Thabang Madiba continued his domination at the 2019 Trappers 4 Peaks Mountain Challenge presented by Bloemfontein Courant by once again claiming top spot for the 3rd year in a row, with another sprint finish. As the current record holder for both the “forward” and “reverse” routes, Thabang finished today in a time of 2hrs55min09sec, followed very closely by previous course winner, Lucky Miya in a time of 2hrs55min10sec and Simon Tshabalala in 3rd place in 2hrs58min48sec.

“4 Peaks has become a tradition for us to do and it was so fantastic to be able to run it all the way to the end with my good friend Lucky. I really don’t like racing him as he is more of a brother to me, but someone has to win it,” says Thabang with a smile.

The ladies race was won by last year’s 2nd place runner, Tara-Lea van Zyl, in a time of 4hrs16min34sec, with Martie Botes in second place in a time of 4hrs19min36sec and Meghan West taking 3rd place in a time of 4hrs32min16sec. “4 Peaks in my opinion is the toughest mountain races in South Africa, despite it only being 24km, and with it being so dry the last few months it made the going even more brutal this year,” says Tara-Lea.

“I had a great race with a bit of tumbling and bundu-bashing, and managed to finish with my best result to date of 12th overall and first lady. The heat today definitely played a bit role in the slower times today, but it still is one of the best races South Africa has to offer.”
Dubbed as the toughest 24km trail race in South Africa with a vertical accent of over 1800m, the race takes place on the picturesque Moolmanshoek Private Game Reserve.

The terrain is definitely not for the faint of heart and good preparation is a must. Four very distinctive peaks make up the race as one circle around the Moolmanshoek valley. The route is not marked, but is very easy to traverse with marshals and very clear signage at key places. There are some very steep sections along the route that need to be navigated with the two toughest places being behind Jakobsberg and Visierskerf. 4 Peaks is a completely unsupported race, meaning that all athletes will need to carry everything they will need for the race on their person.

For more information on the race and to find out how you can enter next year’s event, please visit http://4peaks.co.za/. Follow the race live on Facebook on @4PeaksMountainChallenge

-- ENDS --

Notes to the editor:

Leading Positions

1. Thabang Madiba 2hrs55min09sec
2. Simon Tshabalala 2hrs55min10sec
3. Sampie Makoekoe 2hrs58min48sec

Top ladies

1. Tara-Lea van Zyl 4hrs16min34sec
2. Martie Botes 4hrs19min36sec
3. Meghan West 4hrs32min16sec

For the rest of the category wins please visit https://app.sportraxs.com/en/event/4-peaks

A series of unfortunate injuries to leading trail runners this year means that new champions will be crowned at the 22nd running of the 2018 K-Way SkyRun taking place in Lady Grey on Saturday 17 November. K-Way athlete and defending champion Lucky Miya, who will not be able to fight for his crown in the 100km race, due to injuries during the year, will be welcoming in the 2018 champion before heading out on the inaugural 38km night run at this year’s event. “We are sad not to have our defending champs back to try reclaim their crowns, but it means that we have an exciting race on our hands for who will take the title this year,” says race organiser Mike de Haast from Pure Adventures.

Leading contenders in the men’s race this year include K-Way athlete AJ Calitz, who has yet to add a SkyRun win to his list of achievements, along with Stewart Chaperon, who was crowned South African Ultra Trail Running Champion after his recent win at the Addo Elephant Trail. Also in the mix are SkyRun stalwarts, Hylton Dunn and Mr. SkyRun himself, Bruce Arnett, who has taken the title 13 times. The bug has bitten Nepalese mountain runner, Sange Sherpa, who will be back for his second year to race SkyRun after coming 2nd to Lucky Miya in 2017.

There is a joke amongst mountain and trail runners that SkyRun has been bewitched by a foreigner curse, in the last 21 years of running this race, despite some of the very top names coming out to do it, it has never been won by a male foreigner, with overall first place always going to a local South African runner. Can Sange break the curse this year? And will this be the year that the elite men are able to break the Sub12 time barrier? Ryan Sandes was the first to run a sub14 in 2012, and this time has since only been achieved by a select few number of athletes, with none having yet gone under the 12 hour mark!

In the ladies field, SPOT athlete Naomi Brand, who has been making a solid name for herself on the trail running scene is a firm favourite for first place, with SkyRun regulars Su Don-Wauchope and Tracy Zunkel hot on her heals. In 2016 former SkyRun champion and K-Way athlete, Nicolette Griffioen, set a record sub 16 hour time of 15hrs16min. “No woman in the history of the race has been able to break the sub 14 hour time achieved by male competitors,” says Mike, “but we know how strong these ladies are and we know that endurance and toughness are where they excel, so we are hoping for great things this year!” Unfortunately Nicolette has been amongst the list of injured athletes this year and will be running the 100km route with her mom as part of her fitness rehabilitation. K-Way athlete Cleo Albertus, will be looking for first place on the 38km route after her recent win at the 3 Peaks Challenge.

K-Way SkyRun will be taking place on the 17th of November 2018 in the small town of Lady Grey In the Eastern Cape. The race encompasses 3 distances – 100km, 65km and a new 38km route. All 3 races are unique in that they are truly self-supported and self-navigational races, where athletes tackle the remote terrain of the Witteberg Mountain range with a map, compass or GPS unit and a backpack containing all their food, water and compulsory equipment that will enable them to survive in this harsh environment, while operating at an average height of between 2200-2500 meters above sea level.

Live tracking for the race will be offered through Sportraxs and all social media channels will be kept updated throughout the race to let supporters know how their competitors are doing.

Website – skyrun.co.za
Facebook – SkyRun
#Hellofarun
#SkyRun
#AuthenticallyAfrican
#gearupgetout
ENDS

Just over one month to go until the start of the annual Trappers Bloemfontein 4 Peaks Mountain Challenge presented by Bloemfontein Courant and once again the race promises to be a nail biter with previous race champions Lucky Miya and Thabang Madiba returning to fight for the crown. Although only 24km, the race is known throughout the trail running community as one of the toughest mountain runs in South Africa!

“Only a few entries still remain for this year’s event,” says race organiser Mike de Haast from Pure Adventures. “We only allow 200 runners to experience the magic of this event and preserve the pristine nature of the mountains.”

“The 24km race is self-supported and self-navigational and as the route is circular it makes it a good entry level event for those that are looking for something more challenging than running on the trail. The 24km, though, should not fool you into a false sense of security as this is Extreme Mountain running and is the equivalent to an ultra-marathon. Trust us you will never think of 24km in the same way,” says Mike.

“4 Peaks is a real adventure race, it’s not simply trail running,” says Douw Raimondo from Trapper Bloemfontein. “As a proper adventure store, we are always so excited to be associated with this proper adventure of a race!”

The race, which has a vertical ascent of 1800m will take runners through the picturesque Moolmanshoek Private Game Reserve on Saturday the 22nd of September 2018.

For more information on the race and to find out what additional activities will be available on the weekend, please visit http://4peaks.co.za/.

Follow the race live on Facebook on @4PeaksMountainChallenge

They say South Africans are the toughest of the lot, and if that is true then the 2018 SkyRun will undoubtedly be tougher than ever before, as it has it partnered with South Africa’s most technical outdoor gear brand, becoming proudly known as the K-Way SkyRun!

“Our team at K-Way are thrilled with our partnership with SkyRun!” Beams Caitlin Doney, Public Relations Coordinator for K-Way. “We believe there is perfect synergy with K-Way being a proudly South African brand, partnering with an authentically South African race. Athletes have to endure extreme elements and it’s going to be tough – but we are confident that our gear will make the journey easier.”

In previous year’s many of the K-Way athletes have dominated the podium positions at SkyRun, with Lucky Miya taking the crown in 2017 and running phenomenon Nicolette Griffioen maintaining a top 10 overall position until the 65km mark where she had to pull out due to health problems. “Lucky will be back to defend his title this year as will Nicolette and we are hoping for #1 podium positions for both of them,” says Caitlin. “After last year’s health scares, AJ Calitz, will also be back to prove he still has what it takes and we know he would love to be on the podium with Lucky!”

“We are honoured to have a brand like K-Way along on for our SkyRun journey,” says event organiser, Mike de Haast from Pure Adventures. “SkyRun is a super technical event and we have complete faith that the K-Way brand will be able to stand up to all of the tests and challenges that the SkyRun elements have to throw at it.”

To add to the excitement, this year’s K-Way SkyRun will now also be featuring a 38km night mountain run that will be the perfect entry level event for anyone who has a 100km SkyRun race on their bucket list. “We are limiting entries to 100 competitors and are very confident that we will be “running” a waiting list for this route as we do for our other routes over the SkyRun weekend,” says Mike de Haast. “But don’t be fooled by the distance, entrants will have 12 hours to complete the 38km, and will be running on the parts of the same route as our 100km runners.”

The races will be taking place on Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 November 2017.

Website – skyrun.co.za
Facebook – SkyRun
#Hellofarun
#SkyRun
#Gearupgetout