Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 62, September 2014 | Página 43

OBSTACLE RACING

The fifth leg of the eight-race Jeep
Warrior Race series was held in
Ballito on 26 July and saw a record
crowd of 2000-plus spectators
cheering on close to 4000 would-be
Warriors in a glorious celebration of
fun in the mud.

T

he Jeep Warrior Race series is South Africa’s only official qualifying
event for the Obstacle Course Racing World Champs in the USA, with one men’s
and one women’s World Champs slot, all expenses paid, up for grabs. So it
came as no surprise that competition amongst the front-runners in Ballito was
tough, and little wonder the top athletes in the Black Ops main event dubbed
this final qualifying event the ‘Battle of Ballito!’

Images: Zoon Cronje

The men’s race proved a humdinger as Thomas ‘The Thunder’ van Tonder
walked off with the win on the day, but it was series leader Jay Jay Deysel
who managed to limit his losses, despite running with a slight knee injury, to
still qualify for the coveted World Champs slot. In the women’s race, Hannke
Dannhauser sailed to another solid win and claimed the second slot.

THE WARRIOR WAY

The Warrior is also South Africa’s largest obstacle course racing series, with
events in Gauteng topping 7000 competitors over a single weekend and selling
out weeks beforehand, while the Durban and Stellenbosch events continue to
grow at a rapid pace. In fact, these races have developed an almost cult-like
following of mud-loving fitness fanatics and teams who come out to take on
the larger than life obstacles and have some fun while getting dirty, overcoming
fear and challenging themselves alongside friends, family, colleagues and fellow
Warriors.
The series caters for all ages and levels of fitness and experience, with different
courses on offer, and many parents race the Warrior Series with their kids,
in events that are tailor-made to test their endurance, fitness and mental
strength. Athletes are challenged by obstacles that include jumping over
fires, crawling through mud under barbed wire, battling up slippery slopes
and running or swimming across water obstacles. There could even be a few
variations of rope obstacles and a few other messy surprises.
And to ensure fun for both spectators and participants alike, food stalls, beer
tents, live music or DJ’s and a dedicated product expo area are part of the
event as well, and to get spectators as close to the action as possible, there
are designated spectator view points on the course. It all makes for a great
day out, and the sharing of war stories afterwards is all part of the Warrior
experience!

So look out for these upcoming Warrior events:

6–7 September: Jeep Warrior #6, Redstone Country Estate,
Hartbeespoort Dam, North West Province
11 October: Jeep Warrior #7, Bilton Wine Estate,
Stellenbosch, Western Cape
For more info, go to www.warrior.co.za

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