Race Review and Spring Classic

 

Welcome to my late race report. I thought I would bundle all of these words together to form some sort of blog/make sense of what I am doing with my life. I can honestly say that last weekend when the CQPhysio Group Spring Classic was on, was the busiest I have ever been in my life. It’s also in the top 5 most stressful moments of all time.

I will talk about the Spring Classic from my perspective later (as an event) but if you are skimming this and not going to read the whole thing – I want to quickly say that we at HRE have taken your feedback on-board and will make a number of improvements for next year. Some of these items were due to budget constraints, others simply growing pains. We want you, as an athlete, to have the best experience so aim to improve every time we bring you a HRE event.

The couple items for next year that will be improved;

• Earlier start time for all events, 6.15am start for the main race
• Longer course, course will go all the way to the roundabout for the 10k and half marathoners – thus reducing the laps and congestion at the turn around points
• Army of aid station volunteers – and larger aid stations
• Better race precinct, a half marathoners finishers area, bottle of water for every finisher, more kids entertainment, more food options, better viewing area of finish line,
• Pre-race pick up all day in Yeppoon on Saturday, all day in Rockhampton Friday
• Communicating our sell out points earlier (sorry if you missed out we only have insurance for a certain number, will raise this to 1500 next year)
• Singlets will be for sale, so if you want a cool singlet you simply order it before the cut off date – if you want one you can get one
• Early bird entry fees – discounts for people who like to sign up early
• Participants hand book, so you have all the details in one easy to reference book prior to the race

Thanks to everyone who raced, we loved bringing you the big city race experience here in CQ – bigger and better next year!

Before I get onto my experience as a race organiser/spectator I will go back 3 weeks to my racing in Townsville.

We had a family trip to Townsville – a chance to get out of town, and for me to test out my winter training. I had nominated for the Masters division but in a conversation with ANQ they placed me in the open division. This didn’t seem to be a bad thing, I wasn’t looking to win any events, just use the faster runners to “pull” me through for a PB.

When I was lining up one of the kids said I was a huge 800m runner! Huge as in muscular. I am no whippet like the other middle distance kings.

My one little gripe was the timings of the event. The races didn’t start on time, so by the time I warmed up etc. We had to wait – up to 45 minutes till the start of our races. The first race was the 800m and I was looking to run under 2.20. The race included the opens and under 18 mens, the pace was insanely quick and I went out way too hard going through the first 400m in 62 seconds, down the back straight I completely blew up and was passed by just about everyone. Finishing in 2.21 I was spent. I should of ran the first lap in 1.05-1.06 and wasn’t “listening to my body” – by the time I got to the car I was dizzy, the 5minute drive to the motel was hell. When I parked the truck, I stepped out and vomited everywhere! I made it upstairs, laid in the cold shower and tried to recover.

Bel thought I was going to die, and kept asking “is this more fun than marathons?” in her really concerned caring way. I love her so much, she was really worried about me. At that point I was glad she wasn’t at TNF to see me near death! 20 minutes later I was back, feeling better! Weird.

The 400m was my showdown event. I really wanted to bury myself and run under 60 seconds.

The same again, the race was moved and I had to run later in the day. They again combined a number of races. Kids were talking about running 55s – so I knew I was going to be close to last again. I settled into my blocks and tried to push out hard, and go balls out. Coming down the home straight I was pushing and knew I was close to a minute, it felt quick. Maybe because of the heat or wind, but it felt faster than the 61 seconds I was awarded with. The elusive sub 60 minute 400 still eludes me. I’m not far off it.

Sunday was a mess. The kids had a swim at the water park and by 11am Bel was feeling sick, we went back to the motel and she had a migraine (from the heat I think) and was down for the count. So I went and ran the 200 by myself. I have run a 27.00 self-timed on the track and a 27.89 on the grass self-timed and was really hoping I could execute a sub 27 200. As I was in my blocks the gun went and I launched out as hard as possible, again it felt really quick, the adrenaline was pumping and I put in a huge dip at the line. I waited around for my time and disappointingly ran a 27.39 – there isn’t much in it I guess between a good race and a great one.

 

A learning from the event, is not to warm up so early. The other factor was being prepared to wait. Just waiting killed my energy and buzz.

So the next 12 weeks will be about building a base again and after Christmas concentrating on the Queensland Masters Athletics Games again. I need to be stronger out of the start and build a better tolerance towards the end. A few improvements should see more running PBs.

Donald has been hounding me about the blog, and to be honest I really miss the finish line of a marathon. I have committed to running at least 2 next year. Maybe I could run 3 and get my marathon total to 10. I don’t have a burning desire to run a PB just do it for the experience. Track is where my energy is still going.  

Speaking of Donald he ran his first half marathon on Sunday. As we spoke on Monday for the debrief I can hear in his voice that a lot has changed, his focus on becoming a better athlete is 110% - there is nothing that will stand in his way of GC 2014. I said to Bel last night, that it is motivating to hear how he is changing his life. He will become a better man by running. If you are willing to listen, you learn so much about yourself.

So last week arrived, I had been given the honour of Master of Ceremonies at my Cousin’s wedding. Owen was marrying his fiancé Cedar in Byfield. She is absolutely the perfect life partner for him, so caring and compassionate, but also will take charge when required. They are so much in love, and it just warms my heart to see them both so happy together.

The MC duties however provided a logistical challenge with setting up the CQPhysio Group Spring Classic and being in 3 places at once, of course the wedding reception was in the rainforest so no mobile reception!!! Painful!

With regards to the event – Jason and I started HRE in January 2011 with the dream of bringing a big city race to CQ. Sunday actually felt like we had achieved that goal, with 900 runners tackling the beach front it was a sight no one had ever experienced.

A lot of work goes into events, and it included us working 38 hours straight over Saturday and Sunday to pull it off. For those of you that have already provided feedback (good and bad) we are listening and will make course changes, start early, improve aid stations, have more organised finishers precinct, and do a full 2 day race pack pick up. There are a few other details which we want to get right to ensure all runners have the best possible race day experience. If you have any feedback let us know at humanraceevents@hotmail.com

Whilst on the thank-you list, I must thank all of the Aid-Station Volunteers and Luke Fallon for working over time getting aid to people. Like I have said earlier, aid stations will be better stocked and resourced next year – one of the growing pains this year.

The race itself was run and won with the favourites in the 5km and 10km men’s getting the money, Paul and Miles both ran great races. Drew came in from Emerald late in the week and wanted to run his first half marathon, a new course record of 1.16 it was insane to watch him carve his way through the field. Rodney ran really well also, setting himself up for another big block of ironman training leading up to Port Mac. Raelene and Gav get prepared to run the Coast to Kosciusko Ultra – Rails wins the 10k event! Loved seeing our Cooee Bay Pharmacy pace runners bringing people home on their goal times!

 

 

 

For my little family, Joel and Hayden loved the kids dash again! The kids ran the same course as the adults Mile Bolt – I loved it. I loved seeing Hayden and Joel race hard and push themselves. Hayden really surprised me in the 5km – he ran 26 minutes, which is another 2 minutes off his 5km PB. I bet you all think we train and I pressure him, but it’s the opposite. We do no training, just ride our bikes and kick the footy. I am ever conscious of not making them both do too much whilst they are young. I want them to have fun and enjoy it.

For me the greatest moments are when people are suffering yet still have the courage to push through to finish. Nicole was aiming for 2hrs and fell off the pace, and finished with 2.07. I know she is capable of running under 2hrs – but it just wasn’t her day – next year for sure.

Also a big shout out to Aaron and Leah Benson who were married the day before. Leah was adamant that she was going to pace run no matter what and made it quite clear she would “protest” if she was left out! We had her bib made with “Just Married” on it. It was so cool. Aaron decided his form of protest would be to take our cash and ran 3^rd in the 5km! Awesome to have both of them there running and sharing their experience with everyone.

That about covers it for the last few weeks, I am back in the gym and doing some track sessions and general running at the moment.

Be safe

Pex

Will you conquer the Mountain! New HRE Event!

12 months ago I was in the Blue Mountains getting ready for the biggest race of my life.

12 months ago I was an Ultra Runner and solely focused on getting that buckle and finishing under 20hrs at The North Face 100.

A lot can change in 12 months.  Track is back.

In preparation for TNF last year I ran Mt Archer a lot, I learnt to love the suffering up the Mountain and would often complete the 20km round trip from my house to the summit of Mt Archer and back before work in the morning. It was good hard running.

Last week we were excited to finally open the registrations for our new event the Highpoint Access and Rescue King of the Mountain (KOM). Time to lock in the 15th of June into your calendar - this event is a must for anyone who wants an "official" summit time. Race will be from the Pilbeam Drive sign to the summit. I know there are a lot of walkers who do this, and I have seen them power up there - would love to know their times. The event is for both walkers and runners up the mountain 

Registrations here: www.hreoz.com

This event will once again provide the bells and whistles that you expect from a HRE event, like electronic timing, a fully closed race course, adequate aid stations, finishers recovery area, race photographer - and especially important for a mountain event - buses back down.

Last year my best time was a sub 35 minute summit, for the near 5km run up the road to the top. With a little over 500m of elevation gain in 5km it certainly is a tough run. I know Ben and Michael can summit in under 30 minutes - sub 30 minutes is insane.

My best effort on the mountain was a "triple" - that's 3 consecutive summits in a row. All up that's 30km with 1500m of elevation gained and descended. I did this with Ben and Rod and I don't know of anyone who has done a quad (4 summits) but if someone is out there - let me know!

For those wondering how my track training is going, I must admit I am riding a huge improvement wave at the moment. I have dragged Ben to the track a couple of times, but he complains of feeling dizzy after!

Last week I was away for work and was able to hit the tartan track in Bundy. Although I got caught in a storm and it was raining I ran a really solid 200m in 28.00 seconds and a new track PB (self timed). So I am heading toward running in the low 27s for the 200m and my goal of a sub 58 400 is looking likely this race season.

Good luck to all TNF 100 racers this weekend, special shout out to Marty, Gav and Raelene who are heading down for Wilsons Promontry 100km.

SOLD OUT, ULTRAS & Bike World

Its quite fitting that I write this on September 11, the date of last years event!

As you can imagine life at Human Race Events HQ has been insano!

Not even sure that is a word, but it surely describes how Jason and I both feel. This year the organisation has gone to another level and we have spent a lot of extra time getting all of the details right. For those of you that work and have a hobby business, you know what I mean. Both Jason and I have day jobs as Safety Professionals, and then after hours squeeze in the other work required to make the magic that is the "CQPhysio Group Spring Classic".

As we both train in the morning, nights are the only time available. The other barrier this year is that we don't train together. Last year we were able to cover off a lot of stuff on long runs or mid week runs, this year it has all been a lot of email and phone. Not ideal!

There is an incredibly strong bond of trust between the both of us, something which if we didn't have, would make doing this impossible. When destiny brought me a training buddy, it brought with it a mentor, coach, sounding board, counsellor, cheer squad, business partner and mate. I am sure this week will have a few more surprises for us, I am just so lucky to have Jas in the trench with me.

The best thing though is that the pain is nearly over (for us), and if you have kept up to date with Facebook the event is a near sell out. The 5km and 10km races are full and at the time of typing only a couple of spots left in the half and kids dash. This is quite remarkable, we will have over 400 runners racing on Sunday, that is TWICE as many as 2011.

It certainly feels like Christmas!! Bring on the weekend!

In Ultra news - Benny, Marty (White Caviar), Gavin, Raelene & Matt (Tattoo Runner) are off to smash it up down at the Glasshouse 100. Yep that is 100 MILES not 100km!!!! This is Australia's oldest hundred miler and Benny is back to make up for his DNF last year. Matt has been running really well and I expect him to sneak under 24hrs (yes 24hrs of running). Gav and Marty have their first crack at the distance, and hopefully Raelene's injured ankle is OK and she can run the 100k.

Its a funny feeling, because a big part of me is really jealous and wants to be trail running with them, but as you know I have chosen the path to get fast and efficient. I wish them all the best on Saturday/Sunday.

Big Rodney has just arrived back from his epic 1600km Brisbane to Townsville Smile for Smiddy Challenge. Yes don't adjust your screens BRISBANE to TOWNSVILLE in 8 days! NUTS!!! I wont go into too many details, as I will interview Rod this week and you will have a RideRodRide interview in couple of weeks with some photos etc. All I can say is I am both impressed and inspired to do more to help raise funds for charities!

Jason has refused to give me an interview, choosing instead to "fly under the radar" - but he raced locally on the weekend for a second place in the Rocky Cycling Club Road Championships "B" Grade. This is bloody impressive and goes with his B Grade King of the Mountain win a month ago. Having been on the bike for a little over 12 months it is nothing short of extroadinary. Hard work pays off. I am sorry that you cant race this weekend in the Criterium championships as you will be working the microphone at the Spring Classic!! At least you will give some of the other guys a chance at a podium!

Come Sunday, if you are running you will experience the BEST race that has ever been put on in CQ. No exceptions. Remember we ARE runners too - and we want your race day to be a special memory.

When you cross that line Sunday you will be part of "the family", our family that is Human Race Events.

Best of luck to everyone.

"Running is not what I DO, but who I AM" - Sean Peckover

Chasing a PB....

My memories of primary school athletics are crystal clear, I was the "bigger" boy who tried his hardest but regularly came nearly always last. In general I was a tryer. I would never skip anything I would never fake it or sit out, I was just never that good.

That moment when I realised I might be an athlete came when in Year 7 I was trailing running dead last in the cross country, I surged up the oval and put the hammer down and out sprinting two of the other boys to come third last! I threw up a little and layed on the ground trying to breath, I was happy with my "win". The memory is still fresh in my mind.
It's an interesting observation that most runners talk about a shared lack of "athletic" ability from an early age. I've lost count the amount of blogs I've read that start "I hated running, until XX happened - then I ran, now I am a marathoner".

I certainly believe getting started is the hardest part of running. "I'm too unfit, too fat, too slow". Last week I was reminded that runners come in all shapes and sizes, Step Into Life (personal training group) were out running at the same time as we finished our Saturday run. Here was a lady in her mid 40s - running, then walking to catch her breath, then running again. I slowed and spoke to her for a couple of minutes and encouraged her. She is at the start of her journey - in 12 months she could be 30kg lighter and runner her first half marathon.

All week I have been thinking about that lady and the others like her. Those that don't look like the Olympic Marathoners, but are out there running, getting fit and striving for their own goals.

Which gets me onto this week - its race week. Races arent the reason I run, they are more like the icing on the cake. I always have an event coming up - something to plan and train for. Having a very goal orientated personality, it helps give me some focus to what I am doing.

This week though is a little different, for once I am not doing a mega event. This is the first of my "shorter" races. I havent really explained, but after my marathon PB at Gold Coast, I became even more motivated to run faster. I am hungry for a fast marathon time, like the others from our running group that have gone under 3.20, or even faster. So after spending the past 3 and half years building my marathon war chest (7 marathons and 3 ultras) - I have switched to shorter races to build speed. I never did this as part of my running journey, I went for the big fish, the marathon, and have tried to improve by just running more marathons.

So I am running half marathons from now till Gold Coast 2013. Loosely my goals are to improve my pace so by the Rocky River Run next year I am running close to 90 minutes for the half marathon.

This weekend is the first step in the process. Jason, Lawto and I are in a team for the Yeppoon Ironman 70.3.

Simply I have been training to run a 1.35 half marathon. As you know from my previous blogs, my half PB is 1.42 from 2010 - so it has been a while since I have had success over this distance.

As boring as it sounds, training has been going very well - hard sessions are hard and the easier sessions have been enjoyable. It has taken me 8 weeks to get used to the idea that a training session might only include 25 minutes of really hard running. Most sessions are over and done within the hour. Saturday long runs are finished before the kids are out of bed!!!

The other fun part of this weekends race is the "team" competition. There are 3 other local teams who are all trying to win the mens team event, and without going right into all of the athletes I will be running agains Paul "Tex" Tucker (yes 2.42 marathoner and 1.12 half marathoner YIKES!), Gav Bendall (TNF finisher and 2.58 marathoner) and Aiden. I have no idea what Aiden will run, but he was a national level swimmer so fair guess he has a massive engine and eye of the tiger when he races.

So what does this mean for our team? Well on paper we certainly will match it with the other teams in the water and on the bike. My race plan is to run nice and evenly through the 21km, so maintain an even 4.30 average pace the first 10km will be OK at that pace, but I know I will need to dig deep to hang on for the second part of it.

The course isnt the easiest to run on, nor is it ideal that you have to wait around for your team mate to come in on the bike (the waiting killed me last time). Getting nutrition and hydration right is a bit of a juggling act, and keeping cool on the run is also important as it can be hot out on the exposed part of the road.

So I will be out there chasing 1.35 trying not to let Jason and Lawto down. Hopefully it all comes together, I can hang on and we can finish somewhere near the pointy end for the men's teams. If it comes down to a sprint finish, which it may do, I hope my leg speed and memories of that Year 7 cross country will get me to the finish in front of the chase pack.

“You can't build a reputation on what you are going to do.”  - Henry Ford
PEX

PS - If you are in Yeppoon on Sunday why not come out and watch the race, there will be PRO triathletes in town, and as a spectacle it certainly is an awesome sight watching them race for the cash!

Also if you havent registered yet....DO IT! Less than 40 singlets left! www.cqphysiosc.com

Train Like Crazy

First things first, the blog looks a little different this week. I have added the CQPhysio Group Spring Classic Banner to the top and also added a blog counter to the right hand tool bar.

The banner is really just to remind you that you need to register for the race www.cqphysiosc.com - but the blog counter is really just to pump my own tyres up. You see I have tried to write this blog as a self reflection piece and those blogs are really raw and honest, then other blogs are really "information" blogs for you the reader.

It certainly is weird to think I have regular readers from the USA and Canada, people who I dont know and probably never will. They probably stumble across my blog as they are googling for "Boston Marathon" or "JDRF logo" or "Nude Race" and my blog pops up so they have a scroll through.

Is that you? Are you one of those people who just stumble across my blog and have a read, check out my profile and never return?

If you are a regular reader, or have stumbled across my blog and you would like me to write about something - leave me a comment on the blog, on facebook (www.facebook.com/HREoz ) or twitter @RunPexRun .

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Watching the olympics this week has really pumped me up to knuckle down with my 1%'ers. A term often used in team sports, where the difference between winning and loosing is very small (1%) - leaving no stone unturned to achieve the best I can be.

I have been really pumping out my speed work and sticking to the new half marathon plan. There are great positives with this, as I am already running stronger and faster and feel like I can hold a higher pace for longer now. The only negative has been my diet. Now I am not fat. Nor do I need to loose bucket loads of weight. BUT I did have a trip away with work last week which resulted in a LOT of beer and some questionable diet choices. Whilst my training was still spot on, I really am sabbotaging myself by eating like that.

Now I am not going fully vegetarian like RunBennyBoyRun or vegan like the TattooRunner - I am just concentrating on eating healthy again and being sensible with my portion sizes. I know I was running my best when I was closer to 72kg, which isnt stick thin for my frame - so by the end of the month I am going to clean the diet up to get back to that point and see how I feel then.

The thing I think about watching the Olympics is that the athletes dont cut corners. I have mentioned this a long time ago, but I was a fan on "get fit fast" "run less run faster" "less is more" type running programs. For me they dont work. I doubt any Olympians are competing on a less is more training program.

I have had a couple of comments about Jason's bike time up Mt Archer last week. It is insanely fast. Did he get strong from skipping sessions? NO. Jason does close to 20hrs per week on the bike....TWENTY hours! That is half a work week!!! Are you investing that volume of time? I'm not thats for sure. I am investing about 12-14hrs a week. I know Ben and Mat (Tattoo Runner) are running 100 MILES a week! Thats 160km! Both Ben and Mat smashed their PB's last week at the Flinders 50km trail race. They will probably tell you that it is because they are tree huggin vegetarians, BUT the real reason is they, like Jason are training hard and putting in the work.

Do the work - get the results. Train Like Crazy.

It may have slipped off the radar of the blog, but I am racing with Scott "The King" Lawton and Jason "Cadel" Paull at the Yeppoon 70.3. Lawto is swimming the 1.9k, Jas will bike the 90k and I get the run leg 21k half marathon....I have been training well and will set a new half marathon PB - hoping to go close to 1.35. Its in 2 weeks! Cant wait!

Best of luck to Leah, Gav, Trisha, Kathryn and Michael at the Brisbane Marathon this weekend. Mel and Dave in the half too! Rip it up.

Also good luck to Jason - he will smash it at Cunningham Classic in Brisbane on Saturday!

Pex

Lucky Number 7

“I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”  Michael Jordan.

So it has taken me 7 marathons to get to this point. I have flown to Melbourne, Canberra, Gold Coast and Brisbane chasing PBs. I have gone from a massive over-pronator, to barefoot runner and somewhere in between in 3 ½  years. On the 1^st of July 2012 it happened, I finally feel that I have run somewhere near my potential. A point where I can look in the mirror, and be satisfied that the investment has been worth it.

In a quiet moment on the start line on Sunday morning I thought long and hard about my two distinct and race finish options. One is that I have “another” race where the wheels fall off and I write a painful soul searching race report, one where I ask myself a million questions and get zero answers. The other is that I climb into the race and seek out the pain and know that I am the most mentally tough runner there is on the course.

And so I did just that.

But before we get to Sunday’s race and all of its glory – I thought I would just take you back through the other 6 marathons. I have eluded to a number of marathon race failures, so here is the abbreviated version of what has happened over the past 3 years.

1.    Gold Coast Marathon 2009. Net Time 4.38.03. Splits 2.03.42 and 2.34.20.

First marathon on very little training. I ran a half marathon PB in this race (by 6 minutes) and went too hard too early. Payed for it terribly out the back end of the course, but loved every moment. As I ran back to the finish, seeing Bel and the boys and my mum I was very emotional, the love affair with the marathon was born. I was aiming for 4.30 so only 8 minutes off, I was pleased with the finish time.

2.    Gold Coast Marathon 2010. Net Time 5.16.40. Splits 1.55.31 and 3.21.09.

My first marathon where I have run injured. I had run a 1.42 half marathon at the river run 3 weeks earlier in Vibram Five Fingers and just after the race had injured the top of my foot. Top of Foot Pain (TOFP) was terrible – but I made the mistake of not returning to shoes and persevering with the Vibrams. I had taken a few pain killers at the start and thought that if I could get through 10km I should be OK. At 14km, before the turn around I was cramping badly, so bad I was reduced to a walk at about 21km. I walk ran the last half of the marathon. Reduced to suffering in unbearable pain in my left foot and cramps. Luke ran the last 10 with me, and watched as I suffered badly. My sister ran past me on her way to her marathon debut in a touch over 5hrs. It was a very weird feeling having her pass me at the 34km mark. Two panadene forte at the finish line knocked me out. I woke up at 7pm that night, with no recollection of how I got back to the motel from Jason’s. That was my last race in Vibrams, I needed shoes!

3.    Melbourne Marathon 2010. Net Time 4.17.20. Splits 1.54.45 and 2.22.25. Melbourne was so beautiful. The race started early and I ran with Mon’s coach Roger for the first 25km. We went through the half with 5 minutes in the bank for a sub 4hr marathon. This was my second serious attempt at going under 4hrs, this time I wasn’t going to be stupid and go too hard, so we ran comfortably for the first half. I needed a toilet stop and lost Roger in the crowd. Going back up Flinders St I hit the wall, and needed fuel, I hadn’t taken any gels on board for a while and ended up fading in the last 10. Coming into the MCG was a very special moment, you run a lap of the oval and it was very special. I knew I was going to run a PB so I was very excited! I felt great that I finished strong, but it was bitter sweet. Luke had busted his knee and hadn’t run, so it was tough seeing him sitting on the sidelines. Hayden came with me to Melbourne, it was the best father son trip you could wish for. PBs for me, and a big day at the Zoo the next day for him. Thanks Tiger Airways for $40 flights! I was shooting for sub 4 but was happy with the PB.

4.    Canberra Marathon 2011. Net Time 4.39.55. Splits 2.02.25 and 2.37.30. Another marathon with TOFP this time from trying to do too much in my Nike Free’s. This is my famous “fat marathon” – where I was tipping the scales at 80.5kg (I am around the 72.5-73kg now). I flew to Canberra with Michael and really just hoped to be in one piece at the end. The pain in my foot resulted in me changing my gait and in the end my left glute locked up, it felt like it was in my hip joint and resulted in me suffering quite badly at the end. I was cold and miserable – but resolved my fuelling issues. No crashing due to lack of fuel like I had in Melbourne. When I got back and Jason looked at my photos, the famous “loose some weight” line was said. So I began dropping weight before Gold Coast. I was realistically aiming for a 4.10-4.15 Marathon. Disappointed again. I stop wearing the Nike Free’s and went back to a real shoe, actually the opposite to Free’s. I ran in Jason’s Nike Vomero’s (Nike’s most plush shoe) and within a week my TOFP was gone. I bought a pair within 3 weeks and haven’t had a foot injury since.....

5.    Gold Coast Marathon 2011. Net Time 4.18.52. Splits 1.54.33 and 2.24.18.

My race was punctuated by another injury, this one I didnt see coming! ITB pain at the 25km mark and I thought my race was over. It eventually became a little looser, but I just couldn’t run hard on it. 12 months of training and I hadn’t even improved upon my Melbourne PB. I seriously needed a decent marathon to make this all worthwhile. Best moment was seeing Michael and Gav at the Grand after the race, they both had gone under 3hrs for the first time and it was very special seeing them both so ecstatic. I had another one of those awkward moments, where people tell you that you did a great time, but you know they are just being nice. All I had was another excuse why I hadn’t gone under 4hrs. Jason and Luke both snuck under 4hrs, I was so happy for them. My turn must be coming.....

6.    Brisbane Marathon 2011. Net Time 4.05.57. Splits 1.48.43 and 2.17.25.

Jason and I flew to Brisbane and just went crazy at the race. Jason ran with no watch and simply crushed it, running 3.36 – I was on track for sub 4, right up to the last 6 or so kms where I crashed and had nothing left. I was vomiting at km 39 and had “burnt” all of my matches. Finishing with my sister was special – when I finished I sat there sobbing like a 5 year old girl, I had given 100% and finally got close to the elusive 4hr mark. Was I ever going to get there? Maybe this is as fast as I will ever run....

Which gets us to Sunday, Lucky Number 7.

What does it feel like to have a decent race? I spent time visualising the course on Saturday, thinking about the feeling of running through the 37km turn around at the top end of the course (I have always been walking through there), coming down the finish chute – seeing the clock say 3.XX.

The start of the race felt very familiar, like meeting an old friend for coffee. Nothing felt new, or different quite the contrast to TNF where it was an overload to the senses. I hugged Greg and wished him luck for his marathon debut, climbed through the fence and found a spot to wait for the start.

As you know I had no watch. So it felt like  an eternity for Deek to get on the microphone and give his marathon speech. I shed a tear at the end of his speech he said, “do it for your yourself, do it for your family”.

This was my time.

The gun went, and it took a while to get to the start line, no watch meant that I just ran by feel. I started a fair way back off the 3.30 balloons, in between the 3.30 and then 3.45 balloons. As the race started, I got into a rhythm early – not pushing, just getting comfortable.

I made a decision early to wait for a couple of kms before trying to get onto the back of the 3.30 balloon, but the volume of people though made it a non event so I just stuck to a pace that felt hard but not crazy (like I have run in the past). I realised that there were 2 ladies running the same pace, they look comfortable and weren’t surging or doing anything stupid. So I just sat behind them all of the way down to the 15km turn around.

Within that 15km nothing exciting happened. I purposely left my ipod off, just tried to listen to my feet and my breathing. Both sounded great. Luke went past at about 8km, and Big M (Brenden) went past me I think at 10 or 11km.

As we got closer to the turn around, it was great to see the crew all coming back the other way. Paul, Pete, Michael, Benny, Gav, Jacob, Leah, Polly...each one of them gave me a little boost as they each went past.

Heading back towards the start finish, I had a little down period where I felt a bit off, it lasted from about 18km to 22km then all of a sudden I was feeling great again. I did notice that the weather was quite warm, much warmer than normal. As we went through Surfers Paradise I was cruising, feeling great. Up ahead I saw Big M – which was weird, I shouldn’t be catching him, I knew something must be wrong.

Within a km I was on his shoulder and slowed to have a chat. We ran for a while together, I was a little hyper at this stage, feeling awesome ready to tear the race up. Brenden said he burnt too many matches running 4.30s earlier, and was paying the price. I knew how he felt, and as my pace was starting to push again he told me to push on. So I did.

The sun was beginning to really beat down on me. What was weird was that I was able to actually plan the back section of the race, I knew it was hot, so I needed more fluids at the aid stations. My left calf was beginning to cramp so I grabbed some cups of Endura at the aid stations, I took a couple more Clif Shot Bloks and got ready for it to get hard.

I ran over the bridge at the 30km marker, this was the first time ever for me, I was starting to really heat up – so I made a very smart move. The next aid station – the really big long one that I knew was coming, I got to it. Grabbed two cups of endura, got those in, walked some more, and grabbed a total of 6 cups of water. 4 for my head and body and 2 to drink. I said to myself, you have 11km of hurt. Lets get this done.

I went through the 30km in 2.33 – and knew that I would finish with 3.40-3.45. I began to think very clearly. Right, it is hot and hard, so don’t spend too much energy until the 37km mark, then push if there is anything left.

Back at home, my 30km split come up on Jason’s screen. Jason was watching with his brother Troy. Troy said “Sean will find a way to f$%k this up, he always does” – Jason thought about it for a moment, the comment was raw but honest. Jason said back “not today – he has this”.

32km rolled around and Rodney was on the sideline, He jumped into the race to be my unofficial pacer. He knew the drill, I wanted to run 3.45. He asked how I felt, I said cooked, and my calf was beginning to cramp. We just pushed on, he was ½ a step in front always just trying to push the pace a little.

As we saw the "big three" go past it looked like Leah had dug the deepest she had a lead over Jacob and a fair lead on Polly. The look on her face was sheer determination. The boys looked like they were hanging on. Again as I went past them, I got a little surge in me and as we ran over the bridge into the roundabout towards the 37km turn around I spotted Luke.

He was maybe 3-4 minutes ahead of me. He said his ITB was playing up, which was always going to be a risk as it has been sore for month.

I hit the turn around and Rodney said PUSH HARD. So we did. I burnt up every single one of my last matches, the first 3.45 balloon came past at 40km and the second balloon went past at 40.80 – I surged past it trying to stay in front, but as I did my left calf cramped and locked at 41km. I stopped and stretched it on the gutter – then just bit my lip and tried to hang on for the last km.

Coming around the finish area was surreal. I knew I had run a huge PB and was close to 3.45...I just ran as hard as I possibly could in the last section. All I could think of was Joel and Hayden yelling “HULK SMASH” – I made a bit of a spectacle of myself and was yelling out “Come ON” – then I saw the clock it was slowly ticking over to 3.46.59, 3.47.00.....I raced jumped to touch the sign then collapsed as both my legs went into spasm.

7.    Gold Coast Marathon 2012. Net Time 3.45.37. Splits 1.44.35 and 2.01.02.

Boom. Personal Best by 20 minutes.

Looking at all of my splits I ran faster between 35-40km than what I did from 30-35km! Which is an excellent sign.

I learnt lots, but most importantly I realise that my recent race experiences have made me mentally very tough. I am more experienced now to problem solve on the run and just have the ability to tough it out. When the race got hard, I didn't go looking for excuses to quit like I have in the past....I just sucked it up enjoyed the hurt and went to the limit.

Rocky Road Runners race report next week.......

Enjoy your week off and your beers!

Pex

76/100 - The TNF100 Race Interview

It’s Saturday night, 9.30 PM.  I’m at a friends for dinner, talking about our cycling training.  I’ve spent the day training and then updating the HRE Facebook with TNF100 updates.  They’re all going so well.  Sean, at least from the limited information the live timing provides, seems to be on plan.  His texts throughout the day are all positive – it’s finally happening for him.   I’m relaxed, knowing that in a couple of hours, Sean will be enjoying his greatest athletic achievement to date and carrying his longed for bronze buckle.

My phone starts flashing – it’s on silent.  I’ve ignored a few other calls from friends that evening (it’s rude to answer your phone when invited for dinner!).  I glance at my phone – Sean Peckover.  I quickly say “I have to get this”.  Me – “Hey mate how you going?” Sean – “I’m done mate.  I’m pulling out”………

Welcome to Run Pex Run.  In this post, I’ve got the reins.  As you know, Sean attempted The North Face 100 on Saturday and rather than him telling you the story, we’ve decided that the best way to truly gain an appreciation of what happened and where Sean’s at now, is for me to interview him.

I’m Jason.  The other half of HRE.  You’ve seen Sean refer to me in a number of blog posts.  I’m that guy that gave up running marathons to become a cyclist.  All you need to know about me is that I’m the most qualified person to be interviewing Sean post his TNF100 adventure.  We’re very close friends.  We’re business partners.  We share each other’s successes and each other’s failures.  When he called, I did not even attempt to convince Sean to continue.  I know him too well.  I know that if he was pulling out of THIS race, he would have already exhausted every possible fibre that would have allowed him to continue.  Telling me he was done meant he was done.

What is truly inspirational about Sean Peckover is not the amazing athletic transformation.  Nor the incredible training adventures described here.  Nor the fact that he pushed his body to its physical limits last weekend.  Yes, these feats do inspire us all to reach for our dreams.  To commit to them.  To achieve them.  However, what is most inspirational about Sean is his ability to ask himself hard questions and answer them honestly.  He owns his actions; his results.  There are never excuses.  I believe there are far more ultra marathon finishers than there are people with this self reflective ability.  Therefore, I know that this interview will see the rawness and honesty often a feature of his posts.

Sean – in one word only, describe how you feel about what happened at TNF100?

Devastated.

So, briefly, what happened, why did you end up withdrawing?

Simply my issues from my previous ultras (being sick, stomach shut down) occurred again. In post run analysis mode, I believe the significant climbs up the Golden Stairs, Ironpot Ridge and Nellies Glenn raised my heart rate (effort) to the point in which all of my blood supply was going to my legs, and nothing around my stomach. I had stomach issues and come through them after the Golden Stairs and Ironpot – the climb up Nellies at 60km was the beginning of the end.

After Checkpoint 4 (65km) I was in bad shape, but tried to remain positive. Ben and I had enough time to buckle if we kept moving, however after going through Echo Point at 70km and going down 800 odd stairs of the Giant Staircase I was gone. I started vomiting uncontrollably. I said to Ben that I couldn’t suffer 28 more kilometres of it. He made me walk and think about it, he said if I wanted to quit I had to call you (Jason) to explain. I said I was prepared for that, and prepared to sign the race withdrawal paperwork when I pulled out.

After Ben called the race directors to come and pick me up, I kept vomiting. Two things happened during the next hour which scare me, one is I hallucinated and saw a massive white horse on the trail and the second was I was falling asleep whilst upright. If Ben wasn’t there – who knows what could of happened.

Once the truck picked me up and I got back to CP 5 – the Doctor checked my vitals, I was suffering from hypothermia and dehydration. Seeing a horse that doesn’t exist is not a good sign.

That horse was probably Marty Hack.  I hear he does that in the middle of races.   Many people have commented that what you did was ‘inspirational’, and ‘amazing’, how do you feel about this?  Do you agree / disagree?

I failed. In simple terms I signed up for a 100km race and finished 76% of it. When I arrived home to my family I have nothing to show for the 40 weeks of training, for the time away from my family, for the financial investment. I have zero. No buckle, no finish.

There are loosely two groups of people that send messages of support. Athletes and non athletes.

For the non-athletes, I can see how I can inspire them to get off the couch and get out the front door. To lose some weight or sign up for a race. For the non-athletes running 5km seems as farfetched as running 100km. I really appreciate the fact that I have inspired some non runners during my journey to get active and healthy. Greg Smith is one example. Yes I am an inspiration to him and people like him.

For the athletes, I am not amazing or inspiring. I am a disappointment. I had 40 weeks to get my preparation right and I failed to deliver. No excuses. I trained harder than other finishers. I put more work in. I missed a grand total of half a running session in 40 weeks. I was as fit, healthy and ready to run. I poorly executed a race which I had more than adequately prepared for. I should not be an inspiration to other runners, I should serve as a stark reminder that bad things happen to good people.

On the flight down, did you even consider DNFing?  You were extremely confident that lessons learnt in your preparation races (relax the pace) would see you avoid the gut issues in the Blue Mountains?

I had not one negative thought in my mind. I was visualising the finish area. I ran on Thursday afternoon to see what the final couple of kilometres were going to be like. I spent time really going over this in my head. I even started the celebration blog, it is in draft. That is how confident I was.

I really believed the pace strategy that Ben had laid out for us was spot on and that we were both going to have a great day and buckle.

You call me at 9:30 PM in the Blue Mountains, about to withdraw.  What runs through your head as the phone rings?

The two hardest phone calls were to you and to Bel (my wife). Obviously she was upset for me, but more concerned about my health and if I needed to go to the hospital and should I be alone in the motel room etc. She has never seen me fail at anything, so it is a unique situation where I have said I was going to do something but failed.

The call to you was tragic, I know you get all of the sneaky questions and comments about my lack of ability, nutritional queries – you deal with all of the doubters who will never say anything to my face. For you I wanted the moment where you could say “I told you so” – that moment didn’t occur. My failure is your failure.

Is the athlete who started this journey the same one in front of me now?  If not, how are you different?

I have gone to another level. The 6 time marathon finisher that started this journey is now long gone. I doubt I can go back to just doing events for fun. I have seen significant improvement in myself physically to feed the obsession. I understand what it takes now to see results. My old training habits are gone.

Have you found your limits?

I went past my physical limitations into a bad place, I obviously have a problem with nutrition and effort in longer races. I found my limit physically in the race, I don’t give in easily so was past the point of safety when I decided to quit.

Now I have improvements to be made in speed, flexibility and power. All things I have not worked on during this training journey. Being 31 and seeing what some 50 year olds are doing makes you realise that there is improvement in all of us.

Are you going back to TNF100 in 2013 to deal with unfinished business?

No. My improvements will now be in the form of being a faster runner. My path was set before I DNF’ed. I am hungry to run faster marathons. 2013 has many adventures for me, TNF100 isn’t one of them.

Do you think you will ever go back?

Doubt it. If I did, it would be the last thing on my running bucket list. If I went back it would be to run faster than the DNF time (14.30) so I would want to have the ability and conditioning to run 14hrs. I am a long way from that point.

Did you ‘over prepare’ (paralysis by analysis)?

Good question! A tough one. Possibly. By my nature I was very prepared, including lists, leaving no stone unturned type of personality. I didn’t over prepare physically as I was fresh and not injured on race day. Did I burn myself out mentally? Yes probably. I went through a period where I was “over it” but that lasted only for a couple of weeks.

I didn’t have a training history like Ben or Scott Lawton, so I needed to have 40 weeks to prepare myself physically. Some people have been able to complete the race on less training, I am not sure I would like that feeling to go in to a race underdone.

Did I get sick due to over preparation? Did I force myself to get sick because I feared success more than failure, I am not sure? I think that is a valid question to ask yourself. Is it possible to subconsciously sabotage yourself? Possibly. If it is, then I have a lot of issues to work out; fear of failure is one thing, fear of success is something totally different.

One of our Facebook ‘likers’ asked how do you feel after committing to this achievement during a difficult time in your life (your Father’s accident) and now coming home without the buckle?  Is it hollow?

Very much so. My eldest son Hayden asked me why Ben got a buckle and I didn’t, he said “weren’t you running together”.

When you are motivated to do something that is a symbol of your life situation, then you want to ensure you do everything you can to achieve it.

If my life was a movie and I needed to get to 100km to save my family’s life from the “baddies” they would be dead. I failed to make it. It is a sobering hollow feeling that I could do nothing but sit on the side of the road at 76km and weep into my hands.

In the cartoon movies, the good guy always wins mate (they found Nemo, Woody rescued Buzz, even Homer Simpson saved Springfield).  Eventually.  What’s next – what will your readers read about over the next 12 months?

Readers will get the chance to follow my journey as I aim to qualify for the Boston Marathon. The holy grail of marathons. Boston is THE marathon that every marathoner wants to run, not only do I want to be fast enough to qualify but I want to go to the USA to run it. The journey starts next week. I am no where need good enough to run a Boston Qualifier (BQ) at the moment, the journey for the readers will be a massive one, am confident of more ups than downs.

Despite all of the above, your attitude post TNF is one of a little disappointment, however you are refreshingly positive.  Explain that.

I am at a cross roads, I can’t change the past. So I either sit here and sook about it, “poor me I deserve more than this” or I accept it, own the failure, pick another event and move on. As a father to two young boys, the example I want to set is that life isn’t fair, it isn’t perfect, sometimes you get a setback – you have to keep your chin up and move forward.   

Why don’t you quit running, buy a sick Specialised carbon fibre weapon and some super quick carbon wheels and come cycling and drinking cappuccinos with me?

Ha Ha Ha. Don’t worry it has crossed my mind! Cycling is too hard, you do more work than I do!

You know me, I am a running purist and cycling to me is like car racing, running is pure. You can’t buy time when you are running. It is you v the distance v the clock, no tactics, no riding in a bunch to conserve energy.

I guess the other question people might ask, is why don’t you do something you were already good at? That is an interesting one, why keep trying to pursue something that is using so much energy and I get minimal results. Maybe I should go back and play Rugby League or try rowing or archery or mountain biking. I don’t have the answer – I simply just LOVE to run. It is a curse.

I wouldn’t say no to a new carbon Specialized from Tuckers though!!!

Ahem, ah, well, that ‘sitting in the bunch’ is only so you can later launch a solo attack for the win up a hill kilometres from the line whilst your legs scream and your heart rate – never mind. 

Answer this - Sean Peckover – hungry or broken?

Hungry.

Well – watch your weight then.  Oh, you probably mean metaphorically ‘hungry’.  Right.  Why are you eating that second cheeseburger then?  Don’t answer that.

Anything else to add?

The point of blogging for me is to try and be as honest and self reflective as possible. I am not someone who writes what people want to hear, nor do I want people to feel pity on me for my failure. The purpose of exposing myself via this blog is for readers to be part of my journey, the successes and failures, my emotions - how I am going and how I view the world.

Do I invest too much emotion into races? Aren’t they meant to be fun? I love running, the moment that I don’t and I dread registering for a race, putting the shoes on, pinning a bib to my chest is the day I quit. Until then .......... I’ll run on, chasing the next challenge.

* * * * *

Thanks to Sean for inviting me to interview him on Run Pex Run.  It would be easy to simply say ‘ah well, it didn’t work out, maybe next time’.  Sean never takes this option.  Describing the above was tough.  You may be wondering; how do I feel about his effort?  Am I proud?  Obviously, I’m disappointed for him.  I feel the result is unfair.  The sheer commitment and focus in preparation plus his attitude post the event is what he should be proud of; as I am.  I was just as proud to call him a friend before TNF as I am after it.  Don't for a second think that the result doesn't matter.  It does.  Imagine yourself in Sean's shoes.  Martina Navratilova - "Whoever said it's not whether you win or lose that counts, probably lost".  For this reason, I think Sean will return to TNF100 one day.  When he does, he is likely to have already had other great successes in his running career.  He may do it in a shirt he picked up at Boston.  I can't see him leaving it unfinished.  Sean does everything at 100%.  Nothing will remain at 76%.

Although the interview may sound like Sean is in a negative place, if you get the opportunity to speak to him you will see that he is actually quite positive about what the future holds.  Remember, this account has been recalled only days after the event.

“I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeeded” – Michael Jordan.

Sean’s success will come.  Stay tuned.  When it does I’m sure my phone will again flash with Sean Peckover.

Jason Paull

The North Face 100 Australia - The Preview

Can you believe it!!!

It is finally here!!! Better than CHRISTMAS!

The North Face 100 2011 Highlights

On Saturday the 19th of May at 6.56am I will embark on a trail ultra marathon covering 100km - including 4500m of ascent and descent of the world heritage listed Blue Mountains in New South Wales. The North Face 100. Couple of answers to dumb questions, The North Face is a brand (like Nike or Adidas) and the race is 100km in length (not 100 miles thank goodness).

If you are a follower of my blog, I have done a bit of training and a few warm up ultra marathons to get myself prepared. Mentally I am starting to finally feel "together" and ready to go. I've put on about 1.5kg thanks to my brain telling my body that I am still running 100km per week - lets hope it comes in handy to keep me warm down south!

If you are one of my international readers, I live in Rockhampton on the Tropic of Capricorn, so in summer we are the closest point on earth to the sun, not ideal training conditions and definitely not race specific for the freezing cold Blue Mountains! Currently at Katoomba where the race is it has minimum of under 3 degrees and the maximum is about 10-15 degrees - which will make it a very cool/cold day and night.

"There's no such thing as bad weather, just soft people."
-Bill Bowerman

 Click Here For The Weather in Katoomba Right Now

I am travelling with Marty and Benny, we fly out Thursday arrive in Sydney then grab our hire car for the drive up to the Blue Mountains. The three of us are all staying at the race headquarters the Fairmont Resort in Leura. It is going to be a great spot as this is where race pack up is, the pre race briefing on Saturday morning, the start line and the finish line it all happens at the Fairmont. So what it means is very little stress and travelling (all we have to do is walk down the stairs to get to the race start). If you have travelled to a major marathon like Melbourne or Gold Coast - travelling logistics are always a drama. You can't beat staying at the Fairmont.

Click Here to Check out Fairmont Resort

The other runners from the Rockhampton Road Runners are Gavin and Raelene and the RRR President Leah is coming to crew, so there will be a heap of familiar faces. It is nearly an official RRR Event with the President crewing us! Ex-Rocky boy Luke is also running so all up there are 6 of us running who will get a mention in the post race blog.

Once we arrive and check in, we have some "free" time until Friday afternoon when we have to attend race registration and collect our race numbers and have our mandatory gear checked. This might sound weird, but there is a fair bit of gear that you had to purchase for the race. All of this needs to be checked by the race directors before they give you the OK to line up the next day. Race check in is at 4pm, so it will be a good chance to catch up with other runners and soak up the atmosphere! I cannot wait!!

Mandatory Gear List - WTF!

My very supportive wife cannot understand why we need so much stuff and why there are boxes of gear turning up from Wiggle every couple of weeks. As you can see from the list, the gear is designed to keep us warm and safe - if the weather turns extra nasty and it snows at least we will keep a little warm.

The other thing about TNF is last year Team Salomon brought a crack team of elite ultra runners who took out the 3 podium spots for the men. The worlds best ultra runner Kilian Jornet smashed the course record on his way to victory. This year will see the return of Salomon's rock star ultra runner South African Ryan Sandes (winner of the Leadville 100miler in 2011 in the 4th fastest ever time).The North Face not to be out done this year have also flown in their own rock star ultra runner Jez Brag from the UK. It could be a real head to head battle with those guys up the front.

Click here to Learn More About Ryan Sandes
Click Here to Learn about Jez Bragg

On the local front the team from Ultra 168 have put together a review of the elites, including the Aussie guys who will be up near the front. Names like Andrew Vize and Brandon Davies will all feature. Blue Mountain local and 2 time TNF winner Andy Lee will also have something to prove. Leah will have the best seat in the house watching the elite fight out the podium spots.

Ultra 168
Ultra 168 TNF 100 Race Preview

There might be a bit of elite ultra runner celebrity spotting at race check in, like I said it will be an awesome experience to be there with the other runners from all over Oz. Can't wait to get my hands on my race bib #58!

Saturday morning will see us getting up at a normal hour, about 5am to have breakfast and sort out the last bits of gear for our drop bags. We will then head to the race briefing downstairs at 6.20 before walking outside to the race start on the road. The race has 4 start waves, self seeded. Marty, Gav, Benny, Luke, Raelene and I have all put ourselves in Group 2. So we get started at 6.56am. There are 2 other groups behind us. The groups are meant to help with the congestion in the early part of the race.

Once we are underway, we have 28hrs to finish the 100km. This is pretty generous, and it is possible to walk the entire way and finish within the time frame. Most runners though will be shooting for 2 time brackets, the first is Sub 14hrs the second is Sub 20hrs. The sub 14 finishers will be awarded with a Silver TNF 100 Finisher Buckle, the sub 20 finishers will be awarded with a Bronze TNF 100 Finishers Buckle. Of our group Marty and Gav have the potential to go sub 14hrs. If Benny wasn't running with me, he would also be giving the 14hrs a nudge.

For the rest of our group we are chasing a sub 20hr finish and to "Buckle". If you finish after 20hrs before the 28hr cut off, you are awarded with a finishers certificate. It is a long way to go to not Buckle!

For Benny, Raelene, Luke and I our races will be about being sensible with our effort, enjoying the day and taking it easy for the first 50km.

The race is broken into 6 legs, there are 5 checkpoints. Leg 1 is 18km, Leg 2 is 20km, Leg 3 is 16km, Leg 4 is 11km, Leg 5 is 24km and the final Leg of 11km.

At Checkpoints (CP), 3, 4 and 5 crews will be there - so Leah and Luke's fiance Bonnie will be providing their food, fresh socks etc. For the rest of us without a crew we will leave drop bags with our extra gear at CP 3,4,5.

So what do you put in drop bags.....well there are the normal things like more gels, powerade, coke, chips etc. Some of the other things will be a change of gloves, a warmer beanie, extra batteries etc. Checkpoints can be a trap also, so as you are tracking us - keep an eye on how much time we are spending at CPs. We want to be efficient at them to save time, not sit around having a picnic.

By about CP 4 we will be close to turning on our headlamps and running the remaining 35 odd kms to the finish in the dark. This will probably just be a solid walk with some running on the downhill sections for me. Who knows how my body will be going after 65km.

It would be super nice to be finished by 17hrs (just before midnight) but the goal really is to Buckle and be done by 20hrs.

Like I said earlier Benny, Marty and I are staying at the Fairmont Resort. Once finished I am guessing we might try and stomach a celebratory beer and have a shower and get warm with our buckles!

So how will you keep a track of us through the day?

The easiest way will be to follow the live updates and comments by HRE partner Jason at our Facebook page. Go and "Like" HRE by clicking www.facebook.com/HREoz

Jason will be stalking the live athlete tracking on the event website but most importantly will be receiving texts from all of us during the day. He will be sure to add some commentary from our texts, so expect to see "Gav putting the hammer down and on track for sub 14hrs" and "Sean and Ben running sensibly - on track for a buckle with no stomach issues" as a couple of example Facebook posts.

So it is finally here my Christmas, my dream- the sense of anticipation is intense. Come Saturday I'm prepared to suffer with the best of them for 28hrs (if I have to).

"We all have dreams. But in order to make dreams come into reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline, and effort." - Jesse Owens

 To my fellow TNF runners

"May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind be always at your back."
-Irish Proverb

Catch you next week - stay tuned and lock into our race progress via Facebook

PEX