B2B4Bob

THE CHALLENGE

On the 30th November at 11 am, I set off on an epic trail running adventure and personal challenge. I ran a well-known trail running route along the Table Mountain chain - TWICE. This was not a timed effort (to attain a “double” 1 day badge under 48 hours), it was just about completing the B2B challenge in one go. The 212 km route involved tagging 26 peaks and had a cumulative vert of 13 000 m.

The run took me 71 hours, 16 minutes.

I want to make this extreme physical and personal effort count for something important to me, so I am raising funds for my “totem animal” - the turtle - and for one individual in particular: Bob.

BOB THE TURTLE IS A PLASTIC INGESTION SURVIVOR! (There are many like him out there, who are not so lucky.)

Bob is an endangered green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) and is one of the Two Oceans Aquarium Education Foundation's (TOAEF) long-term patients. Bob came to Two Oceans Aquarium in 2014 weighing just 16kg. He was suffering from plastic ingestion and plastron fractures that led to encephalitis. He was in a very poor condition, but the rehabilitation team has been able to get him back to good health. 

Despite Bobs’ health recovering, he was left with mid-brain damage resulting in some of his natural behaviours and patterns being compromised. Almost seven years later, the team has started Bob on an intense enrichment programme so that he can be released into his natural habitat. The enrichment programme has shown promising results in Bob's rehabilitation and recovery process.

I am raising R70k towards the state-of-the-art tagging device, which will be a vital element in Bob's eventual release into his big, blue ocean home.

Bob is an incredible ambassador around the crisis of ocean plastic - an issue very close to my heart.