Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 56, March 2014 | Page 20

My Story

Trips of a
Lifetime!

Natale (back left)
with his 2013
tour group.

Images: Courtesy Natale Roelofse

Organising ‘Marathon Tours’ for a group of running friends to Europe, to run
in Barcelona, Porto, Kosice and Budapest, has provided us all with incredible
memories. – BY NATALE ROELOFSE

following Sunday, where we had a choice
between a 42.2, 30, 4x10.55 relay and
7km. The pressure was on, though, for
the group had to fly out of Budapest a
mere three hours after the cut-off time
of 5 hours 30 minutes! The route was
breathtaking, passing almost every place
of interest and landmark in Budapest,
and along both sides of the beautiful
Danube River.

WARM RECEPTION

Sanet du Toit, Ann Taljaard and Sillene Oppel
taking on the Kosice Peace Marathon, with Frans
Marais flying the SA flag to the right.

It all started three years ago when a fellow
club member from Worcester Athletics Club
asked me to organise a trip to run a race (or
two) in Europe, with the one requirement of
being affordable for the average runner. So
early in 2012 I started to source and plan
the running trip of a lifetime. The initial ‘one
race over a weekend’ idea changed to a
’10-day, two races in two countries’ concept,
but cost was the deciding factor and a lot
of time was spent getting the ideal package
together.

LEAVING ON A JETPLANE
The idea became a reality in October 2012
when a group of 14 runners from various
clubs in the Cape set out for Barcelona,
Spain, on a Thursday evening, to run the
Mediterranean Marathon on the Sunday. The
choice was between a 42.2, 21.1 and 10km,
to suit everybody’s needs. The race started
and finished at the 1984 Olympic Canal for
rowing in Casteldefels, on the outskirts of
the city, and runners followed a scenic route
along the beautiful Mediterranean seaside.

The following Wednesday the group flew to
the picturesque city of Porto, Portugal, with
42.2, 15 and 6km races to choose from.
This time, the route meandered along the
Atlantic Ocean and on the banks of the
Duoro River, past famous Port wine-cellars
and ancient tiled villas. Narrow cobbled
streets, breathtaking views, historical
buildings and running shoes mixed freely
for an unforgettable experience! Naturally,
the free time between races was used for
sightseeing, visits, browsing and lots of
shopping!

was a wonderful experience for all, and
an interesting extra was the 20km race
for hand-bikers and inline skaters –
something we are not used to.
We then went back to Budapest to run
the inaugural Budapest Marathon the

SECOND HELPING
In 2013 the group had nine members,
including three couples, and we first flew
to Budapest in Hungary and took the train
to Kosice in Slovakia, to run the oldest
marathon in Europe, the 90th Kosice Peace
Marathon, also known as the Medzinarodny
Maraton Mieru. The race offered a choice
between a 42.2, 21.1, 2x21.1 relay and a
4.2km family race. Being part of the 90th
race in the 2013 Cultural Cap ][و]\