Despite the huffing and puffing, the racing heart, the heavy legs, the desire to give up and the unattractive red, hot, sweaty face of an unfit and ageing wannabe trail runner, I was bitten - and smitten!
At this stage, it was not so much about getting fit (although that WAS a thing) as it was about finding a way to take my mind off all the things that were stressful. My mind was constantly dealing with work pressures that kept me awake at night, that made me feel too much anxiety, that trapped me. Have you ever felt like that? Spending time exploring the forest and the foothills brought me new pleasure - a renewed sense of freedom and serenity.
Walking the varied trails and tracks in the greenery and venturing into the heart of the forest became my elixir, my stress releaser and my rejuvenator. Yes! An hour’s walk in the forest and on the mountain is pretty darn powerful! When I wander the trails, I am distracted from the humdrum of life and am absorbed in noticing the different tones of green; the leaves - some dark green and spiky, others are large teardrop-shapes reaching earthwards, then there are the lime green feathery fronds, pink ferns and little grey leathery fynbos leaves, not to mention the alluring lime green of the intricate beds of moss clinging to rocks and trunks. All of this is accompanied by a gentle chorus of the calming sounds of the little hidden streams, tinkling and gurgling in their mysterious, hidden enclaves, the Sparrowhawks with their anxious high pitched calls, and the chirpy little song of the tiny Victorin’s Warbler.
So… this not-yet-silver-haired old gal, at the age of 67 (then), started a thing. The more I explored the trails and the higher I explored the mountains, the more an idea started forming in my crazy mind. Of course, there was self-doubt as well. I did not admit to anyone that I had been lost a few times in the criss-crossing trails that were often hidden deep in the forest. At least I knew that if I was going downhill, I would eventually reach the suburbs! The next step was buying a second hand (not opened yet) Garmin Forerunner 35, a basic running watch, and downloading a few trail apps like Trailforks, Fatmaps, Strava and Plotaroute. Trailforks is fantastic for the Garden Route as the trail community keeps it up to date with all the little known trails.
By then I had ditched the denim gardening shirt and the old tracksuit pants. I couldn't resist dressing for the occasion. My new trail uniform was my school sports shirts (a choice of orange, purple or black) and some very bright floral-patterned home-made pedal pushers. My theory is that the brighter I am, the more chance there is of me being found by the helicopter when I really get lost! I am entering that age that Jenny Joseph warned us about:
When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn’t go…
I even invested in a new hat and a pair of Salomon Sense Ride trail running shoes! There was definitely a determined glint in my eye as thoughts of ‘further’ and ‘higher’ penetrated my brain! When my bonus arrived in December 2022, a few weeks after my first stagger into the woods, I invested in some trekking poles - an absolute must for staggering, weak muscled old biddies. On the recommendation of my younger son, I emptied my bank account and bought some Black Diamond poles from my favourite running store, MountCo in George.
Added to this were the off-stage antics of my two sons who were either slaying trail races in the mountains, or photographing elite trail runners high up in the mountains.
I had made up my mind! I was going to run a mountain trail race in my backyard - the George MUT! Noooo… not the ultra, just the 25 kilometre race - much more than enough for an unfit old duck! I paid my money as soon as the entries opened, but did not tell anyone - I was scared that I would fail. It was going to be a mammoth task and I was not even fit yet! Certainly not nearly fit enough to stagger, walk and run a mountainous 25 kilometre course. And so the journey began…
HINT: Just get out there, no matter how short or long your adventure is, you will feel great afterwards!
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