New shoes

The last week has been relatively uneventful really. I guess that I am marking time until the big show which is less than two weeks away. Yesterday morning I finished my latest set of nightshifts which present a challenge of their own. Nightshifts are generally between 10pm and 6pm and consist of seven consecutive shifts. The work itself is not any less or more difficult, it is more the change in sleeping patterns and can be likened to being continually jet-lagged. Before this round of nightshifts I worked seven days with a mixture of morning and afternoon shifts, had one day off and started my seven nightshifts at 10pm the next night (which is considered to be a day off). As of yesterday that means that I had worked 14 of the last 15 days. Luckily I am in the taper phase of my training and now I have 5 days off.

Last week I had three rest days to help with recovery. Monday was my first rest day and on Tuesday I ran a flattish 18km. I had another rest day on Wednesday which was unplanned. My in-laws arrived on Wednesday so I decided to hang out with them instead. I had only planned on an easy 10km run and was happy to have the extra rest. Thursday was a repeat of Tuesday's run but I was over 2 minutes quicker despite the course being 200m longer. I had Friday as my third rest day and decided to do one of my night shift fatigue runs on Saturday.

On Saturday morning I managed to get away from work at 5:30am after an early start the night before. Thanks to course maestro Michael, I knew the course the Rocky Road Runners were taking and because they started on the other side of town at 5:30am I was able to run and meet them after about 4km. I have run a few times after nightshift and am well aware of the mental challenge of running after working all night. That still doesn't make it any easier to prepare for. I had gotten up from my day's sleep at about 3pm on Friday and was still a bit tired from my restless sleep. So by the time I laced up my shoes and headed out the door I had been awake for close to 15 hours. I was very tired, my legs were sore from a busyish shift and all I could think about was going to sleep. If I had not made the commitment to run I might have gone straight home to sleep. I ran on figuring that this would be good mental training for when I am struggling in the early hours during the Glasshouse 100.

Maybe it was something I had eaten or a combination of other factors but I had an upset stomach and just felt like rubbish for the entire run. Thankfully there was a large group present for the run and I was able to chat away to help keep my mind off how tired I felt. My legs were also very heavy and I was wondering if that was because of the new Skins tights and calf-guards that I was wearing or because I was tired. I persisted on with the run and began to consider how far I should go. Initially I had planned on running 25-30km. As we ran on the group became smaller as time wore on and as we moved closer to Mt Archer. The plan for the latter part of the run was to head up to the saddle as we had done on previous Saturday long runs. I decided against going up to the saddle this time. I ran home and logged 24km in just over 2hrs 04mins. If I had gone up to the saddle I would have ended up with around 35km. This would not have helped me in my taper and would have done more damage than good, not only because I was tired but due to the higher than normal humidity which was in the 80 - 90% range.

Sunday's run was quite exciting as I got to run in my new shoes. My new Hoka One One Bondi B shoes had arrived and after walking around the house for a couple of days I was ready to take them out on their maiden voyage. I wanted to run in them on the Saturday long run but thought it more prudent to save it for the shorter Sunday run. Hoka One One are a brand of shoe invented by a couple of European Ultra runners and are a stark contrast to the current trend towards minimalst shoes on the market.

On first appearance they look clumsy and chunky which put many people off. The shoes feature an EVA rubber that is 2.5 times bigger and 30% softer than traditional running shoes and works to absorb up to 80% of the impact that occurs whilst running, thereby reducing muscle fatigue and damage, which is very important when running long. As I have only run in them once I am not going to put up a full review until I have had a chance to really break them in. I ran with the group on Sunday and put the shoes through their paces. Immediately I noticed how spongy and bouncy the shoes felt. Throughout the run I varied the terrain and my pace (including a sub 4min kilometre and running downhill on the road at sub 3min/km pace). The shoes were faultless, I ran on wet grass, wet roads, some dirt track, uphill and downhill without any issues. Afterwards my legs felt great with no tightness or tiredness. I was so impressed with them that I will run in them for all of my runs prior to Glasshouse and will consider using them for some if not all of the race.

Weekly totals:

Monday - Rest day
Tuesday - 18.05km - 1hr 30mins 55secs - flat to undulating
Wednesday - Rest day
Thursday - 18.25km - 1hr 28mins 41secs - flat to undulating
Friday - Rest day
Saturday - 24.05km - 2hrs 04mins 18secs - long run with group
Sunday - 12.15km - 57mins 15secs - run with group

Totals - 72.50km - 6hrs 01mins 11secs

With only 10 sleeps to go I am starting to get excited and nervous about the race. I followed the Ultra Trail Du Mt Blanc race on-line over the weekend which added fuel to my fire but as I get closer to race-day the enormity and reality of this challenge hits home. Bring it on. Stay tuned for my next blog post on Sunday and...

Keep running.

3 weeks to go

This time in three weeks I should be suitably tired. On Saturday I ran my last long run and now progress to the taper part of my training. I will use these three weeks to freshen up and finish the mental and physical preparations for my first 100 mile trail race. To do this I will reduce the overall volume of my training runs and add in extra rest days to allow my body (and mind) to recover from the rigours of training that I have subjected myself to for the last couple of months.

After last week's battle with fatigue I knew that I was walking along a razors edge. On one hand I wanted to get one final decent week of training completed before the taper, otherwise my last week of hard training would end up being 6 weeks prior to race day and would be less beneficial than if it was at 3 weeks to go. But, on the other hand I knew that with 6 big weeks of continuous accumulated training, if I pushed too hard I risked burn-out or injury.

I started the week with an easy 10km recovery type run on the Monday with some undulations. My body had recovered quite well and I was not too sore or tired. I was a little unsure if I should continue my Tuesday hill session routine and run up Mt Archer, especially as the head cold I had picked up on Saturday was starting to get quite bad. Funnily enough running is one of the activities that makes me feel better. So I did what any Ultra runner would do, I ran up Mt Archer again. I started at about 10:00am and it was a very pleasant 24 degrees or so with a slight breeze. It took me about 7.5km to reach the Pilbeam Drive turn off which marks the start of the main 5km climb. I made a time check and ran up concentrating on staying relaxed and not breathing too deeply to prevent a coughing fit. Well, I managed to keep all of my kilometre splits below 6min 45 and made it to the end time check in 32mins 48secs which is a new record for me. Wednesday was another easy 10km followed by a 26km flattish run on Thursday. Friday was another day off with my last long run scheduled for Saturday.

It was very difficult to motivate myself for Saturday's run. I had gotten up at 4:45am for work, finished my early shift at 2pm and when I got home I made the mistake of lying down on the bed while I talked to Mel about her day. I thought about having the day off training as the prospect of running by myself for four hours after work was not very attractive. BUT, I needed to prove to myself that I was committed to the miler and thought that running on tired legs and when mentally exhausted would be good preparation. I'm glad I laced up the Kayano's and got my butt out the door because I ended up having a pretty good run. I made up my Hammer perpetuem drink and a hand-held of water and strode out the front door. I was also wearing my new pair of Skins A400 running half-tights and calf guards.

The first 8km were not easy and I seriously considered calling it quits a few times. My legs were very heavy and tired, my mind was tired and I was dealing with a few niggles. But running long is not about giving in when it gets tough, it is about persevering and challenging yourself to keep going even when your mind and body are trying to trick you into stopping. By about 8km though I had settled into a comfortable rhythm and began to really enjoy myself. I was really proud of myself for firstly getting out the door and secondly for not giving up. The course was mainly flat with a few smallish hills and undulations to break it up a little. The perpetuem worked a charm yet again and not a hint of stomach upset. I ended up running 45.05km in 3hrs 49mins 19secs. That works out to be an average pace of 5:05mins/km and had me go through the marathon point in 3hs 34mins which is quicker than I anticipated and much much quicker than my goal GH100 pace.

After another early shift at work and a 30min power nap I ran with Geoff on Sunday for a 12.8km recovery run that ended up being pretty quick. I ran with the Skins tights and calf-guards again (yes they were washed in-between runs) to determine if I like them. The idea of running with compression clothing is to reduce muscle fatigue and damage which over the course of 160km is pretty important. I will write up a proper review after I have logged more hours in them but at this point I have had no real issues with the Skins and am looking at wearing them on the 10th September.

After last week's amended easy week I am pleased that I was able to log just under 130km for my last medium to big week before the taper. It means that my last six weeks have consisted of:

142.60km (45km long run)
151.84km (51.3km Flinders Tour race)
102.08km (45km long run)
175.80km (68.25km long run)
101.20km (30km long run)
129.06km (45km long run)

This is the largest and most consistent six week period of running I have ever done and has given me a total of 803.30km.

Weekly totals

Monday - 10.06km - 51mins 45secs - flat easy run with undulations
Tuesday - 25.05km - 2hrs 09mins 37secs - hill run including Mt Archer
Wednesday - 10.05km - 51mins 38secs - same as Monday
Thursday - 26.05km - 2hrs 13mins 57secs - flattish including RRR group run
Friday - Rest day
Saturday - 45.05km - 3hrs 49mins 19secs - long run solo around Rocky
Sunday - 12.80km - 1hr 03mins 46secs - Sunday group with Geoff

Totals - 129.06km - 11hrs 00mins 03secs

Now that all the hard work is behind me, I can rest more and start working on my mental preparation. I start night shift on Tuesday night which will throw my body clock out a bit, but thankfully it will not be as significant as if I was attempting big mileage this week. Also my in-laws are arriving on Wednesday so I am very excited about that and with reduced mileage it means that I get to hang out more with them, Mel and the kids.

I am getting really excited about the race and with 75 people currently listed as entrants in the 100 mile race alone there will be lots of people to run with and learn from. I'm looking forward to catching up with some of the Ultra runners I have met at previous races (and on-line) and am looking forward to meeting a few more.

I'm also very excited to mention that tomorrow marks the start of Andy Bowen's 33 Marathons adventure which will see him run 1,400km's in 16 days as he plays a round of golf on the Nullarbor Links golf course to raise money for charity. So please visit his web page (www.33marathons.com) or visit the 33 Marathons Facebook page and send him a message of support and donate to one of his very worthy charities. All the best Andy, run strong and I look forward to reading the updates of your very inspiring adventure.

Keep running.

What a difference a week makes

This week I was hoping to report on another successful week of training. My ambitious goals for this week were to run for 8 hours on Saturday and to record my first 200km week.

Unfortunately I was unable to achieve either. The idea of this blog is to keep an honest record of my run training and racing. It is easy to record the good times only and to gloss over the failures and not-so-good times. This week has been mixed in terms of overall training but it is not about failure as such. Although I didn't achieve my goals I am trying to train smarter.

After last week's mammoth effort and with this week's lofty goals I continued to push myself at the beginning of the week. I ran an undulating 16km on Monday and headed up Mt Archer for my regular Tuesday hill session covering 30km for the day. Wednesday was another undulating 16km and on Thursday I ran 26km taking my total to 89km in four days and 170km or so since my last day off. Last week I felt strong for every session whereas this week I was feeling sore, tired and I was starting to develop some hip and leg issues on the Wednesday run. I was becoming increasingly concerned with my legs as they felt more tired than usual. On Thursday I ran for 16km after work before joining the Rocky Road Runners for another 10km. I had planned to run at least 30km but couldn't find the motivation to knock out another 4km. Friday was a day off work and I decided to treat myself with a trip to the movies and some sushi for lunch. At the beginning of the week I had planned to run 10km on Friday as a recovery session before the big effort on Saturday. Because my legs were still feeling very tired I decided to have a rest day. I was still focused on running 8 hours on Saturday and the goal of achieving a 200km week was still possible.

With only four weeks to go until the Glasshouse 100, this week was going to be my last big week before tapering off, which is why I was so focused on logging 200km. Endurance running can be very addictive and maintaining an adequate work / life / running balance can be difficult. After some soul-searching and trying to take an omnipotent view of my training I decided to take the Saturday off training. It was a difficult decision and I spent many hours deliberating in my head before ringing my mate Geoff and announcing my no-show for the morning.

I know that I made the right decision. Looking back on my training, my long runs for the last 6 weeks have consisted of: 44km, 27km, 45km, 51km, 45km, 68km. Additionally, even though I have taken two days off this week, including my long run, I have still managed to run over 100km. Funnily enough, in my former running life I would have considered my two medium runs this week of 30km and 26km to be tough workouts. To give myself the best opportunity to run well at the GH100 I need to be fresh, there is no point doing all my best running in training.

I have now got quite a few books on running and regularly scroll through many of the ultra running internet sites. When it comes to training for an ultra marathon there seem to be two main view-points when it comes to volume. Perhaps the most common view-point is that it is not necessary to log over 100 miles a week and to instead focus on the key sessions and inparticular the long run. My most recent book purchase is: Relentless Forward Progress by Bryon Powell. Bryon runs the iRunfar.com website and is an accomplished ultra runner himself. Bryon states that regularly running up to 70 miles (112km) a week is all one needs to comfortably complete a 100 mile ultra. Before making my decision to abandon Saturday's run I had a flick through the various chapters of his book which reinforced my decision to train smarter not harder.

Monday - 16.26km - 1hr 25mins 02secs - undulating run
Tuesday - 30.05km - 2hrs 37mins 58secs - hill run including Mt Archer
Wednesday - 16.60km - 1hr 24mins 31secs - undulating run
Thursday - 26.24km - 2hrs 13mins 40secs - medium run
Friday - Day off
Saturday - Day off
Sunday - 12.05km - 1hr 01min 58secs - run with Sunday group

Weekly totals - 101.20km - 8hrs 43mins 11secs

Sunday's run with the group brought me into triple figures for the 5th week in a row which demonstrates a consistency in training that I have not previously shown. To ensure that I perform at my best for the miler I will now begin to taper off my training. My training next week will depend on how much I have recovered from this week and if my legs are still tired and sore. I will still have two medium runs of between 20-25km a week, I will add my last Mt Archer hill session and my recovery runs will be shorter and less taxing. I am still deciding on what my long run will be next week but at this stage I will aim for my last 45km run. From there my training will show a marked decrease in overall volume with additional rest days to assist with recovery.

Sunday's run turned out to be a little more than I expected. The aim of the run was to run with the group and test out my legs, to see if there was still some muscle soreness and determine if the two days of rest aided my recovery. After the run I felt pretty good, no major soreness and there was no tiredness at all. I still have a little niggle on the inside of my right shin just above the ankle. It is nothing to really worry about, however, I am more concerned about my muddy shoes. The run was progressing reasonably well until about 8km when I saw a police car driving around some of the shops on Musgrave Street before heading into the car-park of the Stockland shopping centre. I then saw one of the officers running and the patrol car sped off deeper into the underground car-park. I said a quick "I better go, I'll see you guys at the end" and sprinted off to support my colleagues. As I entered the car-park I saw an officer (whom I have worked with before) chasing a juvenile, that I recognised as a well known offender here in Rocky. Further ahead I saw the patrol car stop and another colleague, who I have worked with, get out and begin to chase him as he ran through the open end of the car-park and into the nearby river.

As I entered the river in "hot pursuit" I immediately sank to my knees in thick mud. I was making up ground quickly and continued wading through the river and through the sections of knee high mud. With heavy shoes and socks coated in thick, foul smelling mud, I called out his name and told him to stop. He looked back but carried on. I yelled out that I would catch him and a few hundred metres later, on the other side of the river, in the Hungry Jacks car-park, I did. One of the officers caught up and we walked him back to the road where the second officer arrived with the patrol car. I have been involved in a number of foot pursuits over my 9 years in the job and I know how difficult it is in uniform and carrying all of the 'tools' of the job. I've often thought that it would be much easier in running gear and today, with an 8km warm up, I found that I was right, it is much easier. I know it's a bit silly but I couldn't resist talking a bit of trash to the kid and told him that I run marathon's every week and there was no way he could get away from me. After a quick chat with the police I ran off into the sunset, leaving stunned onlookers to wonder who was that masked man.

Actually, I wasn't wearing a mask, or tights, just a bit of poetic licence there. I ran off and met the rest of the group to recount to them the latest instalment in the adventures of Rockhampton's newest superhero, Run Benny Boy Run. Sorry, getting carried away again. Back to running.

I'm really excited about the upcoming challenge of my first 100 mile ultra and will start working on a race-plan including all the variables and logistics required for an event of this magnitude.

Keep running.

What, are you crazy?

This week has been my second biggest training week yet. On Saturday I managed to run my longest training run of 68.25km in a little over six hours. This run has given me the confidence I need for my next big running adventure.

Over a month ago I entered the Glasshouse 100 mile trail run. I entered the race a week or so before running the Gold Coast Marathon at a time when I was still 'retired' from ultra running. The thought of running long again had been percolating in my head for a while and a number of my running friends in Rocky were talking about doing The North Face 100 next year. Once an idea germinates in my mind, it grows quickly. After a few days of contemplating a comeback, I decided to stop feeling sorry for myself and continue my journey down the Ultra-marathon path.

100 miles (160km) seems to be 'the' distance when it comes to Ultras. Also known as the miler (in stark contrast to a 1600m / 1 mile run) it seems to be one of the fastest growing running events in the U.S. with the most popular races like the Western States 100 having to operate a ballot system due to the huge interest. Over this side of the world there are at least four 100 mile races in Australia and two that I know about in New Zealand.

Sitting in a cafe in the Blue Mountains, prior to running TNF100, I told Mat and Andrew (two work colleagues that also love to run long) that my plan after the race was to run the Glasshouse 100 mile run in September. After my DNF and subsequent retirement I discarded that thought immediately and directed my energy towards the Gold Coast Marathon. However, the miler was still sitting in the back of my mind as a what if. I remember the light bulb moment when I decided to just go ahead and do it. Everything seemed to click into place. I thought so what. So what that I didn't finish The North Face 100, so what that my longest run is just over half the distance. So what if I don't finish. SO WHAT.

I sheepishly broached the subject with Mel. My poor wife is used to my flights of fancy and irrepressible need to plan out and go on exciting adventures. She was concerned that I might push myself too far and end up risking my health again. After addressing her concerns enough for the C.E.O. to give me the green light, I began my preparations.

After the Gold Coast Marathon I had an easy week to recover from the stress and strain of running fast and set about re-building my endurance base. Since the marathon I have built up my weekly distance including consistent long runs every weekend of; 45km, 51.3km, 45km, 68.25km. This week I wanted to log at least 160 kilometres with a 6 hour long run. Next week the plan is to run my biggest run week ever including an 8 hour long run. I am regularly running Mt Archer as my part of my hill work to get stronger and am modifying my running style to a less elegant but more efficient form of forward locomotion. My stride is now shorter and has less heel lift compared with my faster running form. The benefits of this change in stride means that there is less impact and reduced muscle fatigue and damage on my long runs.

Saturday's run of 68.25km was extremely beneficial. I set my alarm for 3:00am and was on the road by 3:25am. I drove to my running groups meeting point and ran for two hours before joining them at 5:30am. I drove the car there so that I had my own checkpoint set up where I had additional fuel supplies and a change of clothing etc. I had had a big week of training and was feeling good but as the run progressed my body was becoming increasingly sore and tired. I ran through the marathon point in 3hrs 44mins and one kilometre later we started the climb up towards the saddle of Mt Archer. I really enjoyed this short but steep climb. After running on mainly flat ground, the incline eased some of the soreness for a while. I managed to run strong all the way to the saddle. The run down again stressed my tired legs but afterwards I began to slip into a good rhythm. The group finished back at our meeting point and I took the opportunity to change clothes and put on some sunscreen. A huge thank you goes out once again to my tireless training partners who make my long runs much more tolerable.

After 53km of running and the temperature climbing into the early to mid 20's I had saturated my running clothes. I thought that this would be the toughest part of my run, running solo again with over an hour and a quarter to go, the mercury rising and the seductive temptation to stop early and drive home. But I was pleasantly surprised. With a change of clothes and a steely determination I ran off at an easy relaxed pace. I thought that I would need some extended walking breaks but I kept on running. I was really enjoying myself and felt better than I had two hours previously. I ran on like this for quite a while and even spoke to a couple of my colleagues who were out and about working and had seen me running about three hours earlier. I stopped in at work after 60km and bought a can of coke. Maybe the sugar helped because I got faster and was knocking out the kilometres between 5:10 and 5:20. I felt that I had really overcome my earlier issues and even briefly considered adding another hour or so.

To get to the magical 6 hour mark I ran around the south side for a while before heading north and ended the run with a little out and back to get to 68km, as that seemed to be a better number than 67km which was when I hit the 6 hour mark. My average pace for the run was a bit too quick at 5min 22sec/km but this didn't account for the water stops where I stopped my watch. I am very pleased with the run and I now understand how beneficial the long run really is. I have finally convinced myself that I am worthy of running in the miler and that I am capable of continuous running when sore and tired. It is said that ultra events are more a test of mental toughness than physical conditioning and running for 6 hours has reinforced how important the mental state of mind is. After this run I have the confidence to know that I can push through the many low points that will inevitably exist in such an extreme undertaking. When I stopped I was tired but not shattered, in fact I was more sleep tired than anything. More importantly my nutrition and fluid plan held up very well. I kept to the plan and my stomach tolerated the Hammer perpetuem without a problem. I didn't have any gels and the can of coke was the only thing I had apart from perpetuem and water. If anything I was quite hungry when I finished which is unusual, as normally after a long training run or race I can't eat anything for a while.

My training for the week consisted of an easy run on Monday, a long session on Tuesday (including Mt Archer), an undulating easy run on Wednesday and a double run day on Thursday. I decided to take a day off on Friday to help with recovery, prepare for Saturday's long run and to prevent doing too much distance this week. I had contemplated doing a longish run on Sunday as well but I didn't want to undo all the good work of this week by doing too much and settled for the group run only.

Monday - 12.80km - 1hr 06mins 06secs - flat to undulating easy run
Tuesday - 30.05km - 2hrs 35mins 31secs - Mt Archer & back + add-ons
Wednesday - 15.15km - 1hr 17mins 38secs - undulating easy run
Thursday am - 25.50km - 2hrs 09mins 30secs - flattish comfortable run
Thursday pm - 10.10km - 53mins 56secs - recovery run with group
Friday - Rest day
Saturday - 68.25k - 6hrs 05mins 50secs - long run
Sunday - 13.95km - 1hr 11mins 16secs - run with Sunday group

Weekly totals - 175.80km - 15hrs 19mins 50secs

I'm looking forward to another big week next week including the huge challenge of running for 8hrs on Saturday. With only five weeks to go until my first 100 mile race I will need to continue with my preparation and training so that I can stand at the start line fresh and ready to take on this awesome challenge. And in breaking news, a huge congratulations to all my Rocky running friends for some amazing results at the Brisbane Marathon with double digit PB'S for Sean and Jason only four weeks after running the Gold Coast Marathon. You guys rock.

Keep running.

One Thousand Hits

I'm a bit overdue for my weekly post about my running adventures but I have been training hard, logging quite a few kilometres and have been working various shifts of late.

I am very excited to announce that last week my blog passed the 1,000 page-views milestone. I am amazed and humbled that so many of you read my posts. I regularly get messages and comments from people who tell me how much they look forward to reading about my running adventures. I enjoy writing about my running as it brings me much happiness and if I can entertain, inspire and encourage others out there to find and pursue their passion (whether it is running or something else) then I am achieving my goal.

The blog started out as a way for me to record my thoughts and reflections of training and racing. I record all my stats from my Garmin GPS on separate software but I thought that this would be a good honest way of recording all the 'behind the scenes' of my running. I have kept a hard copy diary in the past but found that difficult to keep updated. It is interesting to read what I have previously written and can be enlightening or embarrassing. In-particular my recent comments of retiring from Ultrarunning after my first DNF. I put it out there as a true and accurate record on how I felt at the time. But that is the beauty of free-will, we are free to change our minds at anytime and our destiny is the path we create. It may not be a smooth easy road all of the time and there are many intersections and detours along the way, but if we keep moving forward, enjoy our adventures, learn from our mistakes, and celebrate our achievements, we can be proud of ourselves as we are living a life worth living.

One of my running friends, Mat, also has a running blog and recently published a post which talked about some personal medical challenges he has been facing and another runner I know, Dean, is bravely supporting his daughter who is fighting cancer. Hearing and reading about these difficult life challenges again made me think about my own experiences and consider that there are so many people out there who are battling personal and life threatening illnesses and disasters. In my own life, my grandad died of bowel cancer, my younger brother had a heart attack when he was only 30 years old (thankfully he is as strong as an ox and is doing well now after having a stent surgically implanted) and my wife and I tragically lost our darling daughter Gemma who died of pneumonia and septic shock which was exacerbated with her condition - Prader Willi syndrome. Gemma died in 2004 aged 5 months and 1 day old. At the time Mel and I, together with our family and friends and daughter Holly, mourned and struggled through the re-building of our shattered lives. What I want to say is that life is short, it is not always easy so we should always remember to live life to the fullest, appreciate and be thankful for what we have, and plan for tomorrow but live for today. We should love and support those that are closest to us, avoid the things and people that would harm us and go after the things that we what, continually challenge ourselves, enjoy what we have, help those that have not and most of all, seek out our bliss and enjoy this life.

Sorry if I got a bit deep there but as I said above, I want to use this blog to record my feelings and emotions as well as my training and racing. I would like to thank you all again for your support in reading my blog. I encourage you to leave messages and become a follower either publically or anonymously. I intend to publish posts with a variety of subjects associated to running and will include a couple of book reviews in the coming weeks and months. I will include my weekly training updates but please let me know if there is anything particular you would like to read about and I will do my best to address it.

I would also like to mention that I am astounded by the people in overseas locations who read this blog. I can check the stats on this blog which tell me how many people read the blog and the country they are in at the time of accessing the blog. I acknowledge that some of the readers may have stumbled upon the blog unintentionally, by pressing the 'next blog' button, but still it is all very exciting. So far I have had readers from:

Australia
New Zealand
United States of America
United Kingdom
Germany
Poland
Malaysia
Singapore
Brazil
Estonia
Ireland
Czech Republic

Last weeks training was a bit of a mixed week. I ran the Monday after the 52km Flinders Tour but decided to have the Tuesday and Wednesday off. My legs were quite sore and I thought that I would have an easier week to help my recovery. I ran a long 45km run on the Saturday which was especially difficult. My legs were sore, I wore a backpack for the first time since TNF100 and I just didn't feel into it. I am proud of myself for pushing through and finishing the run and feel that it was good mental training to keep going. It is this mental training that I will need to draw upon for my future races, for the times when I am feeling down and struggling.

Weekly totals:

Monday - 8.05km - 47mins 20secs - Bush run with James & Troy
Tuesday - Day off
Wednesday - Day off
Thursday - 15.05km - 1hr 15mins 27secs - Undulating easy run
Friday - 18.82km - 1hr 37mins 47secs - Undulating run
Saturday - 45.05km - 4hrs 05mins 05secs - Long run with group
Sunday - 15.10km - 1hr 17mins 33secs - Undulating easy run

Totals: 102.08km - 9hrs 03mins 15mins

Stay tuned for my next post this Sunday or Monday including the big announcement of my next major race. Good luck to all of those running in either the Brisbane Marathon, Townsville Marathon or Cane to Coral this weekend. I hope you all achieve your goals and enjoy the journey along the way.

Keep running.

2011 Flinders Tour

On Sunday I ran in the Flinders Tour, which is a trail race situated in the Glasshouse Mountains in South East Queensland. The race is an off road trail race over approximately 51.9km.

I entered the race with the goal of running it as a hard training session, to test out my nutrition and to gain more experience over the course in preparation for my next major challenge. I had a reasonably big week with some good quality runs so that I would be doing the Flinders Tour on tired legs.

Monday - 12.52km - 1hr 05mins 25secs - Recovery run, flat to undulating
Tuesday - 30.05km - 2hrs 39mins 42secs - Hill run, including Mt Archer
Wednesday (am) - 6.51km - 34mins 42secs - Recovery run, mainly flat
Wednesday (pm) - 11.10km - 57mins 49secs - Easy run, flat to undulating
Thursday - 30.30km - 2hrs 33mins - 48secs - Home to group run back to home
Friday - 10.05km - 51mins 56secs - Recovery run, flat to undulating
Saturday - Rest day - Travel to Cooroy / Noosa
Sunday - 51.3km - 4hrs 50mins 57secs

Weekly totals - 151.84km - 13hrs 34mins 22secs

I drove down on the Saturday morning and was lucky enough to stay with my good friend James and his wonderful family. They were kind enough to put me up for the two nights and their house is only about an hour from the start / finish at Beerburrum School.

I arrived at the school at about 6:15am in preparation for a 7:00am start. It was quite cool and I was reluctant to take off my jacket and trackpants. I was unsure of what clothing to wear because even though it was in single figures it was expected to get to 25 degrees. I decided on a short sleeve t-shirt (yellow - in honour of Cadel Evans) and shorts. Standing at the start I was cold but was slightly warmer than a couple of the young lads who were in shorts and shoes only, sans tops.

Race director Ian Javes started us off and within a few hundred metres we began the climb towards Mt Beerburrum. This is the second time I have climbed this hill in a race and since September I had forgotten how tough it was. Initially we were on wide fire track which is entirely runable but soon enough we hit the bitumen / concrete path that takes us to the summit. I managed to run until the first or second corner and started walking. The hill is not particularly long but it is very steep in parts. According to the Beerwah information page the summit is 276m above sea level and the steepness of the path is at about a 45-50% incline.

I found the climb difficult but strangely enough jogging on my toes and taking baby-steps relieved some of the burning sensation in my calfs. I managed to walk / jog my way to the summit in 12th place and took it quite easy on the return down in an effort to save my legs. I got passed by a few other runners on the downhill and by the time we passed the school on the start of our first loop I was in 15th place. I was not too worried about placings or time and was aiming for about five and a half to six hours. This estimate was based on my two previous 50km trail races which were both just under five and a half hours.

My legs were quite heavy to start, partly from the last two weeks of training but also from the brutal climb. I was settling into a nice comfortable rhythm and was running my own race. A few kilometres after passing the school we were running on some undulating terrain with lots of twists and turns and large gauges from previous rain and dirt bike activity. There were also lots of large puddles from recent rain that had not dried out. I went through the first 10km in about 57 minutes and felt quite comfortable. I was slowly catching a runner in front but there was nobody else in sight.

I eventually caught and ran with the runner in front of me, Laurie Laine, whom I have seen at the two other 50km races I have done. He also did the Gold Coast Marathon three weeks before, as well as doing the Gold Coast 100km road race in June (in an awesome 9hrs 15mins). Laurie was running at a good pace and we ran and talked together for a while. By this stage we were running on the very wide undulating fire tracks. These tracks are pretty easy to run on and are not very technical at all (which helps when you are tired I guess) but there are some very long stretches which some people find difficult, as you get to see how far you have to go. I didn't really mind, I was enjoying myself and I could see a few of the other runners ahead. Laurie and I were running a bit quicker than I wanted, which inevitably happens when two or more people run together. We both slowed a little and I gradually pulled ahead.

We were heading towards the school again where we would turn around and begin the second loop, this time in a reverse direction and without the climb up Mt Beerburrum. As I was nearing the end of the first loop I saw the 25km runners heading out on their single loop race and some of the slower 50km runners who had an hour head start. I also got to see the leading bunch of 50km runners on their second loop, they seemed to be running at a pretty quick pace and were easily a couple of kilometres ahead.

I passed a runner, Dan Bleakman, who writes articles for Ultra168 and was wearing some of the gear he had written reviews of. I had a brief chat and continued on to the turn-around. I was just behind the leading woman as I started my second loop and topped up my water bottle. My nutrition and hydration plan for the race was to drink water at 10 minutes, have some Hammer perpetuem at 20 minutes and alternate them every 10 minutes. To carry enough perpetuem I had to make a concentrated bottle to which I placed 5 hours worth into my four fuel belt bottles. My plan went well until about 40km or so. I had stuck to the timings well but I had forgotten to take my Hammer endurolyte capsules. These are electrolyte capsules that should be taken with water. I was supposed to take two every hour but forgot all about them. My calfs were cramping a little and I could feel the nerves or tendons tighten sometimes but it was manageable and didn't really affect me too much.

For the second loop I had slowed a bit and my stride was a little bit shorter and becoming more of a shuffle. I was starting to get quite tired but I concentrated on moving forward and was covering ground quite efficiently. I had passed the leading woman and a couple of other runners in both my race and the single loop 25km race. It was starting to get hot and I was drinking more water than I had for the first loop. I had my water in a 750ml hand held bottle and I sparingly used some on my head a few times in an effort to keep my temperature down.

From about 40km I was starting to struggle a bit. I was getting quite hot, my legs were getting tired and I had an urge to walk for a bit. I resisted the lure of walking and continued on but I was getting stitch and realised that I had overdone it with the perpetuem. I am convinced that this is the best fuel source for me on long distance runs but I need to sort out the concentration and strength of the mixture. Because I had made it so strong I only needed to have small sips. Throughout the run I was unsure if I had been consuming too much or not enough and at a few points I had convinced myself that I had not had enough and took a bit too much the next time. It was a good lesson to learn, I have tested it in race conditions and now know that I need to make a less powerful bottle and prepare another one if required, depending on the length of the run.

I went through the marathon point in 3 hours and 50 minutes which was much quicker than I expected. I had never done this course before and realised whilst running that it was not as difficult and had less climbs than the September course. I was passed by one runner and in turn passed someone else. We got to another climbing section and I got a walking break which was very welcome. It spurred me on for a bit and when the track evened out again I was running quite well. I felt good on the downhill and re-passed the runner who overtook me earlier. I was still enjoying myself as the course meandered its way through the forest. There are many fallen trees to go under and over and obstacles to dodge such as large puddles and rocky terrain.

As quickly as I felt good, I crashed again. The stitch got worse and my stomach felt too full and I didn't feel like eating. It was not as bad as how I felt at The North Face 100 and I could manage it a bit better. I was still thirsty from the heat but limited how much I drank as I was still feeling a bit full and uncomfortable. This feeling brought on a few walking breaks. I pushed my fingers into my side for a bit which felt better but had to walk for a bit more than I wanted. It was during one of these walking breaks, struggling once again with my stomach, that I started to question my desire to do this ultra stuff. Thankfully it was only a brief period of negative thinking. I had been passed by two runners and was finding the heat a bit difficult. However, wearing my Garmin GPS watch I knew what pace I was running and how far I had to go.

The last 4 or 5km had some difficult parts with some small climbs and undulations and were exposed to the sun. Dan Bleakman re-passed me and was looking quite comfortable. Even though I was going through a bad patch I was trying to stay positive and repress the negative thoughts. I passed more 25km runners and eventually I could see the school through the trees.

I finished the race officially in 4hrs 50mins 56secs for 12th place overall out of 49 starters. According to my Garmin, the distance run was 51.3km with an average pace of 5:40min/km.

Initially I had mixed feelings after I had finished. I was pleased and a little surprised with the time and my place but I was annoyed that my nutrition and hydration plan had not overcome my stomach issues. On reflection, it was not such a problem. I have identified the issue of concentration and my stomach settled quickly after the race, which is in stark contrast to previous races. I walked over to the local shop and bought a large 500ml can of V as a reward and had a burger which is part of the free BBQ for all competitors. Normally I can't stomach anything for a few hours. Obviously my pace was a bit quicker than planned and for anything longer than 50km I would need to be slower and therefore my stomach absorption and emptying rates would be more efficient.

Overall I had a great race. I enjoyed myself, I learnt a few lessons and gained valuable race experience. I have now run in four Ultra Marathons with this being my third 50km trail race and achieved a 36 minute PB. My legs felt better afterwards than my previous ultra's and I even managed an 8km trail run the next morning with James and Troy.

The Glasshouse series of races that Ian and his team put on are really awesome events. The organisation and course marking are top quality, the value for money is excellent ($60 compared with $110 for Gold Coast Marathon), the people are relaxed and friendly and I have now got my second Ultra finishers mug for my collection. I have already entered the next Glasshouse race in September and am very much looking forward to running there again.

I would like to thank James and his family again for putting me up and looking after me during my stay. I'm very lucky to have such good friends. Stay tuned for my next post.

Keep running.

Out of retirement & Wild Stallions

Today marks two weeks since the Gold Coast Marathon. I had a very easy week after the race only running three times even though my body felt pretty good.

After publically stating on this blog that I was retired from ultra running, I am now having to eat my words. Never say never. Having such a terrible race at The North Face 100 I thought that I just couldn't go longer than the marathon without falling apart. But my love of running and my innate inability to leave something like this unfinished has found my thoughts wandering back to running long. It didn't help much that a few of my running friends were keen to run TNF100 next year.

Despite my failure in Katoomba I loved the scenery and even enjoyed the challenging course, despite thinking that they didn't need to make it that hard as I was slogging up Nellies Glen. I have to go back. I have to finish what I started. I enjoy the challenge and I will not let it beat me, even if I have to keep returning until I do.

Training for the Gold Coast Marathon was good and I enjoyed the faster running for a while but it also made me realise that I was always pushing to run at a particular pace. I found that this type of training was not as enjoyable as running at an easier pace for a longer time. I missed being able to talk with my friends while running or admire the view. I was also inspired by recent coverage of the Western States 100 mile and Badwater ultra marathons.

So I did what I do best, look for the next adventure. To start with I have entered the Flinders Tour which is on next weekend in the Glasshouse Mountains. I loved the area when I ran it last year and this will be my third 50km trail run. The race is only three weeks from the Gold Coast Marathon but I am looking further ahead and need to build my strength, endurance and mental stamina for what lies ahead.

This week has been really good with a big ramp up in distance from the previous three weeks (being the taper and recovery periods for the marathon).

Monday - 12.51km - 1hr 05mins 11secs - flat to undulating easy run
Tuesday - 25.11km - 2hrs 49mins 38secs - hilly trail run
Wednesday - 12.52km - 1hr 05mins 10secs - flat to undulating recovery run
Thursday - 25.10km - 2hrs 06mins 30secs - flat moderate run
Friday - 10.05km - 52mins 05secs - flat to undulating recovery run
Saturday - 45.21km - 3hrs 49mins 35secs - long road run after work
Sunday - 12.10km - 1hr 04mins 17secs - run with group up to saddle of Mt Archer

Weekly total - 143km - 12hrs 52mins 34secs

The trail run on Tuesday was a challenge all on its own. I had developed a head cold on Monday but running made me feel better. To prepare for next weekend's race I thought I better get out on the trails. The only problem is that the only one close by is Mt Archer and from a previous post I have recounted my encounters with the local fauna. I drove to Sunset Drive and parked the car at about 10:30am. I have run here a few times before and luckily there were no spiderwebs to great me as I weaved my way between the vegetation. I dodged the odd pile of horse droppings and was enjoying myself in the warm mid-morning sun. I was slightly underprepared and had only the minimum amount of food and fluid, so I had to carefully ration what I consumed. I made it to the summit of Mt Archer in about 1hr 32mins for 12.70km, which is pretty slow compared with road running. But that is the beauty of running on trails, you can escape, become lost in your own thoughts or the natural beauty of the area. I had a bit of a sore toe from one of my many little trip-ups along the technical single track rocky terrain.

It was sore but it didn't stop me running so I didn't worry too much about it. It wasn't until after the run that I saw the massive bruise and thought that it might be broken.

The run was taking longer than I had planned for but I was really enjoying myself. What more could I ask for, it was a warm sunny day, I didn't have to go to work, I was running in a beautiful place without a care in the world. That is until I ran into a couple of my equine friends. I had less than 1km left of the trail before I hit the housing estate, and as I rounded a bend I saw two massive beasts, they must have easily been 8ft tall, with coal black eyes, long unkempt manes and ghastly misshappen hooves.

In reality there was what appeared to be a mare and a younger horse which could have been a relative. I'm no horse expert but they didn't seem too worried. In fact the older horse walked past me and deposited some lovely fresh dung further up the track. The younger horse was a bit skittish and wouldn't pass. Each time I tried to walk past it to the side of the track, it would get frightened. The older horse came back to protect it. We had a stale-mate there on the trail. I was trying to appear calm and tame and would try and sneak to the side but was repelled each time. The older horse was becoming increasingly agitated and would stomp and blow air through her nostrils.

After what felt like two hours and was in fact more like 20 minutes, I tried one last time to get past. I had previously armed myself with a stick and tried to he-haw them away to no avail. As I sidled along the track the older horse decided she had had enough and began to charge towards me at a gallop. I was only about 10 metres away so it had only taken 2 or 3 strides before I turned and had taken a few steps myself before losing my footing and stumbling to the ground. I looked panically towards the threat of stomping hooves and a terrified nooooo escaped my lips. I don't know if it was my panicked voice or my smaller foetal-like position on the ground but the horse stopped and rejoined the younger horse.

I slowly stood up, backed away and dusted myself off. I had to bushwhack my way to the nearby river and make my way down the rocky bank to safety. I got back to my car just after 2pm and called Mel. She had been a bit worried as I had left home about 10:15 and expected me to be only a couple of hours.

My long run on Saturday was pretty good considering I ran solo after an early shift at work. I started at 3pm and ran the whole 45km on the roads around Rocky. What was really encouraging was that I used perpetuem for the first time. Perpetuem is a product from Hammer nutrition and is specially formulated for exercise over three hours as it contains protein and other essential nutrients for endurance training and racing. My energy stayed even throughout, I had no stomach issues and no muscle cramps at all. I had the cafe latte flavour which tasted pretty good (especially as I don't drink coffee!!). I had the Hammer recovery drink after the run which helps with recovery (pity it tastes terrible). I got the starter pack which had a whole heap of different products from electrolyte drinks to gels and bars. It also came with a nutrition guide outlining the companies products and philosophy backed up scientific studies and reports. So hopefully the Hammer nutrition products will help me overcome my previous stomach issues and allow me to reach my full potential in running long. I will use it next week at the Flinders Tour 50km and see how it goes.

My next post will be a race report re: The Flinders Tour.

Keep running.