Sometimes people make stupid bets when they’re drunk. Luc Quevauvilliers does not drink alcohol so he cannot fall back on that excuse. However, he still thought it would be a good idea to run Comrades dressed as a giant can of Shield deodorant. The suit weighed 13 kilograms. He only had one chance beforehand to do a short practice run. The second time he put the suit on was at the Comrades Expo. He hoped that Comrades race day would be third time lucky. People should stop blaming alcohol when men make stupid decisions…
There was however an excellent reason behind this madness: An R80,000 donation to the SANParks Honorary Rangers (one of the official Comrades charities). Luc explained that his reason for supporting this charity is, “SANParks look after 19 national parks including Kruger National Park and Table Mountain National Park, who with the help of charity donations are able to bridge the gaps in funding for important conservation efforts. I love our country and all the incredible wildlife and natural beauty we have, so donating to them is essential to help keep our amazing wildlife well looked after for generations to come.”
A friend of Luc’s was originally planning to do the run in the suit but apparently broke out into a cold sweat at the last minute because it was her first Comrades and was worried her nervous novice perspiration might be too much even for Shield to overcome. Luckily, she knew a crazy friend in Luc Quevauvilliers. Luc jumped at the opportunity without giving it a second thought, “I only got the mascot outfit on the Tuesday before Comrades, so was only able to do about half an hour of running in it to get a feel for how it would go and relied on blind confidence that I would be able to run in it.”
This is probably a good point in the article to establish why, when someone needs to find a replacement to run the Ultimate Human Race dressed up as a can of deodorant, they immediately think of Luc. Apart from his previous 5 Comrades finishes, Luc has completed a 24-Hour charity run to raise funds for a friend’s cancer bills, has several Backyard Ultras on his running CV and ran every single metre of every single street in Durban over a six month period (that’s over 1500km and requires some serious planning and dedication). Luc has also been telling anyone who’ll listen about his plan to run the 183km stretch between Richards Bay and Durban in one go with his friend Darius.
Shield were keen to test their claims of “you bring the heat; Shield brings the freshness” and showcase their motion-activated technology under the most extreme conditions possible. Luc’s armpits, cultivated on the mean streets of Queensburgh, provided a fertile laboratory for a stringent pressure test.
Shield did send me a press release whose content I have completely ignored because I am interested in much more important details like how much deodorant he put on before the race, “Just the usual amount of Shield deodorant, which for me involves some roll on as well as a spray, to double up my freshness and confidence before hitting the humid streets of KZN!” and whether Luc’s armpits were au natural, manicured or clean shaven. According to close personal friends, Luc is so old school that he still thinks that ‘Sorbet man’ is a type of testosterone flavoured ice-cream – therefore, it was no surprise when he confirmed, “Au natural all the way!”
Other factors I was interested in was whether anyone mistook him for a post-box or portaloo along the route, “Thankfully not, but being constantly in motion definitely helped people realise I was a deodorant can, although I did not like people thinking I was a roll on, I was clearly a spray can, running, not rolling down the road!”
I was once invited to a masked ball so I went as Batman. I had a great time except that toilet breaks were a two-person job. I was therefore intrigued as to how Luc handled his own toilet breaks during the race, “Quite easily, you instinctively learn these things when you really need to. Portaloos were out of the question (due to height restrictions) so it was bushes only and involved a quick lift and twist of the outfit so my head was looking out of the arm hole.” I assume he was talking about number ones but I erred on the side of discretion rather than bombarding him with a probing series of follow-up questions. I also refrained from asking whether he accidentally hotboxed himself at any stage during the race.
On a related note, Luc did take a fartlek approach to running Comrades. He ran to Umlaas Road in the suit, took it off for a breather and to make up some time before donning it again at Botha’s Hill. He then took it off at Pinetown for another breather before putting it back on again once he got a whiff of the finish line to trot home over the last few kilometres.
I managed to get an eyewitness account of Luc’s passing through Gillitts from a Comrades supporter who calls himself CTG, “I was busy braaiing at the side of the road and telling people about my Green Number when suddenly the odour of burnt boerewors and stench of sweaty runners was replaced by a magnificent manly aroma that filled the air and completely hijacked my olfactory system. It was a complete and utter sensory overload, the graceful sight of Luc Quevauvilliers in the can is forever imprinted into my dreams and his scent still lingers in my nostrils.”
According to bystanders his finish was equally impressive. After crossing the finish line in 11:30:03 there was an audible gasp when Luc raised his arms in triumph and, in a display of brut strength, revealed two resplendent mangardens of exquisite dryness. Whilst competitors smelt old and spicy, playboys had fallen by the roadside, axes had been run into the ground, most said ‘nivea again’ and long after the doves had finished crying, Luc was still a breath of fresh air.
As for how he found the whole experience of carrying an extra 13kg around the Comrades course, Luc’s simple response was “No sweat!”
It does however appear that the people of Shield missed a marketing trick along the way and should have armed Luc with a couple of deodorant cans, “A lot of people were asking me for free deodorant, thinking I was also somehow carrying a supply of cans WHILE running in the outfit, and so many people showing me their armpits while requesting this!”
Splendid write up. Kudos to Luc.