Good rains, good entry for Berg
6 June 2008
Late entries are pouring in for the 2008 Isuzu Berg River Canoe Marathon. With a very full river assured for the four-day marathon, many paddlers have decided the conditions will be to their liking.
The 240-kilometre race starts in Paarl on Wednesday, 9 July and finishes at Velddrif on Saturday, 12 July.
The reason for the optimism of the paddlers is a cold front the will hit the Cape Peninsula on the weekend, with predictions of a further cold front arriving on Monday, which will bring in heavy rains that are sure to raise the levels of the Berg River.
High water table
The region has enjoyed consistent rains over the past month, which has resulted in a very high water table leading to good run-off of rains into the rivers.
The race has also benefited enormously from the completion of the new Berg River Dam that has paved the way for a relationship with the Department of Water Affairs (DWAF) which will allow for water releases to coincide with the race.
However, the full river levels and promise of more rains in the week of the race may well negate the need for a water release as the Berg River will be full enough for a safe and exciting race.
"If the river is full then obviously there won't be a major supplementary water release," said race committee chairperson Andre Collins.
Priority is safety
"Our priority is ensuring that the river is safe for the race, and the new dam actually allows us to prevent serious flooding conditions that would be dangerous for the paddlers.""The river level has been holding really well," commented top female paddler Abbey Miedema, who has been training and racing on the full river for the past few weeks.
"The groundwater level is obviously very high and the level of the Berg river water has been consistently high."Entries for the 47-year-old race have been steadily streaming in, long after the closing date for normal entries.
Last-minute entries
"Old habits die hard, it seems," said Collins. "After a few low years, paddlers are leaving their entries to the last minute because they want to race on a medium-to-full river. Even with the news that our relationship with DWAF will ensure water for the race this year, lots of paddlers are leaving their entries to the last minute."
Race secretary Elanza Basson confirmed that entries were still being taken, and would be accepted this weekend. "The numbers are looking good, and we are substantially up on the number of entries last year," she said.
The sizeable entry can be attributed in part to the introduction of a new relay race that allows less fit paddlers to tackle the four-day event in teams of up to three, sharing the distance on each day between them.
"This is fantastic for the first year of the relay race and it can only grow from here," said Collins.
Before the race starts on Wednesday, 9 July, it will be preceded by a seeding time trial on Tuesday, 8 July.
Source: Isuzu Berg River Canoe Marathon
