Can you do a K2 overall on the Dusi in under 8 hours? Well, even if the only water you touch is the one in your Scotch, pack your cooler bag, flippers and picnic blanket and head off in the New Year to this KZN institution. The Hansa Powerade Dusi Canoe Marathon is a world-class epic kayak race between Pietermaritzburg and Durban, attracting around 2,000 paddlers and thousands of supporters.

The Dusi is not for sissies and presents a gruelling challenge, best described by the words of founder Ian Player, brother of golfing champion Gary:
"No man who has done the 110 gruelling miles can ever be the same again. The memory of the rapids, the steep hills and torturous paths, the aching backs and dry mouths, the burning sun and cold mist and rain, will forever remain in the mind."
And Gary Player, did you know that steely women also take part in this epic endurance? Laura Thompson, Robyn Kime, Abie Adie, Tory Neal and Lindsay Davis are just a few of the strong pros who paddled their way to top spots in 2007.

The marathon starts deep in the Valley of a Thousand Hills where the Umgeni meets the Umsundusi, a churning mass of whirlpools and boils. It's a great spectator event, flowing with lots of Hansa beer and Powerade to nourish supporters. The atmosphere on the water is charged with camaraderie and competitiveness between elite paddlers - with others content to merely survive and compete with themselves and the river. Or with snake bites: Ian Player won the first marathon in 1951 despite suffering a snake bite along the way while (the first race only saw eight men paddling!) Today the King of the Dusi is a coveted title, long held by Graeme Pope-Ellis who has a mind boggling record of 15 wins to his name.

Need to know? Find out more... Hansa Powerade Dusi
Book your bed at the start
Book your bed at the finishing line