Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 97, August 2017 | Page 6

Ma letters Have YOUR SAY Got something on your mind that you want to share, a burning question you want answered, or a good story to tell? Then send it to [email protected]. (Note that these letters may have been shortened due to space limitations.) WINNING LETTER YOU MADE YOUR POINT At the recent TimberCity Spookhill 15km race in Somerset West, the guy who lives in the corner house right where the race starts set off a firecracker, or something like that, a few seconds before the start of the race, as a practical joke with a lesson. He shot a video of the confused race officials, including Modern Athlete Editor Sean Falconer on the mic, and posted it online with a message complaining about the runners littering the road in front of his house the year before, and the organising club not cleaning up properly. I just want to say to Niel, you made your point, sir, thankfully with some good- natured humour. So on behalf of us road runners, I want to apologise for the mess left by some of our fellow runners, and please note that we are trying to get these people to stop littering. – Carl, Brackenfell The bemused look on my face in that video is priceless! But I couldn’t agree more with you, Carl, and it actually surprises me that this sort of incident doesn’t happen more often, as I think the non-running public are getting fed up with runners leaving the roads full of plastic. It’s time to #runclean! – Ed. OUR FAMILY STORY convinced us to give parkrun a try. As we are from Stellenbosch, we attended the closest parkrun at Root 44, just 10 minutes from our home, and we enjoyed it so much that we started doing it as often as we could. As the year progressed, we got to hear of trail running events in our area through people we met, and by mid-2016 we were doing trail running events regularly, sometimes as many as two events a week, and with our Discovery discounts we purchased trail running shoes, running clothing and watches. Our children, Jean-Pierre (11), and twins, Deniel and Shene (9) usually participate in the 5km to 7km events, and my wife, Shirley and I (both in our 40s) participate in the 10km to 15km events. I was surprised when I discovered that very few other children participate in these events. Our children now often find themselves on the podium alongside adults. Shene is often the first female to cross the line and recently won a night run series of three runs, while Shirley often also finds herself on the podium for the longer distances. We enjoy the trail running immensely, as we are out in nature and surrounded with beautiful scenery, and we get to experience parts of the wine farms (and their often challenging single tracks) that few people get to see. (In between the trail running, we also get to do a few mountain biking events.) The wonderful thing about these events is that we get to do them as a family, and nothing gives me more pleasure than when my children ask when our next event is going to be. – Francois du Plessis, Stellenbosch Awesome to see the whole family participating, and as a huge fan of trail running myself, I know exactly what you mean about enjoying these runs immensely. – Ed. 6 ISSUE 97 AUGUST 2017