TRAIL RUNNING
correct , Johardt could possibly lose the opportunity to attempt the FKT . Secondly , if you get a window of opportunity in the Drakensberg , you take it . However , Johardt also knew that by extending his attempt , he would be treated like a king for an extra couple of days , lying in his tent whilst being served coffee , rusks , food , water and compliments . He milked it .
As we peeled out of our tents on Thursday morning , the sun was already a couple of hours into the sky . The weather was perfect , just like Sven ’ s wife had predicted . The camera crew was excited , they had ideal shooting conditions and a secondary plan . As soon as they could get the shooting out of the way , they could start fishing , leaving the all-or-nothing attempt purely in Johardt ’ s hands .
Playing to the Camera
Packed and loaded with camera gear , peanut butter Portuguese rolls , a foldable cooking set and coffee , we headed out for a morning of shooting : “ Just run that hill quickly … Now , run back … Just run around the next corner … [ whistling ] Ok , Johardt , one more time .” From what was going on , I quickly realised that Johardt was going to find his Drakensberg legs sooner rather than later , as he was doing intervals all morning under the direction of the camera crew ! Meanwhile , we were treated with stunning conditions , saw some mountain buck , beautiful valleys , green grass banks , the Trojan Wall , and even the Old Woman Grinding Corn . Arlo was intrigued by that name .
The intervals continued as the camera crew directed Johardt to run up and down probably one of the steepest sections of grass in the whole of South Africa . Sven was adamant : “ Listen , we are here to shoot the film , you are here to run , so run . Surely you can run this section ? We can ’ t have you walking in a running film !” Johardt was more realistic : “ I will be walking this hill in the attempt .” But Sven was flabbergasted : “ No man ! Are you serious ? Even I can run this with my eight-kilogram backpack full of camera gear . How can you not run this bit ?”
As we finally reached the plateau – both in terms of that grass bank and our humour – we decided that that was going to be the coffee and interview spot . Sven finally came to his senses after walking the ascent and had an interesting film story up his sleeve . Arlo was shooting a time-lapse of this final good weather on offer , looking busy and passing batteries to Sven upon request . Now the calculated questions were being thrown at Johardt one after the other , and suddenly , things were serious . One thing that I noticed , though , was that although Johardt might have moved to the Cape , his roots were still pretty much grounded in the Lowveld , and so was his accent . Then Sven reeled me in for a few words . With my washed-out shirt , a visvanghoedjie , my worsethan-Lowveld English , and half unshaved face , I was being pranked with an interview of my own …
Going Exploring
Whilst they were wrapping up the interviews , I decided to head out in search of a mysterious dinosaur cave , but couldn ’ t find it . I then took what was meant to be a shortcut back to the camp and was reminded once again to never underestimate the Drakensberg . Valley after valley , hump after hump , spear grass , thorny shrubs , river crossings , and dead-end animal trails … It all added up , scratches over scratches , cuts within bruises . While moving slowly , I glanced back and saw some heavy , dark clouds rolling in over the escarpment . I could feel the temperature drop , and all of a sudden , I needed to get back down to safety , fast .
On a few lesser-used trails , some of which were only animal paths , I finally made it back to camp ahead of the storm and could hear the others chattering around the corner just as I eased into my camping chair . I couldn ’ t understand what took them so long , though . They were on the standard
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