Trailblazing to create awareness
Sixteen-year-old Taygen Pringle is a youngster who lives for trail running.
The Ashton International College pupil has completed a few trail runs in recent times and has been doing extremely well in the sport.
He will be taking on the daunting, yet picturesque, Otter Trail Run (42km), which takes place in two weeks time along the Garden Route.
Due to the extreme nature of the race and the physical endurance required to complete one of the world’s toughest trail runs, Pringle, as a minor, will be running to create awareness of childhood obesity.
The young trailblazer is motivating young people to get outdoors and to get active.
He will also be giving a number of talks at local schools, to encourage children to get fit and healthy.
In order to take part in the challenging Otter Trail Run, Pringle was required to fight tooth and nail to get a once off concession to run it and it is likely that no other under age runner will be considered to participate in the event again.
“It [childhood obesity awareness] has always been something close to my heart,” he told the City Times at his Rynfield home.
“Being an outdoorsy person it gets me upset that some young people sit inside and play video games all day when they could be keeping active and healthy.”
Asked what it takes to be a good trail runner, he said: “Definitely endurance, but I would also say that you need the correct mindset.
“It is quite a technical route as far as hills go, so to wrap your head around all those big uphills that are thrown at you takes a lot of mental preparation.”
Pringle recently completed the 38km Mweni Marathon, in the Drakensberg, and now has his sights firmly set on achieving a sub-eight hour finish at the Otter Run.
