Former world champion and Dusi Crown Prince Andy Burkett won the second day of the Dusi Canoe Marathon on Friday with Matthew Fenn, moving one step closer to his 14th title and almost ending his challenger's hopes. I smashed it.
Mistakes by Msawenkosi Mutolo and Sbonelo Kwela early in the second stage gave Birkett and Fenn the advantage they needed to control the race. However, the way the new leaders powered through the final few kilometers from Mpaya Bridge to Inanda Dam on the second day shows that their mistake at the gaging weir was merely pre-empting the inevitable.
Burkett and Fenn will have a five-minute advantage on Saturday's third day from Inanda Dam to Durban's Blue Lagoon, but it looks like only a big mistake will change their positions on the final 36km stage.
A see-saw battle for the final podium spot saw Bongani Ntinga and Sandile Mtolo lose some of their mere four-second advantage over Vanetse Nkesa and Siseko Ntondini. The difference is now just two seconds, and it looks like the cat-and-mouse battle will continue for the third day in a row on Saturday.
U23 paddlers Scott Little and Jeremy Maher are currently in fifth place, but with just two seconds behind Thulani Mbanjwa and Kwandokuhle Mzolo, the battle for a top five finish is widening.
In the women's race, former champion Abby Solms and her young schoolgirl partner Jessica Behn from Pietermaritzburg produced a clean run and paddle for the second day in a row, extending their already significant lead by another minute. There was very little drama or intrigue. . They depart for Durban on Saturday with a more than 10-minute advantage over Bridget Hartley and Hilary Blass.
Jenna Nisbett and Nix Burkett's bid for second place did not materialize, leaving them a further seven minutes behind Hartley and Blass, and they must now be hoping to secure a spot on the podium. .
The mixed doubles race is also going as expected, with Hank McGregor and Pippa McGregor nearly doubling their lead over Brad Buhl and Emma Hatfield, with the multiple world champion and his wife now separated by around 13 minutes. is attached.
Notably, the McGregor pair sit 15th overall and lead the overall sub-veteran category.
Burkett praised his young partner, who stuck to a conservative approach on Friday which paid off as he closed in on the overnight leaders and Gauging Weir.
“On the approach to the weir, I said to Matt, let's put on the Splashy and shoot,” Burkett said after Friday's stage. “We tripped it up and were comfortable shooting it. But at the last moment Matt said, 'No, we're not shooting this. We're porting this and getting more I’m going to take a conservative approach.”
“I think it was the right decision. I think it did a really good job for Matt, and then we saw them hit from the left side and be forced to jump out of the boat.”
“Then we had to try to take advantage of that, but seeing our competitors paddle out and leave and still try to get back to their boats, it was a tough pill for them to swallow. I think so.”
But is Burkett confident of taking his 14th win and coming within one win of defeating 'Dushi King' Graham Pope-Ellis?
“I trip sometimes too, and even after crossing the river 100 times, a little rapid can destroy my boat, so I know you never know what's going to happen,” he said. “We have to stay focused. Matt reminded me of that all day today. 'Don't make mistakes, stay focused,' he kept telling me. I did.
“We have to be sharp tomorrow. If we make a big mistake, the race is over.”
Kwela was philosophical about the gauging weir error.
“Yeah, that's part of racing,” he said. “We had a good day up until then and we knew Andy and Matt would try to get us before Goumeni.
“Then we got stuck in a gauge weir and tried our best to wiggle our way through, but we couldn't. We had to fall to get unstuck and then empty the boat and make a splash. I’m wearing it.”
“Tomorrow it should be full gas all the way to Durban. There’s nothing left in the tank so we’re going to push ourselves. “But anything can happen to anyone, so we’re going to push and give them We're going to see if we're successful.'' If you make a mistake, be there to capitalize on it.
Saturday's third and final stage will see paddlers finish crossing the Inanda Dam, followed by a short trip around the dam wall and into the large rapids below the dam. If the water release is suitable, experienced paddlers can enjoy parts of the river dotted with considerable rapids before entering the final flat body of water leading into Durban's Blue He Lagoon .
excellent results
(Job title, below name, (1st day, 2nd day) total
male
1 Andy Birkett / Matthew Fenn (2:28:02; 2:26:37) 4:54:40
2 Musawenkosi Mutolo / Sbonelo Kwela (2:27:36; 2:32:19) 4:59:55
3 Bongani Ntinga / Sandile Mutolo (2:32:44; 2:35:12) 5:07:57
4 Vanetse Nkesa / Siseko Ntondini (2:32:48; 2:35:11) 5:07:59
5 Scott Little / Jeremy Maher (2:35:16; 2:34:23) 5:09:40
6 Thulani Mbanjwa / Kwandokuhle Mzolo (2:35:29; 2:34:13) 5:09:42
7 Thabani Muthia / Nqobile Makhanya (2:39:31; 2:38:34) 5:18:05
8 Alan Huston / Dirk van den Bergh (2:42:07; 2:37:10) 5:19:17
9 Sanele Mbanjwa / Smilo Mthethwa (2:35:35; 2:43:43) 5:19:18
10 Benjamin Muntoninssi / Mpendulo Mthethwa (2:39:34; 2:44:03) 5:23:38
mixture
1 Hank McGregor / Pippa McGregor (2:54:11; 2:47:18) 5:41:30
2 Bradley Boole / Emma Hatfield (3:00:52; 2:53:25) 5:54:18
3 Dave McKenzie / Helen Bouley (3:16:32; 3:05:54) 6:22:27
4 Scott Rogers / Michaela Gatenbeek (3:20:44; 3:15:26) 6:36:10
5 Abbey Hackland / James Hackland (3:24:14; 3:19:35) 6:43:49
woman
1 Abbey Solms / Jessica Behn (3:00:14; 2:54:20) 5:54:35
2 Bridget Hartley / Hilary Blass (3:09:37; 2:55:16) 6:04:54
3 Jenna Nisbett / Nix Burkett (3:16:28; 3:02:10) 6:18:39
4 Amy Hewlett / Nelya Dill (3:23:01; 3:14:05) 6:37:06
5 Shannon Parker Dennison / Nosipho Mthembu (3:27:02; 3:17:24) 6:44:27