Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 125, December 2019 | Page 26

ROAD RUNNING
Parkrun
on His Doorstep
When Jaco Lubbe found that getting to his nearest parkrun was
proving hard – he only has 20% eyesight and thus had to rely on lifts
from fellow runners – he came up with a simple solution. The famous
saying goes, “If the mountain won’t come to Muhammad, then Muhammad
must go to the mountain,” but Jaco decided to turn the saying on its head, and
created his own parkrun, virtually on his own doorstep in Nigel!
– BY MANFRED SEIDLER
As the years have gone by, Jaco (now 43) has
continued dabbling in running, cycling and duathlon,
as well as a bit of swimming. He ran his first marathon
in May this year, completing the Wally Hayward
Marathon in 4:20, but it is the shorter distances
that motivate him to keep going. That saw him
become a parkrun regular at the Silveroaks parkrun
26
in Heidelberg, his nearest parkrun about 15km down
the R42 from his home in Nigel (or “Vetkoek City,” as
he calls it). However, being reliant on others to drive
him around, due to his eyesight, caused Jaco much
frustration, as he was not always able to get to the
parkrun on Saturday mornings if he couldn’t find a lift.
Eventually his frustration got the better of him... so he
decided to start his own parkrun closer to home, and
on 11 May this year the first Blue Valley parkrun took
place on the Bultfontein Farm just outside of Nigel,
with 180 runners turning out. “I approached a dear
friend who owns the piece of land that we converted
into the parkrun trail. He agreed and so we were
set,” says Jaco. However, an even better option then
became available right in town, and thus the Ferryvale
parkrun was established at the Jim Fouche Sport
Grounds, even closer to home for Jaco.
He says he received ample support from parkrun SA
founders Bruce and Gill Fordyce, and the parkrun
facilitator in his region, Chris Hattingh. Chris has
a long affiliation with the sport of athletics, having
been part of Athletics South Africa’s anti-doping
ISSUE 125 DECEMBER 2019 / www.modernathlete.co.za
programme and the South African Institute for Drug
Free Sport. “It wasn’t easy for me. There was a lot of
admin involved – and me and admin are not friends!
Chris is also very meticulous about paperwork, so I
did struggle because of my eyesight, but Chris and
the Fordyces were very helpful, and now I can literally
roll out of bed and be at the parkrun in five minutes!”
Lust for Life (and High Places)
Jaco suffers from Macular Degeneration, a condition
that usually affects people over the age of 60, but in
his case it started early on in life and progressively
got worse. “As a kid I struggled academically due to
my eyesight, which was frustrating,” says Jaco, who
is clearly highly intelligent, as proven by his long,
successful career in the IT industry. However, he left
IT behind, as it was no longer fulfilling him. Instead he
started to look for new outlets for his incredible energy,
something he has always had an abundance of.
“Many years ago when I was still in school, down in
the Western Cape, I climbed the eight highest peaks
in the Western Cape and became Chairman of the
Mountain Club. In 2001 I climbed Kilimanjaro, and I
J
aco Lubbe has always had a love for running.
He believes it ‘runs’ in the family, and while
none of his family members are what you
would call elite athletes, his uncle did boast a record
of sorts. At school, said uncle set a record in the
steeplechase that stood for 32 years, and when it
was finally broken, the school invited him for a braai
to commemorate his achievement! In contrast, Jaco
did not set any records when he attended the same
school. In fact, he almost turned his back on running
after struggling with cross country. “I had to run
6km in 30 minutes for cross country, and I always
struggled, so I stopped running. But I am not an idle
person, and so I took up cycling. That made my legs
strong, and when I went back to running, I found it
much easier.”