In short, “During the past year, South Africa has experienced rather severe rainfall extremes. While much of the country, especially the north-eastern regions, had to deal with floods, the Cape province, and particularly the Eastern Cape, is suffering the worst drought in many years. At the same time, while the local rainfall situation has again reminded us how powerless we are in controlling a natural resource such as water, it has also reminded us what a critical commodity water really is, both locally and internationally.” They list a number of very interesting facts on our water situation.

They summarise their expedition, which you can follow through their blog at www.walkingforwater.blogspot.com, as the following:

On Wednesday, 24 Feb 2010, Wouna and Gerry will embark on a 3-week unsupported endurance walk through the Klein Karoo from Jeffreys Bay on the Cape East Coast to Yzerfontein on the West Coast, via the R62 route, a journey of approximately 800 km. The towns and settlements visited during the walk will include Humansdorp, Kareedouw, Joubertina, Misgund, Haarlem, Avontuur, Uniondale, Buffelsdrif, Herold, Oudtshoorn, Calitzdorp, Ladismith, Barrydale, Montagu, Robertson, Worcester, Wellington, Malmesbury, Darling and Yzerfontein.

The aim of the walk is to raise awareness of the critical water situation in South Africa and the world.

They’ve got another week-and-a-half or so on the road.

Ray has made steady progress since he set off from Cape Town at New Year. Along the way he has experienced the hospitality, kindness and friendliness of South Africans; he has been welcomed into homes, tour guided in towns and warmly received.

Ray’s Facebook page and website carry his daily reports, which are entertaining, as well as Twitter posts and photos. With a week to go, there’s little doubt that Ray’s trip up South Africa, on foot, has been an incredible adventure and experience.

According to a post on his website, Pete can still become “the first African to have rowed solo across any ocean, and the first rower to complete the pairs trans–Atlantic crossing first, followed by the solo class. Unfortunately a win in the solo class is out of the question this time round – all credit to the superb Charlie – but keep your eye on Dave Brooks on Team Panasonic. The young, strong Brit is keeping within striking distance of our Pete. The last few days of the race could get mighty interesting as they race for second and third place.”

Pete’s daily posts are good reading. You can follow this final stretch on www.own-your-life.co.za and also on his Facebook fan page.

Image from the FB page [Image courtesy of Peter Hogden of Ocean Planet]

On this expedition, he’ll be accompanied by photographer Marianne Schwankhart and paraglider Peter Friedmann.

Their first mountain will be Denali, in May/June 2010.

For more information on this challenge, visit their website at www.7summits7flights.co.za

From Atacama Crossing

2:00 pm, Monday, 8 March, Stage 1: Ryan Sandes of South Africa has won Stage 1 of the Atacama Crossing 2010 in just over three hours. Eric Lahaie of the United States was not far behind in second place, followed by Chilean Rodrigo Errazuriz Reyes in third. Out of nowhere, Joanna Zakrzewski of Scotland won the women’s division and came in eight overall. Joanna lost her luggage on the way to Chile and is using all borrowed equipment and food. Ireland’s Diana Hogan-Murphy came in second and South Africa’s Erica Terblanche came in third. Canada’s Stan Lee looked strong, however, he said “It was a tough one, but the altitude did not affect me this year like it did last year.” Nick Anderson, a resident of Hong Kong, said as he finished “It was really really hot. The last 8 kilometers were just terrible; I was almost in tears.” The all female team from Chile is already through the second checkpoint approaching the third checkpoint. No one has withdrawn.

Image from Racing The Planet. Ryan is making a doccie – here he is being filmed.

The Otter – African Trail Run presented by Hi-Tec, is regarded by those who have done it as “the Grail of Trail Marathons” providing the most severe test of trail running aptitude over 42km imaginable. The Otter – African Trail Run takes place on South Africa’s most iconic hiking trail. This trail, otherwise strictly off limits to trail runners, is open to trail running only through these two events and is hailed as one of the most scenic trails on the planet.

The Southern Storm presented by Hi-tec, dubbed “the Race of the Gods”, is a 6 day, staged trail duathlon that follows a new route every year. The inaugural Southern Storm which ushered in a new era of staged Storm Racing (Sport Traversing Oceans Rivers & Mountains) was described by hardened multisport athletes as the most physically challenging event ever.

The 2010 edition will again start with The OTTER, thereafter traverse semi-desert landscapes on the fringes of South Africa’s great interior, before winding its way through magnificent gorges and lost trails in the remote mountain ranges. The race will culminate in the lush coastal landscapes of the Southern Cape.

2010 Southern Storm participants can also expect to be challenged by additional “exploration traverses,” sections of ultra intense adventure interwoven into the trail running and mountain biking routes.

In keeping with our promise, 2009 participants wishing to enter again this year will be given first priority and a detailed entry procedure can be found on our webpage for both existing and new entries.

Athletes wishing to increase their chances of getting an entry to the 2010 races can do so by registering on the Priority List.

Demand for entries is going to be huge!! For more information on the entry process and how to register on the “priority list” visit our website www.southernstorm.co.za

One novice (me) taking the place of my great mate, Mark Hiller, who one week before had sprained his ankle so badly that he couldn’t walk!! He’d been put through 22kms of AR running training for the event by Lisa in the Suikerbosrand. So I should have heard the warning but I still signed up. Around the campfire the night before the race I heard more stories from Heidi & Stephan so it looked like anything could happen on 20 February.

Pretty normal 2km run…

–  Running with Motlatsi who’s training for a race from PMB to Dbn (I just told him it’s ok these days to say “Comrades”) and he’ll run 21kms in 1hr 50min on the Sunday after this AR race.

–  Lisa has run 100km before so we have some experience!!

Orienteering MTB ride, with 2 spills to the Novices

– one a gentle head over heels in the grass for me.

–  one resulting in a bloody clean cut gash to Nadia’s temple, which happened at the furthest point on the course and needed medical attention back at the changeover point.

Dragged our bikes up that hill where the contour lines converged.

Orienteering Run, a long time out there and just one OP that wasn’t chased, made more difficult by not having the question sheet … but then it’s all about team work.

–        Only casualty was the sole of one of my Nike running shoes. I’ll have to get some new AR Asics from Stefan at Kinetics on Rivonia Road.

–        All crawled through the cave (Motlatsi & me on our backs while Lisa just slides through forward) and we also made it from Bethel to Heidelberg to Wits.

Learnt alot about trees along the way.

 Last MTB route ride, started at about the 6 hour mark, which Gijima planned as the cut off time.

–         One tired rider (c’est moi) who had to get off and push 100m up two of the hills on the way to the abseil

–        Recovery point at the abseil, while Nadia safely did the ropes  

Easy boere sport 3-legged race and quick long awaited swim

–         Motlatsi proves that black guys can swim

–        Great way to cool off after a little sweat

Team: AR Strategy. Author, John Rivers-Moore, john@radicalwaters.com

Diamond Dash 50km, Cullinan. 20 February 2010

For reasons within our control, and before such reasons are outside our control, we wish to advise of the postponement of the Swazi Xtreme 2010.

As the 10th SX event, and most likely the last, we’ve thrown some fairly XL ideas into the pot in order to make this a worthy wrap-up to a decade of adventure racing in Swaziland. Our enthuisiam has caused that “pot” to be a little bit full, and some of the key ingredients are still extremely raw. We’ve opted to continue adding firewood for the next few months and to raise the temperature a bit… until such time as those essential crunchy bits have softened.

The new date is the 6-9 August 2010.

Our apologies to those who have made special plans for the April dates. We are aware of Ironmen who have changed plans, plane tickets that have been bought and leave requested. Believe us that the decision was not taken arbitrarily. Looking at my SX folder, we have considerably more competitor interest this year than in the last two years combined, so we hope that the change of dates will allow for even better training and preparation. To sit down with us around this particular black Swazi pot is not something that should be taken lightly.

What we’re happy to reveal at this point is:
- that the Swazi Xtreme will be taking place in the lowveld of Swaziland
- that in this part of the country, winter is the best time of the year for doing anything other than squat under a tree
- that crocodiles, having fattened up in April/May are less active during these later months
- that Cromolena odorata is not edible, or particularly good for anything
- no human body parts have or will be used in the preparation of this event – despite the temptation to do so.
- that two hundred years ago travellers and adventurers didn’t care much for fences, borders and other artificial boundaries – and nor does the Swazi Xtreme.

Back to the kitchen, more firewood, more heat.

Best regards

Darron Raw
Race Director
Swazi Xtreme
events@rawafrica.com 

PS: Essential equipment: bring a sharp knife, a fork and a spoon.

The Freedom Challenge race office today announced that the 2300 kilometre non-stop unsupported Freedom Challenge Race Across South Africa  will start on Saturday, 12 June 2010.  Riders will leave Pietermaritzburg in batches spread over the next week with the last batch leaving on Saturday 19 June 2010. Riders will then mountain bike on the Freedom Trail which takes them through the Sisonke section of southern Kwa Zulu Natal and into the Drakensberg before heading across the basin of the Great Karoo and into the Cape mountains.  They will finish at Diemersfontein Wine Estate outside Cape Town.

In addition to the non-stop Freedom Challenge Race Across South Africa, the Freedom Challenge will simultaneously host a six-day Ride to Rhodes which takes riders from Pietermaritzburg over the first 500 kilometres of the route towards Cape Town.  Covering the Sisonke and Maluti sections of the trail, riders will head through the deep river valleys, and over the high watersheds of the Umkomaas, Umzimkulu and Umzimvubu River catchements before crossing the floodplains of the Knira River and climbing up the face of the Drakensberg escarpment.

Those wanting to toughen up the test of 2300 kilometres of non-stop mountain biking can enter the Freedom Challenge Extreme Triathlon.  On Friday 17 June 2010 they will start in Durban and run 85 kms up the valleys if the Umgeni and Umzimduzi Rivers to Pietermaritzburg in the Freedom Challenge Duzi Trail run.  The following day they will set off from Pietermaritzburg on mountain bikes as part of the Freedom Challenge Race Across South Africa.  They must arrive in Paarl in time to compete in the four day, 240 kilometre Berg River Canoe Marathon.

Entries for the three events open to the public on 21 October 2009.  ENTER ONLINE at www.freedomchallenge.org.za. Entries are limited.