After the recent good rains, a fast-flowing Msunduzi River promises to put paddlers in this year’s Dusi Canoe Marathon thoroughly through their paces making it one of the most challenging races in years.
Paddlers will set off from Pietermaritzburg’s Camps Drift this coming Thursday with their sights firmly set on the finish line at Durban’s Blue Lagoon next Saturday.
This year’s 71st edition of Africa’s biggest canoe marathon is a K2 race. Because of the full river, paddlers had to rethink their strategies.
Last year’s runner-up and eight-time World Champion, Hank McGregor, is teaming up with 18-year old Matt Millward.
McGregor says he’s hoping to use the unpredictability of the high water levels, to his advantage.
“It is more than adventurous for the canoers we have to carry our boat over the mountain and through the valley and obviously use the river the best as we can and at the same time obviously there is a heat factor. It is a strenuous race, it is super exciting and we are hoping to do our best, hopefully, I am, to keep up with my young partner but I am excited about the challenge. I am always up for the challenge to just try our best, have fun out there. Yeah, I am definitely up for it. I don’t know if I can keep up with him, but we will see how it goes,” says McGregor.
#Headline After recent good rains – a fast-flowing #Umsundusi River promises to put paddlers in this year’s Dusi Canoe Marathon thoroughly through their paces @Lotusfm #sabcnews pic.twitter.com/mEPCbGJ9xa
— Newsbreak (@Newsbreak_Lotus) February 11, 2022
Meanwhile, Nqobile Makhanya and Sbonelo Khwela are coming to the Dusi race from a recent win in the Parklane Spar Campbell’s Farm to the Dusi Bridge race.
The pair say the win has boosted their confidence.
“To win the Parklane Campbell’s to Dusi Bridge last week gives us more confidence in terms of the Dusi because now we are going there knowing that there is something good that we can do if we push ourselves to win the race. Preparations have been good between myself and Nqobile Makhanya. We started last year in November training together and we have been putting in a lot of work with Nqobile running a lot and doing more paddling,” says Khwela.
“We are really prepared and ready for the race and we are very strong. Going to Dusi next week, we are really confident and pleased that we won the race which was last week. We played very well and raced our race according to our plans and came on top. We are really confident going to Dusi,” says Makhanya.
71st edition of the Dusi Canoe Marathon will see competitors pair up for the K2 edition:
