Holly Spencer finishes well at the Dusi

Dabulamanzi Canoe Club is celebrating the success of Holly Spencer at the FNB Dusi Canoe Marathon.

The 25-year-old finished her fourth Dusi, and second in K1 (single canoeist), as the first woman from Gauteng to cross the line, and 15th overall.

A series of events on the river in KZN led to Spencer feeling both happy to have finished but also disappointed at not finishing in the top 10.

“I found this the hardest Dusi I’ve done, mentally,” she said. “I was seventh at one point. Unfortunately, I swam a few times and got lost on a portage so I dropped to 15th over the course of the race. It’s disappointing to be so close to achieving a personal goal (top 10 women), only to have it slip away due to silly mistakes that can’t be blamed on anyone other than me.”

Spencer said it was only thanks to her support team which gave her food, water, and encouragement along the way, that she finished the race at all.

The time-consuming swims and Spencer picking up a bug from the water led her to shift her personal goal to just finishing the 120km event that includes more than 20km of running.

“The entire Dusi is a challenge. The camaraderie and sense of achievement on finishing it is worth the mental and physical challenge though. So while I don’t believe I had a particularly good finish, I am pleased with the fact that I did finish.”

Spencer wants to take a break from river races until Dabulamanzi’s Liebenbergsvlei Canoe Marathon in the Free State in October. She will focus on flatwater marathons until then.

“I canoe because I love it, and the training keeps me sane. Preparation for marathons will involve gym to build some muscle, running for the portages and lots of time in a boat to get my long distance fitness up.”

Dabulamanzi’s Siseko Ntondini was also Gauteng’s first man to finish at the Dusi.

Details: Dabulamanzi Canoe Club; 011 486 0979.

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Dabulamanzi Canoe Club canoeists perform well at the Dusi Canoe Marathon