PJ ’ s
PIECE the time we got to the lower altitude – and then we were whacked by one of the hottest years ever . At times we hit hot pockets of air for about 2km that made you feel almost like you couldn ’ t breathe . A lot of the race came down to managing the heat and keeping cool .”
Pre-race , the American Jim Walmsley talked about going after the course record , saying he thought he could become the first runner to break 14 hours , and in spite of the snow , he went for it , but Ryan bided his time . “ Jim went out really hard and gave it a full go , but speaking to him afterwards , it was cool that he didn ’ t make any excuses – he said he burnt all his matches and set himself alight . I was lying second most of the race , and at the back of my mind I thought Jim might come unstuck , so I tried to stay within reach . At Forest Hill , around 100km in , I think the gap was around 45 minutes , but I got feedback that he wasn ’ t looking good .”
“ I passed him around the 120km mark , just before the Rucky-Chucky River crossing . He was walking and looked pretty broken , and I knew I had it if I just kept going . When I crossed that line , I was just elated . This win brought me huge satisfaction , because it had become my biggest ‘ Bucket List ’ event . I won ’ t lie , I don ’ t think I have ever been so shattered at a race finish , but at the same time so elated , because I had waited a long time for that win . It was a dream come true .”
FINALLY FEELING RIGHT AGAIN
What made the win still sweeter for Ryan was that he finally felt like he had gotten over two years of struggling with illness and loss of form , which he attributes to his exploits in 2014 . “ That was a really big year for me . I won the TransGranCanaria , the first race in the Ultra World Trail Tour , which encouraged me to over-race to maximise the points . I eventually finished second overall in the Tour and probably did way too much racing that year , having also done the Drakensberg Traverse record run . It caught up with me when I contracted glandular fever at the beginning of 2015 , and that whole year was a write-off . I still did some races , but was always on the back foot .”
“ Looking back now , that was my toughest year , not knowing if I could get over it , and at the end of 2015 I took two months off . Then I decided to go back to my core reason for running , to enjoy it . Some days I would head out , and if I was not enjoying the run after 10 minutes , I would just turn around and head home again . Luckily I worked through that , and in 2016 I had consistent results , but nothing big – fourth place at Grand Raid Reunion , third at Tarawera Ultra in New Zealand , fourth at Ultra Trail Australia . All were part of the World Ultra Trail Tour , and I ended up fourth overall in the Tour , so I was fairly happy with my season , but still disappointed , because I knew I could do better . This year , I haven ’ t raced as much , because I wanted to focus on Western States . It ’ s risky to focus on one race – if something goes wrong , all your eggs are in one basket – but I realised that you need to focus for races like this .”
BACK TO THE BUCKET LIST
Looking ahead , the big question now for Ryan is what to focus on next . “ I have other races coming up on the World Tour , but Western States was that one race I really dreamed of winning ; the other is Ultra Trail Mont Blanc in France . So part of me wants to go back to Western States next year to defend my title , but another part says I ’ ve ticked that off , so rather go to UTMB . In 2015 I dropped out at UTMB because of the effects of the glandular fever – my legs were nowhere after just 40km – and I went back in 2016 but had stomach issues and dropped out again . So I haven ’ t decided yet … still plenty of time .”
Images : Fotolia & PJ Moses
R
unning is a spiritual experience for me . It puts me into a meditative state while pushing my body to its limits – and trail running takes this concept to another level , where joy meets pain , and they combine to give you a feeling of bliss that no drug ever could . I ’ ve tried my fair share of artificial highs to be confident in stating that !
Maybe it is the altitude that helps , or the close proximity to nature , but the trails transport me back to an ancient past where we as a species were not just observers of nature , but active participants in its daily drama . We used to run to catch our food , to save ourselves from becoming a meal . It was natural , and it was part of our make-up as humans .
However , when we started making use of other animals as transport , we slowly lost our sense of joy at the thought of running . Now only a small percentage of humans run for fun , and even fewer brave the trails and deserts in search of that running high .
I discovered my love of running by accident , while searching for a distraction to help me combat the urges of giving up my 20-year smoking habit . The running bug bit , and I now find myself smiling at the idea of spending hours running and searching for my next adventure . Now I go out scrambling over rocks or hurtling down the side of a mountain , and escaping the matrix has become the new normal for me .
The exhilaration of summiting new mountain peaks unaided is the type of daringdo my life has been missing for too long . As I sit on a conquered peak and look out over the beauty of the world around me , I smile at the amazing blessing of this adventurous life , and I look forward to the next bold step toward an epic existence .
I hope the joy of running always makes me wake up with a smile , and lets me go to sleep with a peaceful heart at night . This is my daily prayer .
About the Author :
PJ Moses is a former Cape Flats gangster who took up running when he turned his back on that dangerous lifestyle , in order to set a good example for his two young sons and make sure he would be there for them , instead of becoming just another crime statistic .
19