Kyle Bucklow and Simone Malan raced to memorable victories in the 10th Merrell Whale of Trail, supported by PSG Wealth and Cape Nature, run over 53 testing kilometres in near-perfect conditions at the De Hoop Nature Reserve at the southern tip of the continent over the weekend (Saturday 26 July).
Cape Town-based Bucklow, in his Whale of Trail debut, and Free State biokineticist Malan, competing in her third successive race at De Hoop, overcame quality fields to post the most impressive trail wins of their careers.
Competition was intense up front with several of the elites taking high-speed tumbles on the technical mountain terrain in the early stages. Race favourite, Robbie Rorich, swopped his race-face for a slow jog to the finish after falling heavily on Potberg.
The Whale of Trail is known for diversity of terrain and gradient. The first 23km takes place along steep mountain trails of the Potberg, distinctive coastal limestone cliffs characterise the middle stages while dune sand and beaches add to the challenge of the final quarter.
Runners enjoy some of the richest biodiversity on the continent, with Cape Vultures over Potberg headlining the rich bird life. Protea-rich fynbos sparkles on the dawn-lit mountain slopes while whales and dolphins are curious spectators as runners traverse the coastal stretch between Noetsie and Koppie Alleen.
“Whale of Trail is a truly South African event,” remarked PSG Wealth director Suzette von Broembsen, who herself bagged a top-ten finish. “It brings together families and elite athletes from all walks of life and is the most beautiful trail run in the country, not normally accessible to the public. So it’s special.
“For us at PSG Rosebank the event resonates with our team. We are outdoor people, truly South African and we aren’t happy if our work isn’t the best. Graham (Bird – Race Director) and his team have the same approach to Whale of Trail, making it an ideal partnership.
“Today was spectacular – much better weather than last year. The whales were scarce, but the best in the country took part and families joined for the weekend.”
Bucklow, who races road as often as trail, saw off the challenges of several top athletes, notably past double winner, Eastern Cape athlete, Mvuysisi Gcogco, while Malan’s win over the recent Dodo Trail champion, Emily Djock, was particularly impressive.
From the start, a lead group of seven broke clear of the rest, with Rorich, Gcogco and Johannesburg athlete Admire Muzopambwa gradually moving ahead of Gauteng athletes, Bradley Claase and Thabang Madiba, Skyrun champion from Rhodes in the Eastern Cape, Mjongile Tonic Masilo, and Bucklow.
Rorich led the field through the first check-point at Cupidoskraal, 14km into the race, in 1:17:12 with Gcogco and Muzopambwa five and ten seconds back respectively. The remaining four trailed close behind.
After Rorich withdrew, Gcogco and Muzopambwa took over in front and were 40 seconds clear of Madiba through Check-Point 2 (23,5km) with Masilo, Bucklow and Claase a further minute behind.
Out of the mountains, Bucklow began to make his move. He was 45 seconds behind Gcogco and Muzopambwa through Check Point Three at Noetsie, and took the race lead shortly before Lekkerwater (Check Point 4 at 38km), racing through in 3:35:30, 14 seconds clear of Gcogco. Pass to Pass 100km winner, Muzopambwa, had slowed, trailing by three minutes in third.
Bucklow kept up the pressure over the final 15km, increasing his four-minute lead at Vaalkrans (Check Point 5 at 46km) to seven minutes at the finish, crossing the line at Koppie Alleen in a creditable 5 hrs 02 min 05 sec, the 7th fastest time in Whale of Trail history, 32 minutes off Johardt van Heerden’s remarkable record of 4:30:20, set in 2019.
“I had a good race and felt strong most of the way,” Bucklow reflected. “I tried to play to my strengths and I pushed harder towards the end on the flatter terrain when my road-running strength came into play.
“I didn’t do much research, just looked at the profile of the race just before going to sleep the night before. I didn’t think too much about it.
“Yes, I guess that was my best trail race ever, being a stacked field. I’d trained hard for it, so it was very rewarding. The final 20km was incredibly beautiful and as it was not too technical, it was possible to enjoy the views without having to watch my feet all the time!”
Gcogco narrowly held off fast-finishing Claase to finish second, 7:18 behind Bucklow and five seconds up on Claase.
“It would be great to enjoy this level of competition more regularly in our races,” said Gcogco. “If we could race regularly with that intensity, it would certainly make us more competitive against our international rivals.”
Maryke van Zyl led the women’s race in the early stages, racing through Cupidoskraal in 1:27:28 in 8th place overall. Malan and Djock were just five seconds adrift in joint second with seasoned campaigner Kerry-Ann Marshall two minutes back in fourth.
Coming off the mountains 23,5km into the race, Van Zyl was ten seconds clear of Malan and Djock with Marshall still trailing in fourth, before Djock and Malan upped the ante to lead through Noetsie 2hr 56min after the start.
It was neck and neck with nothing to separate Malan and Djock through the final two checkpoints, before Malan, twice runner-up to Landie Greyling, broke the shackles in the final 7km to finally claim victory in the closest finish in the history of the Whale of Trail. Djock trailed by just 49 seconds.
Malan acknowledged Djock and Van Zyl’s strong contributions to the day’s racing success. “Sho, I knew it was going to be tough out there with those amazing ladies in the field!
“I decided beforehand that I was going to run my own race, but as always it wasn’t the case. But I was privileged to run with two amazing athletes (Djock and Van Zyl) who really helped with the pacing throughout the run. It was a team effort from start to finish!
“I believe I gave my all and am happy with the time. I really had to dig deep in the end and motivate myself not to stop pushing till the end! I think the gap was created during the last 3km, but there was truly not much between us and it could have gone either way in the end.”
Malan’s 5:37:22 win was the performance of the day and the second fastest of all time at the Whale of Trail. Only world-class Toni McCann has run faster, her 2019 record just 9 minutes faster. Djock’s 5:38:11 is the fourth fastest ever for the De Hoop race.
A feature of the race was the strong showing of the women, with Malan, Djock and Marshall placing 6th, 7th and 8th respectively and ten women finishing in the top 25 positions.
Djock enjoyed racing with Malan. “It may have looked like a tough battle out there, but we worked really well together,” she remarked. ”There were a few parts where we lost the trail and we helped each other to scramble back. At times I ran in front, at others she was in the front.
“Mountains trails are my favourite, so I particularly enjoyed the first half. And when we left the mountains behind us I started to feel the Dodo in my legs (Djock defended her 50km Dodo Trail title in Mauritius just two weeks ago).
“At the last aid station, Simone switched to a new gear and raced away to victory.”
It proved good day out for the Greylings, with Christiaan taking honours in the Whale of Trail 35km in 3:43:38 and his wife, Landie, finishing second overall as his closest challenger.
She crossed the finish line just eight minutes behind her husband and 27 minutes clear of last year’s winner, Nicola Vahrmeijer, after overhauling Johan Oerson and Kennedy Sekhutshe shortly before the final check-point.
Results
Whale of Trail 53km
Men: 1 Kyle Bucklow 5:02:05; 2 Mvuyisi Gcogco 5:09:23; 3 Bradley Claase 5:09:28; 4 Admire Muzopambwa 5:19:14; 5 Toni Masilo Mjongile 5:36:40; 6 Thabang Madiba 5:57:42; 7 Benjamin Hoseus 6:11:20; 8 Neil Gultig 6:25:58; 9 Malcolm Dewar 6:49:23; 10 Lucas Malan 7:14:26
Women: 1 Simone Malan 5:37:22; 3 Emily Djock 5:38:11; Kez 5:47:20; 4 Maryke van Zyl 5:59:57; 5 Tarrin van Niekerk 6:26:57; 6 Julia Hunter 6:53:25; 7 Tish Jones 7:08:41; 8 Suzette von Broembsen 7:25:47; 9 Kim Corry 7:27:51; 10 Maxine Roberts 8:17:02
Whale of Trail 35km
Men: 1 Christiaan Greyling 3:43:38; 2 Johan Oerson 3:58:05; 3 Kennedy Sekhutshe 4:04:22; 4 Justin van Dyk 4:23:23; 5 Shaun Matthews 4:58:38
Women: 1 Landie Greyling 3:51:25; 2 Nicola Vahrmeijer 4:18:47; 3 Anna Pajak 4:37:51; 4 Riani Spruyt 4:54:59; 5 Pippa Brown 5:06:18
