioned on a big climb , so most of our slower runners were actually walking up the daunting hill , giving more time to get them the correct water bottle or special request . These requests ranged from water , ice , food , massaging , motivating and sunscreen , to rubbing Vaseline on all kinds of strange places .

Heading for the Finish

After the last runners had passed us , we rushed to the finish at Moses Mabhida Stadium . What an amazing venue , and an even more amazing atmosphere watching all the runners finishing the Ultimate Human Race , but seeing some runners only just miss the 12- hour cut-off by mere metres , or even centimetres , was a very emotional experience . It was , however , also great to see the happy faces , the camaraderie , the absolute joy and ecstasy of those finishing !

Monday morning and Caroline and I had another ‘ running date ’ where she updated me on all the

excitement of the women ’ s race , as she did live commentary for TV this year . I believe it was the most competitive women ’ s race in years , and a huge shout-out to Ann Ashworth and Bongmusa Mthembu for securing proudly South African victories in both the women ’ s and men ’ s races . The South Africans in general did exceptionally well with five women and seven men in the Top 10 .

All in all , it was a great running weekend with lots of highlights , and for those whose race perhaps did not go according to plan , remember this saying and bounce back : “ The miracle isn ’ t that I finished . The miracle is that I had the courage to start .”

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