TRAIL RUNNING
Sediqa Khatieb in action during the 2020 PUFfeR hammies would seize , forcing me to walk . It was excruciating , and there was nothing I could do but down salt tablets and curse .
With a
Huff and a
Puff
With the 2022 edition of the PUFfeR Trail Run coming up on 1 October , it prompted me to take a stroll down memory lane to my first experience of this incredible race on the Cape Peninsula . – BY SEDIQA KHATIEB
About two years ago , just months after the Coronavirus had forced us to run circles in our backyards , I ran my very first Baby PUFfer . The name PUFfeR stands for Peninsula Ultra Fun Run , a gruelling race that takes you from Cape Point to Green Point , and it ’ s fun in the same way that Guantanamo Bay is enjoyable for detainees . There are no markers along the route – how you get from one checkpoint to the next is between you and your God …
The original PUFfeR distance was 80km , but in recent years , the first section inside Cape Point Nature Reserve has been removed , reducing the distance to 65km , hence the nickname Baby PUFfeR . That does make the race slightly easier , but in the wise words of my friend , Charl , “ A baby snake can still bite !”
Just getting a PUFfeR entry is akin to winning a golden ticket to Willie Wonka ’ s chocolate factory . However , unlike Charlie Bucket , who only had one guardian join him on his adventure , I had five friends volunteer to accompany me . ( Some might say my friends were ‘ coerced ’ into joining me , but those people are dirty , dirty liars !) Therefore , at no point during the adventure was I alone . I was carefully handed over , like a relay baton , from one person to the next .
Toilet Humour Time
First on the babysitting roster was Edo . He had run the race several times , and like Google Maps , he would help me navigate the first 30km road section of the race . While Edo led the way up steep inclines , I regaled him with endearing tales of adventure on the run . And by endearing tales , I mean that at some stage I pointed to a Bed and Breakfast and proudly proclaimed , “ I ’ ve taken a s *** there .”
Please note that I ’ m not usually in the habit of showcasing all the places I ’ ve defecated , but this was a particularly memorable instance . About a year prior , when I ran the Red Hill Marathon , my stomach was in a terrible state and there was a lack of portaloos on the route . Looking at every bush , I wondered if it was big enough to hide my bum , and whether I would use my left or right sock to clean myself . So , I was incredibly relieved ( pun intended ) when I came across this establishment .
It was as we were gazing at that B & B , 11km into a 65km race , that Edo realised we ’ d taken a wrong turn , thus proving that he was more like Apple Maps than Google . Fortunately , we soon found our way back on track . Then at the 30km mark , the route changed from tar to dirt . Here I swapped my road shoes for trail , while Edo galloped off , leaving me in the capable hands of Ash , who brought along music , motivational quotes , and copious amounts of much-needed electrolytes .
Come Too Far to Stop
At 35km , after winding our way through Silvermine Nature Reserve into the plantations of Tokai , I started cramping . The pain was sharp , sudden and unexpected , and every time I tried to run , my
By the time I reached Constantia Nek , I was feeling like another Roald Dahl character , Veruca Salt , after being thrown down a garbage chute in Willie Wonka ’ s factory . I was spent , but I ’ d come too far to stop – I ’ d already completed 50km of the race . Sure , the last 15km were the hardest part of the course , and I still had to scramble up to Maclear ’ s Beacon ( the highest point on Table Mountain ), stumble down the steep stairs of Platteklip Gorge , and slide down Signal Hill , but I ’ d come too far to quit .
So , with the help of my new custodians , Naz and Al , on I trudged . Slowly and mechanically , all I needed to do was to move forward , one foot at a time , and my friends did the rest . They nudged me forward , reminded me to eat , and watched me sit down for the hundredth time , never losing their patience . Most importantly , they guided me through the most perplexing part of the race , Smuts ’ Track , where every bush and rock looks the same , and I am convinced that without my two angels , I would have marched off a cliff . Or perhaps purposely flung myself off ... because at that point , tumbling off the mountain would be less painful that limping down Platteklip Gorge !
Almost Home …
Once I reached the bottom of the gorge , I traversed Tafelberg Road towards Signal Hill . There I was greeted by Nikki , the last of my gentle caretakers . She showed me the fastest route to the finish , which meant darting down steep , loose scree . I wish I could say that I did this with grace and aplomb . Instead , I scuttled down that section on all fours , like a crab . By the time I crossed the finish line , my watched had died , my ass was covered in dirt , and my toes looked like raw hamburger meat . But all the pain was worth it . That day I learnt a couple of valuable lessons . Dust shows up easily on black tights , and difficult challenges are easier when you have the love and support of good friends .
Arriving at Constantia Nek , broken but not beaten
Sediqa ran the PUFfeR again in 2021 . As she says , she ’ s a sucker for punishment !
Images : Rashied Dolli , Lauryl Lorio
52 ISSUE 152 | www . modernathlete . co . za