A race such as the Caltex Sole Destroyer can make or indeed destroy a runner’s confidence or reputation.
It is tough, at stages brutally tough, but what it does have on its side is 23 years and 24 runs of building a history based on folklore.
Predictions were that no male was likely to break the 70-minute barrier and no female the 90-minute, and so it proved to be.
Times aside it is often the racing and the tactics that count more on a course of this nature.
Both men’s and women’s fields were well represented in numbers, the prize purse did not attract out of town runners to the extent it may have been envisaged, but not that the locals will have been too upset by that.
The women’s race was a great one to watch, though the absence through illness of Hanlie Botha, a multiple winner of the event and her club compatriot Caryn Lategan was disappointing.
In the men’s race Luthando Hejana of Born 2 Run and Nkosinathi Nzingo of Nedbank flew over the first causeway at 3km in Horseshoe Valley. They were in tandem.
The climbs up through King of the Mountain saw Nzingo power away from Hejana and establish a commanding 400m lead by the 10km mark. Hejana, the younger of the two men had other ideas for the descent into Dorchester Heights and beyond.
The two would race flat out all the way to the finish with Hejana opening a 22-second lead by the finish, winning in a time of 72:31.
Third was Edumisa Mtoli, a defining 4:18 adrift of his clubmate, Nzingo. Malixole Kalideni of Old Selbornians was fourth and Owen Tshibo fifth.
A feature of the race was that the inaugural winner of Sole Destroyer, Makaya Masumpa of Born 2 Run finished eighth overall and won the 50+ category, while Xolile Mashicila from Overtakers was first 40+ and in ninth position.
Andrea Ranger of Old Selbornians went out hard in the women’s race and in the absence of Botha was inevitably the one to beat. She was having none of it and raced on untouched to record a 93:12 victory, some five minutes ahead of her nearest challenger.
Behind her however the race was well and truly on. Initially there were four women in the race for second with Jaime Griffiths and Karen Davis both of Born 2 Run along with Ingrid Webber of Old Selbornians and Tammy Kelly of Oxford Striders all in the mix.
Griffiths led the early stages but was overhauled by Webber as the race progressed. While Davis and Kelly later fell off this pace they were nonetheless in a dual for the fourth spot.
Webber was still in second as the runners crossed the causeway into Nahoon Valley, but Griffiths was now shadowing her older and more experienced rival. Behind them Kelly had looked in charge, but Davis made a move at about the same causeway crossing.
Warrior exponent, Griffiths, struck just before the Willasdale Drive climb and powered on to take second 1:10 ahead of a committed Webber who held on to third while Davis came in fourth and 1:34 later Kelly emerged to take fifth and finish first in the 40+ category.
In the other age groups Liezl Heideman of Queenstown Harriers was awarded the women’s 35+ while Eskom’s Tembisile Vakele the men’s equivalent. Colleen Peens of Born 2 Run won the 50+ from Sharon Eldridge who has run all 24 Sole Destroyers to date.
Queenstown Harriers claimed another award with Joey Wassung winning the 60+, while Paula Richardson of Buffs took the 70+.
Among the men it was Charl Pienaar of Old Selbornians who continued his great form in the 60+ while Brian James of the host club was the top 70+ runner.
In the junior race Sinovuyo Matu of Born 2 Run and Sinesipho Jack of Horizon SC won the women and men’s categories respectively.
Destroyer test road warriors to the hilt
It is tough, at stages brutally tough, but what it does have on its side is 23 years and 24 runs of building a history based on folklore.
Predictions were that no male was likely to break the 70-minute barrier and no female the 90-minute, and so it proved to be.
Times aside it is often the racing and the tactics that count more on a course of this nature.
Both men’s and women’s fields were well represented in numbers, the prize purse did not attract out of town runners to the extent it may have been envisaged, but not that the locals will have been too upset by that.
The women’s race was a great one to watch, though the absence through illness of Hanlie Botha, a multiple winner of the event and her club compatriot Caryn Lategan was disappointing.
In the men’s race Luthando Hejana of Born 2 Run and Nkosinathi Nzingo of Nedbank flew over the first causeway at 3km in Horseshoe Valley. They were in tandem.
The climbs up through King of the Mountain saw Nzingo power away from Hejana and establish a commanding 400m lead by the 10km mark. Hejana, the younger of the two men had other ideas for the descent into Dorchester Heights and beyond.
The two would race flat out all the way to the finish with Hejana opening a 22-second lead by the finish, winning in a time of 72:31.
Third was Edumisa Mtoli, a defining 4:18 adrift of his clubmate, Nzingo. Malixole Kalideni of Old Selbornians was fourth and Owen Tshibo fifth.
A feature of the race was that the inaugural winner of Sole Destroyer, Makaya Masumpa of Born 2 Run finished eighth overall and won the 50+ category, while Xolile Mashicila from Overtakers was first 40+ and in ninth position.
Andrea Ranger of Old Selbornians went out hard in the women’s race and in the absence of Botha was inevitably the one to beat. She was having none of it and raced on untouched to record a 93:12 victory, some five minutes ahead of her nearest challenger.
Behind her however the race was well and truly on. Initially there were four women in the race for second with Jaime Griffiths and Karen Davis both of Born 2 Run along with Ingrid Webber of Old Selbornians and Tammy Kelly of Oxford Striders all in the mix.
Griffiths led the early stages but was overhauled by Webber as the race progressed. While Davis and Kelly later fell off this pace they were nonetheless in a dual for the fourth spot.
Webber was still in second as the runners crossed the causeway into Nahoon Valley, but Griffiths was now shadowing her older and more experienced rival. Behind them Kelly had looked in charge, but Davis made a move at about the same causeway crossing.
Warrior exponent, Griffiths, struck just before the Willasdale Drive climb and powered on to take second 1:10 ahead of a committed Webber who held on to third while Davis came in fourth and 1:34 later Kelly emerged to take fifth and finish first in the 40+ category.
In the other age groups Liezl Heideman of Queenstown Harriers was awarded the women’s 35+ while Eskom’s Tembisile Vakele the men’s equivalent. Colleen Peens of Born 2 Run won the 50+ from Sharon Eldridge who has run all 24 Sole Destroyers to date.
Queenstown Harriers claimed another award with Joey Wassung winning the 60+, while Paula Richardson of Buffs took the 70+.
Among the men it was Charl Pienaar of Old Selbornians who continued his great form in the 60+ while Brian James of the host club was the top 70+ runner.
In the junior race Sinovuyo Matu of Born 2 Run and Sinesipho Jack of Horizon SC won the women and men’s categories respectively.
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