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On Saturday 26th August, 43 competitors including 3 Australians were eagerly awaiting the start of our Kokoda 22 Hour Challenge from Owers' Corner to Kokoda:
The race got underway right on 7am to a staggered start straight down the hill from the monument area at Owers' Corner. While we packed up and moved out from Owers' Corner we awaited news from our first checkpoint at Ioribaiwa Village to see who would come up the mountain first.
Photograph: Checkpoint 1 – Rod Ori closley followed by the trek winner Brendan Buka. At this point the Australian Damon Goerke was in first position already heading for Naoro:
100_1049.jpgTo our astonishment at Ioribaiwa an aussie by the name of Damon Goerke was powering past our local boys and pushing hard up to Nauro.
At Nauro Damon clocked in at 11:25am and established a clear lead but hot on his heels at 11:43 came a long list of local boys.
At 13:04 Damon had already reached Checkpoint 3 the village of Menari. Our local boys started clocking in at 13:31 not long thereafter but still they had to catch the guy from OZ….could they…we were asking ourselves ????
When Damon reached the half way point of Efogi, he mentioned later that he could hear the roar of a crowd as he was coming down the hill leading into the village and thought there must have been another competitor ahead of him.
As he made his way into the village itself, he could hear them all cheering for him and even a group of trekkers singing Waltzing Matilda. It was at this point he realised he was in fact in the lead.
When asked about this, he replied his strategy was to count the number of boys who passed him but said at the speed they ran down the hills it was impossible to keep track so he assumed wrongly that he was in fact chasing rather than leading the race.
Damon had reached the half way point in only 8 hours clocking in at 14:56 with the next competitor arriving at Efogi some 20 minutes later. Wayne Urina and Brendan Buka only minutes apart did not give up saying there were out to catch the aussie as a PNG guy had to win this race…..the track record at this pace was sure to be broken.
Damon Goerke from Australian seen here in Kokoda at the completion of the Kokoda 22 Hour Challenge:
IMGP1970.jpgWhat our PNG guys had not realised was that Damon Goerke was now starting to hurt. The climb up to Brigade Hill had taken its toll and every mountain thereafter was to provide a real challenge for him.
After he left Efogi head took a wrong turn and instead of going via Naduri he ended up taking the track to Kagi. When he reached Kagi he soon realised nothing much was happening so asked and was told the other runners would have chosen the Naduri track…..
Meanwhile the two guys Brendan Buka and Wayne Urina had taken the Naduri route and were wondering to themselves why they could not see Damon's head torch….where was he???
At the junction Brendan caught sight of Damon and they linked up and stayed together for the next couple of hours. Brendan was thinking hard…HOW AM I GOING TO LOOSE THIS GUY!!! coz at night he knew he was also acting as a guide to this aussie bloke who had not walked the track before….he had to get away if he was going to win the race.
Group Photograph at Ower's Corner taken shortly before the race commenced at 7am on Saturday 26th August:
Group_Pic.jpgMeanwhile in KOKODA the fever was building as the Kokoda Memorial Hospital grounds starting filling up with friends and relatives all trying to hear who was out in front by two way radio from our checkpoints. When they heard the aussie was in the lead it was not what they wanted to hear…..a PNG guy had to win this race!
Photograph: Our very own KTL Boys – all 18 of them. The eventual winner Brendan Buka who is in the centre of this picture 5th back row from the left:
KTL_Boys.jpgBack on the track Brendan decided the best place to loose him was around Eora Creek but not before he helped him cross the creek by leading the way….what a nice guy….according to Damon this would never happen in competition in Australia. Damon was to comment later on that it almost seemed like Brendan wanted to keep him company in case he got lost.
Heading into Alola village Brendan lost Damon and pushed ahead as his quads were really hurting and turned up at Isurava Village Checkpoint first.
In Kokoda we all waited anxiously to see when Damon would reach Isurava Village when we received the news that Wayne Urina was now in second place. Wayne was now trying to catch Brendan with Damon following in close pursuit….five minutes…..ten minutes….then 45 minutes later we heard the news that Damon had just passed Isurava Village.
Not knowing how he was hurting, we did not know if he had enough left in his tank to run the last 5km and catch up and pass the two KTL boys Brendan and Wayne.
Photograph: commencement of the race … down the first hill from Ower's Corner:
0_1658_5226829_00.jpgAt checkpoint 8 Isurava the following runners had passed by:
22:57 – Brendan Buka
23:40 – Damon
23:45 – Wayne Urina
01:25 – Horace Yauga
03:16 – Cyprian Aire
03:22 – Tom Hango
05:00 – David Duggy
05:15 – John KoroveOur local boy Brendan Buka was clearly in the lead and heading for HOME!
Photograph: Brothers Bryan and Sean O'Hara seen here for the second year to compete in this race. Their grandfather is buried at Bomana and last year their father and mother also accompanied them to PNG:
Bryan_and_Sean_O__Hara.jpgAt Kokoda we were all eagerly awaiting news from the last checkpoint at Hoi Village to see who was to pass by first…..
We then heard the news we were all waiting for….Brendan Buka was heading for the finish line.
The crowd went wild !!! their very own KOKODA BOY was heading for home….
Brendan Buka arrived to a hero's welcome – sirens sounding….wantoks yelling….everyone was just SO HAPPY!!!
Brendan was lifted onto the shoulders of KTL boys waiting to greet him home and was walked into the Rotary Kokoda Hospital Grounds. A blanket was wrapped around his shoulders and he sat reflecting back on his victory.
And what a victory it was….for all of us….can you believe the time:
Owers' to Kokoda – a new world record of 17 hours 49 minutres and 17 seconds.
Well done Brendan from all of us here at KTL:
Photograph: Brendan Buka winner of the Kokoda 22 Hour Challenge 2006. His boss Russell Eroro proudly watches on as Brendan stands with all his trophies which included a cheque for K10,000.00:
Brendon_Buka_prize_giving.jpgThe team event was won by KTL the only company to have five members of their team finish.
Times for all competitors are as follows:
1st – Brendan Buka (KTL) – Time: 17:49:17
2nd – Wayne Urina (KTL) – Time: 18:51:57
3rd – Damon Goerke (Australia) – Time: 19:28:48
4th – Horace Yauga (KTL) – Time: 20:39:51
5th – Cyprian Aire (KTL) – Time: 23:29:30
6th – Tom Hango (KTL) – Time: 24:49:09
7th – John Korove (KTL) – Time: 24:30:30
8th – David (Duggy) Eroro (KTL) – Time: 24:41:27
9th – Nathaniel Isuki (Independent) – Time: 26:08:02
equal 10th – Rod Ori (KTL) – Time: 26:46:32
equal 11th – Andrew Yauga – Time: 26:46:32
12th – Wilson Sevisi (R & P Signs) – Time: 26:46:34
13th – Mathias Kipu (Team Didiman) – Time: 27:06:15
equal 14th – Sean O'Hara (Australia) – Time: 27:24:18
equal 15th – Bryan O'Hara (Australia) – Time: 27:24:18Photograph: Our KTL Team, left to right, Tom Hango, Cyprian Aire, Wayne Urina, Horace Yauga and the overall winner Brendan Buka
Team_Event_2.jpgPhotograph: Tom Hango at the end of his race. What is so remarkable is that Tom was out of the race on Wednesday last week when he went down with Malaria. A needle in the bottom on Thursday; 4 Malaria tablets Friday, another 4 on Saturday….then he went in the 96 km race against our wishes.
At Owers' Corner he made up his mind that he was racing as he said he would let down his aussie trekkers who wanted him to win this race. Tom didnt even have a pair of shoes on his feet so at the last minute Russell Eroro was doing a walk around looking for a pair of shoes he could buy off the feet of any spectator at Owers' Corner.
He found a pair of shoes….paid for them….Tom put them on and 15 minutes later he was lining up at the starting point.
Tom finished in 6th place overall in a time of 24:29:09
IMGP1971.jpgNew Ticket: Congratulations to Brendan and KTL Boys
Gail, Brendan was one of our porters on Trek 185 recently and I was delighted to see that he has won this race and what a time! Could you please pass on my congratulations. I hope that he will remember me.
It was great to see so many KTL boys and that Dugh was also in the top 10. He was also with us in what was a wonderful and memorable experience.
While I have been back at work for a couple of weeks I have not lost any of the enthusiasm for the experience that the group that made up Trek 185 shared ( I include all of the boys that were with us – Arnold, Junior Paul, Taylor, David Klerk Embo, Jerome, Paul (Army), Dugh, Brendan, Andrew, Quiet David, and Alex). They were absolutely fantastic, great company and good fun.
Could you also pass on my thanks to Rusty – the family block was a wonderful place to rest and the family sing-sing tremendous.
This will not be the only time I travel with you and I have been recommending KTL to all who will listen.
Have a great day and thanks again to all at KTL.
Nick
HI Gail – can you pass my congratulations onto Brendan for his amazing win on the weekend. He is a bit of a celebrity over here at the moment. The race has been covered in the TV and newspapers, complete with Brendan's picture! Also, well done to all the other guys too, will you be posting the results on the website, I would love to see how all the other guys went especially Tom. I can't believe that he contracted Malaria just before the race, let alone still ran in it. I know only too well how bad it can be from my shot of it when I got back from PNG.
Cheers
Vicky (Trek 213)Thanks Gail , Hope you are well . Thanks for organising such a well run event. Thanks to Russell and the boys as well . Feeling slightly less stiff and contemplating a return in 07 !!!! Thanks for all your efforts Bryan and I really appreciate the support you give us each time ..Take care and until next time ..
Kind Regards and Thankyou
Sean O'HaraGail, just wanted to thank you, Russel, and everyone else involved for making the race such a great success. It was very well organised and an honour to be able to compete. The warm reception in Kokoda was amazing! It’s going to be very, very difficult for me not to come back next year!
Thanks again for all your efforts. Regards,
Bryan O'HaraBrian & Sean O'Hara seen here at Kokoda on the 27th August, 2006 after successfully completing their trek in 27 hours, 24 minutes and 18 seconds.
PS Sean and Bryan's grandfather is buried at the Bomana War Cemetery. Next year they hope to bring their whole family up to watch them compete, then as a family walk the track.
IMGP1975.jpgSource: Post Courier August 29: G-G praises trekker:
GOVERNOR-GENERAL Grand Chief Sir Paulias Matane has congratulated Brendan Buka who completed the Trekkers's Run along the Kokoda Trail in a record time of 17 hours 49 minutes.
Sir Paulias also congratulated to those participants who took part during the occasion, especially the overseas participants from Australia and Hong Kong as well as the Koiari villages who live along the Kokoda Trail and who provided support and assistance to the participants.
Sir Paulias urged them to continue to provide the same to others who walk along the Kokoda Track in future.
He also thanked the Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Sasa Zibe, who sponsored a team in the event and asked other leaders to do the same in order to promote the country and attract tourists.
Sir Paulias plans to meet Mr Brendan Buka and the others at Government House to personally meet him and thank him on his successful run.
Gail isn't it fantastic that Brendan has done so well, Brendan was my personal porter on my trek 186 his first time along the track, his first pay packet, his first plane ride and everybody drives so fast in Moresby.
You guys do such a great job giving these young men a window of opportunity.
well done to all.
Lindon Reed
Message received from Andrew Rowan – 5th in 2005 race – previously the fastest white guy to walk/run the Kokoda Track/Trail:
wow that is a really fast time , I hope u keep up the race as an annual thing, 17 hours is very fast. did u have any white guys?? I think even the best of them would struggle with that time..
I'm still good, funny to think that It has now been a year since I was in PNG, barely a day goes by when a don't tell a PNG story.
keep in touch andy
P.S maybe one day I will be back ?? 17 hours would be a good time to beat
To read an article on the race written by Damon Goerke, please click on page (2) below left hand side:
Andrew_Rowan.jpg
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