GERHARD NEL MEMORIAL RACE – WATUNI BERG TRAINING OPPORTUNITY – 20 JANUARY 2015
PHOTOS: FACEBOOK/GAUTENGCANOEUNION
RESULTS: GCU WEBSITE / RACE / RESULTS
The Gerhard Nel Memorial Race was organised by Watuni Canoe Club as a Berg training race, right sluggish flow, right weather, and no rapids, and long….25km on the cusp of the winter solstice!
But it turned out to be a pleasant sunny winter day once again and paddlers enjoyed their 2 – 3 hour training opportunity which benefited them for various reasons and in many ways including base fitness and improved endurance!
U23 Siseko Ntondini won the race in 2:18 but it was a close finish and sprint dice to the finish line with U16 Alex Masina (JCC) in 2nd place only 1 second behind the Sowetan who plans to do Berg. In 3rd place was another Berg trainee, Cornelis Human (Dabs) on 10 seconds behind the leader, while 2 seconds later ERK’s Tommy Booth chugged across the finish line at top speed as well!
The 5th Finisher just a minute later was first Veteran, Roy Clegg (VIC) in 2:19:42, while the Great Grand Master top achiever Brian Longley finished in 2:24 (Dabs) adding valuable training for his international World Masters Marathon Champs coming up in September in Hungary!
The first double to finish was JCC’s young and new, Justin Gibb with older experienced partner Gavin Steyl, in 2 hours 24 and I am obliged to mention that this double was also the first double at the previous VLC Long Klip race as well which was neglected in that race report……finishing a second later while the indomintable Grand Master of canoeing Peter O Connor (Dabs) finished the race in 2;31 first in that age group. A Sub Master finisher (CEN) one second later was Gunther Grune, and the first Sub Grant Master – Jim Davies (Dabs) finished next in 2:31:20.
The JCC K3 finished the race in 2:33 with Mark Hall, Martin Sly and Franz Fischer, and the first Sub Veteran team was a mixed double K3 from FLCC with Kevin Hunt, Vaughn Steven and Monique Steven, while the first Under 18 finisher from JCC was Peter Chissano.
Another first was the Master age category with Patrick Thomas from FLCC and a special mention of congratulations to Constant Olivier, the first Gauteng Canoe Union river paddler who finished his first flat water marathon event in 3 minutes 4 seconds (FLCC) as 2nd Sub Grand Master!
Tasty hot hamburgers as well as bacon egg rolls were on sale for the hungry after their workout while during their race the river also saw dozens of young junior paddlers enjoying their winter marathon race with ultra distances for school leaguers which has a separate race report.
Thanks to Watuni for the hospitality and marshalling as well as patient sweep…….
Jennie Dallas
for GCU PR
082 8578571