The Isuzu Berg River Canoe marathon that gets under way in Paarl on 12 July will be the last of it’s kind, as the construction of the new Berg River dam above Paarl looks set to remove the threat of the desperately low conditions that have dogged the race for the last two years.
The new dam will be built outside Franschhoek by the Trans Caledon Tunnel Authority, and with a 70 metre high wall will be the highest concrete-faced rock-fill dam in South Africa, and is scheduled to be completed before the 2007 Isuzu Berg Marathon.
That will mean that even a moderate release from the new dam will be able to ease the plight of the paddlers in a desperately dry winter.
“It is the end of an era”, said Western Cape Canoe Union chair Andre Collins, himself a veteran of 36 of these marathons. “It’s very fitting that we will be back to racing to full course from Paarl to Velddrif in the last of the “old style” Bergs before the dam is completed.”
The construction of dams on major rivers has had a significant impact on a number of major races. The Hansa Powerade Dusi was given anew lease of life with the construction of Inanda Dam, while Grassridge Dam in the Karoo paved the way for the hugely popular Hansa Powerade Fish Marathon that ends in Cradock.
“It is hard to predict whether the dam will affect the participation in the race in the future,” Collins added. “The Isuzu Berg is a tough challenge, even if there is good water in the river. Everyone who completes the race can feel that they have achieved something special.”
The Trans Caledon Tunnel Authority has worked closely with the canoeing community, and is backing slalom canoeing in the Western Cape, with the ultimate vision of establishing a slalom course below the new Franschhoek dam wall.
Stalwart Giel van Deventer, who has raced 36 of these ultra-marathons, believes that the advent of the Berg River Dam will have a positive impact on the race, but stressed that he enjoyed the challenge of racing the river as he finds it each year.
“To me it is part of the challenge to take the Berg as Mother Nature presents her every year. I liked the low Bergs as much as the flooded ones but I must admit the extreme low Bergs of less than 4 cumecs is not what one could rate as a fair challenge.”
“The effect of the dam on the race by preventing the extreme low levels will be very positive. The farmers will of course benefit much more when the extreme flood levels are tapered down because they will have less damage to their farmlands and vineyards,” van Deventer added.
The Isuzu Berg River Canoe Marathon gets under way from Paarl on Wednesday 12 July, following a time trial the previous day to settle the seeding of the top competitors, and ends at Velddrif on the West Coast on Saturday 15 July.
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