KWAZULU-NATAL, BALLITO, 19^th JULY 2016 – This weekend, 16-17 July, saw the Jeep Warrior series Race 4 of 8 take place in KwaZulu-Natal at Sugar Rush Park in Ballito, with over 3500 competitors all racing to get the opportunity to drive off in a brand new Jeep until the next Jeep Warrior event, should they hit the top spot on the podium in the Black Ops Elite category.

Sugar Rush Park saw some unusual rain prior to the race, making many of the obstacles slippery and immensely challenging, physically and mentally, but the Jeep OCR Team, Thomas Van Tonder, Jay Jay Deysel, Joshua Masudi, Carina Marx and Hlubi Mboya, faced up to the challenge and excelled.

In the Black Ops Elite Men’s Race, Jeep Team star racer, Thomas van Tonder, took top spot on the podium with a time of 01h40, over 30 minutes ahead of his biggest rival, KeyHealth Nevarest team racer, Greg Avierinos, in a time of 02h11, with fellow Jeep Team racer, Jay Jay Deysel, in 3^rd place in 02h13, rounding off the Jeep Team’s solid achievements in the top elite race.

Jeep Team’s Joshua Masudi, also raced in Black Ops Elites, but cramped half way ending his race for podium.

Women’s Black Ops Elites, who compete over the same course as the men’s Black Ops Elites, had Jeep Team’s up-and-coming OCR star, Carina Marx, competing and nursing an injury, but achieving a respectable 5th place overall in a time of 02h29.

Jeep Team’s celebrity competitor, Hlubi Mboya, competed in the Commando Elite Women’s Race, and says of her race, “This was one of the hardest Warrior Races I have ever competed in. It took me two hours but I refused to give up my band and be disqualified, even when it meant trying to complete an obstacle over and over again.” Mboya’s inspiring tenacity saw her just short of a Top 10 place in the Commando Elites.

The Jeep Team will be competing in Jeep Warrior Race 5, which takes place from 20 - 21 August 2016 at Hazeldean Valley in Pretoria.

RESULTS

BLACK OPS ELITE - MEN

1. THOMAS VAN TONDER - 01:40:07
2. GREG AVIERINOS - 02:11:32
3. JAY JAY DEYSEL - 02:13:26
4. CLINT PRETORIUS - 02:23:40
5. ANRICH ZIMMERMAN - 02:23:45

BLACK OPS ELITE - WOMEN

1. HANNEKE DANNHAUSER - 02:13:26
2. TRISH BAHLMANN - 02:15:43
3. DOMINIQUE DOLIVEIRA - 02:16:49
4. SABRINA DAOLIO - 02:23:32
5. CARINA MARX - 02:59:26

COMMANDO ELITE - MEN

1. MICHAEL ROSS - 00:51:42
2. CALEN HASTIE - 00:51:53
3. GARETH MARQUISS - 00:56:01
4. JASON FRIEDMAN - 00:56:01
5. DARREN MARQUISS - 00:57:28

COMMANDO ELITE - WOMEN

1. DANIELLA LUSHINGTON - 01:21:17
2. CINDY WILLS - 01:30:23
3. TARYN STRYDOM - 01:32:46
4. KAELEE LUSHINGTON - 01:33:07
5. AMOR BEYERSBERGEN - 01:33:42

ROOKIE ELITE - MEN

1. ADRIAN ROUSSEL - 00:31:41
2. SHELDON CROUWKAMP - 00:32:00
3. RICHARD EKSTEEN - 00:33:17

ROOKIE ELITES - WOMEN

1. CHANTE HABIB - 00:40:49
2. LEONIE VAN ZYL - 00:42:09
3. KRISTY VAN DER MERWE - 00:43:07

Jeep #Warrior5 - Pretoria – Hazeldean Valley - 20 Aug – 21 Aug
Jeep #Warrior6 - Nelspruit – Kwanyoni Lodge - 24 Sept – 25 Sept
Jeep #Warrior7 - Meerendal, Western Cape - 22 Oct -23 Oct
Jeep #Warrior8 - Pretoria - Legend MX - 19 Nov – 20 Nov

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Editor’s Notes

All photo credits: ZC Marketing Consulting

ABOUT THE JEEP WARRIOR SERIES

The Jeep Warrior Race is South Africa’s largest obstacle course race series that spans eight events across four provinces.

The series burst onto the scene in 2013 and immediately spearheaded the meteoric rise of obstacle racing in South Africa. It quickly grew to up to 9000 participants per event and remains at the forefront of the growth spurt in the new sport of obstacle racing with its larger than life obstacles and innovative courses to challenge South Africans.

What makes Jeep Warrior Race so popular, is that anyone can participate - all you need is a pair of old running shoes and a great sense for adventure.

To find out more, go to the Jeep Warrior website - www.warrior.co.za. To keep up with the action, like Jeep Warrior’s Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/thewarriorrace - or follow the event on Twitter - https://twitter.com/thewarriorrace.