The Essence
of Wildrun
Who we are
The heartbeat of the Wildrun® is exploring & experiencing truly wild places on the run. Be it on the Wild Coast of South Africa, the remote mountains of Lesotho, the geologically & botanically rich Richtersveld desert or the bushveld of Mapungubwe, each Wildrun® is unique and will be sure to leave an indelible impression on your life.
No markers. No massive crowds. Just you, your sense of adventure and a truly wild place. Be prepared to experience a run like no other.
The Story of
Wildrun(ner)
What we're about
Three or more days of wilderness trail running through some of the most rugged and beautiful scenery in Southern Africa. This is the backbone of a Wildrun®.
The Wildrun® is organised by Wildrunner, premier trail running event organisers in South Africa. We focus on pure trail running with a heartbeat born from a lifetime's passion of exploring wild places on the run.
Wildrunner was established in November 2007 and has held over 200 trail running events in seven South African provinces, as well as Internationally in Lesotho, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Botswana.
With this comes a wealth of trail and mountain running event management experience that is unmatched in Africa.
The Wildrun
Management Team
Who runs the world
Owen Middleton
Founder & Managing Director
Trail running, sailing, mountaineering, adventure racing, orienteering, surfing, paddling, kloofing, rock climbing, fly fishing, scuba diving & mountain biking are the life-blood of what makes Owen tick.
Tamaryn Middleton
General Manager
The Real Boss. She is the backbone of Wildrunner and will put a smile on your face any time of the day. Her passion is people, with a healthy dose of scuba diving, trail running and general adventure-seeking thrown in!
Marion Siebrits
Chief of the 100 acre wood (and damn good at catering to!)
Marion's ability to cook up a feast in the middle of nowhere is a gift. She is never short on laughter or practical jokes, but when it comes to delivery always the consummate professional, and when you taste her food you will no doubt agree!
Jason Sharrock
Hospitality & logistics
When not organising events Jason can be found smashing the waves on his surfboard or cruising the cattle trails on his Momsen mountain bike. From entertaining guests to making a plan with broken trailers, Jason is the wild asset working tirelessly behind the scenes to keep operations moving ahead smoothly.
Wildrun
Testimonials
What people are saying
"I looked forward to the Wildrun for months but nothing could’ve prepared me for how awesome it actually was. It was without question the best sporting ‘holiday’ I’ve ever had."
Kevin Welman
WIldcoast WIldrun® 2013
It's hard to really pinpoint what the very best thing about the Richtersveld Wildrun™ was for me. One would think the amazing, breathtaking rough beauty of the area would win hands-down… but on second thoughts, I think the warmth of the hosts and the people of the area, and the camaraderie of the fellow runners might just have snuck in and taken first place in my heart."
Melanie Nijland
Richtersveld Wildrun® 2014
"Your organisation of the event was out of the top-drawer and the Richtersveld will surely become a race of choice among international adventure seekers, and some international elites. Your formula is a great one and the personal and family touches rounded off the perfect way to spend five days."
Stephen Granger
The Namibia Crossing 2016
Just a note to thank you guys for yet another wonderful event and a truly great and memorable experience. The organisation as always was superb. The routes are excellent and just all round fantastic. Also thanks for accommodating Sharon at such a late stage, she really had a wonderful time and will have many a fond memory of the three days. You people work hard and with passion, so you deserve every bit of success you receive.
Roland van der Merwe
Lesotho Wildrun 2012
"It is an experience of a life time. So well organised and you meet people from all over the world and you get to see apart of the world that not everyone gets to see and appreciate. You leave there feeling part of a second family."
Diana Tanner
The Namibia Crossing 2016
Thanks for a great event – I loved it. I thought your organisation was outstanding.
Peter Hathorn
Wildcoast Wildrun® 2012
We had no expectations of the run, the event or the people we would meet, other than a raw excitement for a new adventure. But what we experienced was something so much more. From an extremely efficient and well organised race, the insanely friendly and helpful team who always had time to encourage, chat or help us to the other competitors who were all just a fantastic and friendly bunch of people. We loved every minute!
Janine Mazery
Wildcoast Wildrun® 2015
The event is in a superbly stunning unique environment.. complemented by an abundance of expert education by those who know the land, its history and its ecosystems so well. As Stephen (Granger) put so well .. the visual, physical and educational elements instill the understanding of how privileged we are to experience those areas. The people!!! You can't help but build close relationships with the people who share your passions for the envirnment, running, hiking and the overall experience of multiday events. Owen and Tamaryn and their team of hardworking crew have EVERYTHING covered, our safety, comfort, delicious hot meals, entertainment and overall experience were meticulously planned and catered for, nothing was too much trouble. Absolute value for money, compared to similar styled international events, Wildrun® excel at delivering a first class experience at a very reasonable cost.
Jaci Richards
The Namibia Crossing 2016
"A heartfelt thank-you for a truly magnificent seven days in the Ai-Ais Richtersveld National Park. What a special experience it was to run through such a uniquely exquisite part of our beautiful Africa, and made all the more so by being in the unbelievably capable hands of the Wildrunner team. Everyone on the event marvelled at how slick your operation is – quite honestly, I don’t know how you do it! I can only imagine the degree and depth of forward- and on-the-ground planning that has to go into not only creating a wilderness baby like the Richtersveld Transfrontier Wildrun®, but making it happen so smoothly and in such a fun atmosphere that it all looks so simple, so stress-free. That’s definitely an art, and you guys have mastered it! I can say without hesitation that the RTW was the best organised race I’ve ever done. And at risk of sounding corny, I loved every minute."
Linda Doke
Richtersveld Wildrun® 2016
'Now that I’ve had a weekend to relflect I just wanted to thank you, Owen and the whole team (cleaners, tent setter-uppers, donkey-boiler heaters, drivers, checkpoint teams, National Park staff, cooks, rubbish collectors etc etc) - so much work by so many people to allow a privileged few of us to experience a really wild place.
The running went better than I had thought it would and I’m sad it’s over. I went for a long mountain hike at the weekend (amazing how bodies can recover).
Wildrunner is a fantastic outfit.'
John Bernstein
The Namibia Crossing 2019