January 2018 - The Running Mann

29th January 201820th September 2018

Finlime Marathon (The Time I Ran a Marathon in Middle of the Kalahari Desert)

[MARATHON #173 / UNIQUE MARATHON #90 / 20 January 2018]

Pretty much everything shuts down in South Africa over the December / January school holiday period. Unfortunately, marathon running is no different: there is a total Sub-Saharan marathon shutdown between 16 December and 20 January.

Some people spend forty days fasting in the desert – so I thought it was appropriate to break my 40-day marathon drought with a run in the desert! The location was Lime Acres – a small town of about 4,500 people in the middle of the “green” Kalahari desert.

Finlime Marathon, Lime Acres (the middle of the Kalahari Desert)

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14th January 201814th January 2018

The Time I Got Free Beer Whilst Buying My Wife A Christmas Gift

Sometimes stereotypes are unkind and unfair. However, in my case the stereotype of “the husband who leaves Christmas shopping to the last minute” was totally justified. It was December 24th and I still had not bought my wife anything for Christmas…

This is a story with a happy ending: How I scored all this free craft beer whilst buying a last minute Christmas present for my wife.

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7th January 201820th September 2018

JB Marks Marathon, Ventersdorp

[MARATHON #172 / UNIQUE MARATHON #89 / 16 December 2017]

I visited Ventersdorp for the first time ever in March this year (to run a marathon).

I visited Ventersdorp for the for second time this December (also to run a marathon).

Running a marathon is a one good reason to visit Ventersdorp. You will be hard pressed to find a second…

About to re-enter Ventersdorp – twice in one year (voluntarily).

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4th January 201820th September 2018

NGK Familiefees Marathon: The Time I Finished 2nd

[MARATHON #153 / UNIQUE MARATHON #75 / 4 March 2017]

Many runners spend hours doing speed, track and hill work in the hope of getting faster and securing an elusive podium finish. I recently found out that this time could be better spent searching for the right race: It’s not how fast you run, it’s the races you pick!

It’s not always how fast you run, it’s the races you pick. The story about the time I finished 2nd in a marathon.

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