15 February 2004

Not even a terrifying flash flood could stop Ant Stott and Deon Bruss from winning their fourth consecutive Hansa Umkomaas canoe marathon title on the weekend. The pair shattered the first stage record and lowered the overall race record on the fullest river ever in the famous race.

Stott and Bruss mastered the treacherous first 15 kilometres through the Umkomaas Gorge to overtake early leaders Clint Pretorius and Shaun Biggs - and better a stage record that had stood for 33 years.

They extended their lead on the second stage, from St Josephine's Bridge to Riverside Store, to win from Biggs and Pretorius, with the mixed doubles crew of Dusi queen Abbey Miedema and Robbie Herreveld in a stunning third place overall.

Raging river
Most of the field were prepared for a low river; the Umkomaas had been running at around 1.2 metres for most of the week prior to the race. However, when the field arrived at Hella Hella for the start, they found that the river was raging at 2.3 metres, thanks to an overnight thunderstorm in the Drakensberg.

Organisers delayed the start for an hour, hoping the water level would subside. They also made the notorious Number Five and Number Six rapids a compulsory portage, and gave crews the option of starting below Number Eight rapid to avoid the notorious Gorge section.

"It was scary", Stott admitted afterwards. "Everyone was really nervous. You just pack as much buoyancy into your boat as possible, put on your biggest lifejacket, and hope like crazy you don’t take a swim."

'A monstrous hole'
Stott and Bruss nearly came unstuck in the dangerous Number One rapid, right at the start. "The approaches were very big, and we were knocked off line to the right of the river", Stott said.

"That took us through a monstrous hole, which slowed us right down. That gave Clint (Pretorius) and Shaun (Biggs) a chance to get ahead, and Mark Willment and Steve Bird got ahead of us as well."

Huge holes and waves at House Rock Rapid caused havoc for the majority of the paddlers, including the leading women, Hillary Pitchford and Kate Frost, who took a long and terrifying swim until they were helped out of danger by another crew.

"We caught the leaders about half an hour from the end, and put the hammer down to get a lead of around 30 seconds overnight", Stott said.

Fast and dangerous
With the water subsiding slightly overnight, but still running at a fast and dangerous level, Stott and Bruss were careful to keep the crew of Pretorius and Biggs at bay.

"Every time they made a move, we went harder to make sure they didn't get back into contact with us", Stott said. "Late in the stage we held off what we knew was their last serious charge, and we knew we had won it."

Stott and Bruss now share the record for the most consecutive wins in this race with the duo of Robbie Herreveld and Graeme Monteith, who dominated the race in the nineties.

Grand Slam title
The win also wraps a third Grand Slam title for Stott. The Grand Slam comprises the combined results of the 50 Miler, Umkomaas - both won by Stott - and the Dusi marathon, in which he finished second.

Deon Bruss now holds the unique distinction of holding the K2 race records in the Dusi marathon with Martin Dreyer, in the Fish Marathon with his younger brother Sven, and the Umkomaas marathon.

"Deon is the best rough water paddler in the country", Stott said. "It was a privilege to sit behind him and watch him in action."

Staggering result
Probably the most staggering result of this dramatic race was the third-place finish by Abbey Miedema and Robbie Herreveld. Herreveld dominated a decade of the Umkomaas in the nineties, and his experience on the flooded river created the platform for the stunning podium result.

The fancied crew of Len Jenkins and Hank McGregor did not start the race. With Jenkins reportedly ill, McGregor opted to swim the Midmar Mile.

Summary of Results

Men

	Deon Bruss and Ant Stott on their way to victory in the Hansa Umkomaas Canoe Marathon (Photo: Canoeing South Africa)

	Stott, Bruss take Umkomaas 2003 Stott, Dreyer rule Dusi 2004 McGregor, Miedema take Dusi 2005 Berg River three-peat for Theron 10 years: a canoeing success Stott, Bruss take Umkomaas 2004 Canoeing, rafting & kayaking in SA Three world-class canoe marathons

	Canoeing South Africa