Event Sappi Karkloof

Sappi Karkloof Trail Festival 2025

The Sappi Karkloof Trail Festival will take place at the Absa Karkloof Country Club on 24-25th of May 2025. The event saw a massive surge in competitors in 2024 and is aiming to make 2025 even bigger and better. The event is also SA Marathon Championships, and the club is proud to be hosting this in 2025, 2026 and 2027.

Saturday 24th May will be a day for the Runners with 3 trail running distances, including a brand new intermediate distance to bridge the gap. The day is also one for the Enduro riders with a Full Enduro, E-bike Enduro and an Enduro Lite.

Sunday the 25th May will be a day for the Marathon MTB riders, competing for the prestigious title of SA Marathon Champs, with MTB race distances ranging from 10km for the Fun Ride, right up to 85km for the strongest competitors. For the more fun-loving running crowd there will be a Fun Run.

ROUTE DESCRIPTIONS – TRAIL RUNS

SAT | 21km TRAIL RUN

A challenging timed running race through the Karkloof forests, boulder hopping over the majestic Karkloof river, through a working dairy farms, with fitness-testing climbs to reach some magnificent views not available to the public.

SAT | 15km TRAIL RUN

Our brand new mid-distance timed running race through the Karkloof forests, boulder hopping over the majestic Karkloof river, through a working dairy farms, with some moderate climbs to bring some sense of achievement.

SAT & SUN | 9km TRAIL RUN

A less strenuous timed running race through the Karkloof forests, boulder hopping over the majestic Karkloof river, through a working dairy farm, with some manageable climbing.

ROUTE DESCRIPTIONS – ENDURO

SAT | FULL ENDURO

For the first time in many years the Enduro event is being brought back into the same weekend as the Trails Festival and now offers the Enduro riders all the same riding challenges, but now with the atmosphere. The Full Enduro riders get to put themselves to the test with 5 full enduro stages with technical and challenging routes, to separate the best from the rest. Focus and flow is key.

SAT | E-BIKE ENDURO

With all the same technical routes as the Full Enduro above, but with the added power and low down weight, this class is proving to be a fast growing event.

SAT | ENDURO LITE

An entry into the world of enduro for riders needing a shorter distance with 3 stages to test yourselves on, with B-lines provided for those still grasping the discipline.

ROUTE DESCRIPTIONS – MTB MARATHONS

SUN | 85km MTB

An ultra-tough Marathon Champs timed race for elite riders, speeding through Karkloof forests, testing your fitness up mountains and your technical ability through some of the best flowing singles tracks in the country. Pre-qualified entrants with CSA racing license holders only, E-bikes not permitted.

SUN | 60km MTB

A challenging timed race aimed at riders with good technical ability and good fitness to experience the best the Karkloof has the offer on climbs and flowing technical single tracks.

SUN | 40km MTB

A moderate timed race aimed at fitter riders wanting to test themselves on the slightly longer routes of combined single track and jeep track, with a few good climbs thrown in but less technical single track to keep the flows going with views of the majestic Karkloof Falls along the route.

SUN | 20km MTB

An easier timed race for riders looking to experience the serenity of the Karkloof forests along mostly jeep tracks and some single track without any technical obstacles to worry about, ensuring smiles all round and an enjoyable event with views of the majestic Karkloof Falls along the route.

SUN | 10km MTB Fun Ride

An easy fun ride for Kids and Parents to enjoy through the scenic jeep track roads in the forests of the Karkloof.

EVENT PRICING, TIMES AND BATCHING – RUNNING

SATURDAY 24th MAY 2025 – Registration from 06:00 to 09:30

ENTRIES ARE OPEN ON EASYREG

To enter Saturdays events, click HERE

Time	Event	Early Bird	Normal Entry	Late Entry
07H30	21km RUN	R210	R230	R280
07H45	15km RUN	R190	R210	R260
08H00	9km RUN	R170	R190	R240

EVENT PRICING, TIMES AND BATCHING – MTB ENDURO

SATURDAY 24th MAY 2025 – Registration from 06:00 to 09:30

ENTRIES ARE OPEN ON EASYREG

To enter Saturdays events, click HERE

Time	Event	Early Bird	Normal Entry	Late Entry
10H00	E-BIKE ENDURO	R440	R490	R540
10H00	FULL ENDURO	R440	R490	R540
10H05	LITE ENDURO	R140	R160	R210

EVENT PRICING, TIMES AND BATCHING – MTB MARATHONS

SUNDAY 25th MAY – Registration from 05h30 to 10h00

ENTRIES ARE OPEN ON EASYREG

To enter Sundays events, click HERE

Time	Event	Early Bird	Normal Entry	Late Entry
07H30	85km MTB	R490	R540	R590
08H30	60km MTB	R400	R450	R500
09H15	40km MTB	R300	R350	R400
10H00	20km MTB	R210	R230	R280
10H20	10km MTB	R100	R120	R170
10H30	9km FUN RUN	R150	R170	R220

NOTE: If you are entering SA Marathon Champs, please check the racing categories carefully below to make sure you are entering the correct event. Prizes are specific to events and categories.

“Youth, Sub-Juniors, Sprogs an Nippers categories may compete in their recommended distances under open Batch, as their SA XCM Championships will be held at Karkloof on 4th, 5th and 6th of July 2025”

RACING CATEGORIES – MTB MARATHON CHAMPS

Race	Batch	Category
85km MTB	A	Elite Men
	B	Elite Women
	C	Sub Vet & Vet Men
60km MTB	A	Junior Men
	B	Sub Vet & Vet Women
	C	Master Men
	D	Open Batch
	E	Open Batch
40km MTB	A	Junior Women
	B	Master Woman
	C	Grand Master Men & Woman
	D	Open Batch
	E	Open Batch
	F	Open Batch
20km MTB	A	Open Batch
	B	Open Batch
	C	Open Batch
10km MTB	A	Open Batch

Entry Type	Open	Close
Early Bird	25 March 09:00	08 April 09:00
Normal Entry	08 April 09:01	17 May 09:00
Late Entry	17 May 09:01	21 May 12:00

Late entries will also be available on the day of the event at the Karkloof Country Club and the late entry price will apply.

ROUTE MAPS

The routes are a work in progress as we work with local land owners to ensure the best trail experience the Karkloof has to offer. Once routes are finalized, they will be made available to the public so follow our social media channels closely for more updates.

EVENT NOTES

1

The routes are not currently marked, marking will not be guaranteed to be final until the day of the race and is subject to last minute changes due to harvesting operations.

2

Routes are still being marked and cleared until the day of the event, so caution must be exercised for obstructions/traffic. Abide by all road rules.

3

Should you want to practice the route prior to the event you require a valid members band or day permit from the club to ride the trails. Trespassers on Sappi land running/riding without these permits will be disqualified from the race.

4

Please respect the private farm land owners at all times, they provide us access to their farm land only during the event day. Some portions of the courses cannot be accessed until the day of the event. Riding on private land before the event will be deemed trespassing. Don’t do it, save some for race day.

5

On race day the arrows and bunting will mark the course and you must follow the route marking. The GPX files are only indicative of the route and approximate distance. Course markings on the day of the event take preference. Turn your “off course” notifications off on your electronic device.

6

Cell signal in the Karkloof varies and we cannot accept responsibility for people getting lost using these files. Follow the route markers