Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 131, June 2020 June 2020 | Page 42

Llandudno Ravine, Table Mountain Challenge
A Decent Descent, Table
Mountain Challenge
even Newland’s Forest, my ‘home ground,’ felt like
walking through adhesive polyurethane!
I then turned to food, as peanut butter has been the
solution to many of my life’s woes, and that fuelled me
for all of about three steps, but I had wallowed in the
proverbial ‘pain cave’ for long enough, and I sent off a
prayer of desperation and negotiation. I then switched
focus… from my burning feet to the cool, fresh smell
of the rain. I felt the leaves gently brush over my
aching legs as I ran through the forest. The pounding
of my heart was settled by the sounds of the sea,
waterfalls, birds and the wind in the trees.
Finally, by 33km, the sun squeezed through tiny gaps
in the clouds, lighting up the home stretch along the
front of Table Mountain. A wondrous experience and
true appreciation of the exhilaration and exhaustion
of endurance running. I then contently travelled on
auto-pilot (or zombie mode) to the finish. My last
climb included a somersault crossing over a colourful
bouncy house to finish in seven hours and 49 minutes,
placing me 11th in the women’s race. Cue Leigh:
“That was brutal… I want to do it again!” (With a few
swear words in between.)
An accurate expression of
how TMC went for me
Post-PEACE Trail
posing with Tuffy,
Go-Go and Luna
Lesson #7: It is always a good idea
to run for a good cause
My next mission started when I got the opportunity to
run the Cape Town PEACE Trail 22km for Team SPCA,
where I raised funds for this awesome organisation
fighting for animal rights. I received great support
from amazing humans, who donated a total of R5388
towards looking after the animals housed at the Cape
of Good Hope SPCA.
Sidenote: I encourage more people to support local
animal shelters, by donating money, food, blankets
or volunteering time. Better yet, adopt a fur kid. They
bring so much love and happiness into your heart and
home, and the greatest loyalty and friendship that
you’ll ever know.
Lesson #8: It is always a good idea
to run with a hydration pack
I spent some time debating whether or not to run with
my hydration pack. When I realised it masked the
very cute Jack Russel on the front of my Team SPCA
shirt, and covered the cute kitty printed on the back, I
decided to run without it, knowing I’d have two water
points on route. Come race day, I completely missed
the first stop, so I struggled until the top of Signal Hill,
where the second water point granted me a semirehydrating
sip to finish the last stretch.
Images: Barbara Cole, Dylan Haskin, Ray Chaplin, Sean Altern, & Courtesy Leigh De Necker
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ISSUE 131 JUNE 2020 / www.modernathlete.co.za