TRAIL
Early leader Robbie Rorich enjoyed the technical running
Robbie Simpson crossing the Bloukrans River
Tearing up the Trails
With so many of the world ’ s top trail runners taking on the Otter each year , it has become the norm to see scintillating racing over this incredibly tough and technical trail . This year was no different , with debutant Robbie Simpson of the UK and former women ’ s winner Bianca Tarboton winning the 15th edition of the race . However , the adidas TERREX athletes claimed their victories in different ways , with Simpson relying on the experience of others in the first half of the course , while Tarboton tapped into her extensive route knowledge to win her second title in her fifth finish .
Overnight rain and fears of precipitation throughout the day led to nerves on the start line in Storms River . Yet , despite half an hour or so of heavy rain in Natures Valley , while the short-course Dassie event was taking place , the sun eventually came out , producing perfect trail running conditions . It was cool , but drying , with a light breeze . Only the conditions underfoot made the going tougher than usual , with slippery rocks , roots and swollen rivers all adding minutes to the finishers ’ times .
“ I knew beforehand that it would be challenging with the wet weather , especially with the slippery rocks ,” says three-time winner Johardt van Heerden . “ And it certainly was challenging , especially on the technical section to Ngubu . We kept it controlled and careful until there , but Robbie Rorich just pulled away .”
Renowned for his technical skills , Robbie Rorich thrived over the first 20 kilometres of the course . After establishing a lead past Ngubu Hut , he built a 45-second lead passing through the 12km mark , before extending it to 70 seconds through halfway at Munchie Point . “ Given the weather conditions , we knew it was going to happen , but it ’ s always amazing to watch him move over those rocks ,” Kane Reilly smiled , when asked about Rorich ’ s fast start . “ We just let him go , thinking if we can catch him , we ’ d catch him . Otherwise , we ’ d see him at the finish line .”
Otterly Exhilirating
After climbing out of the Lottering River Valley at the halfway mark , Reilly , who had Simpson for company and with Van Heerden just behind , started to reel Rorich in . By the time they started the descent to Bloukrans River , they had all caught and passed the early leader , but the racing was fierce , and positions would change a few times yet .
“ Bloukrans was really exciting !” Simpson confessed . “ I ’ ve never done anything quite like that . The waves were coming in pretty big from the left , and I was being swept against the rope . Then suddenly my feet weren ’ t touching the ground anymore , so I just basically lay on my back , closed my eyes , and pulled myself along on the rope . Once I was out the water , I was just glad to have that done , and I thought to myself , now it ’ s just running , no more swimming !” Even that was not easy going , however . “ I thought that going along the top of the cliffs would be a real strong point for me , because it ’ s really runnable and smooth , but it was really muddy , so I couldn ’ t push full gas there . I just had to tick along . Once we did the descent onto the beach , the sand was quite firm , so I could push again .”
Behind Simpson , Reilly and Van Heerden were engaged in their annual Otter showdown . “ Johardt came past me in the Bloukrans crossing ,” Reilly noted . However , Van Heerden was struggling with nausea , and Reilly soon regained second place , then pushed for home , reducing Simpson ’ s advantage slightly over the closing kilometres . Van Heerden recovered , after a stop to compose himself , to complete the podium places .
Simpson ’ s winning time was 4:12:36 , with Reilly finishing 1:58 back in 4:14:34 to claim second place in the Otter for the sixth time . Van Heerden was third in 4:18:50 , but that included about a minute of celebratory ‘ swimming time ’ after he launched
The first Abangeni starting batch get the 2023 Otter underway
Images : Caleb Bjergfelt , Johan Minnaar , John Tanner
64 ISSUE 163 | www . modernathlete . co . za