Blog

Those of you that decided to drive down to Kariba over the Heroes weekend must, surely, have noticed the beautiful vegetation along the side of the road between Makuti and Kariba – all the Mopani trees showing off their Spring colours – ochres, oranges, reds and greens. I was up there for a couple of days and took time out along the way to “stop and smell the roses” – unbelievable quiet with trees shining in the hazy view.

The Heroes weekend is, of course, that time of the year when 1000 “Fit” athletes head off to Lomagundi Lakeside along with their families to participate in the Kariba half marathon  – 21km or 10km run / walk. This year it was, once again, organized by the Round Tablers – excellent preparation all round – well done guys. These guys had also arranged for a fishing competition for all the littlies at the nearby Bream farm  -great way for kids to develop a life time passion for bream fishing.

This was the 4th leg of my “Big Five” half marathons for 2018 – Matopos, 7 Hills, Vic Falls, Kariba and Vumba. – Next year I would like to find a sponsor so that other potential runners can have a target to aim for with the requisite T shirt at the end of it all. Driving around the country at the moment is an absolute pleasure compared to this time last year so it is an ideal way to travel around the country.

Most of the adults were finished the race by 9.30am in the morning followed by breakfast in a friendly atmosphere. And then the band began to play! Renee and Kevin Hansen played some excellent music over a couple of never ending sessions whilst the crowd soaked up a couple of frosties sitting in the sun alongside Lake Kariba. Why not make a date for next year and take the whole family along to participate – lots did this year. Make sure you book your accommodation early.

Even though it was great to have 1200 entrants one should note that the recent Vic Falls Marathon had 4,400 participants – it is high time Kariba was brought back into the Zimbabwe Tourism equation with the introduction of a couple of daily flights from Harare. Everyone that had been on the lake commented on how good the fishing had been.