To go or not to go, that was the question, as it looked like there would be little to no water for the 2025 N3TC Drak Challenge. Some were committed and some sat on the fence waiting, while the organizers sent out a deluge of pictures with the promise of rain. Still, it seemed like it was going to be a low one, but then the rain really did fall — in the right place and at the right time. So much so that on Friday evening, the river was almost over the Castleburn Bridge. With this, the organizers reversed the days, making the lower section Day 1, starting at Swartburg Bridge just outside of Underberg.
The racing snakes made easy work of the 39km section, with Andy Birkett cruising home in just over 2 hours and 9 minutes, a minute ahead of Hamish Lovemore and Matt Fenn. But for most, it was anything but plain sailing; the gorge section was quite testing, and there was a gala all the way to Glenhaven. Even below this, the river remained full and fast, keeping everyone entertained. Out of the 240 boats that started, 30 didn’t make it, but those who did had an awesome ride. For the second day, the river had dropped to a lovely level of 3 at Castleburn. The mist soon burned off, and it was a glorious day to be out in the incredibly beautiful Underberg area. At the notorious Black Murray rapid, Andy styled through just ahead of Matt Fenn, followed by Hamish Lovemore, which made up the men’s top 3. Hank was 4th, Clint was 5th, Tom Lovemore 6th, and Siseko was 7th. In the ladies, the racing was much tighter with Christie outsprinting Nix Birkett and Saskia Hockley. Well done to Andy, who now has 10 Drak crowns, and to Christie, who now has 3. All eyes will be on these two for the Dusi in a few weeks’ time. If Andy wins, he will equal the Pope’s record of 15, while Christie is competing for a 4th K1 win.
From Dabs, we had 25 boats finish, with only the D’s (Dixon and Dingley) being in a Double. Apart from Clint in the top 5, we also had some other people on the podium: Rory Attridge was 1st Sub Grand Master, Colin Wilson was 2nd Grand Master (which means he should get to keep his EuroSteel sponsorship), and Sean Evans was 3rd Master. Kirsty Potty was our only lady starter and finisher, and she has some war stories to share. So does Flemm Pupp; although his legs alone will tell you plenty of stories, but they both raved about how much fun the full river was. Well done to Frank Geiger, who beat most of our elderly contingent, and to Leon Bartel, who is becoming quite proficient at repairing old boats. All who participated will tell you it was a fantastic weekend. There were many who had a lot of FOMO and really missed out on some amazing conditions. Sorry, boys and girls — hopefully it’s as good next year.
Thank you to those who made donations at the SACRC Back to School Time Trial. And thanks to Steve and Elandrie for all that they do. Best wishes to all our school and varsity student paddlers – make the most of it all!
The Elands race has been cancelled due to hippo, although you can still trip if you want, or go do the Inanda Dam to Durban race. Otherwise, the next big river race is the Dusi, so we might see the likes of Mo Patel starting to train.
For those not as slow as Mo, there’s the GCU Sprints at Victoria Lake Canoe Club on Saturday and Sunday. Hopefully our future Olympians will be there in the making. Entries close on Friday.
In frightening news, Waldi (while apparently drugged) took to social media to tell us he previously had only half a heart… or less. Driving home from the VLC Time Trial on Wednesday evening he was feeling really bad, pulled over, and called his wife, who is a doctor. She organized an ambulance while he had a heart attack and then underwent over 12 hours of surgery for a quadruple bypass. Waldi’s still in ICU but told us he’ll be coming back stronger, words his family and friends were praying to hear. Get well soon Waldi, there are diamonds to be found on our little dam.
Till next time — take care and don’t sit on fences.