At first it was difficult to master the combination of sail and steering wheel – at times you can be steering around a corner, but having to haul in the sail at the same time. Soon, however, I was hurtling up and down the course, gaining more and more confidence on the corners. Because of the really low profile of the kart, it seemed it would be very difficult to tip over. But then it hadn’t been a very windy day. With the notorious Cape South Easter baring its teeth, it may well have been a different story.

According to Mark, Blokarting can be enjoyed by young and old alike with kids as young as six venturing out on his karts. “Blokart sailing is extremely easy to do. You will be up and riding within 10 minutes,” said Mark. “It’s also extremely safe as you are strapped into the kart and cannot fall out.”
The Blokart was first developed in New Zealand 10 years ago and was introduced to SA in 2008 with two blokart sailing tracks operating in Muizenberg and Sedgefield since October 2010. Mark has eight karts for hire in Muizenberg and another four in Sedgefield.

I asked Mark how big Blokarting was in SA and abroad: “The Blokart is available countrywide and internationally through our dealer network. It is becoming very popular, due largely to the fact that it is easy for the whole family to do.” According to Mark, investing in your own Blokart will set you back a cool R19 000, but to enjoy half an hour’s karting on his tracks in Muizenberg or Sedgefield would cost you R100.

Blokarting really does seem to be on a growth curve and is even about to become a competitive sport here in South Africa. The inaugural South African Championships are to be held this month at Sunrise beach in Muizenberg, and worldwide national and international events are happening on a regular basis. On the subject of international events, in February a group of Chileans began their attempt to Blokart across the Atacama Desert. Their progress can be followed by searching for Atacama Blokart Expedition on Facebook.
Blokarting was an amazing experience and next time I’ll take the whole family along! It’s a great idea for any occasion from birthday parties to corporate team building or just for a bit of fun on over the weekend.

Need to know more? You can get hold of Mark Tedder of Blokart at markt@blokart.co.za or call 083 658 8583.

blowkarting

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One has to admit that this winter was a little rough on the waist line. Beers and hot dogs at all the soccer games had to take their toll on us eventually, but there’s no point beating yourself up over it – rather get proactive!

The first thing to take control over is your mind. Knowing that your mind creates your reality and allowing that to govern you will set you in the right direction. I recently went to a motivating event at Vitamin Water’s pop-up store in Parkhurst to get some advice from professionals on how to get into shape again for the bikini season coming up.

Of course they advised on the usual food choices we have all heard before and sometimes choose to ignore – no processed foods, cut out caffeine, replace processed carbohydrates with low-GI carbs, etc – but they also reminded us that the mind is your most powerful tool and asset which can change your perspective on the dreaded “dieting” word – the pros taught us that we should not diet but rather adopt good habits. You can’t be expected to eat healthily and work out every day of your life or you will eventually drive yourself nuts and eat everything in the fridge on a binge. Rather find a balance, eat well 80 percent of the time and 20 percent of the time indulge in the finer things in life you know aren’t great for your health but you love anyway. The same goes for exercise – your body needs recovery days.

Lisa Raleigh, who is well-known locally for her role on eTV’s SA’s Biggest Loser as well as heads up the Lisa Raleigh Weightloss and Wellness Centres nationwide, was the main speaker for the event. She has been imparting her expertise for over 10 years and helps people with stress, health and weight loss. The concept was to run through the average healthy day, focusing on the body and the mind with healthy food options, exercise at regular intervals and mantras and mind exercises to keep the soul happy too.

Our objective is to make our body as balanced and alkaline as possible. Chances are you are currently too acidic. Things like calcium and vegetable juice help alkalinity while processed foods and alcohol make us more acidic.

Starting the day at 6:00am (if that’s when you wake up), Lisa Raleigh recommends you give your body a quick fuel top up with a piece of fruit followed twenty minutes later by your exercise session (otherwise your body will go to your muscles to source fuel – not to your fat!). Use the time between to write in a gratitude journal – visualising the things we want in life can help turn them into reality. Not all of us have the time or energy to rush to the gym for a full sweat session before work, which is why Raleigh recommends a bit of exercise throughout the day to keep the body going. So, 20-30 minutes of exercise with resistance bands and a ball can do the trick for both at home and at the office without making excuses that you are too tired for the gym. Ensure that you have a satisfying healthy breakfast, preferably consisting of protein and low-GI carbohydrates such as oats or bran.

TIP: Do not mix fruit in with other foods or eat fruit as dessert! Fruit should be eaten separately, twenty minutes before other food.

A couple of hours into the work day (around 10:30), take the time away from your laptop for a healthy snack such as some goji berries and nuts or hummus with carrot sticks and a few exercises and stretches. Using your chair or your handy resistance band as tools, you won’t even have to leave your office or break a sweat in your suit. Try a few arm presses using the seat edge of your chair to rest your palms around. Cross one leg over your opposite knee and alternate legs for added difficulty. TIP: Replace your office chair with an exercise ball, your body will be working without you even noticing!

When it comes to lunch time we often grab something on the run – takeaway fast food, canteen food or even worse just an energy bar from the nearest convenience store. Never mind the empty calories of eating these types of food, often they are so processed that there is no actual ‘food’ in them. Raleigh suggests a return to real food that comes from the earth rather than a factory, organic vegetables, free-range or organic eggs and meats, zylitol instead of sweeteners that contain aspartame and also Himalayan Rock Salt to replace regular table salt which is bad for cholesterol, blood pressure and water retention. TIP:  Organisation is key! Prepare a lunch box of attractively prepared leftovers the night before or in the morning before work while you are waiting for the kettle to boil.

Try to eat dinner relatively early, at least two-three hours before bed and preferably before 20:00pm in order to give the body time to digest. Just because food is healthy does not mean it has to be a major effort to prepare or lacking in flavour. Raleigh and her team suggest investing in a good mixer/steamer which can prepare various elements of a dish within a couple of minutes, such as the Thermomix (www.sathermomix.com) to save time and effort.

Stress is a big influence in our lives and also on our eating habits. Take the time out of your busy schedule to appreciate yourself and your health – learn to breathe. It may sound like a miscellaneous suggestion, but many of us don’t realise that we breathe incorrectly. The deeper your breath the more calories you burn! Our lungs are fascinating organs that not only facilitate breathing but also assist to detox the body by expelling toxins. We need to learn to breathe deeply to the pit of the stomach. TIP: use rush hour traffic as time to breathe rather than rant. Take 10 slow, deep breaths. Breathing in through the nose ensuring that on every inhale your belly expands, not just your chest and a big exhale through the mouth releasing your frustration and stress.

For an assessment at one of Lisa Raleigh’s gyms and many more health tips, visit www.lisaraleigh.co.za

British Military Fitness, or BMF as it is referred to by thousands of dedicated followers in the UK and locally, was established in England over 11 years ago by Major Robin Cope, who wanted to use his experience in army training to positively influence British men and women to get out of smelly, oxygen-deprived gyms and into the country’s beautiful parks. Once Cape Town native, Ben Blumenthal, heard about this programme he was quick to see the possibilities for BMF in South Africa. He received training in the UK and returned to start up BMF in Cape Town in 2007. Since then the programme has grown extensively with sessions in a number of parks across Cape Town, and a Johannesburg branch having opened last year. Although currently only running in Johannesburg at the James and Ethel Grey Park in Melrose, the offices are flooded with emails to branch out across Joburg and Pretoria, so expansion is in the works.

The essential element that makes BMF hard work without being tedious is the motivational instructors, who are required to be previously trained in fitness and be friendly and approachable. “A sense of humour goes a long way in BMF, after all if you can’t enjoy training, what are you doing it for?” says MD, Ben Blumenthal. “We are proud to have created an environment where our members look forward to class at the end of a long day – this is where we differ most from a gym, one tries to get in and out of a gym as quickly as possible.”

I can safely say I didn’t want to stick around long after my first session of BMF. Aching muscles and a flush red face were motivation enough to hurry home to shower and flop onto the couch. By some miracle the park where sessions take place in Joburg is a two-minute drive from my house, yet changing gears was still a challenge since my fitness regime fell to the wayside shortly before the festive season (never mind the drive to work the next day!).

To my own surprise I was keen to get back on the proverbial horse for the next session two days later. For a newbie like myself I think it’s pure genius that sessions are spaced out on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays to give beginners a chance to recover. I didn’t think cardio could ever be fun, but BMF has different levels (novice, intermediate, advanced) so you always have the goal of getting to the next level while still being surrounded by fellow comrades of a similar fitness capability so you don’t have to feel like you are keeping anyone back while you are finding your place.

Although the boot camp style of the programme is ideal for people training for marathons, hikes or short-term weight loss goals, many of the attendees use it as their main method of exercise and say that after years of attending classes they still don’t get bored, as classes are never exactly the same. BMF really is for anybody, start out slow and be kind to your body and within a few short weeks you will notice a difference in endurance, the tone of your body and your breathing, says Ben. “I recommend BMF to people who want to feel more in touch with their bodies and minds and who want to enjoy exercise again (when did exercise become a dirty word?).”

Interested in giving BMF a try? Visit www.britmilfit.co.za for more information. Call Ben, 071 292 8615, to find your nearest Cape Town class or Jono, 082 389 5479, for Johannesburg enquiries.

His job was to keep me steady while the pilot got the paraglider airborne and under control. Fortunately, I’d been warned about what would happen next and was jerked violently backwards as the glider got off the ground. “Keep looking at me,” urged the assistant as he tried to steady me against the glider’s pull. “Whatever you do, don’t fall down on the take-off!”

Then came the command, “Run!” I ran as if all the bulls of Pamplona were on my heels, but soon, and surprisingly smoothly, there was nothing left to run on and we were flying!

As the passenger on a tandem paraglide, you start off in a standing position with your harness firmly attached to the pilot behind you. Once airborne, though, you shift back into a comfortable seat-like harness for the rest of the ride. The contrast was incredible: from the hectic frenzy of the take-off to the quiet calm of flying. There’s not much sound up there and at one point we were gliding at the same level as a kestrel hovering in search of prey on the ground below.

I was the guest of Cape Xtreme and Stephan Kruger’s company, Cape Town Tandem Paragliding. We had taken off from Signal Hill and were now flying a few hundred feet above the hill, taking in the most spectacular view of the city and its grand new stadium. Fortunately, I was in the safe hands of Stephan himself who has been flying for five years but, as he puts it, “I am a parajunkie and have done the same amount of flying that most people would do in about 10 years!” Stephan runs a successful paragliding business which, in season, has seen him take up to 11 flights and the company up to 40 in a day.

We spent about half an hour floating around the windward side of Signal Hill. Apparently, going over to the other side of the hill would not be a good idea as the wind rolling over the hill causes a lot of “trashy air” – “bad news” for paragliders – and we would probably crash. I was happy to stay on our side of the hill!

The flight was exhilarating. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone with a fear of heights, but once you have faith in the equipment and can relax, it’s an awesome experience. Ending off my flight, Stephan showed remarkable control of the glider as he steered us to a soft landing on exactly the spot from where we had taken off.

Paragliding is not a cheap sport. A tandem ride will set you back R950. Should the bug bite and you decide to become a pilot yourself, you’d be looking at a basic licence course with a price tag of R7 500. Kitting yourself out with a new glider would cost you R40 000, although second-hand you could get away with as little as R10 000.

Want to go flying? Call these guys:

CapeXtreme Adventure Tours

Tel: (021) 422 4198

Email: info@cape-xtreme.com

web: www.cape-xtreme.com

As it swims towards me, I could swear it’s looking straight at me, before it turns suddenly and makes a lunge for the fishhead bait, opening its jaws and flashing rows of razor sharp teeth. And I don’t think the shark’s mood is improving, as the bait is hauled out of reach every time it gets too close.

Okay, admittedly I was in a cage attached to a sizable boat, but when you get up close and personal with a fish this big and toothy, you start to question just how strong the bars really are. What if this shark’s dad arrives – possibly twice his size? What if a seven-metre monster shows up? How safe is this flimsy cage going to be then? Perhaps I’ve been in for long enough – I’ll give someone else a turn now.

I was the guest of Cape Xtreme and their partners Ecoventures on their boat the Megalodon II. (We were warned not to ask what had happened to Megalodon I!). Robert Cope, our tour leader and shark guru for the day, was extremely helpful and a fount of knowledge about these fantastic beasts. The beast in question? Carcharodon carcharias, commonly know as the Great White, or if you’re trying to play down the terror aspect, just the White shark.

We’d been warned that it was possible we’d see nothing but seagulls and seals, so we prepared ourselves for at best a long wait for the sharks to arrive. No sooner had we dropped anchor though, than a huge shark was already circling the boat, probably wondering how to have us for lunch. Immediately there was a race to see who could get into a wetsuit first and into the cage. It was actually remarkable the complacency with which everyone approached the presence of this massive predator. I couldn’t help but think that the edge of the boat was dangerously close to the water. This fact was no deterrent, however, to the row of hungover backpackers who lined the side of the boat, doing their own chumming into the sea!

There is something surreal about hovering beneath the water in the cage, viewing these awesome creatures passing by in menacing silence. Knowing you are safe but at the same time realising that you are in the shark’s territory, on his turf. There’s an undeniable and visceral fear. According to Rob Cope, the sharks that frequent the cage diving operations are not in hunting mode, which explains their relatively calm demeanour. The smell that has attracted them is that of dead fish and they are scavenging for ocean carrion. But, as any Airjaws fan will tell you, these creatures like to kill in style!

We were fortunate enough to be visited by three sharks on this trip, all with their own specific characters and markings. I commented on a particularly scarred shark and Rob said that the wounds could have been the work of seals. Amazingly, especially when the water is clear, a group of seals will harry the much bigger shark, not unlike smaller birds will harry a larger bird of prey. It is a fantastic thrill and a great privilege to see these majestic fish in their natural environment. Hunted almost to extinction at one point, but now a protected species, the Great White shark rules supreme in its kingdom. Long may it continue to do so.

Interested in a shark cage diving experience? Here’s who to call:

 CapeXtreme Adventure Tours Tel:   02…

 Email: info@cape-xtreme.com

web: www.cape-xtreme.com