Vryheid Athletics Club – Georgie’s take on the Vic Falls Marathon

“Thought that the club would like to know that last Sunday I ran the half marathon of the Vic Falls marathon! Erik could not run as he has pulled a muscle in his left leg. It was a pity that he did not try to walk some of the way. 
“I had a fantastic run. Check out the Vic Falls marathon website. I had forgotten to pack my watch and there was no clock at the finish, but my time on the website (2 hr 26 minutes) does not seem right. However, it does not matter. I enjoyed it hugely and it was great being in among so many international runners again.” 
“There were about 1200 runners for the whole event. The route took us over the Bridge into Zambia and then back into Zim and all along the Zambesi until we turned and ran through Mopani scrub for a large part of the race. The last 5km were really tough as we headed into the village. There were lots of long uphills and it started getting quite hot. 
The organisation was very good. There were water points every 3km, but only water. A few had Coke. Poor marathon runners! We ran through the grounds of one of the lodges and they had Coke and bananas, very welcome after 16km.
There was a great atmosphere too. This was not an elite race although it was an official IAAF race. There were lots of runners and walkers just enjoying the experience, as did I. I was proud to be wearing VAC colours too.”