Stormy weather clears for record Treverton Bundu Bash

The wet weather of the past week beat a timely retreat as Treverton hosted the second leg of the Bundu Bash Series off-road adventure powered by Stihl in beautiful Spring conditions on Saturdays.

Despite the Bundu Bash clashing with the Springboks’ clash against Australia in Perth, and some participants missing out by not checking the long-term weather forecast, numbers were up by close to 40 percent on last year’s event, and pre-entries through ROAG were up too.

With the heavy rains that flooded the country over the past week, though, it took quite some effort from course designer Brad Neal and his crew to get the various races’ routes into shape in time for Saturday’s action.

“We worked on them from Wednesday to Friday night,” he admitted.

Previously designed routes had to be reconfigured to deal with a swollen Mooi River and muddy conditions. “Safety was the main concern,” said Neal, “along with making it an enjoyable day.”

Treverton first hosted the Bundu Bash in 2011 after previously hosting adventure races. “The decision to move to a multisport event has made for a good change,” Neal explained. “It’s made it more accessible to more people.”

Headmaster Dave Cato said Treverton’s scenic location and the Treverton Wildlife Area made it an ideal location for the trail running and mountain biking featured in the Bundu Bash Series.

The events, which ranged from the Chainsaw (5km run and 20km MTB and adventure activity) to the 4km Amble and shorter age group cycling events for children in the under-six age group, were all well supported. Those who took on the longer challenges certainly saw their fair share of mud.

Stu Berry of the organisers, Impi Concept Events, demonstrated his fitness on a mountain bike. One of South Africa’s leading rugby referees, he described the conditions as “muddy but fun” and said he had ridden among buck along the way.

A huge slip-‘n-slide, as part of the course, near the finish, proved to be very popular. “It’s great,” Berry said, echoing the views of many others. “It’s like a big bath that cleans you up right at the end.”
Would he recommend it to the South African Rugby Referees Association for fitness training? “Definitely,” he said with a smile.

There was orange everywhere to match the vibrancy of the new season: in the colours of the lead sponsors Stihl, in the orange and blue of the refreshment sponsors, Aquellé, and in the orange and blue of the hosts, Treverton.

As “Picture Perfect” by Perez played over the sound system in the festival atmosphere, a glance to the sky revealed nary a cloud. The song’s title was an accurate comment on the day that Mother Nature had dished up.

The third and final leg of the Bundu Bash off-road adventure series powered by Stihl takes place on 20 October in Newcastle and will be hosted by St Dominics Academy.

More information can be found at http://www.bundubashseries.co.za

Image: After a week of torrential rains the Treverton Bundu Bash powered by Stihl on Saturday was greeted with stunning sunny conditions for the record field of participants. Credit: Brad Morgan/Gameplan Media.