Polly Shortts

This is not a garment to be worn. It is a hill to be run.

It is named after a farmer who lived next to the road, and who would offer aid to those who got stuck on the muddy hill after a thunderstorm. To tens of thousands of long distance runners, it is the dreaded hill to be conquered when running the Comrades Marathon road-running race between Durban and Pietermaritzburg.

This hill comes after 80km of running. From the top it is only 6 more kilometers to the finish – but first there is this 2 kilometer hill.



I ran it this morning – down and up! And discovered that it is 2 300 steps from the bridge at the bottom to where the roads intersect at the top. It is shaped like an S-bend, and fools many people who think that the second bend is the top, only to be sadly disappointed when rounding the bend to see more hill.


This morning’s run brought back many memories of past Comrades runs.

But most of all I am grateful that I can still run.