Plett trail runner brings home the Cederberg Traverse 100 Mile crown
Looking for a running coach with a proven, erm, ‘track’ record? Look no further, ‘coz recent Plett arrival Andrew Jansen van Rensburg, who practises as a physiotherapist and coaches running in his free time, just went and won the Cederberg Traverse 100 Mile trail run.
Held during the first weekend in October, the gruelling 169km route included 7,200m of vertical ascent on a particularly rugged trail, negotiated during the span of two sweltering days and one beautiful night.
Says Andrew: “The Cederberg night sky full of stars was spectacular as I pushed through an extremely tough bundu-bashing section.”
Bolstered by this natural display and drawing on his extensive running experience, Andrew won the race in a most commendable time of 37 hours and 7 minutes.
The Cederberg Traverse is thought to be the toughest 100-mile trail run in the country, so it was more a war of attrition than a requirement for pure speed.
“The major achievement for me was the fact that I got to adventure through this beautiful part of the country and enjoy most of the experience,” he says.
So what’s next for Andrew? He has now conquered four of the live 100-mile trail runs on offer in South Africa -the Ultra-Trail Drakensberg, Karkloof, Addo, and Cederberg – so the last race to complete the set will be the MacMac Ultra Trail scheduled for 2020.
“Until then, I will certainly continue traversing the many trails on the beautiful Garden Route, exploring and enjoying the area.”
Andrew moved to Plett in January with his wife and two children.