“A close friend and I had an awesome realisation that we have joined the crazy people that get hooked on the endorphin rush of extreme sports…well extreme in our naive dewy eyes.

We joined the Sisterhood SA group and embarked on our first challenge…a 15km Stand Up Paddle (SUP) to Robben Island and back. About 15 girls trained with SUP champion, Greg Bertish, with the aim to complete the challenge to raise money for the Shark Spotters and Development Through Sport. Leading brand Coreban came on board as sponsors to make this event possible.

And the training begins…we committed to as much SUP time as possible and threw ourselves into the deep end (the choppy, sharky, murky depths of the Atlantic Ocean to be exact) and paddled our little hearts out. We paddled Muizies – Kalk Bay with a huge school of dolphins, under the skillful eye of Coreban’s Tyran from Xpressions on the Beach.

After this a group of four considered ourselves pro’s (oh what a mistake) and hopped on our boards at Muizies. Chop and a swell of about 2ft (haha) crushed our newly inflated egos and tossed us head first into the shore break. Paddles to the left, boards to the right and hysterical laughter (cries from me) as we crawled onto the beach. Damn I thought we were goners, and shark breakfast that day. So we decided a peaceful paddle along Zandvlei would cure the battle wounds. Going there was such a gem – calm and gentle with stunning views of the mountains. Our return, however, was not as relaxed. The wind had picked up twenty-fold and was head on. Achey arms and exhausted bodies encouraged us to pull out all the stops, from creating a little “peloton” paddle pair to dragging our massive eleven ft boards along the thorny, bird poo covered river bank. We made it back after 2 hours. Hilarious….but not at the time.

Anyway all of this put us in great stead for the challenge day which was perfect…minimal swell and wind, glorious day complete with dolphins, curious seals and a little penguin. We set off after dawn, enthusiastic and wide-eyed and paddled solidly for a good 3.5 hours, admiring our gorgeous Seventh Wonder and chatting and laughing along. We were flanked along the way by incredible support lead by our friend Alon… we were treated to a surprise fly-by microlite in support and there were even dishy boys alongside on a yacht braai-ing breakfast! We all high-fived. (cos you have to after a challenge, dah) and patted ourselves on the back for raising 20 grand for our cause.

And now…we are hooked.

There are loads of events coming up and we are superrrrrrr keeeeeeeen! If you want to get involved check out Ocean Love, Xpressions on the Beach and SUP Cape Town on Facebook.

You will love it…

Thank you to all the Sisterhood girls, Greg and Coreban, Tyran, Justin, Karina Figl, all the supporters on the day and behind the scenes and a huge and very special thanks to Kirsty who made this all happen.”

These “ordinary girls achieving extra-ordinary things” have come together with SA champ Greg Bertish to turn this dream into reality. Proudly sponsored by leading SUP brand Coreban, the Sisterhood Girls have been introduced to the sport, have been given a specially designed training program and have been mentored by the Coreban Team in preparation for the event… in just 6 weeks!!

If you would like to support our cause or find out more please email Kirsty on kirstykirst@gmail.com

As we drove to the start, the sun set before us with a fiery explosion…..

This was never going to be an ordinary night….

Start: Slangkop Lighthouse, Kommetjie, 10pm!

In a last minute flurry we decorated Alon’s minibus support car with signs, flashing fairy lights, wired up bras and lots of bright pink ribbon bows. We organised our supplies, pulled tight our laces, threw our T-shirts in a heap, plumped up our racy bras and hit the road at pace. There was no time for wasting and it was now our turn to light up the road!

What a stir we caused right from the start! Kommetjie locals hearing our festive tunes and tempted with our flashy bobbing hips ran out there homes to find out what these crazy girls were doing. We sped past the informal settlement and opened stride as street lights disappeared and the road opened wide. Our first biggest fans were a couple of teenage boys… having snuck out the house to go to a party, they were now trying to walk the 5km home before their parents discovered them. They looked a little nervous taking us un to start but as our tunes became cooler soon they were leading us along the streets of Noordhoek laughing “our friends are never gonna believe we walked with girls in there bra’s..”

Next was the most majestic traverse of Chapmans Peak. It was amazing how easy it was to walk when you are inspired by beautiful friends around you and distracted by the liquid ink ocean rolling in its own rhythm. After a fun photo shoot by the fabulous Trevor Wilkins and his equally Super Sidekick Sally where we dared all to bare all!! we were soon heading for the half way mark! 21km down and all firing strong…..

The next half was a less simple adventure. By now legs began to ache and we started to compare the tweaks and the rubs. A little more attention to chocolate and a head down approach was what got us to the top of the “next big thing”: Suikerbossie. Coming down the other side was not much easier either! But from now on we started to be joined by fresh feet and faces! Girls not available to walk from the start started to step in line bringing with them so much energy and support that our mere aches and pains were shelved at the sight.

On and on we went…. with brains in our heads and feet in our shoes, we could steer ourselves in any direction we’d choose! Oh, the places we did go! ….. Llundudno, Clifton and on to Sea Point…. until you heard the “Whoops” : we had seen Moullie Point!

Like racehorses steered towards their stable, up went the pace! Up went the tunes and there was wild flashing of film! Last corner and we had done it! Woohoo!

Finish point: Moullie Point Lighthouse 43 km later! 6:30am   

Then to Vida to celebrate!

Not possible without….. the support crew, coach Marty in his signature fishnets, the enthusiastic photographers Trevor and Sally, those that came to show support, the smell of the sponsored Vida coffee at the end! THANK YOU!

But why??? you ask, are you girls marching a marathon in little but flashy bras??….. The 15 strong Sisterhood crew were inspired to raise money and awareness for an excellent breast cancer related charity programme. PROJECT FLAMINGO helps provide mastectomies to women who have aggressive breast cancer and who’s lives depend on timeous operations. Sadly they could have to wait up to 3 months for a procedure the rest of us would book in to have the following day. This project works with the excellent oncology clinic at Groote Schuur to provide extra surgeries after hours and on weekends to shorten the waiting list and literally save lives. The Sisterhood raised enough money in this challenge for 6 ladies to have their surgeries in the first week of January 2013. We wish them the best or their recovery.

x

After the boys boxed and certainly caught the attention of the crowds, it was time for the girls to show them how it was done. Sister Barlodien and Kate fought with everything they had and danced like butterflies while they stung like bees.

The next entertainment I think is safe to say was not missed by a single pair of eyes at the party… our very own Sisters Danni, Clare, Gabby and Jules in nothing but itsy-bitsy-teeny-weeny outfits oil wrestled each other to the delight of many a man and probably lady too.

Misbehaving guests and enthusiastic experimenters made sure the girls in charge of the naughty corner rack had many an eye to blindfold, hand to bind and bottom to spank. Tequila spanker shots were a plently, ropes were climbed to the ceiling and the ring became a wild dance floor in the mayhem.

And besides all the fun that was had, we also raised awareness for our upcoming Moonlight Marathon walk and enough money to provide a two mastectomies to ladies diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer and on a long waiting list for their life saving surgery.

November 2012

Photo’s by KRISTIE AGIER PHOTOGRAPHY

As a pre Cowes week warm up party Broadway House private members club hosted one of the Sisterhoods notorious fundraising parties.  200 pirates danced the night away to Europes top female DJ DJ Lora all in aid of The Royal Marsden Cancer Campaign

Weekly stand up paddle boarding sessions have started  on the Thames thanks to Active360 next stop the Atlantic

www.active360.com

This is proof that dreams do come true!

In June 2012, 19 of South Africa’s finest Sisters and Coach Marty made history by paddling a dragon boat to Robben Island and back… The 27km round trip off the world’s finest coast to its most sentimental island was an incredible journey of friendship, perseverance and success.

It was a symbolic adventure on so many levels…. This was the first big adventure the SA Sisters had committed to do…it had never been done before…. it mimicked the Channel Crossing that was Sisterhood UK’s founding adventure….. and for me personally having returned from nearly a decade in the UK the “Freedom Crossing” represented my pride in being South African.

Just one year before the idea was propositioned to Coach Marty over pink champagne and under batting eyelashes.  We will never know if it was the feminine adoring charms or the concept of the epic adventure that had him weak at the knees but he said yes immediately.

Over the months that followed the intricate details were planned, Dragon boats borrowed, consent obtained and extensive training was underway. It is amazing what group of enthusiastic  girls can get done and how many rules can be bent… With the help of the WCDBA we obtained permission from Steven Bentley and Port Control to leave the magnificent V&A harbour and were allowed to cross the international shipping lane… we had support from the NSRI and SAPS Diving Unit and were granted permission to enter the prohibited waters and enter Robben Island’s Murray harbour in style. Sponsors Glider Eyewear and Investec Asset Management came on board with gusto and we were set!

The Cape is renowned for its great shark community, unpredictable conditions and wild freezing waters. All our standby days in November were met with angry ocean conditions and wild winds. We had to postpone until after the dreaded South Easters to the following May where again we were humbled by the weather. One attempt had us surrounded by mist so thick that visibility was reported at less than 1meter… not ideal when you are crossing the direct line of many a container ship. Then luck struck! On the very final day we had set aside we woke to the most perfect dawn. Swell was just 1.7m, a gentle breeze kept the mist at bay and we were ready to make history!

Flanked by Alon and Morgan in their support boats with rocking tunes, snapped at by Ryan – Soft Focus Media and cheerled by appropritately skimpy dressed support sisters we set off for our dream.

In an auspicious exit from the V&A we were met by the first of our 2 magnificent whale sightings. The ocean seemed alive in its support of us, birds circled, seals rolled over playfully, penguins frolicked.. and that was just on the surface.

Within no time we were whooping our arrival to Robben Island and after a brief rest focussing on eating and re-hydrating and obviously embracing the opportunity for a photo shoot we headed back to our Mother City.

Champagne spray, news teams, photographers, ecstatic friends and hundreds of confused tourists witnessed our return to blasting “We are the Champions”. Massive blisters wern’t noticed, strained muscles didn’t feature and we felt high on our success!

From there it was straight to the bar where pink champagne toasts brought the dream full circle.

Kirsty Williams

see more pics here: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.461959050500710.120918.394127557283860&type=3

The challenge was raised at our Christmas dinner and we jumped at the idea… We were challenged to hold our breaths for 3minutes and also to freedive to 25m. R10000 was bet against us by a skeptical friend, tequila sealed the wager and the party continued. A few short months later we took to the water to raise these funds for our charity and push every boundary imaginable.

Yes… of course we did it… but what we learnt along the way was far more special than we could ever have imagined.

Read more under Missions….

We are thrilled to announce Investec Asset Management have chosen to support The Sisterhood SA. They have given generously to our charity and of their time… and will don us in hot pink Investec Jackets for our challenge to Robben Island.. you won’t miss us!

” Our philosophy as a business has always been to be out of the ordinary. As a group of ‘ordinary girls doing extraordinary things’, the Sisterhood shares this philosophy. Investec Asset Management is proud to sponsor them both in their physical challenges and in their quest to raise funds to help the most vulnerable members of our society through Malamulele Onwards.”