OFF TO BIG SCHOOL

Picture by Emma Rorke: Short back and sides! It’s time for all the little Grade Ones to put on their shiny shoes and new uniforms and join the academic race as scholars. These children from Laerskool Sedgefield Primary and Smutsville Primêre clearly have mixed reactions.
Front: Misha George and Shadrico Jacobs – looking both nervous and excited at the prospect of school. Back: Connor Webster and Zenoshca ‘Pinky’ du Plessis (both brandishing scissors) seem very happy to assist in getting the incredulous Griffen Venter ship-shape and school rule ready. 

By Melanie Baumeister

Like every year since time immemorial, the end of the Summer Holiday means it’s time to go back to school! And surely, across the country it’s the same:- none can be more excited (or full of trepidation) than the little Grade Ones (excepting, perhaps, their parents).

Before the first day chaos descended The Edge contacted local schools to report on the influx of youngsters.

Laerskool Sedgefield Primary reports that their admission lists are full and that they have 38 new learners entering Grade One, half boys and half girls. They will be taught by Sone Rossouw. LSP has a total of 280 pupils gracing their desks this year.

Sedgefield Primêre (aka Smutsville School) boasts an intake of 35 new little scholars who will fall in with the 60 Grade R’s who successfully graduated last year. All these youngsters will be under the watchful guidance of their two Grade One teachers, Lauren Saayman and Inge Krieger. Smutsville School has a total of 653 children in their educational facility.
Ruigtevlei Primary, the little rural school on the road to Karatara, has ten new little souls starting their school careers in Grade 1 and there are 55 pupils in the school altogether. Their teacher, Juf. Elfriede Burger is sure to have her hands full – as they each assert their individuality.

According to efficient and well rested Principal Louw, Karatara Primêre is all set up and ready to go for the intake of 25 little Grade Ones. The Grade One teacher who will be welcoming them is Juf. de Bruin. Karatara Primêre has approximately 185 scholars this year. They are steadily growing!

Hoekwil Primary also has a number of our local children attending their halls of learning, and this year, according to Antoinette the secretary, there will be 32 Grade Ones received by Juf. Estelle. Hoekwil Primary has approximately 165 children in its care.

All the best, little ones, as you take your first steps in the journey of your academic careers!

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LEVEL 2 WATER RESTRICTIONS STILL STAND

Despite the recent rain that fell on 2 January 2017, Greater Knysna remains on Level 2 Water Restrictions.  This means that potable municipal water is restricted to human consumption and businesses.

Initially implemented by Knysna Municipality on 21 December 2016, this level of water restrictions brought punitive water tariffs into immediate effect. An additional 50 percent of the approved water tariff will be applied to any consumption that exceeds 20kl/month.

“Although we are extremely grateful for the 16mm of rain that fell in Knysna and the 22mm recorded in Karatara, it is not enough to relieve the water scarcity in our area,” said Knysna Acting Municipal Manager, Johnny Douglas.

The municipality reports the Akkerkloof and the Glebe Dams as 55% and 5% full respectively, offering 37 days’ supply of water to Knysna at the recommended 8 Ml/day.

“Thankfully the water demand in Knysna was reduced from 16.2Ml/day (for the week between 18 and 25 December 2016) to 14.4Ml/day (between 25 December and 1 January), however this water consumption is still far over the recommended 8Ml/day. At this current rate Knysna’s water will only last for 33 days,” said Douglas.

Unlike Knysna, Sedgefield’s water usage increased dramatically from 2.8Ml/day for the Week 18 – 25 December, to a concerning 3.09Ml/day for the week 25 December 2016 to 1 January 2017.

“I appeal to all Sedgefield residents and their visitors to conserve water immediately.”

The Karatara and Homtini Rivers have low flow, and the Knysna and Gouna Rivers have very low flow. On 1 January, the Gouna River had no flow over its weir at all.

Greater Knysna businesses are instructed by the municipality to implement water recycling systems and artificial water features and fountains may only use recycled water.

“We are urging all resident to retrofit their taps, showerheads and other plumbing equipment with water efficient devices,” asked Douglas.

Greater Knysna residents and visitors are urged to save water wherever they can and refer to the municipal website (www.knysna.gov.za) for water saving tips.

South Africa is considered to be a water scarce country and, if the current rate of water usage continues, demand is likely to exceed supply at some point in the not-too-distant future.

“So it is imperative that all South Africans, not only our communities in Greater Knysna, improve their water conservation and water-use efficiency as a key priority. We, the Knysna Municipality would like to thank those residents and businesses who have heeded our call to save water,” concluded Douglas.

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TRAGEDY AT FISH EAGLE GREEN

What started off as a Christmas celebration for a Sunday school ended up as a heart-wrenching tragedy on Sunday 11 December, when well known and much loved community member Neville Stuurman (41) drowned in the Swartvlei Lagoon.
He and his wife Bettliana were picnicking with other families on Fish Eagle Green on the water’s edge, when Neville went for a swim with the kids. A while later members of the group realised that he had not returned and, when their increasing frantic search turned up nothing, emergency services were called in.
The family’s worst fears were realised when NSRI and Police divers located Neville’s lifeless body and brought it to shore.
His parents, Sedgefield postman Tim Grootboom and wife Sophie, had not been at the picnic and thus received the terrible news by phone call at home.
Neville was born in Swartvlei and lived in Sedgefield his whole life. He worked for T&B log homes for a number of years.
The funeral will take place at 09h00 on Saturday 17 December at the Agape Ministry Church in Smutsville.

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NEW ACTING MUNICIPAL MANAGER A FAMILIAR FACE

During the Knysna Council meeting of 6 December, it was agreed that Johnny Douglas will act as Knysna Acting Municipal Manager from 3 January, 2017.
This appointment was done in accordance with municipal legislation.

Douglas will be the third Acting Municipal Manager appointed since Municipal Manager Grant Easton was suspended at a special council meeting held on August 30, pending disciplinary proceedings against him.
At that time Carl Mattheus was appointed as interim Municipal Manager until such time as Provincial Local Government MEC, Anton Bredell found a suitable candidate. Mattheus resigned from this position on 10 October and was replaced the following day by Bevan Ellman, the director of Corporate Services. Ellman resigned last month to take on a position in the private sector.
Douglas was suggested as the Acting MM candidate by Bredell’s office, and his position was confirmed at the council meeting.
Douglas will be remembered by many for his time as Knysna’s Municipal Manager in the five year period from 2006 to 2011. Under his management Knysna was rated as one of the top Municipalities in the Western Cape.
According to the 2010 Municipal Productive Index (MPI), Knysna Municipality, under Douglas’ watchful eye, was rated as the third top municipality in the Western Cape. His administration further received several Blue and Green drop water accreditations.
Knysna Executive Mayor, Eleanore Bouw-Spies said that she is looking forward to Douglas taking over the reins in January. “Although Mr. Douglas and I did not always see eye-to-eye while I was in office, there is absolutely no doubt that he runs a tight ship. We will be welcoming him into our fold and hope to see several improvements while he is at the helm.”

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THEY’RE JUST TOO GOOD!

by Melanie Baumeister
For the third year in a row the little drama group from Smutsville, Sedgefield has walked away with all the prizes at the Eden Drama Finale. This Saturday, 26 November, at the finals held at Knysna Secondary School, the adjudicators felt that Team Xplosive was so good that it had outgrown the development festival and moved up to the level of professional theatre practitioners. They underlined this by giving the team an ‘upgrade’ into the Zabalaza Main Festival.
Over the weekend the Garden Route was assured of some amazing local talent on display at the Eden Drama Festival Finale in Knysna. The event was hosted by the Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport (DCAS) in collaboration with the Knysna Municipality, the Zabalaza Festival at the Baxter Theatre, Absa KKNK and the Lunchbox Theatre in Plettenberg Bay.
But it seems that despite knowing they would be faced with the top local drama talent, the judges did not expect the levels they saw in Xplosive’s ‘Afsny Punt’. Described as ‘simply being on a different level’ – the Xplosive Team received the prizes for Best Director – Samuel Jumat; Best Actor – Llewellen Bond, Best Actress – Brutney Singrew, and Best Script – Samuel Jumat and Llewellen Bond.
“What awesome stuff – They were brilliant!” said Stuart Palmer of Lunchbox Theatre in Plettenberg Bay, who was one of the judges.
Due to this growth of talent, it was then decided that the production group Cay-Cay, who were initially second, would be the overall winner of this years Eden Drama Festival with their production of ‘Draaiende Wiel’.
The Eden Drama Festival has been on the go for six years, the Cape Winelands is in its fourth year and the Overberg in its second year. The initiative is funded by the local municipalities and no expense is spared to bring the art of drama to our local communities. Starting just over six months before ‘curtain up’, each team builds a script, which is then workshopped, edited and put through stringent production sessions. The actors and directors work consistently, alongside their usual every day lives of school, jobs , family and friends.
Team Xplosive’s piece “Afsny Punt’ centres around ‘Kyle’ (Llewellen Bond) who is locked in a closet with a pile of toys. Whilst taking a slow and calming breath he suddenly hears strange voices talking to him. He responds, but the question is: Who is he talking to?
Project Manager Moeniel Jacobs, of Knysna, said, “Well done to the youth for showing great commitment with this programme over the last six years, showing the hunger and need to better themselves with the arts and through the arts.”
Well done Team Xplosive! We certainly hope to see this award winning play performed in Sedgefield sometime soon!

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FIRE GUTS STORMS RIVERMOUTH TOURISM HOTSPOT

 

On Friday 25 November, just a week or two prior to the start of the peak tourist season, a fire left the Tsitsikamma Cattle Baron Restaurant and the adjoining shop at Storms River Mouth SANParks camp in a smouldering heap of ashes.

The fire, which started on Friday afternoon and spread quickly through the connected timber structures, was fortunately kept to just those buildings, affecting none of the lodges and chalets.

SANParks spokesperson Nandi Mgwadlamba said that whilst the cause of the fire is under investigation it is believed to have broken out in the restaurant kitchen. Furthermore, even though the restaurant and nearby shop have been burned down completely, the rest of the camp is open and safe.

” A chopper was dispatched in time to protect the fire from spreading to the forest area,” she assured the media in an email dispatched at 9am Saturday, “It is currently under control and no injuries have been reported.  Park officials are meeting on site this morning to assess the extent of the damage, insurance teams will be on site tomorrow . The rest of the camp is safe and visitors carry on enjoying their stay in The Park.”

She added that activities such as hiking would still be accessible, and the popular route route to the suspension bridge was expected to be open by noon.

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CELL PHONE TOWER DEEMED ILLEGAL

With mixed reaction from local residents to the cell phone tower which seemingly appeared overnight in Sedgefield’s Cola Beach area, the Knysna Municipality was called to comment on whether or not the correct procedure had been followed and approvals given. Whilst some living in the area were delighted to see the mast go up, believing that it would surely bring improvement to the terrible cellphone reception in that neighbourhood, others felt that the structure was not appropriate, and questioned why no-one living in Cola / Myoli had been given the chance to object.
“This is insane, the middle of a conservancy and residential area!” said one resident.
 
According to the Municipality, permission for the tower had not been granted.  A statement from Acting Municipal Manager Bevan Elman reads as follows.

“The Town Planning Department conducted a site inspection on Thursday, 14 November. Officials found an illegal free standing base telecommunication station. This type of structure is not permitted on a residential property without prior municipal approval.

“As proper procedures were not followed by the property owner, the neighbouring property owners were not consulted prior to the erection of this structure. “A notice informing the owner of this transgression has been drafted and will be sent to the property owner’s postal address. The owner has 30 days to take one of the three actions that are in accordance with Section 87 of the Knysna Municipality By-law on Municipal Land Use Planning (2016), which are as follows:

  • To remove the structure and any other appurtenances related therewith with immediate effect; or
  • To submit an application for the approval, subject to the payment of a contravention levy, of the mast in terms of the By-law within 30 days of the service of the compliance notice and to pay the contravention levy determined in accordance with Council policy within 30 days after approval; or
  • To object to the notice by submitting written representations to the Municipality within 30 days of receipt of the notice.

Furthermore, the property owner has been advised that the submission of an application cannot be construed as a guarantee that the application will be approved.”

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FOURTH IN THE WORLD!

Picture by Terence Vrugtman (@tvrugtman). Team Sanlam Painted Wolf – seconds after a sprint finish climax to over 100 hours of gruelling adventure racing. 

On the morning of Monday 14 November, just before 8am local time, the dark horse Team Sanlam Painted Wolf finished the Adventure Racing World Championships in a phenomenal fourth place, after a nail-biting sprint finish. Not even listed in the world adventure racing rankings, the team – made up of our local lads John and Mark Collins along with Andre Gie and Robyn Kime, showed nerves of steel, strength and stamina bar none, completing the 627km course one minute ahead of fifth place Team Naturex, a French team ranked 6th in the world, in 100 hours 25 minutes.
Speaking to his wife, Christine, once he had recovered enough to call her, John Collins said it had been the most exciting finish he had ever experienced in adventure racing. “And it’s actually thanks to the Aussies that we came fourth!” he told her. Collins explained how earlier in the race the Sanlam Painted Wolves had mistakenly left some stuff behind at a check point – and this resulted in a 30 minute penalty at the final check point before the final 18km run to the end. They had been more or less level with Naturex at the time, and so had to watch this team start the final leg 30 minutes ahead of them.
When they started along the beach they did not think they would ever catch up to the French team, and so were taking it easy, thinking that at least they were secure in 5th place. Then with about 7km to go they realised that an Australian team, Shotz Sport Nutrition, was coming up fast behind them. Suddenly under threat, they had no choice but to increase their running speed as much as their tired bodies would allow, desperate to stay ahead.
This near disaster turned out to be a good thing, because about 2km from the finish they met Naturex – coming 4th at the time – heading down onto the beach! The French team had decided to run part of the last leg on a parallel tar road route, and obviously not reckoned on the South Africans’ surge of speed – the teams were now neck and neck.
Despite having already covered a distance of 625km in just over 100 hours, the race was on! Fortunately for South African fans, the pump of adrenaline took the Sanlam Painted Wolves across the finish line a minute ahead of their French rivals, and fourth place was theirs. And this all thanks to the Aussie pressure from behind!
The winners of the World Championships were team Seagate of New Zealand (ranked No 1) who completed the course in a time of 95 hours and 4 minutes, whilst USA’s Adventure Medical Kits (ranked No 3) came second and Columbia Vidaraid- also of America and ranked No 2 – took third place.
97 teams of the world’s best adventure racing athletes from 20 different countries and every continent competed in this event, including another Garden Route flavoured team Merrell Adventure Addicts, comprising Graham Bird, Tatum Prins, Hanno Smit and Donovan Sims. This team, ranked 5th in the world, were favourites for a top ten position in the World Championships, but were unfortunately plagued with misfortune during the race, including a supply box containing much-needed food going missing before the fourth leg 95 km bike ride, and a broken bike derailleur which simply wasn’t fixable and could only be replaced much later in the race.
Showing their famous never-say-die attitude the Merrell team pushed through, eventually completing the course in 126 hours, 12 minutes and 48 seconds. Despite their misfortune along the route, they finished in a commendable 28th position, with their countrymen from Sanlam Painted Wolf cheering them in.
The 627km course itself was something that ordinarily only super-humans would consider doing. Thick forest, mountainous terrain, rocky shoreline, winding rivers, rapids, claustrophobic caves – basically anything the race conveners could throw at the athletes taking part. The 18 legs included a total of 115km on foot – trekking , running and climbing, 322km of mountain biking, 185km of kayaking and pack-rafting and 5km in a caving section.
Though adventure racing certainly isn’t a spectator sport, there was much excitement as family, fans and friends of the teams kept up with their progress online via satellite tracking, watching the dots move around the relief map, and keeping in contact with Terence Vrugtman – the team’s ‘on the scene’ photographic journalist, as well as other supporters via a very active Whatsapp group.
Huge congratulations to both teams – who certainly have done the whole of South Africa exceptionally proud.

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HUNGRY FOR THE WIN

When you’re enjoying your well deserved coffee, post Saturday morning run, bike ride or paddle, spare a thought for the two South African teams who have been doing all of that non-stop since early Thursday morning. Currently representing us at the World Championships of Adventure Racing, Teams Merrell Adventure Addicts and Sanlam Painted Wolf are likely to finish only sometime on Monday. And that’s at the front end of the field.

Merrell, with a strong paddling pedigree, led the 97 strong field in the first 35km sea leg on cumbersome sit on top kayaks, and they remain in the top 8 chasing down the seemingly invincible Seagate, reigning world champions.

Its been a relentless, very fast paced race so far, as teams navigate themselves around an unmarked 627km route from along the coast, through the caves and across the mountains of Australia’s Shoalhaven region.

Addicted supporters get to follow the dramas of wayward route choices online via a series of dots overlaid on the course map as each team carries a gps tracking device – which tells us where they are but is of no use to them. They carry the maps, a compass and a driving determination to get to the next checkpoint as quickly as possible.

Merrell suffered a setback when their resupply box was not delivered along with everybody else’s, and, as they are not allowed any outside assistance, were forced to continue on for a further 13 hours without their anticipated nutrition. After a full 30 hours of racing they managed to get a proper meal in before heading off on their bikes again. They are planning a 3 hour rest stop at their next stop.

Some teams will continue until exhaustion causes costly mistakes – falling asleep at the wheel, traversing the wrong mountain or forgetting to collect a checkpoint (which would lead to disqualification) but Merrell is known for their strategic planning and often gather strength and surge forward in the later stages of these expeditions.

So spare another thought as you go to bed on Saturday night, and Sunday night, because this team will still be going, making us so proud.

Get addicted on http://live.arworldseries.com/arwc16/
Merrell is Team 6 and Sanlam Painted Wolf is Team 13

Picture by Kirsten Oliver, who is navigating her own way around the course to vantage points with a vehicle generously supplied by Ultimate Car Rentals and capturing some incredible images of the team and surrounds. See them all on the team Facebook: Merrell Adventure Addicts

As usual, Merrell is behind them all the way, with Black Diamond, PVM Nutrition, Ocean Eyewear, Squirt Lube, Island Tribe, ButtaNutt and Llama Bar giving their continued support for this awesome team of good friends: Graham Bird, Hanno Smit, Donovan Sims and Tatum Prins.

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WORLD AR CHAMPS UNDERWAY – WATCH OUT FOR LOCAL TEAMS

Mark and John Collins of Team Sanlam Painted Wolf going steady on the first day. Picture by Terence Vrugtman (@tvrugtman)

The Adventure Racing (AR) World Series championship got underway today (10 November) .  Two SA teams – both with local members – our very own Merrell Adventure Addicts (Tatum Prins, Hanno Smit, Donovan Sims and Graham Bird) who are ranked 5th in the world, and winners of this year’s Expedition Africa, Sanlam Painted Wolf (Robyn Kime, John Collins, Mark Collins and Andre Gie), are amongst 97 teams of the world’s best, coming from 20 different countries and every continent.  

The race started at 3am (SA time) in Jervis Bay, near Ulladulla in the county of Shoalhaven, which is 230km south of Sydney, Australia.

The AR World Series Championship is a grueling nonstop course, that  will see competitors trekking, mountain biking, ocean and river kayaking, pack rafting, navigating and caving for 600 kilometres around the Shoalhaven and surrounds for up to 8 days.

‘Dot watchers’ can keep abreast of their progress by at this link live.arworldseries.com.  At the moment both teams are going exceptionally well and have been in the top 10, but anything can happen in adventure racing – so keep on watching!

According to website arworldseries.com, the top teams from nine AR World Series qualification races this year will be the favourites, bringing race winners to the start line from events which have taken place in Belize, New Zealand, Chile, South Africa, Paraguay, USA, Colombia, Ireland and France.  The European and U.S. national champions are also in the start list, as are the top 7 teams in the AR World Series rankings so there is no doubt this will be one of the most competitive races ever held.

What better place for the a magnificent adventure racing course:- a staggering 70% of Shoalhaven is designated National Park and there are dozens of rivers, lakes and bays, and 109 beautiful beaches, including Jervis Bay, with the whitest beach in the world. Wildlife is abundant, and the huge Morton National Park is renowned for its sandstone cliffs, canyons and forests. Host town Ulladulla is a beach and surf Mecca and nearby Nowra is a renowned climbing destination.

The 600km route was only revealed just before the race start with teams given their maps in ‘Lock Down’ (i.e. without access to phones/internet) and the course will be open for 8 days – which is shorter than previous XPD’s. 

The event is described as “a straight out linear race, no mandatory stops, no dark zones, no optional controls – pure adventure racing at its best!”  This is very much in the XPD ethos of ‘as much an expedition as a race’, giving all the teams time to finish the route and have their own adventure regardless of their position in the rankings. The leaders are expected to take 4.5 days to complete the route, sleeping only for a few hours at the time and place of their choosing.   (As always in adventure racing, tactics, navigation and team work will be as important as endurance and speed in the final outcome.)

The question is who will be the leaders?  It’s a very hard question to answer as there are so many experienced and elite teams in this race and any team getting into the top 20 will have had an exceptional race. Let’s hold thumbs for our local lads and lasses.

 

 

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