Gritty performances by the men’s’ top teams on day two of the Dusi Canoe Marathon on Friday, has set the stage for a photo finish finale in Durban on Saturday.
In stage two, paddlers had to complete a 46-kilometre stretch from Dusi Bridge to Inanda Dam, outside Hillcrest.
The world class duo of McGregor and Birkett only just piped the top four teams across the line, in stage two.
In the women’s’ race, the Peek sisters maintained their Dusi dominance. The canoe ultra-marathon is raced over three days.
In front, Hank Mcgregor and Andy Birkett are pulling away from the rest of the chasers. Neck and neck, that’s how the top four men’s teams crossed the line in, stage two of 2018 Dusi.
Leaders, McGregor and Birkett finished in first place again, despite suffering a broken rudder.
The dream duo slipped to fourth place early on day two at the Nqumeni portage, stopping to change the broken rudder.
This put Khwela and Ntondini into the lead. The Dusi’s Dave McLeod explains the importance of day two.
“Suddenly the character of the race changes, you’re in a big river, big rocks, big hydraulics; the rapids are suddenly far more technical and dangerous if you get them wrong. So suddenly the paddlers come to the fore. It’s a very technical bit of river and if you know the lines and Ant Stott is the best of all of them at it.”
But the standing changes were not done yet. A few minutes later at Mfula store, four-time winner, Ant Stott and Banetse Nkhoesa took the lead.
The 25-year old Nkhoesa has some courageous Dusi history under his belt – finishing third in 2016 with Sbonelo Khwela after suffering an injury that punctured one of his lungs before that race.
Speaking at Inanda Dam, Stott says race conditions were excellent.
“This year we spent a lot of time in the valley and I think it paid off, from Saddles through to Mfula store it definitely helped us we had some good lines and I think that’s where we made up time on the guys.”
In the women’s race the Peek sisters solidified their day one lead, crossing the finish line first again.
Team Hartley and McKenzie and Wanda and Kiszali came through in second and third in stage two.
An exhausted Cana Peek says she is immensely proud of how her sister Jordan pulled them through.
“She gave it her all. She was flying all over the place, wiping out just to get us where we wanted to be. So I couldn’t be happier.”
While outright favourites McGregor and Birkett have been tipped to win, if day two is anything to go by, then they’re up for stiff competition from the three teams who are sitting right on their shoulder.
Birkett himself says he’s never seen a Dusi quite like this one.
The final day of the Dusi will have a reverse start with the lead batch leaving Inanda Dam last.
They will come into a packed house of paddlers and supporters at the finish line at Durban’s Blue Lagoon.
