Understanding the Super League (TSSL) 

As many of you will know, the Trail Series® Super League (TSSL) is a revitalised format of the original format that kickstarted the short course trail running scene in South Africa back in 2008; and has been designed to bring a fresh, competitive, and inclusive approach to competition.  The TSSL races span the year with carefully selected races, providing greater flexibility and opportunities for runners of all ages and abilities - a chance for both competitive runners and casual enthusiasts to thrive – with more often than not the TSSL Champions not being the same as individual race winners.

Key Features of the TSSL

1.  Super League in each distance grouping

• There is a Super League competition in each of the three distances For example, all the Short races combined create the Short Course Super League – likewise for the Long and XL distances.

• Short courses: Ideal for beginners and younger participants (with three Junior categories from 6-17yrs).
• Long courses: Typically 10-12 km, suited for more experienced trail runners.
• XL routes: Taking careful aim at the 20 km mark, the XL is perfect for those training for longer-distance events.
   

2. The TSSL scoring System:

• Points are allocated on your overall position at the finish line – starting with 400 points for the win, and one less for every place behind.  If you don’t race, you get zero points for that race.
• Points for each of the four races are added together, and the runner with the most points wins.
• Therefore, to be competitive in the TSSL rankings, participants must complete all races within their chosen distance.
• In the event of a tie on points, the winner will be determined by cumulative race times across all events. 
• No discards.  Unlike the traditional Trail Series®, where your worst  score could be discarded, the TSSL requires consistency across all events to achieve a high ranking. This system encourages & rewards dedication and consistency.
   

3. Categories & prizes

• There are age and gender categories for each collective  Super League, provided there are five or more finishers of three or more races. 
• With the exception of the three Junior categories in the Short course, there are no category prizes per race – only top three men’s and ladies over the line.  The category results do however show online per race.
• You are automatically placed in your age category based on your date of birth/ID, and is based on your age on the 31 December of the year of competition.
• Medals are awarded at every race.

For more details about upcoming races, rules, and registration, visit the Trail Series® website

With thanks to FINISH TIME for their support in creating the results engine that calculates the TSSL in the background! 

Nature is at the very core of why trail running is so incredibly inspiring.  Every trail is different, every experience unique.  For the last 15 years, the Trail Series® has been connecting people with nature, inspiring children and adults alike to get out and be challenged in this wonderful sport of trail running.

Along the way these events have been at the leading edge of establishing sound environmental practices, working hard to ensure that collectively, the events have as soft a touch on the planet as possible.  From cupless aid stations, to designing reusable signage; from drastically reducing our use of single use plastics, to producing recyclable medals.  “We have worked hard to leave as little footprint as possible in the execution of the Trail Series® events.  Not for any reason other than, we can do what we can to make a difference” says Owen Middleton, founder & events director of the Trail Series®.

And so it is with great excitement that the Trail Series® proudly announces a partnership with WWF South Africa for the 2023 Trail Series® Super League.  It’s a partnership rooted in recognising the value and inspiration of the incredible biodiversity that surrounds us, and the need to work together to inspire positive change.

“WWF South Africa’s mission is to champion the earth's capacity to provide a source of inspiration, sustainable food, water and clean energy for all. We celebrate and respect diversity in nature and among the people, partners, and communities with whom we work. The amazing venues hosting the trail series connect beautifully with important parts of our work, including freshwater stewardship, marine protected area management, wine conservation champions and securing the unique Cape Fynbos biome ” Justin Smith, Head of Business Development

The 2023 Trail Series® Super League will consist of six race days spread out between January and November.  Each race day is at a unique trail running venue in and around the greater Cape Town, Winelands and Overstrand areas.  Each race counts towards the overall Super League, with the highest points scorer securing the TSSL League title.  There are various age categories ranging from the 6-10 year old ‘Peewee’ runners up to the Masters.  The more races you do the better you score, the higher up the rankings you will be.  So in short, consistency is the key. 

We kick off the first race in the magnificent Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens on 20 January 2023, a Friday evening special!  For info and to enter head to https://www.trailseries.co.za/events/trail-series-super-league/kirstenbosch

Overnight rain and a cool westerly breeze made for perfect trail racing conditions at Oak Valley Wine Estate, the final race venue in the 2022 Trail Series® Super League.

First out of the stable were the 22km XL competitors…

Katjiri, Cronje & van den Heever give no quarter

The pace was electric from the get go, with Charl Cronje putting the foot down early in a last ditch attempt to unseat Wano Katjiri.  Christian van den Heever made up the leading trio that smashed through the 4km mark in just 16 minutes.  

The relentless pace continued to the 12km mark, but by this stage Katjiri had stretched a 2 minute lead on Cronje, with van den Heever close on his heels.

By the 16km mark, van den Heever had leapfrogged Cronje and so began his unrelenting chase of the race leader, who was at this stage still holding onto a 2 minute lead. 

By the finish however, van den Heever had reeled Katjiri in to within striking distance, but Katjiri was not going to let this one get away and held on to take the win by a mere 6 seconds. The winning time 1:36:38

With five wins out of the six races, Wano Katjiri secured himself the 2022 Super League Senior Men’s XL title by 8 points, with Charl Cronje 2nd and Kyle Maij 3rd respectively. 

Mohr-Holland leads the charge, van Sittert takes the League

Erika Mohr-Holland, Daniel Feldmann and Cornel Stander all finished within the top 20 overall, which gives you some idea of the battle that raged in the ladies race! 

The trio went through the 4km mark within shouting distance of the overall race leaders.  But in the end, Mohr-Holland proved to be relentless, and slowly but surely extended her lead to just over a minute at the line over Feldmann, finishing in 1:54:15. 

Kathyn van Sittert had an unassailable lead over Candyce Hall going into the final race for the Super League Senior title, and so it was no surprise that her fifth place at Oak Valley was all she needed to secure her the 2022 Super League Senior Ladies XL title.

Moosbrugger owns the XL scoreboard

Special mention needs to be made of the three highest points scorers in the XL Super League.  Over all six races, Michael Moosbrugger averaged 13th overall, with his worst position 17th and his best a 10th.  This consistency ranked him number one overall in the XL Super League with 2,322 points. The only other two breaking into the 2,000+ scoreline was Kathyn van Sittert and Wano Katjiri respectively. Moosbruggers' consistency won him his first Super League XL Veteran Category title. 

Records tumble in the 13.5km

Just under six minutes was slashed off the course record set by Lambert Brink in 2021.  Michael Ellis tore around the course in 54:16, putting over a minute and half on 2nd place James Montgomery at the line.  

Caitlin Snethlage followed suit in the ladies race, slashing over a minute and half off the previous course record set by Mila Geldenhys in 2021.  Snethlage finished in 1:01:42, and with a comfortable five minute lead on second place Rozelle Meier.

Master runner shines overall

Master runner Trevor Jacobs needs special mention in the Super League Long Course.  Jacobs never finished outside of the top 10 overall in any of the six races in the TSSL - in fact his worst was 8th! That consistent performance places Jacobs as the top scorer in the Long course Super League with 2,369 points.  Gregg Torr placed second overall and Caro Jordaan 3rd.  Each of these top three overall won their respective Super League Category titles.   

Minimee dominates the 5km

Youngster and ‘Minimee’ competitor (age 11-14 yrs) CG Volschenk smashed the 5km out of the park, finishing in just 21:14 - 29 seconds ahead of second placed senior runner Derick Minnie.

Birgit van Niekerk also showed a clear pair of heels in the ladies race, not only finishing 6th overall but just shy of 5 minutes ahead of second place Emily Gray. Birgit van Niekerk won her Super League Veteran Ladies title by over 1,000 points.

Peewee runner (age 6-10yrs) Evelyn Anne Knot had three solid performances to secure her a 12 point victory over Salma Fataar in the Super League Peewee category. 

Reece Finegan had five strong results out of the six TSSL races, winning him the Minimee (age 11-14 yrs) Super League title and also placing him sixth overall.  

Special mention needs to be made of Ashraf Moosa who scored the highest points in any of the Super League distances with a total score of 2,382.  Whilst Moosa never won a race his worst overall result in a race was 5th! Moosa won his Senior Mens category in the short course Super League by over 800 points. 

Below is a list of the Trail Series Super League category title holders for 2022:

The Super League format to the Trail Series® was launched in November 2019 for the 2020 trail running year, but like many many things, COVID-19 flung the handbrake up on that plan. 

Fast forward two years and understandably at the beginning of 2022 no-one really had any certainty yet over how the first post COVID year was going to pan out.  Likewise, we had no idea if indeed we were going to achieve the full Super League. So like most folks, we simply focussed on getting by, race by race.

Then 2022 took off like a supersonic missile, leaving a trail of loose ends and wish-we-had-time-too’s in its wake. And so it seems that all of a sudden we find ourselves a week out from fulfilling the first full six-race Trail Series® Super League.

And while we hadn’t really been pushing the TSSL theme, the results after 5 races are pretty exciting indeed…

Consistency counts

In yacht racing, consistency is king. You don’t have to win every race, you just have to be pushing at the sharp end all the way through to the final race.  

Similarly, the Super League format rewards participation and consistency.  The more races you run, the more points you get, the better you do.  Simple. 

The scoring starts with 400 for a win, and a point less for every position down the order from there - so 399 for 2nd, 398 for 3rd etc.  

The battles that rage

(Super League results link)

In the XL Super League it’s extremely hot at the top.  Wano Katjiri has just a 6 point lead over Charl Cronje.  If Charl can put seven places between himself and Wano at the line this Sunday, then he will take the crown.  Michael Moosbrugger leads the overall standings, complete with the highest TSSL score of 1936!

Amazingly, Tania Neethling and Robyn Gardener are tied on 1034 points a piece for second place in the XL Veteran Ladies category.  So whoever takes the tape takes the second step on the podium.

Both Deemter Avenant and Marcelle le Roux hold the top spot in their XL Master Categories from otherwise faster individuals, proving the points value of being at all five races!

In the Long course Super League, Jacques du Plessis holds onto a tenuous 18 point advantage over Michael de Kwaadsteniet. Caro Jordaan has an unassailable lead in her category, and is the second highest points scorer of the TSSL 2022 with 1934 (just two points behind Michael Moosbrugger).

In the Short course Super League, we start with the battle in the Peewee category (6-10yrs) where just eight points separate the Fataar sisters and the battle for 2nd place.  

He may have only completed two races, but Junior category speedster Finley Wilson scored a bullet in both races (OVERALL!) leaving him in second place behind Daniel van Reenen.  If he rocks up and puts another bullet on the board, he could well win the Junior Super League in 2022. 

One thing is for sure though, Sithandile Kokolo will be breathing down his neck having himself scored two 2nd places overall, and leaving him just 2 points behind Wilson in the fight for second place - or even first!

Ashraf  Moosa is untouchable in the Senior Mens short course Super League.  Karen Battiston is another who proves the value in consistency, and leads the Senior Ladies Short course category. 

Birgit van Niekerk and Steve Finegan both hold a powerful and consistent scoreline in their respective Veteran short course categories.  

Richard Rossiter has an unassailable lead over Sam Troost in the Master category, with Sam having done enough to hold onto his second place. 

In case you missed the link, here it is again: Super League results link

The final race

The absolutely sensational trails of Oak Valley Private Estate make up the final TSSL race track for 2022.

A short and fast 5km will decide the Short Course Super League, a 13.5km the long and a 22.5km the XL.

Whether you are competing in the overall TSSL or not, come and celebrate the conclusion of the first Super League on the smooth and fun trails of Oak Valley!

For all the race info and to enter click here

We make our final COVID-19 stand in this years TSSL as planned at Oak Valley.  It's coming up fast, and you might have some questions. We’ve worked with all stakeholders and authorities to bring you a safe, enjoyable racing experience. And there will be no cardboard cutout fans, we promise!

PRE ENTRY ONLY

Entries are PRE-ENTRY only, so please don't rock up on the day to enter. This is because every participant is required to complete a COVID-19 self screening form 48hrs before (more on this below).  Entries are also limited and currently available here. 

BACK TO BATCH STARTS

We are back to the usual racing batches for Oak Valley, albeit it small COVID-19 compliant batches of 50.  The start times are indicated on the event page.  In the XL, we will place you in a batch, but if you consider yourself an ELITE or PODIUM contender, please drop us an email BY FRIDAY 3pm and we will make sure you are in the A batch start. For the Long or Short courses, you will be starting in the batch you chose during the entry process.

COVID-19 SELF-SCREENING 

Every entrant will be emailed a COVID-19 self-screening form at 7am on Friday 13th November, 48hrs before the first start.  Every entrant is required by the current regulations to complete this prior to arrival. However, if you miss this, you will be able to complete the form at the event - this will just take longer!

TEMPERATURE CHECK, DISTANCING & MASKS

Your temperature will be checked in the parking area before you enter the race village.  If your temperature is higher than 38ºC you will not be allowed to run.  Please maintain your social distancing skills during your time at Oak Valley to the best of your ability.  You are not required to wear a mask while you are running, but it is required to be on when you arrive, during registration and right up until you have started the run. 

ROLLING PRIZE GIVING

There will be rolling prize giving for the top three over the line, male and female, in each distance.  There will be a random lucky draw as we progress, so make sure you place your tear off number in the bucket soon after you finish.  After every draw the bucket will be cleared to prevent gatherings...  We will do an online prize giving for categories & the overall TSSL. 

COMMS WITH THE TEAM
For any race enquiries, please check our website at www.trailseries.co.za or email info@wildrunner.co.za.