Comrades 2002 Up Run was very successful for me. I ran 9:59:05 officially, a PR by 1 hour, 1 minute and 28 seconds over my previous Up Run time. I've tried to document the trip and race here, and below my training and other preparations.
This part was written before the race.
This year will be an up run on June 17, 2002. The race is moved to Monday to avoid the 16th falling on a Sunday. This year I don't have an extra 33 seconds and must finish in 11:00 or less. I qualified in 3:50, so I'll be in the last bin to start. The race course was measured in May at 86.55 kilometers, or 53.8 miles. This is about 0.5 miles shorter than 2000's course.
Here is how I prepared for the race. This year will be an up run. Training began in January, after qualifying at the Philadelphia Marathon in 3:50, and a few weeks of recovery with no goals in mind. Towards the end of December I began building up the mileage.
The plan this year is to train at the same mileage level as last year, generally following Noakes' recommendation.
I ran 219 miles in January, or 7.1 miles/day, or 108% of the available training mileage. This included 3 hill workouts on Fridays after work (5 x 90-second uphill sprints), 2 doubles and one triple, the long run of the month being 21.3 miles up to Pompey and back.
I ran 186 miles in February, or 6.6 miles/day, or 93% of the available training mileage. This included 0 hill workouts, 2 doubles, the long run of the month being a very thirsty 18.5 miles from Dad's house. I traveled to Phoenix for my Dad's 75th birthday and spent the last two weeks in Fort Belvoir, Virginia at a training session.
As of St. Patrick's Day training is going well. Today I ran 16.8 miles up through Heiberg Forest with Tom, the long route. I have 5 doubles this month already, with 3 this last week.
As of Easter Sunday - I finished March with a long and enjoyable exploratory run through Heiberg Forest to check some trails I've never been on before. I started the usual way, turned right at the top onto Edwards Road, then all the way down to Foster Road like two weeks ago. Down the hill to the Tully Truxton Road. On this road, on a little level spot between the two steep down hills, there is a nice house on the left. The house has a dog. The dog bites. Left on Tully Truxton Road, and then left onto Edwards Road - I figured Columbus took a chance so why not. This road ends at a nice farm on the left, but the old road no longer maintained goes straight back up the hill (500 feet of incline) back to the end of the maintained section at the corner of Heiberg Forest. Back down the way I had run to the parking area. Before getting there, I found an old trail off to the right, which petered out after a little ways. I thought there was an old road on the map that I could intersect, but I didn't find it. I got a little lost finding my way back to Edwards road. It could be what I thought was an old road might be just a topographic line. Anyway, back to the first house on the right and the road up into the cleared field. That turned and I followed it to another trail intersection. Trying this, a snowmobile path, I found it too wet and returned to the gravel road. This went past Pond 1, which I visited and found two Canada Geese swimming near the shore. Then back on down the trail to the Tully Truxton Road, and the trailhead I had seen two weeks ago. I also saw a log skidder in the woods and marked it as another trailhead to explore in drier weather. Back to the car, for 18.7 miles, and the second longest run this month. The longest was 20 miles on the 3rd. I finished the month with 6 doubles, 1 triple, running 275 miles in March, or 8.9 miles/day, which is 112% of the available training mileage.
As of 21 April I have run to my plan. I am averaging 8.8 miles per day so far, or 61.3 miles per week, with weeks of 65.4, 55.9 and 62.7. So far I have run two doubles, both Fridays which included after work hill workouts, one of 6 repeats and the other of 8 repeats. I ran 30.4 miles on the 7th and got very dehydrated and had to walk quite a bit.
As of 28 April I am still on plan, although I didn't run today. I ran 40 miles yesterday though, 14 laps around Green Lakes, in 7:27. I had a really good day and enjoyed it. I listened to War and Peace the first 10 laps. I ran 1.75 miles and then walked 0.25 miles and repeated this pattern. Each time by the parking lot I unlocked my trunk and drank water, Powerade, Coke, ate cookies, etc. I carried a Clif Bar and took a bite each walking interval. After 10 laps, I changed from my Audile Otis audio book player to my Intel Pocket Concert MP3 player and listened to Stevie Ray Vaughn, Albert King, Janis Joplin and the Eagles. I also switched from water and Powerade to Powerade, water and Coke, and from Clif bars to cookies the last 4 laps. I was thinking of going 15 laps for 42 miles, which would be a little over 75% of the Comrades (without the hills, of course.) But I decided 40 miles was enough for one day. I felt very good and was even running faster the last few laps. This built my confidence a great deal. Today I am a little stiff, but getting around all right. So far for the month I am averaging 9.0 miles per day or 63 miles per week.
I finished April with 265 miles, 8.8 miles per day, 111% of the available training mileage. Two very long runs (30 and 40), two doubles, two hill workouts. Steady but nothing extraordinary. I finished the month weighing 177, down about 18 pounds from last year's Comrades.
As of 21 May I am remaining on plan. I have also stuck to the Atkins diet and my weight is 177 and holding, without the cravings I've had for years. Yesterday I ran 31.4 miles at Green Lakes, 10 figure eights around the lakes. The figure 8 is 3.14 miles, where the simple lap is 2.84 miles. Again I stopped at the car every lap to drink, ate various things during every walking break, and picked up the pace as I went along, feeling very good. Through the 21st, I have run 161 miles or 8.5 miles per day in May, 101% of available training mileage. This included a hill workout, a double threshold workout, and 2 long hikes, in addition to today's 31.4 miles. Now the taper begins, planning weeks of 52, 42, 37 and 15 until the race.
I finished May with 224 miles, 7.2 miles per day, 67% of the available training mileage. I prudently (I hope) cut back for the 4 week pre-race taper. I had one very long run (31+), 1 double, 2 800m workouts, 2 hill workouts and a long lactate threshold run. I finished the month at 173 pounds, still coming down a little slower than desired. Another week and we're off.
June 2002
June 1
A hill workout in mid-day sun, 6 90 second repeats up the SU hill. Farther than I've ever gotten before, so they were faster, which is what Fordyce recommends - fewer, but faster.
June 2
A beautiful, cool run around Green Lakes from home, 9.9 miles. I felt pretty good and remembered to go easy. Nothing this "long" again until race day. Just have to think about the race and keep my diet good.
June 3 & 4
I passed up the choice opportunity to get in a pre-teen heat of the 3000 meters at the Chargers all-comers meet and ran a leisurely 5.5 at lunchtime, feeling very good to relax. Another easy run at lunch. 800s tomorrow in the morning.
June 5
I had an excellent track workout this morning at the Liverpool HS track. 5x800 at 3:45 pace with 3:45 rest. They all were too fast and too easy. That completes the track training for this year's race.
June 6
7.8 at lunchtime and felt so good I didn't want to stop. Well, I didn't want to go back to work.
June 7
5x90 second hills at Manley after work. And that's it. Now on to Comrades!
The third graph below plots my actual daily mileage (in red) against the range recommended by my marathon qualifying time. The training range is the vertical bar for each month. The X% is the percentage of that month's available training range represented by the actual.
Here's an interesting set of facts and figures on the race, which I copied from the Comrades official web site.
Some interesting facts and figures
DATE
The first Comrades Marathon was run on Empire Day 24 May 1921. It was later run on Union Day, and later still on Republic Day. On two occasions 1952 and 1953 it was run as late as the 13th & 14th July, and on one occasion 1995 it was run as early as 20 May.
Since 1996 it has been run on Youth Day, normally 16 June. This year however with 16 June falling on a Sunday, the public holiday is officially designated as Monday 17 June.
DURBAN - PIETERMARITZBURG LINK
The Comrades Marathon is run between the cities of Durban & Pietermaritzburg, with the direction alternating between "Down Runs" from Pietermaritzburg to Durban in odd-numbered years and "Up Runs" from Durban to Pietermaritzburg in even numbered years.
START VENUE
The race starts each year at the respective City Halls of the two cities, with the respective Mayor of the start venue city firing the gun which sets the runners on their way. This year the race is an "Up Run" starting at the City Hall in Durban. It will take the last runner between 6-7 minutes to cross the starting line.
FINISH VENUE
The finish venue has changed on numerous occasions during the 77 year history of the event, just one of the reasons why the distance of the event varies from year to year.
The first "Up Run" in 1922 finished at the Royal Showgrounds on the opposite (and furthest) side of Pietermaritzburg. Since then it has finished at Alexander Park, Collegians Club, what was Jan Smuts but is now Harry Gwala Stadium, and since 1998 at Scottsville Racecourse.
DISTANCE
The distance varies from year to year between 86-92km, dependent upon negotiations with traffic authorities. On average the "Down Run" is approximately 2km longer that the "Up Run". This year the Official Race Distance is 86,55km.
The total length of uphill running will be 54,1km and the total length of downhill running will be 32,5km.
ALTITUDE
The race obviously starts at sea level in the coastal city of Durban, and the finish in Pietermaritzburg has an altitude of 650m.
However during the course of the race, runners will climb a total of 1,778m (5832 ft) and descend a total of 1150m (3772 ft). The highest point on the route is Umlaas Road altitude 823.7m.
PARTICIPANTS
The race has attracted 12,133 entries this year, down from 15,361 last year. 10,516 men and 1,617 women will be participating, of which 1,912 will be running the race for the first time. The average age of the participants (both male & female) is 39 years.
If all 12,133 entries should complete the race on 17 June they will have completed a total number of 1 050 111 km.
Following 76 stagings of the Comrades Marathon, 78,460 individuals have completed the race and 275,716 individual Comrades Marathons have been completed, an average of 3.5 Comrades Marathons per individual runner.
FOREIGN ENTRIES
This year the race has attracted 434 foreign entries from 37 countries. The largest contingents of foreign athletes will be coming from neighboring Zimbabwe with 86 and the United Kingdom with 82. Other significant contingents in terms of numbers include Australia with 61 and the United States with 33.
The largest foreign athletic club contingent will be Harare Athletic Club with 68 participants, followed by Rainier Rebels from Australia with 18 runners.
The Russian contingent although relatively small, consisting of just 11 athletes, will no doubt have a significant impact on the race as it includes some of the best ultra-marathon athletes in the world. The race has also attracted world class athletes from Belarus, Brazil, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Poland and the USA, as well as the first entrant from the Republic of China in the history of the race.
PRIZE MONEY & OTHER INCENTIVES
The total cash prize package for 2002 is R750 000, with the winning male and female each earning R150 000. This represents a 23% increase on the R610 000 which was awarded in 2001. While a ceremonial prizegiving is held on race day, prize money, medals & trophies will be awarded only after the results of Drug Testing are made available to the organisers.
A special R20 000 incentive will be awarded the first gold medallist (male & female) to pass through the Pick 'n Pay Half Way mark. It is anticipated that this incentive will spur the athletes on to set a brisk, but hopefully not suicidal pace.
In addition to prize money, Harmony Gold to the value of at least R250 000 will be awarded while an additional R650 ,000 could be awarded should either the men's or women's records for the "Up Run" be broken.
Solid gold 1 ounce medals with a value of approximately R3 200 are awarded to the first 10 men and the first 10 women. Solid gold ½ ounce medals with a value of approximately R1,600 are awarded to the first veteran male and female and the first master male and female, as well as to the individuals making up the first men's, women's veteran men's and veteran women's teams to finish.
In addition two 25 ounce solid gold figurines with an approximate value of R80,000 each will be awarded to the first South African Male and Female runners to cross the finish line.
And in the event of the men's and women's "down run" records being broken 100 ounce Harmony Gold figurines with an approximate value of R320 000 will be awarded to the winner's thereof.
RECORDS
The records for the "Up Run" are presently held by Vladimir Kotov of Belarus in a time of 5:25:33 set in 2000 and Ann Trason of the USA in a time of 6:13:23. Although the women's record is probably the softer target of the two, the Men's record is probably the more vulnerable one this year given the relative strength of the competition.
COMRADES MARATHON MEDALS
Comrades Marathon Medals are awarded to finishers on the following basis : Gold to the first 10 men and the first 10 women
Silver to all others finishing under 7h30
Bill Rowan to runners finishing between 7h30 and 8h59
Bronze to all others finishing between 9h00 and under 11h00.
The "Bill Rowan" Medal is named after the winner of the first Comrades Marathon in 1921 in a time of 8:59, which was the slowest winning time in the history of the race.
PROVINCIAL & CLUB STATISTICS
3,279 athletes from KwaZulu-Natal will participate in the event, as well as 3,227 from Central Gauteng, 1,346 from Gauteng North, 843 from Mphumalanga, 796 from Western Province and 543 from Free State.
The three largest clubs represented are Rand Athletic Club 378, Chatworth Athletic Club 186 and Boksburg Athletic Club 160.
OLDEST, YOUNGEST
The oldest competitor in the race will be 73 year old Gustave Busch from Brazil, while the oldest female in also a foreigner, Mitsuku Ozaki aged 67 from Japan. The youngest competitors are Eben Blaauw from Irene who was born on 22 December 1982 and Rene Burger from Ellisras born on 14 December 1981.
AVERAGE SPEED
The average speed of the winning male will be approximately 15.98km per hour. The average speed of the winning female will be approximately 13.85km per hour, and the average speed of the last runner will be 7.88km per hour.
SPREAD OF THE FIELD
One hour into the race the first runner will have completed approximately 17km and will have reached Old Main Road, Pinetown at the bottom of Cowies Hill, at which stage the last runner will be in Konigkramer Avenue, and the field will be spread over 9km. The first runner will pass through the half way point (approx 43km) at Drummond after approximately 2hours 40minutes, at which stage the last runner will still be on Field's Hill with the field spread over 21km.
And, when the first runner arrives at the finish in Pietermaritzburg after approximately 5hours25minutes, the last runner will still be approaching the half way mark at Drummond, with the field spread over 44km. Runners are required to retire at the halfway cut-off point if they do not reach it by 11h30.
Getting to the race
Once the training is done and the trip is planned, most of the work is over. Then it becomes an exercise in patience and waiting. Everything seems to take a long time and you have no choice but to simply wait for it to be over, whatever "it" is. Your frame of mind is that you feel ready for the race (or you wouldn't be there) and you want to start running. Mostly so you can get it over with.
Syracuse to Skukuza
Bob picked us up and took us to the airport early Saturday morning, June 8, and we had basically the same flights as last year, Delta to Atlanta and then South African Airways to Capetown and then Johannesburg. Then a South African Airlines Express twin engine to Skukuza where we rented a car. For some reason this year we got a car with an automatic transmission. The ride seemed bumpy this year. Last year we flew over the remnants of a hurricane, but I don't think there was anything that organized this year.
Once in Johannesburg, through customs, and checked into our little flight to Skukuza, we again relaxed in the hotel lobby across the drive from the terminal. On approach to Skukuza I spotted a herd of elephant. We saw more elephant and lots of impala on our short drive to the rest camp. I went for a short run around the compound and tried to sweat out the travel dust. It was 88 when we got there. After a shower and a nap we dined in the dining room. My journal shows we splurged - R70 each for dinner (buffet) and R49.90 for a full bottle of wine. The stars are extremely bright here without any light pollution, but I don't know any of the constellations in the southern hemisphere sky. That may be a research project for next year.
Tom told a great story about running a relay to celebrate the birthday of the King of Swaziland when he was in the Peace Corps, and how his friend Sean Sullivan wondered if a story about running in the dark through the night in darkest Africa carrying a message from the Great She-Elephant (Queen Mother) to the Great He-Lion (King) of Swaziland would ever be worth a beer.
We posed in front of the Johannesburg Airport Sun Inter-Continental Hotel between flights. It was nice and sunny, and I thought the flags looked nice in front of the hotel. Especially the Stars and Stripes. So here are Tom and I before we went inside. That's not our Mercedes.
Kruger National Park and our trip through Swaziland
Sunday and Monday nights we spent in rondavels or bungalows at Skukuza, where we also played golf.
Skukuza has been repaired since we were here two years ago, and all the flood damage is gone. There are new luxury accommodations along the river, and the restaurant has been rebuilt since the floods in 2000. In the interim, all meals were offered at the Selati Train station.
Meals for the most part are taken in the restaurant or cooked by braai (barbecue grill) at your own room / hut / tent site. Some meals are still available at the train station.
We had dinner in the dining room Sunday night, after a shower and a nap and some phone calls.
Monday morning (June 10) the tractors of the camp staff woke me up. They use tractors and wagons to take the clean laundry and other supplies around to all the housing units so the people who work there can prepare the facilities for the next guests. And they pick up trash, etc. I woke up just in time for a quick shower and to make it into the dining room before breakfast closed at 9:00. Then I went to the camp store for some bottled water, postcards, a road map, etc. After breakfast, Tom and I were discussing how we should go through Swaziland and looking at the road map. Then we saw the elephants (see photos.) Then we decided to try to find a place to run intervals, and maybe see where the half marathon course runs.
After breakfast on Monday we were treated to a show by the elephants, who came down for a mid-morning drink.
We found the staff village by taking one of the roads marked do not enter. We found a neat little park area, almost a circle, with a swimming pool, tennis courts, store, etc. in the infield. It measured 0.6 km circumference, and Tom wanted to run a 3000 time trial, so 5 laps was it. Then we drove around a little more and saw signs for the golf course, which we followed. There were only two cars in the parking lot, and we decided to go inside and inquire about playing golf.
When we got to the golf course there were 2 cars in the lot. We went in and inquired about playing. It was an open-air pavilion clubhouse, bar on one side, pro shop on the other, putting green in front. In order to play, we had to sign a legal waiver acknowledging that we risked being killed, maimed or gored, and that we couldn't hold anyone liable. We had to go back to the rest camp to get shirts with collars, since it would be improper for someone to be maimed without proper golf attire. We were also informed that we had to be off the course by 4 p.m. Dinner time for the animals, you know.
There is an instruction sheet available to novices at the course, shown below.
We were able to "hire" clubs, but they only had right-handed clubs for hire. Since Tom is left-handed, I recognized my opportunity immediately and challenged him to a game of $20 Nassau. Whatever that is. It cost us about R80 to play 9 holes, and another R40 to rent clubs. That's about US$12.00. And the 2002 Comrades Invitational Golf Tournament and Safari is now a matter of history. The leader board is also shown below.
On the first tee, beware of crocodiles. We did scare a croc back into the water (Lake Panic) as we approached the tee.
On number 2, you are allowed a maximum of 5 minutes to search for a ball in the water. If you don't mind the crocodiles.
You can go to the South African National park's web site and see more about the course, and make your booking for a round.
After our round of golf, Tom ran his time trial and we went back to the rest camp. We had supper that night in the train station, and I remember getting cold during supper. I think I had a few sniffles, notable only because of the impending race.
I remember this phenomenon about sleeping the first few nights. It seems like you're exhausted, and you go right to sleep, but only for a few hours. Then you wake up and lie there awake, tossing and turning and you feel like you're not sleepy. Then the next thing you know it's morning, 5 hours have gone by, and you don't know if you tossed and turned the whole time, or if you were asleep and only dreaming that you were lying awake. This happened the first few nights this year, and I seem to remember it happening like this in years gone by.
Tuesday morning (June 11) at Skukuza we took our time, ate breakfast, hung around, and went to the golf course for lunch and took a few more photos. Then we got under way for Lower Sabie. We took a leisurely drive to Lower Sabie Rest Camp, where we spent the night in luxury tents, built over platforms on the edge of the Sabie River, which was filled with hippos.
We took back roads getting to Lower Sabie. On the way, we saw a giraffe that let us get very close. We stopped at a dam that Tom had been to several year ago where he saw much game late in the afternoon. We were there mid-afternoon and there wasn't much going on.
Just before we got to the turn for the rest camp, we met a fellow who told us some lions had killed a water buffalo and were just the other way a few kilometers. We decided to take a look. There were 10 other cars there, and there were huge lions eating a disemboweled water buffalo about 20 yards off the road. I was impressed by how big the lions were, and how they tore the meat from the carcass just like Marlin Perkins showed us on Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom years ago on Sunday evenings before the Wide World of Disney, and Walter Cronkite's Twentieth Century.
After the lions, we got to Lower Sabie just before gate closing and it was almost dark. We had a little trouble finding our accommodations - but we eventually found our tent cabins. These are very big tents, with separate bedroom and bathroom, all zippered walls with screens and walls. The tents are constructed on wooden floors. They have porches with a kitchenette and a grill, chairs, electric lights. The porch has a rail and faces the river, where the hippos snort and grunt all night long. The hippos are very close and loud.
We were warned to keep the tent flaps fully zippered to keep the baboons out, and to keep all our food locked up. After dinner in the restaurant, we got some beer to go, and relaxed looking at the stars from Tom's balcony. The stars here are brilliant, since there is no light pollution like in America to drown them out. Of course, the constellations are all different here in the Southern Hemisphere and we don't know them. I think I recognize the Southern Cross but I'm just guessing.
Beer gone, I returned to my tent and chased a mouse out before zippering up for the night. It's pretty chilly here tonight also. More sniffles, but I'm starting to think it's an allergy, not a cold. I don't want a cold for Comrades, and I did have a similar reaction to mouse droppings and etc. in the Adirondak Loj when we stayed there to get our guides license. Definitely an allergy. Right.
In the morning we plan to leave as early as possible - the gates open at 6. We have a big day planned, and as we pack the car I snap some photos in the mist. Finally, as we're backing out, I spot a baboon on the peak of the roof of my tent.
The giraffe has amazing vertical extension, and makes a very straight line from front toes to tip of nose.
Wednesday (June 12) was a big day, seeing lions, rhino, driving across the border posts into and through Swaziland, meeting hitch-hikers, and then arriving for the evening at Berg-En-Dal rest camp.
On the way out of Kruger from Lower Sabie Rest Camp, we went by the lion kill from the previous night. The lions were still there working on that buffalo, although they had dragged it another 20 yards off the road. There were already a half dozen cars there. We headed south toward the Crocodile Bridge park entrance, and I spotted a white rhino on the way. Then we passed out through the Kruger Park Entry gate, and got on the road to go south through Komatipoort, R571, and on south to the border post with Swaziland.
We expected to hit gravel roads eventually, but we never did. At the border post, we passed through South African customs at Mananga, then Swazi customs. Since we had a car, I paid a E15.00 (15 Emalangeni, the Swazi currency, equivalent to the Rand, so about US$1.50) for the road fund, and we were allowed to enter. We drove on south by south east toward Manzini, and were pleased to find the road paved all the way and in very good condition. This area is nearly all cultivated sugar cane plantations, and many were being harvested.
Tom drove as we turned west and went through Manzini, Lobamba, and arrived in Mbabane, the capital and Tom's former residence. We parked in a lot downtown where directed by some youths and locked the car up for a walk around downtown. I found it to be a hub of bustling activity - much more going on than in downtown Syracuse. People driving and walking everywhere. We found a shop to buy postcards, then a restaurant in a new mall downtown, where we ate lunch and wrote cards to our friend John Hanna, who had also worked for the Peace Corps and lived here in (a different) Mbabane with Tom in the early 1970s.
After lunch we went into Tom's old bank so I could buy some souvenir currency and we got in a traffic jam getting out of town, then went by Tom's former school and village, and stopped for a few photos.
We drove on north east now, toward Piggs Peak. We were in the mountains and the scenery was absolutely beautiful. We stopped in Piggs Peak for gas, and then headed on through the mountains for the border crossing. We crossed out of Swaziland at Matsamo. Between the gates (leaving Swaziland and entering South Africa) two girls approached us as we got out of the car to go into the South African customs office. They asked if we were going to Malelane and could they have a ride. After we passed through customs (in South Africa the name of the place is Jeppe's Reef), the girls got in the back and we headed on northward. We assumed they were South Africans, but one was from Finland and the other from Norway. They were spending 6 months in South Africa teaching teachers how to teach physical education. They were almost done with their tour and anxious to get back home.
We let teh girls out and then drove back into the Kruger Park at the Malelane Gate and to our accommodation at Berg-En-Dal. This is without a doubt the most luxurious rest camp we have seen. Elegantly manicured, well built, it seems like a good place to linger and relax. We walked around the perimeter and I had the best tortellini I have ever had with dinner.
On Thursday (June 13) we took a short drive to Pretoriuskop Rest Camp and spent the night there. In the morning we lingered at Berg-En-Dal, trying to decide if we should stay there another day since the place was so nice, or whether we would follow through on our plan and drive to Pretoriuskop and see what there was to offer there. We eventually decided to go take a look at Pretoriuskop Rest Camp, and Tom drove, which gave me a chance to relax a little. Driving on the wrong side of the road from the wrong side of the car tends to get on my nerves after a while.
On the way we stopped at a couple of historic markers and a get out point but we weren't too interested - we must have been gamed out. We noted that we were on the Voortrekker Road - for those historians among you, this is the road taken by the Voortrekkers in times of old. After a beer and nuts lunch and a nap, we sat in the back yard and watched a warthog systematically empty and inspect the contents of every single garbage can in the courtyard. This rest camp is the oldest in the park, and is partly under re-construction. The restaurant was a make-shift room, but the food was good. We had Baby Marrow Soup as one of the courses, and it was good, but I don't know what it was.
On Friday (June 14) we drove back to Skukuza for the night, to fly to Durban on Saturday. On the way from Pretoriuskop to Skukuza we stopped at a water hole named Shitlhave, and it was a good payoff. We saw lots of types of game there - waterbuck, hippo, heron, crocodile and a saddle-billed stork. We also drove up to the top of the Napi kop (rock outcrop) where there was a get-out point and took some more photos there. We were about gamed out, and got back to Skukuza Rest Camp just after noon. We went back to the golf course one more time for lunch and photos. This being the Friday of a 3-day holiday weekend, the park was packed.
Saturday morning (June 15) before breakfast I showered. As I was scrubbing my legs, I looked down at the drain in the center of the shower floor. The drain has a flat metal cover with 3/8" holes to let the water out. There seemed to be a little stick in one of the holes, sticking up through the plate about a half inch, and it had 3 yellow dots on the upper end. I wondered why I didn't feel it when I was standing around in the shower. Maybe I stepped over the drain and not on it. I kept looking at the "stick" and wondering about this, and it grew before my eyes. It kept growing and a fat little green frog squeezed up out of the drain into the shower. It had yellow marks over its eyes and nose, and yellow stripes down the sides.
At the Skukuza airport, everything went as scheduled - the plane was a few minutes late, and when it did get there, there were two of them. The airline people herded the waiting passengers onto the correct plane. But both planes went to Johannesburg! I got on the same plane as my luggage. The late departure from Skukuza cost us any chance to make the earlier flight to Durban but that couldn't be helped. We had about a one-hour layover.
Durban before the Race
Landing in Durban was like coming home. It felt so good to be back there. We collected our luggage and took the same microbus (R25) to the Balmoral, where people remembered us and welcomed us back. I even had exactly the same room - 324 - as last year. Also this year, a basket and nice welcome letter from the staff was delivered, which included fruit, nuts and champagne.
We cleaned up and walked to the expo to pick up our race numbers. We also got posters, and bought some souvenirs. The Nike merchandise seemed to be their standard (good) quality. After getting our fill of entertainment we walked back to the Balmoral where we dined on the veranda under Ronnie's attentive care.
Since it was a long holiday weekend there were crowds of people up and down Marine Parade, the boulevard between the Balmoral and the beach. The noise (Saturday night) seemed to go on quite late, but I slept all right once I got to sleep. This is the most important sleep night, since you never sleep well the night before the race, you have to get it the 2nd night before.
Sunday (June 16) I started taking the 800 mg ibuprofen (every 8 hours) so I would have it in my system 24 hours before the race. It got really warm as the sun rose to shine on the veranda while we had breakfast. We did our errands in the neighborhood - the ATM, the CNA for VCR tapes, the Checkers store for water and a paper. In the afternoon we went back to the expo for a few more items and to gawk at the crowds. Whole families seemed to be enthralled by the nearly naked aerobics dancers, or maybe they were the South African edition of the Dallas Cowgirls. We browsed the merchandise but nothing was too tempting.
Back at the Balmoral we were treated to the runner's pre-race pasta buffet. No wine or beer tonight. We made Father's Day calls - I talked to Red and Dad and we called Bob to wish Les a good one also. I put in my wake-up call for 0300 and agreed to call each other at 0405.
And then, of course, on to the 2002 Comrades Up Run.
Monday (June 17) I raced to a PR - 9:59:05 (official).
I got up with my wake-up call at 3. Then they called back to tell me the VCR was broken and they couldn't tape the race for me. I did my stretching routine and Tom called at 4:05, of course I was awake. I did get some sleep. We went down for breakfast at 4:30, and I limited myself to coffee, toast and granola with milk. No need for protein or fat to ride along up the hills in my tummy this morning. Back to the room for a shower and yo dress for the race. I'm a ball of nerves. I have drank 3L of water in the last 18 hours.
Tom agreed I should get him at 5:15 to walk to the start. He wasn't ready and needed a few more minutes, so I waited downstairs in the lobby. I tried to use the bathroom, and at 5:35 asked the desk to call his room. No answer. I didn't know if I had missed him go by when I was in the toilet, or if he hadn't come down yet. Finally, I couldn't stand the anxiety any more and started walking to the start. Tom caught me a block before I reached the tog bag trucks (Biddulph's Removals). We dropped our bags, shook hands, and I walked into the back of the E bin. Tom made his way up to the B bin.
Unlike in 2000, this year I heard the cock crow and I heard the gun go off - it sounded like a cannon. It must have taken 3:09 to walk in the crowd to the start line, where I started my watch, since that's the difference between my time and the race time. We were running (mostly) almost immediately, but the crowd backed up a few times in the first few miles.
My plan was to run 1.75 miles and walk .25 miles all the way to the 50 mile point. Then I would decide if I could run the rest of the way. So I started, and found that I was running faster than most of the E people, so I did a lot of weaving in the first 1.75 miles. Then I walked, and they all went by me. Then I started to run again at 2 miles and had to weave around everybody again for 1.75 miles. Still, I decided that I would stick to my plan. This is what I had practiced, and it was being put to the test. I even resolved that if it got late in the race and I thought I couldn't finish, I would still do this plan for 11 hours and retire when forced to do so. I had practiced this routine once for 7 hours and once for 6 and felt very confident that I could do it for 54 miles.
I was over-hydrated, and needed to find places from the very beginning to relieve myself. I tried to do this when I was in the walking section and was fairly successful in that. In the city, when you're on the expressway, the overpasses are crowded with spectators (yes even from the very beginning at 6:00 when it's still dark outside.) Under the overpasses seemed to be a good spot, although the traffic coming south in the other lanes was still there. You can see my mile splits on the graph below. Every 2nd mile is .75 miles run and .25 mile walk. The trend lines seem to indicate that I ran slower but walked faster as I progressed. This may be due to the elevation gain in the first half of the race, and that I didn't have to stop (2P) as much later in the race.
As we began running, I seemed to be in a grumpy mood. I recalled that both long training runs at Green Lakes were pleasant experiences. I had looked forward to the training runs, and although I was alone, I had my Audible Otis player to listen to War and Peace, and I was really into running all day. Today, even though it was the race I had trained for 6 months to be at, I was not into it. I knew I could do it, I just didn't feel like it. I'm not sure why, it could be the crowd (I seem to enjoy the crowd less and less) or it could be that since I didn't have anything to listen to I felt I would get bored. I tried to focus on the scenery, as it seemed to brighten up very early in the race. I pulled my sunglasses down off the brim of my cap before getting out of Durban. I tried to keep positive thoughts, and popped one of my 20 lifesavers whenever I seemed to start griping to myself about not feeling like it. I also began eating a bite of Balance Bar or Clif Bar (I had 2 of each in my pockets) on every walk section, just like I had practiced. I took all the water sachets I could get, but nothing else - no PowerAde, no potatoes, bananas or oranges.
I ran along clicking off the miles, using my Nike SDM (Speed Distance Monitor) watch. I set it up so the chronometer displayed the mileage in the big numbers in the center, which was all I could really see, or wanted to. I did not know the race time except when I ran under the halfway scaffold in Drummond, and noted the time was 4:58+. I seemed to remember how happy I was in 2000 running through Drummond with Tiekie, knowing that I was halfway, and that I had run every step. This year I noted that I was in Drummond in the same time or less than it had taken me in 2000. Except that in 2000 I ran every step, and this year I had walked 1/8th of the way. I felt like that was a significant difference at the time.
When I got to 34 miles I was beginning to get bored with the whole thing. I was on track, and I was using my food and lifesavers at a rate that would last to the finish. Physically, I felt okay. My legs were not sore, and I didn't have the desperation I had felt in 2000 for the last 35K or in 2001 for the last 15K. I was just in need of some other distraction for my mind. I decided that there were 8 2-mile sections left to get to 50 miles. I started to focus on them, counting each one off as I ran 1.75, walked .25. This seemed to be enough of a goal, and was challenging. It seemed like the hardest of the 8 was the last one, in which I had to run the entire length of "Little Polly's" hill.
At Tumble Inn with only 12K to go, I was smiling for the camera.
At 50 miles, I decided I did not feel like running the whole way, but that I could continue with the 1.75-0.25 routine. Of course, Polly Shortts is in miles 49-50. I started up that hill, and began to feel very hot. I remembered reading Fordyce's article that said there was very little to gain by running up Polly Shortts. After 0.4 miles of the 49th mile, all on the hill, I decided that I was too hot and needed to cool off. I walked. This is the only exception in the whole course to my pattern. At that time of day, the hill was in the shade, and I took my hat off and carried it and walked briskly but thought about trying to cool off. I walked to the top, which was somewhere in the 50th mile. It seems like the crest was at 49.4 miles and I started running again. I thought I should skip the walk at the end of mile 50 since I had walked a lot more that I was "supposed to." But I was getting tired now, and walked again from 49.8 to 50.0.
Now I was in the affluent neighborhood entering Pietermaritzburg. I was up Polly Shortts, and had no idea what time it was, but I didn't really care enough to look at my watch. After all, I was where I was, and looking at the time would not change the time. So I just kept going. At 3K to go, which was very near where my watch ticked over 52 miles, I decided I would run 1K, walk 1K and run the last K into the finish. It was the beginning of the 53rd mile anyway and I was "supposed" to run here anyway. So I started running, which felt a little bad until I got my stride going again. I really had no leg pain, although if I ran too fast I could feel a cramp start. I had felt my little toe on my right foot back around 40 miles, and it hurt. I figured there was a blister and thought I might stop at a medical tent and have them pop it, but after a while it stopped hurting, so it must have popped itself. Now, at 52 miles, it hurt a little to start running from a walk, but once running, it didn't hurt at all. When I passed the 2K to go sign I decided that even though I had promised myself I'd walk, I was running the rest of the way.
Then there was 1 K to go. I waited for that sign, since it is only 2.5 laps around a track. Then there was an 800 Metres to go sign. I saw that, and heard someone with a bullhorn say that those of us passing that sign now had 6 minutes to get in under ten hours. I couldn't believe that, since I had already given up on sub-ten, and had also given up caring about it. But I decided that unlike two years ago when I walked in since I had the time, this year I would try to get in under ten hours. And I thought I could run a 6 minute 800, since I had been doing 800s in speed work in 3:45 or so. So I ran as hard as I could. And I could not believe how far 800 metres is. There are a few turns inside the racecourse once you run in, so you can't see the finish line until you're about 100 metres from it. When I did see it I "sprinted." I thought I saw 9:58+ on the clock, but the web says 9:59:05, which I'll take. That's 1 hour, 1 minute and 28 seconds improvement in my up run time.
At the finish line, I was glad to be done and turned off my SDM foot unit and stored my time. I posed for the photographer after getting my finish card, patch and medal, since I had paid for photos, and I hope I get some good ones. I asked a man in the finish chute where the international tent was, and he pointed the way. I saw the tog bag retrieval place on the way, and since I was feeling okay and wanting to get going, I stopped there and retrieved my bag. Then I walked over to the international runner's tent and saw Tom sitting by the fence. He congratulated me and told me of his results. Then he pointed to where the showers were, and I walked over there and took a good (but very cold) shower, put on clean clothes and went back to join Tom again. I was having no trouble walking except on the steep downhills aside the road you have to cross. I wanted to leave, but was reminded that the buses don't leave until the race was over. We went and climbed up in the bleachers and watched the last 20 minutes of the race and the closing of the finish line. I was amazed at how many people finish in the last 5 minutes, and how many people don't finish at all but are in that last 100 meters.
After the finish Tom and I got on the second bus and headed for Durban. I felt like passing out, between the drop in my blood pressure and the diesel fumes. I rode most of the way with my head as far between my knees as I could get it. When we got to our hotel, I was a little stiff at first but walked in without trouble. Up to the room and soaked in a hot bath. I was craving a steak dinner.
I went down to the veranda where Ronnie was waiting for me. That was pretty nice of him. It was a holiday and not very busy, but he was there. The only dinner option was buffet, and I got a big bottle of water, and a small plate of food. The lamb was a little like steak, and I ate a little, but didn't have a big appetite. Tom came down and had a couple of beers but didn't feel like eating.
That night it took about 2 hours for the cramps to stop in my feet and calves. After that I slept about an hour at a time, since I was still over hydrated. But I did sleep, and made it down for breakfast the next morning. The only "injury" was the blistered little toe. The blister was on most of the toe, but had popped, and didn't hurt at all.
Tuesday (June 18) after breakfast we walked downtown and bought some souvenirs, visited the post office, the bank, and took care of pressing matters. After dropping things off at the hotel, we walked down to beach for the traditional luncheon at Thirstie's on the channel leading into the Port of Durban. It was a perfectly beautiful day.
Tuesday night we decided to have dinner at the Balmoral, since Ronnie was working. We gave him a LM shirt and another gift, and had our usual bottle of wine and the buffet. I slept really well Tuesday night.
Wednesday (June 19)
After the breakfast buffet, we strolled downtown to the Avis garage and returned with our car. We drove out through Durban and Northeast up the highway along the coast through pulpwood forests and sugar cane plantations. Our destination was the Hluhluwe Umfolozi game park, which we reached after several hours. We drove around inside it and visited the Centennary Center, which had been constructed since Tom was here. We were able to walk with a guide through an area of cages (bohmas) built to hold rhino, giraffe and Nyala they were preparing to auction off the following weekend. We got really close to the rhino.
On the way to Hilltop Camp we saw more wildlife and went to the Thiyeni Hide. We checked in and had a few beers at the bar before going to our hut. This hut was a completely furnished vacation home - two bedrooms, two full baths, a living room, porch, kitchen, dining area, the works. We had dinner (braai) in the restaurant and walked home to finish off all the free beer and champagne we had collected.
Thursday (June 20)
After breakfast and some photo shooting around the camp, we got in the car and headed for the northeast corner of South Africa, where there used to be an unguarded border with Mozambique that lead to the ocean. We did not want to enter Mozambique officially, but we thought we might be able to see the ocean.
We didn't actually go to Mozambique, but we went to the border. There, we decided that since the people at the crossing had guns and we didn't, and that since we had possessions of value and they didn't, we would not try to cross. I took photos of the border post from as close as I dared to go.
On the way we crossed a mountain ridge and some very beautiful views. At Jozini we crossed the Pongolapoort Dam, which created a large reservoir and powered a hydro generator. On the way back to Hluhluwe we stopped at the dam to take some photos.
Back in Hluhluwe we stopped at the get-out points and took some photos. These may even have been from the next morning on our way back to Durban, I can't remember. Tom took some nice photos here.
Friday (June 21)
In the morning we packed up and got our exit pass from the desk. We wanted to return the car before 11 to save a day's rental fee, so we skipped breakfast. My journal says I felt completely over the Comrades, although that means I was no longer sore walking around or sitting in the car. We got to the Durban airport on time, after filling the gas tank in a questionable neighborhood, but with no problems. We flew to Johannesburg, and called the hotel, after figuring out how to use my international calling card to make a local call (not a good thing to do - MCI nicks you for that!) and asked them to pick us up. They sent a Mercedes limo, and asked for R400 when we got to the hotel. I remember being driven through lush neighborhoods where all the houses were like compounds, with tall stone or brick walls, topped by rolls of razor wire. Gave me the creeps.
The hotel was luxurious. I don't think I've ever stayed in a hotel this fancy. There were 3 bellmen all over as as soon as the limo pulled up. After cleaning up and settling into our room, it was time to meet our friends. We had agreed to meet at the bar in the hotel lounge. Tiekie showed up first, then Glen and Lauren, then Alec and Pauline. Leon joined us later at the restaurant. We had a couple of beers and they showed us to the restaurant they'd selected, which was right there in the Sandton Square mall. It was terrific, and I ordered the steak I had wanted since finishing the race. We had wine, and I noticed my head getting more and more congested. We had another terrific meal and wonderful conversation.
After dinner we had a nightcap in the lounge and said our goodbyes. Tiekie said she would pick us up at 5 the next day at the hotel and take us to the airport. Pauline gave me instructions to get over my cold. I soaked in a hot bath as hot as I could stand it, until it made me sweat, and finally fell asleep.
Saturday (June 22)
First thing in the morning, I went to the bell stand and asked about a chemist (drug store). The concierge told me where to go and who to ask for, and even though the store wasn't open yet, they let me in and got me what they recommended. Then I returned to the room and Tom and I went to the dining room for our included breakfast, which was also 4 star, like everything else at this hotel. We hung out in the room watching the world cup semi-final and writing cards until our 1:00 checkout, then we left our bags with the concierge and went shopping in the mall. My journal notes that I was anxious to be home. Maybe this trip was too many days.
After a couple hours of shopping we'd had all we wanted. I had my souvenirs, and we again retired to the lounge where we ordered a light lunch. As we were finishing, Tiekie showed up and we had another drink with her. Then collected our bags and she chauffeured us to the airport. She came in with us after parking and the place was packed. I've never seen so many humans in a compressed space. You couldn't tell which part of the crowd was a line, and which part was people like us looking for a line. We decided to take a table up along the mezzanine and wait since we had a few hours before our flight. Tiekie said good-bye after an hour or so, and we waited some more. Finally it seemed like we could get to our check-in counter and we headed down there.
After an hour or so in line, it seemed odd that no one else had come to the line after us. We got almost to the counter and then everything seemed to stop. I thought their computer system had crashed. Finally the lady called us up and we presented our documents. After doing some work on her terminal she informed us that the flight was full and there were no seats for us. Choking back panic, we asked what would happen. She instructed us to go through the counter to the office and someone would talk to us.
Still hoping to argue our way on board, we went to a tiny office off the hallway where about 8 tickets agents were clustered around a terminal. After waiting quite a while someone took our tickets and went back to the terminal. A young woman, Patience Khumalo, eventually explained that there were no seats. I think there were about 10 people in the same boat. Apparently in South Africa, seating is first come first served. In the US we are used to the airlines announcing that the flight is oversold and asking for volunteers to get off for compensation. That didn't happen in Johannesburg.
Patience took us to another counter where we were given vouchers for a night in the Holiday Inn, 3 meals, and a "flexi-flyer" coupon good for any round trip passage anywhere South African Airways flies, travel must be completed within 356 days of date of issue. Date of issue was 22 June 2002, 355 days is 13 June 2003. Unfortunately I only use SAA to go to South Africa, and I only do that once a year to run the Comrades, which is always on June 16. So unless the end date is waived, the coupon isn't much use. If the end date is waived, and I can use it for next year's trip, then it saves me about $2000.
In any case, Patience took us to the bus stop and put us on the shuttle for the Holiday Inn, which was at the airport. She explained that we were confirmed on the flight tomorrow afternoon, and she would be working all day. She would meet us when we came back to the airport, get our boarding passes, and etc. So we spent a lovely night at the Holiday Inn. Well, the food was buffet, so we ate what we wanted.
Sunday (June 23)
It was an uneventful night, and breakfast was also okay, and then we re-packed our bags and decided to go the the airport, find Patience, get our boarding passes, and try to negotiate an extension on our flight coupons, seats in business class, use of the first class lounge, and anything else we could get away with.
Patience was there and checked our bags and got our boarding passes. We couldn't get into business class, but we did get the window seats we'd asked for. We were told that no one at the airport could extend the date on our coupons and that we'd have to take that up with the office. We were allowed to use the business class lounge. We walked around outside for a while and I took some photos of the airport expansion underway. We went to the rental car counters and got a price on a car. We were thinking of driving to Pretoria, since we had some time, and we could see the architecture there. I chickened out on that idea, since I was nervous about getting in an accident, or hijacked, or lost, and not getting back to make the flight, and spending another night in Africa, but this time on our own. Anyway, we walked around for a while, then went through Customs and to the business class lounge. There, we had a quiet, smoke-free comfortable place to relax. Food and drink, telephones, and even internet terminals. Tom read and I got on the internet. I was able to check my home e-mail and find my results on the Comrades page. I called Bob and Robin to make sure they'd heard my message from the night before about our delay. They hadn't, so Robin called Bob at work and let him know we'd be a day late.
Eventually we were called to board, and after a very thorough security check, and receiving messages from patience at the ticket check to enjoy our flight, we got on and flew home.
The first leg was to Capetown. There were women from Arkansas in the row behind me, fairly loud and obviously needing more volume than that available in their row. They said something about being on a medical mission, but I only heard them talking about the shopping they did, and Victoria Falls, and etc. We left a little late and they announced that we were waiting for 4 more passengers. The two empty seats next to me looked promising, but I knew they'd fill when we got to Capetown. Then a very angry older woman came and sat in the aisle seat. She was disheveled and standing in the aisle putting things in the rack and getting situated. But she was in the way of the stewardess who was trying to demonstrate the safety procedures, and they had an argument. Then the woman moved up to the row in front of me. She had kept looking at me like she wanted an audience for her outrage, but I had my headphones on and was listening to War and Peace, and didn't make eye contact with her, and so was able to successfully ignore her.
In Capetown we were not allowed to get off the plane while they fueled and boarded the remaining passengers. The plane filled up, and a man sat in the aisle seat of my row. Then the woman came back and plunked down in the center seat next to me. I made sure to keep my headphones on. But just before pushback, another stewardess came and got her, and she moved to some other seat elsewhere on the plane. And I had an empty seat next to me for the long flights to Atlanta. Yes!
There was a French family in the row ahead, who didn't understand the instructions about keeping seatbacks upright during taxi and takeoff, and also during meal service. Once I asked the attendant to ask the man to move his seat forward, and he did. After dinner I was quick to get to the bathroom as soon as the trays were cleared, so I didn't have to wait in line. That was a good idea. Then I bedded down.
I woke for the landing into Isla Da Sol. There we were not allowed to get off as we had been in years past. This was due to new security rules required by the US. Not only could we not get off, but since 3 passengers were getting off because SAL was their destination, a security team came on board and went through all the carry on compartments and made sure someone spoke for each piece of luggage. There was also a crew change. We were on the ground about an hour. Another 7 hours 40 minutes to Atlanta.
There was an incredibly slow sunrise. It seemed like it was still hours to Atlanta. Because it was. Another movie. More War and Peace. They turned on the lights and fed us breakfast. Then the obligatory movie on how to clear Customs, what to declare, etc. Then we landed and were back in the USA. Through Customs, onto our flight for Rochester, and then Syracuse. Bob was there to meet us, and take us home. A great trip!
