Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 118, May 2019 | Page 21

THE RUNNING
MANN
By Stuart Mann
The Final Frontier
Our intrepid travelling race-blogger took a trip to Upington for a unique desert experience on the run.
(Marathon #209 / Unique Marathon #119 / 9 March 2019)
T
he plan to run a marathon in Upington began at the Mokopane Spur the
night before the Potties Marathon last year. My companions that evening
were the two JKs: Former international rugby referee Jonathan Kaplan
and current Tarzan/Michael Bolton impersonator Julian Karp. Naturally, dinner
conversation was dominated by running talk, specifically various marathons around
the country, and Jonathan explained his goal of running a marathon in every
“athletics province” in the country. For example, Gauteng alone has three athletics
provinces – Central Gauteng, Gauteng North and Vaal Triangle.
When Jonathan originally set his goal, there were 16 athletics provinces – Transkei
was subsequently added – and the only one he had not yet run a marathon in was
the North West Cape. Now, the Northern Cape is the largest, but most sparsely
populated province in South Africa, and is divided into two athletics districts:
Griqualand West, where Kimberley, the largest city in the province, has a good
collection of marathons, and North West Cape, which has just two marathons,
Spitskop and John Nugent, both in Upington.
John Nugent was a prominent Upington optometrist who died of cancer in 2014.
He dedicated his life to eye-care in the region and his legacy is continued by his
son with the John Nugent Marathon. All funds raised from the race are donated
to the Keratoconus Foundation to fund corneal transplants for patients who can’t
afford the procedure. Long story short, the three of us made a tacit agreement to
get to Upington in 2019 for the John Nugent Marathon. Unfortunately, only two
of us made it – a combination of family responsibilities, getting his hair done and
trying to ensure he was able to run a Sunday marathon on the same weekend
meant Julian missed the trip.
s
ari desert sand
Hot, arid Kalah
e can see
as far as the ey
Middle of Nowhere
Having run all around South Africa, I can certify that Upington is the hardest place
in the country to get to. It’s a nine-hour drive from anywhere civilised (and four
hours from Kimberley, the nearest neighbouring city). Only one airline, SA Airlink,
flies to Upington, but a ticket will set you back R6,600 at the lowest fare, which I
make as the most expensive domestic flight in the country!
The flight was uneventful, although it was rather ominous to look out over the
flat, barren wasteland that is the Kalahari Desert just before landing in Upington.
The city is named after Sir Thomas Upington, the first Attorney-General of the
Cape Colony. It was founded in 1884 when a missionary settlement and a police
station outpost (where the police patrolled the vast desert expanse on camels)
decided to merge. The marathon starts and finishes at the Desert Palace Hotel and
Casino, which also sponsors the race. During check-in my eyes were drawn to the
menacing weekly weather report pinned to the lobby wall. Not only is Upington the
hardest place to get to, it’s also routine for the temperature to break 40°C. Only
slightly less concerning was the sign next to it – if the Kalahari heat doesn’t get
you, the snakes, spiders and scorpions will!
I met up with Jonathan for a late lunch and we made plans to combine our intellect
for the evening quiz, sponsored by Nedbank, which would be held in the hotel later
that evening. In the meantime, Jonathan went to try his luck at the roulette tables,
but I’ve got other healthier vices, so returned to my hotel room to work on race
reports for the blog whilst enjoying a beer.
The evening quiz (sponsored by Nedbank) had a great turnout – and with Carel
‘Raasbekkie’ Bezuidenhout as quizmaster, it was a lively and fun-filled evening,
although some of his Afrikaans jokes flew way below my belt. Jonathan and I
thought we’d found the land of milk and honey... shortly after sitting down we were
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