Food for the soul as Ballito runner tackles Giant’s Cup trail run

Trail runners and hikers took full advantage of magnificent weather conditions during the two-stage Giant’s Cup trail run and the new Hiking Giants event for hikers held at the Drakensberg over the weekend.

The route for the event covered the fabled Giant’s Cup hiking trails and started at the Sani Pass holiday resort on Friday morning, taking the participants on a 32km route that ended at Castleburn Farm on the Drak Gardens Road.

The second stage covered 30km from Castleburn to the Bushman’s Nek Hotel.

The event also offered a short course option on both days that catered for avid hikers as well as trail runners looking to run a shorter distance.

Runners and hikers spend the night in hotels along the way.

Ballito trail runner Karen Maiden said this was the first time she had taken part in the event and the weekend in the mountains proved to be food for the soul.

“I have taken part in a number of trail runs but the scenery in this event was absolutely stunning. For the majority of the day it was just me and the mountains,” said Karen who has a passion for trail running.

The elite competitors took full advantage of the sunny weather and pristine conditions posting fast times.

The men’s competition was won by Travis Green, with Anri Visser winning the women’s equivalent.

R500 per hiker was donated to the Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife branch based at the Cobham Nature Reserve, towards the work it does dealing with environmental challenges facing the Maloti Drakensberg Park.

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