The inaugural Cape Odyssey will offer
South African trail running enthusiasts the chance to participate in a
five day trail running challenge of 211km from the Southern Cape coast to
the Cape Winelands.
Only 50 teams (100 runners) will start in Hermanus on the
Southern Cape coast, traversing the varied landscapes of the Western Cape
whilst enduring the harsh elements before arriving at their final
destination, Lanzerac Manor and Winery. Entries were allocated on a first
come first served basis via an online registration system. Runners will
compete in teams of two and will need to stick together at all times or
risk a time penalty. There are 4 running categories for teams to
participate in namely Men, Ladies, Mixed and Masters.
At each stage, the winners of the day will receive prizes
and the leaders in the overall classification, their Leader Numbers.
After the last stage, individual times will be calculated to reveal the
overall winners.
The first day, which will be 37 km, will kick off in
Hermanus and end in Kleinmond with part of Olifantsberg as one of the
obstacles. Then runners head down into the Hemel en
Aarde valley to Onrus, from which they will follow the coastline in the
Mudgepoint Nature Reserve towards Hawston. The last 11km is on the beach
into Kleinmond.
The second stage will be a 60km run and end at the Paul
Cluver Wine Estate. From the start of the race, runners
will begin climbing, following the Palmiet River for 18km and gaining 300m
in altitude. They then follow the narrow trails through Lebanon Forest
with shady pine and blue gum trees before dipping under the N2 for an 8km
stretch through the orchards to the finish.
The third day or stage three will take them from Paul Cluver
Wine Estate to Grabouw. This stretch will be 41km and the highlight will
be Groenlandberg. A tough ascent of rutted jeep track
with loose, fist-sized rocks will challenge tired ankles. The 21km climb
and 800m altitude gain will earn runners a magnificent view of the Elgin
Valley and Theewaterskloof Dam.
The fourth stage will take them from
Grabouw to Franschhoek. After reaching the Nuweberg Forestry Station,
runners begin a gradual climb along the Boland Hiking Trail – 6km of rocky
single-track. They will then drop down the eastern side of the Hottentots
Holland Mountains, ending at the bottom of Franschhoek Pass on the
Villiersdorp side. Runners will then be transferred to the start town of
Franschhoek
The final stage on day five will be to
Lanzerac Manor and Winery. The 38km run will be quite testing as they need
to do an 8km climb up Assegaaiboschkloof with a 10% average gradient.
After a 5km descent in to Jonkershoek plantation, the runners will enjoy
the final stretch of winding single-track and jeep tracks before the road
levels off into the valley. In the avenue approaching Lanzerac, runners
will see the Manor House from far as they finish their first ever Cape
Odyssey.
The Cape Odyssey is a fully supported trail
running stage race. Runners will be able to focus on covering the daily
distance and the experienced event crew will take care of everything else,
including tented accommodation in race villages, water points en route,
and medical assistance.
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