ASICS FrontRunner Kobus Uys talks us through a challenging run in the Magaliesberg hills behind his adopted home town.
Location:
Rustenburg, North West (50km from Sun City / 100km from Pretoria). Alongside the beautiful Magaliesberg Mountain range.
Distance:
14km with 450m vertical gain.
Terrain:
Mix of both trail and road. The route consists of mainly road, which connects the 3 crosses by rolling hills and undulating climbs. The steep climbs up to the crosses are gravel, which forms the question on what the optimal shoe choice would be.
Description:
Rustenburg has three prominent crosses (alongside trig beacons on three respective hills) overlooking the town from different angles. The route forms part of an informal local challenge with the only rules being to tag all three crosses and to start/end your run at the same spot. The 3 crosses can be accessed from multiple directions, but all with definite optimal (and some very steep climbs) routes to minimise time. Two of the climbs have average gradients of over 30%, guaranteeing a leg burner. The steep sections of the climbs are gravel which makes it even harder.
One of the reasons I love this route is that it has a bit of everything – steep rocky climbs and descents, flat road running, as well as gradual road climbs. This forces a person to adapt to quick changes, using different muscle groups the whole time, meaning the good all-rounder will have a good shot at running the best time.
Ideal kit:
I’ve done this route twice in my Dynaflyte 4’s but think the GEL-FUJI TRABUCO SKY will be a very good fit for the route. It’s going to be interesting to see which one of the two performs better on this very diverse route.
