North Coast runners battle it out under tough conditions at Ultra-Trail Drakensberg

The Ultra-Trail Drakensberg 100 miler (164km) drew a starting field of 75 runners, including a handful of powerhouse North Coast runners.

Seven locals tackled the multi-stage event, dubbed the toughest 100 miler in South Africa, that ran from Friday to Sunday, with 2 more taking on the 100km race.

Battling it out among an elite field of ultra-distance athletes, Palm Lakes resident Zoog Haynes claimed 4th place in an impressive time of 27:01:11 in his first-ever 100 miler.

Months of training and numerous sacrifices paid off for the father of 3 who said he did not set out to place but was aiming for a sub-30 finishing time.

Haynes said one of the biggest challenges he faced was running through the night while battling sleep deprivation, on top of intense physical and psychological fatigue.

“Having set a long term goal and working diligently toward that and then realising toward the end of the race all of that work is going to pay off was incredibly rewarding,” said Haynes.

Also braving the extreme challenge to raise R53 000 for Waynol Christian and Anti-Narcotics Manor, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre, Ballito butcher Warwick “Woza” Taylor covered the 164km gruelling terrain in a time of 43:37:35.

Ballito mother of 2, Nikola Ramsden, clocked in at 43:37:18, securing 9th place in the women’s category.

Ballito runners John Catt and Struan Taylor also completed the 164km route in a time of 41:33:51 and 39:45:22 respectively.

Salt Rock dynamo twins Andrew and Steven Erasmus stayed with the lead runners during the first stage of the race but were forced to withdraw by early Friday afternoon – Andrew taking a hard fall and injuring his hip while Steven battled with fatigue, brought on by his bout with Covid-19 in the beginning of the year.

From the start at the top of Sani Pass, runners ran into heavy mist which reduced visibility on the trail and faced sub-zero temperatures as they battled through the loop to the top of Thabana Ntlenyana, the highest peak in Southern Africa and the highest point south of Kilimanjaro on the African continent.

The Lesotho section of the UTD160 is almost entirely above 3 000m (9 842ft) in altitude.

Unique to the race, the runners were escorted through the Lesotho highlands by locals on horseback to ensure they stayed safely on the trails.

Of the 75 competitors, 52 crossed the finish line.

The Ultra-Trail Drakensberg continues to be at the cutting edge of mountain running with a number of other options for runners with a 100km, 62km, 32km and 21km.

The UTD100 (100km), which was the flagship event of the debut edition of the UTD in 2017, provided all runners with a stern test with no less than 4 158m of vertical climbing at lung-searing altitudes between 1 600m and 2 865m.

Ballito ultra runner Trygve Wang completed the 100km event in 17:21:53 while Dolphin Striders runner, Steven Van Der Merwe, running his first 100km race clocked in at 24:39:33.