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| DOWNLOADS | 2012 Individual Entry Form (.pdf) | 2012 Relay Entry Form (.pdf) | |
| Altitude Profile 2011 (100kb .doc) | Route Map 2011 (90Kb) | Results summary (1982-2011) | |
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A Page of History Kindly supplied by Vic Keeling |
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2012 Planned starting date is 31st August. The starting time is 19h00 for individuals and 19h00 for the relay teams. The race will start and finish at the cedar Creek Lodge close to the intersection of the R28/N14 and the Sasol petrol station. Take note that if you approach the venue along Hendrik Potgieter or the N14, you need to arrive early, otherwise you will be sitting in homeward-bound traffic while the pre-race briefing is on the go. After the starting whistle proceed towards the N14/R28 intersection. Turn left at the Sasol garage onto the N14 and then towards the R563 10km further on. Turn right at the 3-way stop, past the Zenex petrol station on the left which is also the rendezvous point for the seconding teams to take over. About 500m further, you then branch off left towards Ventersdorp. The altitude doesn't change by much more than 100m up or down over the first 55km i.e it's pretty flat with an occasional dip and climb. After crossing over the R24, there's a 15km stretch to the R500. Turn right. The road is mostly flat. Shortly after the camel farm on the right, there is the first serious dip in the road followed by a climb of approx 4km up to the railway line crossing and the T-junction. Although apparently flattish to drive on, it's actually slow poison at 2:00am especially with a slight headwind (Although it's a bit too early in the race to be hallucinating, there really are live camels.) Turn right for a long gentle downhill to enter Magaliesburg on the northern side. This is approximately the halfway point. The return half includes the challenging climb out of Magaliesburg and follows the previous route past Maropeng. From there it's back on the R563 through the Cradle of Mankind, past the Caves to the T-Junction where the Krugersdorp 42 used to start from. The next 22km is a winding scenic (if you have time to look) climb. Don't be the one to bail on the next uphill at approx 131km - you will curse for the next 12 months. Just keep on walking or dragging your seized leg behind you. There are what appear to be some seriously steep inclines over the next 10km but when you get back to the second traffic circle, you are within striking distance if the sun is still up. Climb back up to the N14, turn left and reach single figures back towards the Cedar Lodge. Remember, no 100 Miler is easy. |
The following introduction appeared in the pre-race booklet issued in 1991- The idea of a hundred mile road race - Transvaal's response to the Washie 100 miler - was largely as a result of the interest and participation of Golden Reef athletes in the Eastern Cape event and the Johannesburg Harriers track race. The inaugural Golden 160 was run in 1982 from Ventersdorp to Roodepoort and as expected, was won by one of South Africa's most prolific mega-marathoners, Manie Saayman in an incredible time of 13:20. The 1983 race which started at Roodepoort, provided the most exciting tussle and narrowest margins of victory to date (1991) when a mere 1one minute and 39 seconds separated winner Saayman and his Vaal team mate, Graham Smith, at the finish in Pretoria. Saaymans domination of the event came to a halt in 1984 when, over a route run in reverse to the previous year, he was beaten by Durban's Poobie Naidoo. Having followed three different routes, it was eventually decided that a standard course should be arrived at whereby comparable statistics could be drawn. The result was the present (1991) out-and-back course which started and finished at the Cecil Payne Stadium in Maraisburg. It included 28 energy-sapping kilometers through Winsome Valley and Renosterkop and two six-kilometer sections of gravel through Honeydew Holdings. It is a true test of the runner's endurance and judgement of pace in relation to the undulating and unrelenting terrain over which the one hundred miles are run. Besides the intrigue, sense of adventure and emotion that are unique to this very special race, a notable feature of the Golden 160 is the spirit and social atmosphere that prevails at the finish and the various checkpoints, manned by timekeepers, radio operators and ambulance men and patronised by race enthuisiasts and roving marshalls. It is thanks to this spirit that the tradition of the Golden 160.9 kilometer Enduro Marathon is so proudly carried into its tenth year. May the flame of that tradition burn forever… |