Greyling & MacKenzie Take The 2017 Otter Trail Win
Sunny skies and a cool ocean breeze welcomed 234 trail runners to the start of the 2017 Otter African Trail Run at Storms River on 28 October. By Bryony McCormick
The Abangeni AKA the Challengers, a group decided by the fastest 24 men and eight female prologue times, took off at 07:00, followed by the rest of the field in smaller groups of four at 30 second intervals.
Straight from the start, Kane Reilly used the opportunity to gain as much of a lead as possible, putting around 8 minutes between him and second place Christiaan Greyling by Oakhurst, roughly 20km into the race.
Similarly, in the women’s race, Robyn Owen took off from the start, her skill and speed apparent as she moved swiftly over the technical terrain. Meg MacKenzie stayed close on her heels, using Owen’s agility to motivate her forwards. Carla Van Huyssteen fell into pace several minutes behind MacKenzie and Owen.
In the men’s race, it was looking like a sub-4 win for Reilly, but word from the course confirmed that Greyling, who was looking strong, had gained 2 minutes on Reilly at the top of Bloukrans. With less than 10km to go, the race was still wide open.
By the time the women reached the timing point at Bloukrans, MacKenzie had taken over the lead and had 4 minutes on Owen. Van Huyssteen, who suffered a rolled ankle, dropped back off the pace, but was still hanging onto third place. Reports confirmed that Owen was looking strong, so like the men’s race, it wasn’t over yet. Greyling made his move at Andre Hut and had passed Reilly. “It was an absolute surprise to see Kane, it’s like seeing a snake on the course, you kind of see it but you don’t know what to do.” Despite Reilly putting in a fight, it was Greyling who crossed the floating bridge and finish line first, winning the 2017 Otter African Trail Run in a total time of 04:13:15, with Reilly finishing behind him in a time of 04:25:00. “It’s my biggest win, definitely, it’s just such a special day for me,” said Greyling. Wildcard Robert Rorich finished in third place in a total time of 4:27:00, just 2 minutes behind Reilly.
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MacKenzie’s race went accordingly to plan, and finally after three attempts at Otter, she charged across the floating bridge as first lady home in a time of 05:01:05 and incidentally finishing seventh overall. Defending champion Owen came in 8 minutes later in a time of 05:09:18, entertaining the crowds with a cartwheel on the balance beam at the finish in typical ‘Robyn-style’. Van Huyssteen pushed through her discomfort to hang onto the third spot on the podium and finished in a total time of 05:34:50.
It’s not all about the racing however, and all the finishers pushed their bodies to their limits on what has fondly become dubbed, the Grail of Trail. The Bayport “otterly mad” balance beam, that was strategically placed meters before the finish line, was an absolute crowd pleaser and as the day drew on and weary runners attempted to balance across it, so the crowd of spectators grew. The afternoon ended at the sounding of the eight-hour cut-off bell, to the loud cheers of the enthusiastic crowd encouraging the final runners over the finish line. Like all races, there were upsets and surprises, but overall, another magical year for South Africa’s toughest trail.
Click here for a gallery of our favourite shots from the race.
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