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Frost and Jornet Storm Table Mountain

Press Release / 22.09.2011

Very few trail runners rate the gruelling 17km third leg of the 36km Crazy Sports Table Mountain Challenge as easier than the first two, but Anna Frost is not your usual trail runner.

The 17km third leg, from Constantia Nek to Kloof Nek by way of a lung-searing ascent of Llandudno Ravine to the top of the Back Table then down Kasteelspoort and back along the pipe track, is regarded as the trail runners’ nemesis, following the relatively comfortable first legs along the contour path from Kloof Nek.

But the 27 year old Kiwi from Dunedin, Frost, far prefers the challenge of technical single track and tough ascents to the flatter terrain. Clearly a strength runner, rather than pure speed, Frost relished the challenge of running up and over Table Mountain and did so in fine style of the weekend, winning the women’s race with ease, against some of the South Africa’s best.

Frost is part of the impressive Salomon team, which is currently in South Africa for a week of product marketing and racing the Table Mountain Challenge and like her male counterpart, Kilan Jornet, was in a league of her own in winning the senior title.

Fresh from winning a 6 day stage race in the Rocky Mountains in the USA two weeks back, Frost has the luxury of a relatively light training week in Cape Town, staying with Salomon teammate Ryan Sandes, before heading home to New Zealand and then to Malaysia for the 21km Kinablau Climbathon – straight up and down, the way Frost likes it.

Frost, who led from start to finish on Saturday, rates the Cape Town race as one of the most beautiful she has completed. She was a minute up on Sue Don-Wauchope at Constantia Nek, before racing away in the second half to finish in 6th position overall in an excellent 4 hr 11min 9 sec.

If Frost was chilled in the competition, then her Spanish Salomon teammate, Jornet, was like ice. The talented 23 year old Catalan scarcely broke a sweat as he left his rivals in his wake in the third leg over the mountain to shatter Bruce Arnett’s year old course record by 7 minutes in 3:41:47 – and that over a longer and more taxing course than previously.

French athlete Greg Valet was five minutes back, with Cape Town’s leading trail athlete, Allan Benn, third in 3:49:51.