About
The FHAC is situated in the heart of the Fish Hoek valley, equidistant from both oceans. The club has a strong family ethos. This is evident in the club’s participation in races, support in club events and the Fish Hoek community as a whole.
While there is a strong involvement in road running, our members also participate in trail, cross country, walking and triathlons. We promote participation in events rather than victory at any cost. However, through this very participation we have developed a number of top performers who have and continue to fly the Fish Hoek flag proudly at provincial and national events.
Racing events are not complete until the Fish Hoek gazebo has been dropped. Our Fish Hoek gazebo is known to be the last structure standing at most events, proudly welcoming in our last competitors.
From humble beginnings . . .
It was in September 1977 that DJ Price, Don Holgate, Paddy Mills and Bert Thompson first met at DJ’s house to found the Fish Hoek Athletic Club.
Four members however were not enough to register a club, and Don Holgate’s children were quickly recruited as members to make up the required numbers.
The next hurdle to overcome was getting together the R50 required for registration. Paddy Mills’ mom of the Avenue Hotel came to the rescue though, and generously sponsored the (then pretty steep) registration costs.
And so the Fish Hoek Athletic Club was born. They really got going in 1978, with regular meetings held in Don Holgate’s garage. A favorite meeting place to run was the Garden of Remembrance at the bottom of KommetjieRoad
Jess Hutchinson, the son of Mavis Hutchinson (known in the late 70’s as the “Galloping Granny”) came up with idea to run a Fun Run (the first Fun Run in the area) in conjunction with the Mardi Gras. This event, then run on the 2nd January, with a start at the back of AP Jones, was to become the South-Easter.
The first president of the Club was John Buck, and this position was ably taken over by DJ Price a number of years ago, upon John’s demise. In October 2007, DJ became the only person to have completed every Voet van Afrika Marathon ever run. This year sees the 33rd year of the race. As a matter of interest, DJ ran his first marathon (Peninsula) in 1965.
The current clubhouse was opened in 1991.
The Club salutes our past Chairmen, who have stood “the test of time” in ensuring the success of the Club:-
A special word of thanks to Kim Jenkinson-Wright for compiling this history.
Promote athletics as a sport with a view to the optimal development of the athletics potential residing within our community
To encourage and provide an opportunity for its members to take part in Walking, Jogging, Running, Cross Country, Road Races and Track & Field events at all levels of performance.
Contribute towards the development and transformation of our Community, through the Development of Athletics from Grassroots to the highest levels of Excellence.
To promote an interest in the opportunities for athletes in the False Bay Area;
Committee - Meet the team
We are the lucky few who get to help shape our members and their families’ 2023/4 experiences around running. All our decisions are in the best interest of club FHAC and we look forward to growing our running community, catering to all levels of runners.
Russell Mackintosh
Chairman
My function as Chairman is to steer the committee in our dealings and decision-making, with the aim of growing the club by catering to the needs of athletes in all the various running disciplines. The intention is to create an environment where our club provides both structure and support in terms of training groups, time trials, races, etc., as well as a friendly social hub for our members and their families. I am still actively participating in both road and trail events, and hope to continue to do so for as long as fitness and health will grant me the pleasure.
Moira Oliver
Club Secretary
Hi everyone, I am Moira Oliver, your club secretary. My role on the committee is to take the minutes of meetings, stand in for the chairman if he is not available and assist in the annual prize giving. I also try and help out wherever I can. I have been running for around 14 years and it is my best thing to do. My favorite distance on the road is the half marathon but I am not averse to the odd Marathon and Ultra as well. My happiest time though is on the trails, clambering over rocks, wading through rivers and dashing down single tracks, smiling all the way
Collette
President
Hi I'm Collette. The President of the Fish Hoek Athletics Club is a purely honorary position, a position which I feel honoured to hold. I joined the club 1987 when our strip was "Old gold jogging shorts & black & white stripped vests". The shorts always seemed to balloon around the rear. At that time we shared premises with the soccer club, until our own Club House was built in what used to be the garages under the hockey club. Personally I have always preferred shorter distance road races and cross-country. In the 35 years that I have been running I have run enumerable 10 km, 15 km and 21 Km races but have only managed to fit in 6 marathons and 1 Two Oceans Ultra.
Adrian Hayes
Club Captain
Hi all, my role as Club Captain is to give direction to the running activities available to our members. This includes communicating with members regarding upcoming races, weekly training runs, the availability of training programs, planning Saturday Club runs, and overseeing the weekly Time Trial. Our aim as a club is to grow our running community by catering for all levels of runners and fitness. I have been a member of FHAC since I was 5 years old and followed in my father's footsteps completing numerous Ultras on the road and trail whilst my favourite distance remains a half marathon.
Shirley Smith
Membership
Hi, everyone, I assist with club membership, licence numbers and club kit. I have been a member of FHAC since 2017. I love both road and trail and have completed one puffer (my all time favourite run) and one Comrades (the longest one). My goals include training for my second Puffer and I have some unfinished business with the Comrades up run.
Andre Blom
Clubhouse Manager
A warm welcome to our FHAC Website. As the Clubhouse Manager, Andre Blom, I am responsible that our great club has a warm, friendly, and safe home where we can launch our club runs from and enjoy the company of fellow like minded runners. For the past 10 years I have enjoyed every km that I have ran on the road or trail, the furthest being a few marathons. I do prefer half-marathon’s and shorter, most importantly I make sure I enjoy every run to its fullest. See you on the road or at our wonderful Clubhouse!
Veronique Rossouw
Communications
Hi, I am Vi and I get to help with our club communications. I am a back of the packer who loves the longer distances on the road. I am at my VERY happiest on the trails and have been known to incorporate jeep and single tracks into my “road runs” My biggest running goal this year is to have as much fun as possible out there whether road or trail.
Anthony Rimbault
Long Course Co-ordinator
I am another one of your long-course coordinators. I thrive on distances ranging from Half to Ultra. My interests span both road and trail running. I serve as a pacesetter for WP in numerous half marathons across Cape Town. Consider me a mid-packer who relishes the scenery on trails and values the camaraderie of running and socializing. Whether it's UTCT 100km, Puffer, or Gun Run, I'm always up for discussing all things running.
Patrick Benade
Short Course Incentive Co-ordinator
I’m looking after the Short Course and cross country portfolios. I really enjoy running a 10km and also getting a bit muddy on a rainy day at cross country. A friend of mine challenged me to run Two Oceans so I’m also training for an ultra in a few months' time. I also enjoy the technical side of training so please chat to me if you’d like to know more about training using your heart rate.
Lambert Greeff
Long Distance Co-ordinator
Howzit guys. I'll be taking on another year as long-distance coordinator. You'll find me running anything from a Fun-run to an Ultra. Road, trail or triathlon I'm just happy to be out there having a lekker time. Going into 2025 I'll be chasing my Comrades back-to-back medal and Puffer permanent number. As a club we'll be focusing on the building up to our big ultra races namely Two Oceans and Comrades marathon. Training runs for both races will be aplenty with emphasis on UCT 30km and Smitswinkel 50km leading up to TOM; and 4 Hills 4 Lindsay 55km and Portrun 12km for Comrades. If you have any questions or are wanting to get involved, please feel free to pop me a message. See you at the next run!
James Gaylard
Trail Co-ordinator
Hi. I currently fill the role of trail-coordinator. Trail is becoming increasingly popular at FHAC - which is not surprising given the wealth of gorgeous mountainside we have right here in our back yard. The club has many very experienced and accomplished trail runners as well as many runners who are new to trail and still learning the ropes. I see it as my role to help connect these two groups and help promote a community around trail running in which we can all learn from and support each other. I've been a FHAC member since 2018. I love all types of running - but my favourite is long trails - leaving behind the noisy complexity of modern life and disappearing for a few hours into a simpler existence somewhere pretty. If you need support surrounding anything related to trail - please reach out. If I cant help, I'll put you in touch with someone who can.
Jacky Clarke
Social Co-ordinator
Hi, I am Jacky! The Social Committee member, I have the best job of making sure we all do more of what we love while building a stronger club community. I can't wait to meet all of our members and bring my years of experience in event organising and love of running together to create a great social experience for all our members.
Andre Strydom
Deputy Chairman
Hi all, Andre here your new Deputy Chairman. I have a keen interest in long distance running, but trail is where my heart is. My favourite race is Puffer and I aim to complete 10 of them. Only 4 to go. I look forward to getting stuck in with the committee and helping it go from strength to strength
Captains Corner
Once Fish Hoek AC reopened our doors towards the end of 2021 (after 18 months of Covid enforced dormancy), amongst our immediate objectives were the re-establishment of two pillars of our club life: Club training runs and the Wednesday evening Time Trial.
After a sluggish start (which was to be expected), we have seen a steady growth in the number of runners attending both Time Trial and the Saturday Club run through the last few years. The kiddies Time Trial that precedes the main Time Trial on a Wednesday evening, has gained traction and is a fun option for the whole family.
There has also been an enthusiastic response to the various training runs that are on offer during the week. Please keep an eye on our Whatsapp groups for details. We post our Saturday long runs in advance on our website calendar. We are blessed with awesome members who volunteer their time to second our runs when they can’t. Here again details are shared on our Whatsapp groups.
In addition, Kyle Bucklow has put together training programs for the 10km, half marathon and marathon distances, and these are available to interested club members on request.
We have additionally recently introduced the Long Course Incentive; regular Trail runs for all paces and a Two Oceans 18-week training programme.
We are seeing more and more of our members participating at races of all distances and terrains. With our membership numbers on the rise, we are confident that Fish Hoek AC will once again become one of the most well-represented clubs in the Western Cape, whether it be on the road, on the trails or at cross country events.
Happy Running!
