The 56km (35mile) Two Oceans Ultra Marathon was run through Cape Town today (although given the amount of rain, some may say it was swum).
With over 25 000 runners it's a massive event. We went up to the Kirstenbosch gates (4kms before the end) to cheer a friend on, and I got sucked into taking photos. In the pouring rain, I took over 1000 pictures in 40 minutes. I've got close-ups of water-droplets on people's glasses, individuals, groups and stretches with hundreds in a shot - any manner of variety. What kept me clicking was the realisation that with the usual supporters being few and far between, the runners were so thrilled to see someone giving them attention that they were visibly perking up for the camera. Every time I turned to dry the lens there was a groan from those runners who had missed hearing a click! Such an odd experience, given that the usual situation is thousands of people and lenses lining the route. But the rain was too much for the bystanders.
This is my favourite picture of the day. It's her ready smile (remember, she's just run 52kms in the rain) that does it for me. (And the soft focus is because at that point the lens was covered in water.) The results say she completed the race in 6:39:59.
Originally started the project to improve my photography skills. Over a 2500 photos later it's become a personal diary. I post pictures that mark my...
Such a happy shot! It was definitely more like the 3 Oceans marathon today. Was feeling very sorry for them all! Thanx for linking my shot. Will do the same with yours!
There was a huge trend of a photo here of a very handsome guy in a race, everybody around him looked tired yet he had this awesome smile. This phot makes me think of that, she does not look like she just spent the last 6 + hours running.
May 4th, 2012
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