The Baby Inchanga Hill Marathon, Gran Canaria
Marathon # 518
Maspalomas Dunes Marathon # 82
Date: October 4, 2025
My Time: 6:58:23
By Dr. Barefoot Sidy Diallo
I did most of the distance of my 518th marathon on Baby Inchanga Hill, a lovely but steep promenade in the Meloneras District of Maspalomas, extending from Meloneras Beach to Mar Caspio Street. I did over 50 out and backs on the 340 m (0.2 miles) long promenade, reaching a total ascent of 1047 m (3,435 feet), nearly the same total ascent of the 2025 Comrades Marathon: 1186 m (3,891 feet), hence the name Baby Inchanga in reference to one of the “Big Five Hills” on the Comrades Marathon course.
The Comrades Marathon is a 90 km ultramarathon in South Africa. Participants run from Durban to Pietermaritzburg or vice versa, as the direction of the race switches every year. The “Big Five” are, from Durban to Pietermaritzburg: Cowies Hill, Fields Hill, Botha’s Hill, Inchanga and Polly Shortts.
I describe the Comrades Marathon—“The Great Persistence Hunting in KwaZulu-Natal”—in my book Running Barefoot for Human Survival is available on Amazon in paperback and e-book format (French edition: Courir pieds nus pour sauver les humains).
Maspalomas Dunes Marathon # 82
Date: October 4, 2025
My Time: 6:58:23
By Dr. Barefoot Sidy Diallo
I did most of the distance of my 518th marathon on Baby Inchanga Hill, a lovely but steep promenade in the Meloneras District of Maspalomas, extending from Meloneras Beach to Mar Caspio Street. I did over 50 out and backs on the 340 m (0.2 miles) long promenade, reaching a total ascent of 1047 m (3,435 feet), nearly the same total ascent of the 2025 Comrades Marathon: 1186 m (3,891 feet), hence the name Baby Inchanga in reference to one of the “Big Five Hills” on the Comrades Marathon course.
The Comrades Marathon is a 90 km ultramarathon in South Africa. Participants run from Durban to Pietermaritzburg or vice versa, as the direction of the race switches every year. The “Big Five” are, from Durban to Pietermaritzburg: Cowies Hill, Fields Hill, Botha’s Hill, Inchanga and Polly Shortts.
I describe the Comrades Marathon—“The Great Persistence Hunting in KwaZulu-Natal”—in my book Running Barefoot for Human Survival is available on Amazon in paperback and e-book format (French edition: Courir pieds nus pour sauver les humains).
Dr. Sidy Diallo on his Baby Inchanga Hill Marathon Course
Dr. Sidy Diallo’s Baby Inchanga Hill Marathon (upper image) and 2025 Comrades Marathon (lower image) Garmin Data
Dr. Sidy Diallo did over 50 out and backs on Baby Inchanga Hill to complete his 518th marathon.
Flamboyant flowers hanging above Baby Inchanga Hill in Maspalomas, Gran Canaria
Meloneras Beach in Maspalomas, Gran Canaria