According to the route description , we only run the flat side of Northcliff !
The race website has the most detailed and expressive route description I have ever seen . My pre-race preparation included a detailed study thereof , and I was impressed at how well the Jane Austen-esque language brought the familiar stretches of road to life . However , I was dubious when the prose switched genres into science fiction , reading “… crossing over Beyers Naudé Drive onto the flat side of Northcliff .” I have run through Northcliff many times , and I can categorically state that there is no flat side of Northcliff !
finding your true north – and accomplishing what you want to accomplish through your running journey .”
The route description further deviates into the alternate reality multiverse , stating , “ The next 5km through Northcliff is where you ’ ll find your Energy , Strength and Power recharged . It ’ s a fast , excellent recovery , with fun and fast racing sections all the way to the 30km mark .” I think that Graham Block must have had his nose too close to his motorbike ’ s exhaust pipe when he wrote this . I can see “ fun and fast racing ” occurring on the back of his high-powered K1200 BMW on the streets of Northcliff , but it ’ s never going to happen on these two legs .
With about 5km to go and the temperature pushing 30 ° C , I was having a full-on meltdown , when out of nowhere a downhill appeared just as my sedentary brother in Australia called me on Skype . We hadn ’ t chatted in a couple of weeks , and I found renewed energy as I asserted my sporting dominance over him with some good conversation on the trot as a couple more kilometres flew by . ( For the record , the marathon score is Stuart 244 , Alistair 2 ).
On the home stretch , I once again applauded Graham Block and the Run Zone team for all the delicious shade they crammed into the route . Even with the midday sun beating down , there was plenty of foliage to take cover under as I slowly completed the last few kilometres back to Marks Park .
Let ’ s just say that Northcliff made it easy to stick to my ‘ second half of the marathon ’ plan , which was to ‘ walk the uphills and run everything else ,’ and it took a long time to get to the 30km mark . The good news is that there are some easy post-Northcliff kilometres to get you into the mid-30s , but with the temperature heading upwards , the COVID-kilograms were starting to weigh me down .
Finding North … and the Finish
While the route description on the website is an elegant textual tapestry , the ‘ Race Story ’ section reads like it ’ s had a triple-bypass through Google translate . It includes references to pyramids , ley lines , nodal points , vortices , Stonehenge and even the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy , all under the heading , “ The Most Epic Running Story Ever Told .” To be honest , I am not sure what to make of it , so I asked Graham to clarify the ‘ story ’ and the summarised version is , “ It ’ s about
Less than two kilometres to go , and full shade coverage from the midday sun
Images : Martin Mulder & Courtesy Stuart Mann
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