Leighton Koopman|Published
Thomas van Tonder has climbed ropes, broken records and conquered obstacle courses across four continents.
But the South African obstacle course racing (OCR) world champion faces perhaps his most daunting challenge yet: traversing more than 600 monkey bars over the arch of the Bloukrans Bridge in the Tsitsikamma.
Africa’s highest bridge, standing 216 metres above the river below and stretching approximately 280 metres across, will provide the setting for an attempt that Van Tonder admits is the hardest thing he has ever undertaken. And despite months of preparation, he does not know if he can do it.
A year in the works
The Red Bull athlete is scheduled to take on the challenge on Monday, weather permitting, after spending the past year preparing for a feat that will test not only his physical strength, but also his mental resilience.
“The build-up to this project has been really long. It's probably a year in the making, of which the last five to six months have been the most intense training-wise,” Van Tonder said.
“So, it's a bit unreal that we’re here and it’s all happening. We see the livestream equipment going up, and the tents going up, and the rigging going up, and the branding going up. So, it’s almost like you know you’re heading towards this big goal, but it’s out there, and now it’s real.”
Weather is the biggest unknown
With the attempt drawing closer, Van Tonder said his immediate feeling was one of gratitude that everything had gone according to plan so far. He hopes the weather will also play along during their window on Monday. A reserve day, if they encounter stumbling blocks, is set for Tuesday.
However, he has his focus on achieving the feat as quickly as possible. Ideally, the attempt will take between 30 and 40 minutes, leaving him exposed to potentially changing conditions throughout the crossing.
“Currently, I'm feeling more grateful to be healthy, to be here, to be on-site, and that the bridge is going up. There’s so much that can go wrong pre-start even, and currently everything looks good, and we’ll actually have a chance at going at the bridge and chasing the dream that we've built over the last year.
“So, the nerves, although they’re there, they’re not at full blast just yet.
“My concern is not the pre-start weather. My concern mentally is more, once we say go, and I’m halfway on the bars, and the wind picks up, that it kind of railroads my attempt, and it wasn't in my control.
“This part of the world sort of has its own little microclimate and the weather is extremely unpredictable. That’s more what I’m personally worried about, but I guess we can’t control that.”
The idea began with a seemingly simple ambition: to create the world’s longest monkey bars. Finding the right location, however, was another challenge in itself.
Van Tonder said the team initially explored several potential locations for the challenge, with bridges emerging as the most viable option, but all were international. However, they were determined to keep the project on home soil and showcase a distinctly South African setting.
Bloukrans ultimately offered the combination the team was looking for: a local setting with the spectacular backdrop needed to match the scale and ambition of the challenge.
The mental challenge
Yet, for all the physical preparation involved, Van Tonder believes the mental battle could prove just as important.
“If I am mentally not ready, it could be a long day at the office. The mental part is often overlooked. People kind of just look at your physical stats: How many pull-ups can you do? How long can you hang? Yeah, sure, you're ready for the bridge or not,” he said.
“But mentally, this specific challenge has been overwhelming, just the size of it, the scale of it, the exposure of it all. So, it is hard. It's specifically for this project to be mentally in game-day mode. But having done some projects before like the rope climb in Soweto and racing globally, I can get myself in the right mindframe.”
With more than 600 bars standing between him and the other side, Van Tonder knows that strength alone may not be enough. On Monday, if the weather allows, he will find out whether a year of preparation can carry him across one of South Africa's most spectacular settings as he attempts the Red Bull bridge bars challenge.