Alberton Record
Syann runs 1km loop 160 times at Dawn to Dusk race
Resident Syann Long toed the line at the annual Dawn to Dusk Circuit Race at Hoërskool Gerrit Maritz in Pretoria for her first 100-miler (160km).
Running a standard marathon (42km) is no easy feat; running 160km on a tar road takes loads of willpower, but repeating a 1km grass loop 160 times takes an extraordinary person.
“I told myself and my kids, after reading a David Goggins book, that one day I would run a 100-miler. So, when I came out of Comrades this year, I knew it was now or never,” said Long.
Long also said her training included many circuit laps of the same area, sometimes 1.8km loops, other times up to 5km loops, to train her brain that going around and around is okay.
Everyone who has run with her knows she does not like to run the same road on a run, so she needs to be mentally prepared for the Dawn to Dusk Circuit Race.
“It is hard to explain to someone who does not run why you would want to put yourself through 22 hours of running, but you come out of it a different person. You almost feel like you can achieve anything, and nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it,” she said.
Long’s motto is simple: “Whether you think you can or can’t, you’re right.” – Henry Ford.
This quote pushed her to manage, leading to her superb results.
