Stott, Bruss take Umkomaas 2004
16 February 2004
Ant Stott and Deon Bruss paddled a flawless race to record ahard-fought three-peat victory in the demanding Hansa Umkomaas canoe marathon that ended on Sunday.
The pair had to battle past Sven Bruss and Len Jenkins on the tough first day of the two-stage, 80 kilometre race, widely regarded as the world's toughest river canoe marathon.
"It was very hard keep up with Sven and Len on the first day", Stott said afterwards. "We actually had to let them get away." Stott and Bruss only caught Sven Bruss and Len Jenkins late in the first stage, below Number Eight rapid.
"We may have gone a little too hard in the beginning", Sven Bruss admitted afterwards. "Len and I were combining really well, and we only about a minute off the leaders after the first day."
Big gamble
"We were catching up on the second day when we took a big gamble, trying a sneak channel that cuts out a big bend in the river", Sven Bruss
said. "It would have put us right behind the leaders, but we ran out of water, and had to drag our boat over the rocks to get back into the main current."
Durban paddlers Darryl Bartho and Warren Jacobs were third into the legendary Number One Rapid early in the race, but capsized in the second hole in the main channel.
Colin Simpkins and Wayne Jacobs were alone in third at the start of the second stage, but we caught by the three boat chasing pack during the 40km final stage to Riverside Store.
Those four boats were locked in an epic tussle for the last spot on the podium, which went to Gauteng paddlers Jacques Theron and Piers Cruikshanks by the slimmest of margins from fellow Gautengers Graham Bird and Stu Rawlinson.
Alick Rennie and visiting Swiss international Pascal Lucker finished eighth, and the first Sub-Veterans, despite finishing the first stage in fourteenth place, thanks to a snarl-up at the tricky Number 5 and number 6 rapids, where they were
forced offline by two boats ahead of them that had broadsided across the river.
Just behind them, Robbie Herreveld, the undisputed King of the Umkomaas of the nineties, snatched a top-10 place with mixed doubles partner Claire Langenhoven.
The race was run on a near perfect medium-full river, thanks to late rains that boosted the level at the start to 1.7 metres. While the top paddlers gradually overtook that water on the first day, they enjoyed a good second day thanks to more overnight rains.
RESULTS
1. Ant Stott/Deon Bruss 3:49.32
2. Sven Bruss/Len Jenkins 3:54.21
3. Piers Cruikshanks/Jacques Theron 3:56.15
4. Graham Bird/Stu Rawlinson 3:56.15
5. Shaun Biggs/Jonno Biggs 3:56.17
6. Colin Simpkins/Wayne Jacobs 3:56.29
7. Denham Howe/Jason Graham 4:02.29
8. Alick Rennie/Pascal Lucker 4:10.57 (1st Sub-Vets)
9. Robbie Herreveld/Claire Langenhoven 4:11.39 (1st Mixed Double)
10. Ant Rowan/Hein van Rooyen
4:12.55
11. Graeme Pope-Ellis/Dave Rawlinson 4:14.08 (1st Sub-Grand Masters)
12. Dylan Scott/Mark Usher 4:15.33 (1st U21)
13. Gerhard Nel/Bennie Swart 4:16.07 (1st Vets)
14. Bruce Wenke/Kenny Reynolds 4:18.44 (1st Sub-Masters)
15. Malcolm Stothard/Nic Warren 4:19.23
16. Stuart Jardine/Grant Adie 4:19.37 (1st Juniors)
47. Peter O Connor 4:42.58 (1st Master)
Source: Canoeing South Africa
| 
