Constantia Valley Grape Run 2009
I ran the Constantia Valley Grape Run 21.1k on Sunday. What a privilege to run a race in which there were limited entries - only 1500 people were allowed to run, to minimize the environmental impact on the vineyards (though I imagine the pounding of 1500 pairs of feet creates substantial impact). I was a bit nervous before the start as there was little information about the race online, and every time I did a google search the only thing that came up was a description of the race as being "tough and challenging". The 3h30min cutoff time (it is usually 3hrs for this distance) also seemed to indicate that this would be a difficult race, so my strategy was just to finish the course, as long as I made it within the cutoff time. In addition, I still had the memory of my last half-marathon experience, the Gun Run (2 wks ago) in which I felt sluggish and dehydrated throughout.
But wow, what a pleasure. I had a really fantastic run, and I can only put it down to being fairly well rested and hydrated before, as well as the energy gels I took during the race (this was the first time I took energy gels, believe it if you can). At the start we were told that the first 7k was uphill and that there was another hill at 15k. They were stretching the truth a bit. There were hills everywhere! We started off on the tarred Constantia Main Road, then hit the beautiful Tokai Forest Plantation before running across several wine farms. At one point there was a table with tots of wine for sampling. Looked inviting but I gave it a miss:-)
I think the trail running experience prepared me for running off-road. My brand new pair of lunarglides were also such an unbelievable dream to run in with no sign of any blisters or discomfort. I crossed the finish line in 2h44, a minute or 2 faster than my Gun Run time. Not super fast, but not bad either. After all, I'm not racing these 'races' - merely using them to get the distance training in. And more importantly, I enjoyed every step of the way!
But wow, what a pleasure. I had a really fantastic run, and I can only put it down to being fairly well rested and hydrated before, as well as the energy gels I took during the race (this was the first time I took energy gels, believe it if you can). At the start we were told that the first 7k was uphill and that there was another hill at 15k. They were stretching the truth a bit. There were hills everywhere! We started off on the tarred Constantia Main Road, then hit the beautiful Tokai Forest Plantation before running across several wine farms. At one point there was a table with tots of wine for sampling. Looked inviting but I gave it a miss:-)
I think the trail running experience prepared me for running off-road. My brand new pair of lunarglides were also such an unbelievable dream to run in with no sign of any blisters or discomfort. I crossed the finish line in 2h44, a minute or 2 faster than my Gun Run time. Not super fast, but not bad either. After all, I'm not racing these 'races' - merely using them to get the distance training in. And more importantly, I enjoyed every step of the way!
