KZN Trail Series™

And in the end, the sunshine finally came out to play as more than 100 competitors lined up one final time in the Spur KZN Trail Series™ for 2014. iSithumba, located near Inchanga in the Valley of a 1000 Hills, played host to the final race of four in the Spur KZN Trail Series™ for what was a picture perfect day for trail running.

In the men’s 11.3km long course Championship race, it was familiar foes doing battle as the race for the overall Series was still up for grabs.

As the runners traversed the final single track along the banks of the Sikelekehleni River, it was Muzi Madikwa who emerged up the final hill of the day and into the finishing straight as the first runner across the line, finishing in a time of 46:50 with Ayanda Mlotshwa settling for second place over the line in a time of 47:53. That was still good enough to clinch the overall Championship for Mlotshwa though with his two wins out of a possible four while Madikwa took second spot in the Series with his win.

Third over the line and sealing the final spot in the men’s open Championship podium was Mlondi Zuma who came home in a time of 48:25.

In the ladies Championship race it was Melanie Kelly who bumped herself up to second overall in the ladies Open Championship, by winning race 4 in a time of 01:06:57. Tracey Levinson claimed second over the line on the day with a time of 01:15:24 with Cathryn Bode hot on her heels in third, coming home a mere 3 seconds later in 01:15:27 to claim the third spot in the Series.

Despite a difficult run, Yolande Visser did enough in the first three races to seal her overall victory in the ladies Open Championship with two second places and a first place at race 3.

Bengo caps off a fine Series
Owen Bengo made it three wins on the trot as he blitzed the 5.1km short course in a superb time of 20:20 to dominate the overall Open Challenge and cap off a fine two weeks of racing.

Second overall on the day and second overall in the men’s Open Challenge went to Godfrey Madikwa who chased hard but could not keep up with the flying Bengo. Madikwa finished in a time of 22:23 with Mark Scrooby also running a great race to seal third place overall on the day as well as in the Series and cruising home in 22:33.

In the ladies short course Challenge race, Sabrina Ward claimed victory by navigating around the course in 26:12 to seal the overall Series win in the process, with the young Tate Steward showing great consistency to finish second overall on the day in a time of 28:27. Victoria Coetzee came home just behind Steward in 28:58 and with that, sealed second place overall in the Challenge in the ladies open category. Kayley Chislett crossed the line in a time of 34:29 to claim the third place in the ladies open Challenge.

It was a great way to cap off a super Series and we look forward to visiting KZN again next year! Thanks to our amazing sponsors, Spur Restaurant, adidas, BOS and Protea Hotels for their continued and fantastic support! Next on the calendar is the Spur Gauteng Summer Trail Series™ that kicks off this weekend at Hennops River, be sure not to miss this one!

For full results click here and for more photos click here.

Spur KZN Trail Series™ Overall Results
Men's Open Championship
1. Ayanda Mlotshwa
2. Muzi Madikwa
3. Mlondi Zuma

Ladies Open Championship
1. Yolande Visser
2. Melanie Kelly
3. Cathryn Bode

Men's Open Challenge
1. Owen Bengo
2. Godfrey Madikwa
3. Mark Scrooby

Ladies Open Challenge
1. Sabrina Ward
2. Victoria Coetzee
3. Kayley Chislett

Minimee Challenge
1. Luke Matthews
2. Lance Arnold
3. Tate Steward
 

It seems that whenever Wildrunner is in town, the rains come down in KZN! Despite the wet and tricky underfoot conditions, the third race of the 2014 Spur KZN Trail Series™ saw more than 130 runners embrace it and tackle the magnificent Giba Gorge Trails. 

In the men’s long course 10km race, it was Ayanda Mlotshwa who made it two wins from two as he crossed under the Spur Trail Series™ arch in a superb time of 42:28 with Muzi Madikwa hot on his heels a mere 7 seconds adrift as these two young men battle for Series supremacy. Third place over the line went to a new name in this Series, Mlondi Zuma, who came home in a time of 45:16 to round off the top three men over the line. 

In the ladies long course race, the hard work and determination of Yolande Visser paid off as she claimed top spot on the overall ladies podium after two second place finishes in the Series thus far. Visser finishing in a time of 55:47 with last week’s winner, Christine Whitfield just 2 seconds back with a time of 55:49. Cathryn Bode completed the overall podium with a fantastic third place in a time of 01:00:50. 

Bengo blasts again 
The man of the hour in the 5km short course race was once again Owen Bengo who took home his second consecutive victory, running under the arch in 21:43. Godfrey Madikwa took home another second place overall in a time of 22:42 and the race for Series supremacy is truly alive! In third overall was new comer, Travers Pellew who crossed under the arch in 23:26. 

In the ladies race, Sabrina Ward picked up where she left off last week and claimed her second win on the trot with a time of 26:48. Not too far behind her was young Tate Steward who came home strong to finish in a terrific 27:32 with Nicoletta Photopoulos taking home third over the line in 28:31 to round off the overall ladies podium. 

It was another great night’s racing and it is all set up for a climatic finale this Sunday at iSithumba. We cannot wait to see you there! 

Thank you to our sponsors, Spur Steak Ranches, adidas, BOS and Protea Hotels! 

For full results click here and for more photos click here.

Speed was at the order of the day in race 1 of the 2014 Spur KZN Trail Series™. Inanda Dam played host to arguably the quickest course in the Series as the front runners dipped below the 03:30 min per km mark and left the rest of the field in awe. 

In the men’s 10.8km long course Championship race, it was Mbhasobhi Gumede who got the Series off to an electric start by blitzing home in a terrific time of 39:00 to take top honours and take an early Series lead, with Muzi Madikwa hot on his heels crossing under the arch in a time of 39:24. Third over the line went to Ayanda Mlotshwa who crossed the finish line in a time of 40:33 to round off a very impressive overall podium. 

In the ladies long course race, it was the familiar face of Trish Bahlmann who crossed the finish line in first place with a time of 46:02 and a superb 6th place overall. Yolande Visser claimed 2nd lady over the line with her time of 54:26, showing just how strong Trish is! Third lady over the line and claiming the coveted last spot on the overall podium went to Melanie Kelly who ran home in 55:25. 

Inanda Running Club soars to new record times 
In the men’s 5km short course Challenge race, the Inanda Dam Running Club came to race and race they certainly did! The top four all finished within eight seconds of each other as they fought tooth and nail for top spot. In the end it was Siyobonga Malumga who crossed under the arch in a phenomenal time of 15:54 to dip under 16 minutes for 5km and take home first junior and first over the line. Not far behind him was Ntokozo Phewa who claimed second over the line as well as second junior in a time of 15:57. Sbusio Njilo finished off the overall podium with a time of 16:00 but claimed the prize of first open male. 

In the ladies race, Nomthandoza Mlotshwa ran home in first place over the line and was the only lady to run under 20 minutes, finishing in a time of 19:48 with Millicent Msindo running home second over the line in 21:30. Third over the line went to 12 year old Tate Stewart who showed the senior ladies a thing or two to ran a fantastic race and finish with a time of 23:14. Well done Tate! 

It was the perfect way to start the Series and we look forward to seeing everyone at Race 2 on Wednesday evening at Kenneth Stainbank Nature Reserve! 

A big thanks to our sponsors; Spur Steak Ranches, adidas, BOS Ice Tea and Protea Hotels for making this Series possible! 

For full results of race 1 click here and for photos click here. Follow us on Twitter @WildrunnerZA and like our Facebook page atwww.facebook.com/trailseries for regular updates on Spur Trail Series™ races.

Race 2 in the 2014 edition of the Spur KZN Trail Series™ kept to the tradition of a wet affair as the rains came down at the magnificent Kenneth Stainbank Nature Reserve on Wednesday evening.

This race saw the short course Challenge runners traverse a loop of 5.3km with the long course Championship runners having a crack at two loops taking their distance to 10.6km.

Adding to this adventure is the fact that this was of course a night run! There is something quite special about running through forests, along the river and in and around wildlife with nothing but your headlamp to guide you.
In the men’s long course, the wait was not long as Ayanda Mlotshwa cruised up the finishing straight and across the line in a time of 47:17. Along with his third place finish in race 1, Ayanda now sits pretty in the overall Series results and will no doubt to look to keep the hammer down in the next two races.

Second over the line went to Mark Michell who made his first appearance this Series, crossing under the arch in 49:49, with race 1’s runner-up Muzi Madikwa rounding out the overall men’s podium with a time of 51:52.
In the ladies Championship race, it was Christine Whitfield who came home after an epic two loops to take the win in the ladies race, finishing in a time of 01:05:53. This proved to be a dominant display as Yolande Visser and Melanie Kelly finished more than 2 minutes later to take home second and third place over the line respectively with their times of 01:08:17 and 01:09:29.

Bengo hits his straps
After a self-confessed average run in race 1, where he still managed a superb fourth place, Owen Bengo upped his game to take home the win in the short course Challenge race on Wednesday. He completed the 5.3km loop in 26:13 with Godfrey Madikwa trailing slightly but still running an impressive run in difficult conditions to come home in second place overall with a time of 27:39.

Third male over the line went to Mark Scrooby, who after his sixth place finish in race 1 ran strong to finish in 18:26 and keep himself in the hunt for a spot on the overall Series podium.

In the ladies Challenge race, Sabrina Ward crossed the line first, coming home in a time of 32:44 with young Tate Steward continuing to impress, with her time of 33:19 good enough to take second over the line overall. Victoria Coetzee took the last spot on the overall ladies podium by finishing in a superb 36:22. 

The stage is set for race 3 next Wednesday, 15 October at Giba Gorge as the overall champions fight for top spot. For more information on this race and to enter online click here.

A big thanks to our sponsors; Spur Steak Ranches, adidas, BOS Ice Tea and Protea Hotels for making this Series possible!

For full results click here and for photos click here.

Follow us on Twitter @WildrunnerZA and like our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/trailseries for regular updates on Spur Trail Series™ races.