On the 21st of May 2022, I participated in the Boitekanelo 15K Race. Located in Tlokweng, Boitekanelo College is an academic institution which offers degrees and diplomas in various health-related fields. As part of their 15 year anniversary celebrations, they organised a Charity Race with Access Bank Botswana as their Gold Sponsor and Botswana’s Minister of Health Dr. Edwin G. Dikoloti as the Chief Runner. There were three distances to choose from – 5km, 10km and 15km. When I signed up, I was confidently looking forward to a solid, and possibly PB-worthy 15K Race. However, the post-race blues after my ultra-trail affected my motivation, meaning I was definitely not race-fit but knew I could handle 15km albeit with some effort.
With a scheduled 6am start, we got up early and I wolfed down a snack bar on the way to Tlokweng. We arrived around 05:40 but with 6˚C temperatures, we sat in our car for as long as we could. Closer to 6am, we made our way from the parking area to the entrance of the college.
Once there, we spotted a few familiar faces – the “usual suspects” – Sonja, Brad, Zurika, Arifa, Polelo and Tapiwa, and a few other friends and colleagues I hadn’t seen in a while. An enthusiastic photographer captured this great photo of us together with Sonja and Brad.
It has to be very cold for me to wear a long-sleeved shirt for a run but a short-sleeved shirt means I have to start running immediately! The race showed no sign of starting at 6am and as time passed, I grew increasingly uncomfortable. I moved my arms and legs vigorously, just to keep warm. Almost 40 minutes later… we were called to the Start. As we huddled in the crowd, I felt excited. Zurika and Arifa were a few rows in front of me and Ditiro moved even closer to the front to get a good start. Tapiwa and I stuck together. Finally, at 06:40 we were off.
The Race
1 – 5 km: The rain the day before meant there were a few muddy puddles to navigate at the start. As predicted, my body warmed up quickly and even in the crisp air I felt happy that I had gone without layers. I was amused by those in big bubble jackets, but hey, we are all different! Our route took us through some residential areas and about 2km in, we ran past a Catholic Church with beautifully stained glass windows. Tapiwa and I ran in rhythm like the old days. We chatted about all things under the sun and when we parted ways around the 5km mark, I reflected on the power of a good conversation to make the kilometres fly by. As I crossed the road, Tapiwa took a right turn with the other 10km runners. Our splits for those first 5km show a clear upward progression: 07:22/ 07:21/ 07:11/ 07:02/ 07:01 (min/km).
6 – 10 km: Now alone, I focused on maintaining a steady pace and being pulled by the race vibe. Up ahead was a couple who had kept the same distance from me the last 2 or 3 kilometres. I took a mental note not to let that gap increase. Around 6.5km, Brad overtook me and we joked that “we are almost done” when in reality we were not even halfway! We continued to explore different residential areas and I was impressed at how much Tlokweng has developed over the years. Although the late start had me worried about how organised the race would be, these worries were laid to rest. There were several water stops with cheerful volunteers offering us water and fruit as well as words of encouragement. Around 8km, my pacer couple abruptly started walking. I pushed ahead, never to see them again. I looked for another target. I ran past a few but others were difficult to catch. My splits: 07:12/ 07:08/ 07:09/ 07:18/ 7:28.
11 – 15 km: I felt okay but my legs were certainly getting heavier. I was grateful the end was in sight and told myself, “Just an easy five.” I was slower than I’d been but I wasn’t alone as other runners also seemed to be losing a bit of steam. As we approached the last main intersection, 10km runners emerged on our right. I ran past most and in the final kilometre pushed even harder but by then my tank was empty. My splits: 7:09/ 07:39/ 07:17/ 07:20/ 07:06.
My 15km PB of 1:38:05 was set on 28 February 2021 under Coach Marcel. My time for this race was 1:51:07. Although the course ran long, my time at the 15K mark was 1:48:33 – a far-cry from my PB but I was content with my run. The late start meant that Ditiro had already left for work and when I called Tapiwa she had also left. But I soon found Zurika, Arifa and Polelo and we took a few celebratory photos in the typical runner’s pose! If you know, you know!
So what did I think of the Race?! As this was an inaugural event, there were certainly some teething problems. Race packs were not ready on the first day of collection and unfortunately this was not announced until some people had already rocked up to pick up their packs (Ditiro included!). The second day of collection was described as disorganised – there were long queues and several race packs were missing key items and many t-shirts were wrongly allocated in terms of size and distance. And I’ve already told you about the 40-minute late start.
All that aside, I, along with many others, LOVED this race for several reasons. The route offered a truly Tlokweng experience allowing us to feel the pulse of this rapidly growing town. The 15K distance is not common even though many people actually consider it to be their favourite distance. There were several water stops, the route was well-marked and the volunteers created a fun vibe. I later learned that a house was donated to a family in Tlokweng in the closing ceremony. Although this event was organised to celebrate Boitekanelo’s 15 Year Anniversary I sincerely hope it becomes an annual event! Let’s sign a petition!
Were you at the Boitekenalo Race? Would you like it to become an annual event? Do you have many 15K races in your area? What do you think of 15K as a race distance?
I’m joining Kooky Runner and Zenaida on their link up, Tuesday Topics. Be sure to read their blogs and catch up with other runners from around the world.
The Gaborone Runner 
I’ve only done one official 15K (The Hot Chocolate in Chicago, with Deborah, last November). It is a fun distance (not quite 10 miles, but a substantial effort is required in terms of training and fuel as well as pace). The racer course sounds intriguing. Too bad about those inaugural hiccups…hopefully those will get remedied if the event continues.
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It is a fun distance! Yes, hopefully the issues are sorted put because aside from that it was such a great experience.
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Despite being slower than your PB, you did your best & you ran a good race! Having it start so late is not usually conducive to a great race.
We don’t have a lot of 15ks, but there are a few. It’s been a really long time since I’ve done one, too, but it is a nice, challenging distance — without being too challenging.
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You definitely get out what you put in! And what I put in was far from PB worthy so I’m very pleased with the result, LOL!
I’m hoping if they do it again, they just set a starting time of 7am. At that time, it’s light out, still cool enough at that time of year and they have ample time to set everything up.
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It’s easy to feel discouraged even when we know we haven’t put in the work, so it’s great that you are pleased with the race.
So many of the races in Summer here start waaaaay too late! Although in Winter later is good (of course here in Winter, or late Spring, not so many races — although more in late Spring).
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Well done, Shathiso! Not a PR, but a great race!
Wow, waiting for 40 minutes in 6°C weather is a tough one! I think I would have been the one running in a bubble jacket, ha!
The only 15Ks I’ve run have been in South Africa. I love that distance!
Around Zurich, we have races with very random distances. On Saturday, I’m running a 14.4k race.
I hope you get that petition signed!
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Haha! That is a very random distance 🤣 I hope you’re not tempted to run an extra 600m after getting your medal to round it off to 15K!
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Congrats on this race. Despite all the obstacles you did your best. As you know racing is not only about finish times.
It seemed like a fun race that you’ll do again.
I have a 15k soon. I like the distance. It’s enough of a challenge.
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It was such a fun experience, I’m really hoping they bring it back! Such a great distance – enough of a challenge as you say, without leaving you shattered!
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Congratulations on a great race!
It sounds like a lot of good reasons for them to make this a repeat event. I’m sure they could work out the kinks next time.
10 miles is my favorite distance, but 15K is a close second. I was thinking how 6 am was an early start for a race — I guess it was too early. 😉
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Looks like it was way too early indeed 🤣 In summer though this is the perfect starting time for us.
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I wish there were more 15k’s, I too like that distance. Your splits are speedy! Congrats on a strong race!
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Looks like most of us around the world are demanding more 15K races!
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Despite a few race hiccups, it sounds like a really fun time. I like a 15K distance and wish we had more of them. Congrats to all of you on. a strong effort
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Thank you! It’s a great distance and I also wish we had more of them!
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15Ks are rare around here, but I agree it’s a great distance. I’ll bet after your ultra you feel like 15K is totally manageable, regardless of training. It sounds like you ran a strong race! And more importantly, it sounds really fun. Congratulations!
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Seems like so many of us love the distance but they are rare everywhere! It was such a fun time and the vibe was really great!
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Well done! I am glad that despite the various hiccups there were, you still had a good race experience. I did chuckle a little at the temperate – it is over 100 degrees (F) today. So did you find out why there was a 40 minute delay?
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Thank you! We were never told why there was a delay so I suspect perhaps they had under-estimated the time needed to get stuff ready for the race!
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So we have an annual 15K, called the Gate River Run. It’s the largest 15K in the USA. It’s a great distance, and it’s a huge race (13,000 this year). This was its 45th year.
I can’t fathom a 40 minute delay for that long of a race. MAYBE with bad weather on a 5K, but no way for 9.3 miles.
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13,000!!! What a huge race!!! It is indeed such a great distance to run!
40 minutes was indeed long but hoping if they do it again they give a later start time which might make it easier to get everything ready on time.
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Well done! That’s a shame about the organisation, but even established races have problems with those issues (I got furious when I bought a Race to the Stones tshirt or sweatshirt, I forget which, and it had 100k on it, when I’d done 50k!). I love the photos, glad you saw some of your friends at the finish. Such an early start!
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So happy I found some friends at the finish and we headed out for a lovely breakfast which added to the fun of the morning!
I never understand why t-shirts often have wrong sizes or distances because it seems an easy thing to calculate once the registration stage has ended!
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