JUNE, 2019 | WILDLANDS
Comrades for Wildlands ...
My introduction to WILDLANDS
My journey with WILDLANDS began back in 2017 when I decided to enter my very first WILDSERIES event, the legendary Mont-Aux-Sources Challenge (2018 Race Review - Here). For me this was going to be one heck of a journey as I had never run any futher than 24km on trail, well, on any surface for that matter. Never the less, I completed my entry and from there, there was no turning back.
The next few months I would train for this event, not knowig what exactly I had gotten myself into. I knew it was going to be tough, but I did not know how tough it was really going to be. The WILDSERIES events, must be some of the best organised events I have ever come across, and I experienced this high standard from my very first event. From the online entry, race registration and the actual racing experince. Without going into too much detail about my actual race experience in 2017, I will never forget coming down the infamous Gully, cursing, and saying "F%$# this, I am selling my Comrades entry" which I had just purchased the week before.
Some will argue that the WILDSERIES events may be a bit pricey, when compared to that of R 150 for many road races, but with this in mind, you are not registering for a race, but for a life changing experience. Nine out of ten times, you will also be traveling away from home, and the events are then fully catered for, which when put into persepective suddenly makes the event so much more afforadable. Mont-Aux-Sources is a very special event, and will remain one of my favorites for a very, very long time.
Mont-Aux-Sources is the breading grounds for the critically endangered Bearded Vulture, and knowing half your race entry fee goes towards the conservation of these amazing birds, makes you feel that you too, are making a small difference to thier conservation.
To waste, to destroy our natural resources, to skin and exhaust the land instead of using it so as to increase its usefulness, will result in undermining in the days of our children the very prosperity which we ought by right to hand down to them amplified and developed.
― Theodore Roosevelt
My next steps ...
Leading into 2018, I decided to enter all my "Big" Races at the begining of the year. This meant signing up for the entire WILDSERIES as well as the Lesotho Ultra. Paying for the WILDSERIES races you get a warm fuzzy feeling knowing that you are also helping out just a little in the continious fight to preserve our nautrual heritage. Now I don't want to go into detail about each of the events, as you can read all about these on the rest of the blog, but I do want to say why I decided to support WILDLANDS in 2019.
Nature conservation has always been close to my heart, and with trail running, my love for nature and the outdoors has just grown even more. I've had the privilage of taking part in the amazing WILDSERIES events, and so giving my bit back to nature. This year, I won't be running the WILDSERIES events, but having seen the amount of work that WILDLANDS does towards the conservation of some of our amazing natural habitats I had to continue giving back...
I have always been a little bit scepticale in offering support to charity organisations, as one can not always be sure of where your money is really going. With the WILDLANDS TRUST it is different, my last two years of taking part in the the WILDSERIES events, has allowed me to bear witness to the progress being made to the likes of the Bearded Vulture, The Karkloof Valley and the Sandstone Caseway of Golden Gate. I have even become more aware of some of personal habits, that I can change at not cost to myself nor the environment.
With this in mind, I have decided to run my second Comrades Marathon in the Aid of the WILDLANDS TRUST, so that I can continue to enjoy and give back to what mother nature has given us.
