FIT AS A FIDDLE

Cas completed his 92nd parkrun on his 96th birthday - so YOU joined him for his next one

- BY MEGHAN LAWRENCE PICTURES: MISHA JORDAAN

HUNDREDS of walkers and runners pour into the area for the weekly parkrun and as they mill about chatting, an elderly man in a pink shirt commands the lion's share of attention.

Everyone seems to know him, everyone wants to greet him. Cries of “Hello, Dr Cas” ring out in the early morning air and he returns the greetings with a cheery smile.

Cas de Lange, a medical doctor, is a familiar face at Bellville’s Jack Muller Park in Cape Town, home to the Bellville Parkrun- one of South Africa's largest events of its kind.

Cas is practically part of the furniture here. He completed his 92nd parkrun the day after he recently turned 96 – an occasion marked by all the other runners singing Happy Birthday to him.

Today will be his 93rd parkrun and YOU is joining him on his 5km walk/run so we can find out more about this fit-as-a-fiddle nonagenarian.

As Cas continues to greet walkers and runners, his regular walking partner, Elfreda Klose, arrives. She's completed 124 parkruns and regularly helps as a volunteer. Walking a step behind her is parkrun organiser Rosanne Goosen, whose pink shirt Cas has borrowed in honour of October being Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Cas and Elfreda make their way to the starting point and stand at the front to hear the announcements.

“Will the guys who run their 5km in 20 minutes come to the front, please?” the announcer calls.

Little by little, the faster runners move forward, and Cas and Elfreda stand quietly and wait. When it’s their turn to head off, Cas moves with determination.

One by one, he passes his fellow walkers, chatting easily, despite the brisk pace.

“Have you seen how beautiful the park is?” he asks, gesturing at the greenery, the playgrounds and a duck walking with her ducklings in tow.

Then he trains his focus back on his walking. He steps to the left to pass walkers in front of him and picks up the pace once again.