RACE CALENDAR
Fabulous Feb Fixtures
South African athletes are blessed with an incredible number of running events , including not only road and trail running , but also many other running-related disciplines , so check out SA ’ s most complete running calendar , featuring two months of upcoming fixtures , and get your entries in , all right here !
– COMPILED BY NICOLE HAYES
From the Ed ’ s Desk … From the Ed ’ s Desk … by SEAN FALCONER
The Moving Calendar
I
began running races in 1995 , and at that time in the Western Cape , there was usually one road race per weekend in the Western Province , and when the bigger , more popular races took place in the neighbouring Boland province , there was no fixture in the Western Province . There were just about no trail races back then , so we ran mostly road . A few years later the number of clubs had grown , and so had the number of road races ( plus trail races were beginning to filter in ), and now clashes became more common , so runners had to choose between some old favourites .
At the time , I thought that ’ s just fair competition – the races that offer a better ‘ product ’ will survive , others will fall by the wayside . However , the number of races simply kept growing , and as I have written before in this column , we now have some weekends where a runner can easily choose between 10 different running-related fixtures in a single weekend in just the greater Cape Town Metropolitan area ( Western Province ), let alone neighbouring Boland . Granted , that is counting road , trail , multisport , orienteering , OCR , AR and Fun Runs , but the point is that it can be hard just deciding which event you want to support . ( And that ’ s before you factor in the cost of the entry , and the cost of petrol to get there …)
A New Type of Clash
As a runner , I already find it hard to navigate the cluttered calendar these days , but as commentator , it can also be frustrating when events clash . Last year I was approached by two events and asked if I could once again handle the mic for them . I had been part of the commentary team at the one event , a three-day trail stage race , for nine previous editions , while I had worked at the other event , an out-of-town marathon , for six previous editions . So , as you can imagine , it was a really tough choice to have to make between them . Both are great events to be part of , and I have always tried to be loyal to events that have made use of my services for several years .
Those two events had never clashed before , but the 2022 calendar was all jumbled as events began coming back after COVID , so I hoped that this particular clash was just a one-off , and that things would go back to normal in 2023 . Sadly , that was not the case , and the same two events clash this year , forcing me to once again have to choose between them when I was approached by both organisers to book that date for them . The frustrating thing is that I don ’ t have a booking on the weekend before that , or the weekend after that .
Similarly , even though it is still relatively early in the year and my commentary bookings for the year are still filtering in , I already have four other weekends where events clash , while other weekends are still open . On the one hand , you could say it is good to be able to offer a service that is in demand , and have the luxury of choosing the best jobs , but not when you have to choose between long-standing clients . Then you lose good business .
Get Used to It …
I guess this is my own version of the ‘ new normal ’ that people so often speak of these days – as I have also written in this column , things are certainly not back to the ‘ old normal ’ we knew before COVID . No , the running race calendar is most definitely still in the process of settling down again , and I suspect there will be a lot more movement on the calendar , and clashing dates , in coming months , if not years . COVID has really shaken the proverbial tree in this regard .
Again , one could argue that change is good , and may lead to innovation and improvement , but it looks set to also mean some disruption and disappointment , whether you ’ re a commentator or just an athlete wanting to participate in some of your favourite events . Time will tell .
The Modern Athlete Race Calendar is compiled by sourcing info from various platforms , including provincial calendars , online entry portals and event companies ’ sites . Thank you to all the organisers , administrators and volunteers that make this sport tick .
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