Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 159 June 2023 | Page 21

SUB-10:30

Safe Bronze medal

SUB-11:00 Bronze medal

SUB-11:30

SUB-12:00

Please note : Given the nature of the challenge of the Comrades Marathon , runners can fall ill or pick up an injury near to race-day , and should there be any changes in the line-up of Pacesetters , Modern Athlete will post updated info on social media , and the provincial pacesetting organisations will also publicise any updates on their platforms .

Where to Find the Pacesetters

The Pacesetters for each bus will aim to run the whole race together , and runners looking to join a bus early in the race will find them in the following seeding pens at the race start in Pietermaritzburg : SUB-9:00 – Front of C Batch SUB-9:30 – Back of C Batch SUB-10:00 – Front of D Batch SUB-10:30 – Back of D Batch

Safe Vic Clapham medal

Vic Clapham medal

SUB-11:00 – F Batch SUB-11:30 – G Batch SUB-12:00 – H Batch

For more info …

For more info on the official 2023 Comrades Pacesetters , please make contact with Joe Faber , Chief co-ordinator of the 2023 Comrades Pacesetting team , on 072 180 3769 or faberj532 @ gmail . com .

Becoming a Pacesetter

While the Comrades Pacesetters are all experienced in the job , having paced in many shorter races , the provincial pacing organisations welcome new applications to join the pacesetting family . New volunteers will be paired with experienced pacesetters in shorter distance races , in order to learn the job , and can then work their way up to longer distances , perhaps even the Comrades someday .

If you would like to know more , you can contact one of these pacesetting organisations :

• Gauteng Pace Setters ( GPS ) – www . facebook . com / Gauteng-Pace-Setters-GPS-1205368806168863

• Western Province Pace Setters ( WPPS ) – www . facebook . com / groups / 314436651950192

• KwaZulu-Natal Pace Setters ( KZNPS ) – www . facebook . com / Kwazulu-Natal-Pace-Setters- KZNPS-225009847902692

Note : If you live outside of these areas , these organisations can put you in touch with the pacing leadership in your area .

The Ed , Sean Falconer , with the 2018 Comrades Pacesetters

By Sean Falconer , Modern Athlete Editor

I have been exceptionally privileged to be involved with the Comrades Pacesetters since the very first year that we organised official pacing in 2002 , first with Runner ’ s World ( 2002-2008 ), and since 2011 with Modern Athlete . I have been at the race most of those years to hand out pacing flags , photograph and interview the Pacesetters , cheer them on along the route , and welcome them home at the finish .

As such , I have incredible memories of watching the buses come home in either Pietermaritzburg or Durban , and I openly admit to shedding a few tears as I watched the Pacesetters being thanked , hugged and high-fived at the finish line . In 2018 , I even saw Claus Kempen being picked up and carried over the line on the shoulders of his Sub-11:45 passengers . That ’ s how much these Pacesetters mean to the runners , who rely on them to get them home on time .

One of the most memorable experiences was the sub-12 bus coming home in 2005 , in the 80th edition of the race . I was standing at the finish , waiting for the bus to come in , so I was watching on the Kingsmead Stadium big screen for a first glimpse of what I expected to be a big bus . Suddenly they appeared on the screen , with Pacesetters Vlam Pieterse , Roy Tolfts and Henk Keldenberg side-by-side in the front row , and as they passed the camera just outside the stadium , I watched what looked like hundreds and hundreds of runners streaming past , all part of one massive bus .

The stadium erupted with cheering as this flood of runners hit the grass and made its way around the final turn , into the home straight , and by the time the three Pacesetters crossed the finish line , the tail of the bus was only just hitting the grass . I turned to one of my colleagues and said , “ I ’ ve got goosebumps the size of golf balls !”

In 2017 , I was joined as organiser of the Comrades Pacesetters by Buks van Heerden of the Gauteng Pace Setters , and we were subsequently joined by several other pacing leaders from the KwaZulu-Natal , Gauteng , Western Province , Limpopo and Free State pacesetting groups . It soon became apparent that these pacing stalwarts are better positioned to organise the Comrades Pacesetters , so Modern Athlete taken a step back from the hands-on organisation , but is still involved in this great initiative as a media partner .

As such , the Modern Athlete team would like to thank all the Comrades Pacesetters for taking on the responsibility of helping thousands of fellow runners earn their Comrades medals , and we wish you all the best for your race on 11 June !

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