MULTISPORT
The first bike leg was technical but ( mostly ) enjoyable
Leg 4 : Trekking the Transkei ( 37km )
This was to be the queen stage of the day , with 1000 odd metres of ascent , and we anticipated anything from five and a half to seven hours . This trek had everything , from bundu-bashing through thorn bushes – the final memento of that was extracted from my shin a week later by Dara , who also doubles up as the post-event nurse – to sections on game and cattle paths , jeep tracks and established trails . Common throughout the day was spectacular scenery and wilderness , with the Transkei coast living up to its reputation for remote and rugged beauty .
We made our way down to the mighty Kei River , where a pont ferries people and vehicles across to the Transkei . We racked our bikes , hauled our kayak down to the water ’ s edge , and loaded our backpacks with sufficient food and water , as we expected to be out for a good six to eight hours before we would see my wife again . She had packed some of our comfort food in there , including a couple of generous chicken schnitzel rolls each – our firm favourite , real food , when it comes to long days out .
Leg 3 : Kayaking the Kei ( 6.5km )
I failed to mention that our combined paddling experience doesn ’ t add up to much , nor do our skills , so we couldn ’ t risk a K2 canoe outing , but rather opted for my stable , heavy , fishing kayak ,
fondly nicknamed The Tupperware . We put great effort into every stroke , only to go zigzagging upriver like a drunken driver , while fellow competitors came cruising past effortlessly , their paddles barely causing a ripple . The mood was lifted momentarily when a jumping fish smacked my partner in the mouth , and I laughed , hard . Charlie didn ’ t find it quite as funny . Meanwhile , we resolved to take paddling more seriously in future … as one does under the circumstances .
It took us over an hour to reach the landing point some 6km upstream , where waist-deep , sticky and stinky mud was waiting to swallow us – avoided only by the kind intervention of a local crew member that was working hard by throwing out a rope and hauling teams to shore . Even then , we still sunk knee-deep in it , coating our shoes and socks in mud . Thanks to the heads up given at race briefing the night before , we had stored our trail shoes and fresh socks in our bag and were ready to tackle the long run through the Transkei .
With six checkpoints to be found and only one water station , this stage demanded attention and respect . We ran some and walked some , recalling the good advice I had received some time back from a race organiser in Costa Rica : “ When the going is easy , go hard ; when the going is hard , go easy .” The original advice was in Spanish , but it translates easily , and applies well to this kind of course .
The trekking leg was all about finding checkpoints
Charlie poses in front of one of the checkpoints on the 37km fourth leg
Stef and Charlie had a few problems in the paddling …
72 ISSUE 151 | www . modernathlete . co . za