24 January 2005

The third and final day of the 2005 Hansa Powerade Dusi Canoe Marathon was abuzz with drama and excitement as a visibly emotional Hank McGregor crossed the finish line at Blue Lagoon to claim his first Dusi title, in front of family and friends, after a thrilling day out on the testing course.

Loveday Zondi became the first black paddler to finish in the top three, while Abbey Miedema became the first woman to place in the top 30 overall.

"I'm just so stoked", McGregor said. "I think Dusi is the biggest race in the country, and to win it is just awesome.

"Thanks to Pope (Graham Pope-Ellis) and Martin (Dreyer) for all their guidance. They're the ones who taught me where to go and how to handle this river, and I'm so grateful."

'Surfed' across the finish line
"It feels really great to be able to surf into town knowing you're the fastest from Pietermaritzburg to Durban", McGregor said. In a spontaneous celebration, the 26-year-old Durban paddler had stood up in his canoe and "surfed" across the finish line.

"I have to thank Ant (Stott) for a terrific race today", McGregor added. "He showed great sportsmanship on Burma when he admitted he was taking strain and wished me well and told me to go on ahead."

The 36-kilometre day was crammed with intense action from start to finish.

Working together, McGregor led Stott and Len Jenkins to the first portage at Inanda Dam. McGregor was the first into the bush, with Stott in pursuit with his boat dragging on the dusty roads behind him. Jenkins was nowhere to be seen.

The day one leader had been struck down by "Dusi guts" and soon dropped off the leading pack. Despite his condition, Jenkins struggled courageously down the challenging course and crossed the line in fourth position overall. He was immediately flown to hospital to be treated for dehydration.

'I didn't have the legs' - Stott
At the front of the race, McGregor and Stott were inseparable as they battled their way towards Burma Road. Both athletes decided to portage the challenging section of water.

"I was really disappointed with the water level", Stott said. "If the level had been higher, I would have gone around Burma and it might have been closer between myself and Hank. I just didn't have the legs to keep up with him on the run."

McGregor and Stott ran the first 800m of Burma Road together before Stott realised that he was only slowing McGregor down. He wished him well and sent him off ahead. By the time they reached the top of Burma, McGregor had opened a two-and-a-half minute lead over Stott.

Stott chased tirelessly over the final few kilometres of relatively easy paddling, but ran out of time to catch McGregor, who finally crossed the line one minute ahead of him in an overall time of 08:16m58.

"It's a terrible feeling being ahead like that and not knowing how far behind Ant is", McGregor said. "He really is a terrific athlete. I just tried to take it easy from Burma and avoid cramping up or doing anything silly. To finally come round that corner and see the local crowd was just a fantastic feeling."

Local hero
Local valley hero Loveday Zondi made history when he caught an exhausted Jenkins on the Burma Road portage and eventually came home in third, amidst a cacophony of shouts and ululations.

Zondi became the first black paddler to finish in the top three of the Hansa Powerade Dusi. His Ekhuruleni Kayak clubmate, Michael Mbanjwa, also finished in the gold medals, in sixth position overall, after turning in the fastest time on the final stage.

"I'm very happy", Zondi said. "It was a hard race for me trying to catch these guys who are stronger than me, but I tried to make up time on the portages, and it worked.

"My goal was to be in the top 10, so I am really happy with third. I don’t know who sent dogs to attack me, but not even they could stop me today."

The leaders of the race were chased by Zulu hunting dogs at the bottom of the Burma Road portage. Zondi received the worst of it, losing 15 seconds, before being rescued by the noise and wind of the race helicopter.

McGregor was impressed with Zondi's performance. "I may even do the Dusi in a K2 with this guy sometime soon", he mused.

"To have two guys from the valley in the top 10 at Dusi just shows that the development structure is working. You can't classify them as development paddlers any more - they're fully competitive athletes now."

Miedema dominates women's race
Capetonian, Abbey Miedema controlled the women's race once again as she built on her overnight lead to win her second Hansa Powerade Dusi, 28 minutes ahead of Alexa Lombard.

Miedema also made history when she became the first female to place in the top 30 overall. She also again shattered another stage record - her third in as many days - as well as the overall course record, to finish in a new women's best 09:36:02.

"I'm really happy with my performance", Miedema said. "My goal going into Dusi was to finish in the top 50, but after the good day I had on day one, I thought I might try sneak into the top 30. I'm really thrilled.

"With such a big lead going into today, my focus changed to race against the guys and for overall positions. To break all three day-records and the overall record just feels great.

"I had a 21-minute cushion at the start today and there wasn't a lot of water like the first two days, so I decided I would play it safe and portage Burma and just make sure I got to the end without any swims."

Raising money for Aids orphans
Comrades legend Bruce Fordyce and five-times Dusi champ Martin Dreyer, who were paddling together to raise funds for the Star Fish Charity and Aids orphans in the Valley of a Thousand Hills, completed their race in a respectable 123rd place overall.

Together the pair raised R30 000, based on a series of fines which they awarded one another according to their partner's paddling and portaging skills - or lack thereof. Dusi sponsors Hansa and Powerade have pledged to foot the bill for the two comical paddlers.

The warm temperatures, together with an unexpected low-medium river, provided a challenging day for most paddlers, who were feeling the effects of the gruelling 87 kilometres covered on the first two days.

The paddlers will now enjoy a short rest period before the Umkomaas and Drak Challenge marathons in February.

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