Miles for Smiles Mad Run 2014


There’re so many reasons to run. We run for pleasure, for adventure, for challenge, for fun, for friendship, for competition. The sheer joy that running brings is pure in its simplicity, and it’s very real. Running makes our hearts smile, it makes us happy.

Imagine then the sheer joy of being able to smile, swallow and chew properly when all your life you’ve not been physically able to. Imagine looking in the mirror, and for the first time ever not seeing your face disfigured. Imagine always feeling conspicuous in public with everyone staring at your face and whispering about how you look, and now the joy of being able to free of that burden, free to look the world in the eye without being laughed at and teased.


That intense joy is something most of us can only imagine, and it’s visible on the face of every child, teenager and young adult whose lives have been forever changed by Operation Smile. For them that joy will last a lifetime.

Last week a bunch of mad runners here in Cape Town took part in the Mad Run – the Table Mountain Challenge route (now 40km long, thanks to the wickedness of race organiser Trevor Ball) run every day for 7 days, with the final day being race day, which happened to be the TMC’s 10th anniversary. That meant more than 270km of running around, up and over Table Mountain, raising funds for Cipla Miles for Smiles, a campaign founded by adventurer and chef David Grier in support of Operation Smile.
Jean van Lierop and William van Dugteren
Andrew Stuart and David Grier

The Mad Run was the crazy brainchild of Hout Bay dentist and trail runner Jean van Lierop, who put the plan to David some months ago. David, with several world firsts under his belt, including the full length of the Great Wall of China (4 200km in 98 days), the entire coast of South Africa (3 300km in 80 days), running across Madagascar (2 700km in 64 days), running across India (4 008km in 93 days), and across Cuba (1 500km in 30 days), never being one to turn away a great running opportunity, took up the challenge and the plan took shape.

Seated: India Baird, William van Dugteren. Standing, L to R: Brett Wood, David Grier, Andy Stuart, Rob Graham,
Chris Allan, me, Jean van Lierop, Ant Rush       (photo credit: Stephen Granger)
There were many of us – most ran the whole route every day, and others ran most of the days. The week was as tough as it was fun, and the best part of all was that the effort raised more than R100 000 for Miles For Smiles. Real money = real operations = real life changes for more than 20 kids! While we were running, the operations were happening – the kilometres run were literally enabling future smiles!


Here’re some facts about the occurrence of cleft palate:


And here’re some random facts I either learned or was reminded about during the week…

ü   Llandudno Ravine never gets easier, not matter how fit you may be.
ü   A thick smeer of peanut butter, cheese and Bovril tastes mighty good in a sarmie (thanks William van Dugteren).
ü   Chocolate steri stumpies FIZZzzzz when vrot. And they taste utterly disgusting in that state.
ü   Tuffer Puffer legs really enjoy a rest day in the middle of TMC x 7 (sorry about that, guys).
ü   Apparently balls can have blisters too - ??  (no comment allowed from either David or Alex).
ü   Kasteelspoort has undoubtedly THE best plunge pool on the entire Table Mountain range.
ü   Men will always be boys.
ü   Polite boys tailor their jokes when running with girls.
ü   It only takes 10km, or a quarter of the way around one TMC, for boys to no longer tailor their jokes in politeness.
ü   The quality of jokes deteriorates in direct correlation with the number of times around a mountain.
ü   The level of laughter at even the lamest joke increases with the number of times around a mountain.
ü   The dubious white mould on a banting chef’s cabanossi salami grows impressively more furry with each day it lurks in said banting chef’s pack.
ü   Dentists are a lot funnier when running then when drilling teeth.
ü   Puff adders and Cape cobras believe it’s summer already here in the Cape – they’re awake from their winter snooze and rearing to go…




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