After Herdys’ Frontyard Ultra I gave myself a week off, bar the Thursday morning Yelo run of course. You can never miss Yelo, remember traditions and runners.
The usual suspects at the weekly Yelo run
No thought of running or any exercise bar cutting my lawn which is an ultra in itself ! Spent time with No 3 daughter watching my favourite AFL team lose, again ! Breakfast and lunch with the family, all things you miss when you’re in training. Recovery time is more than sitting around doing nothing, it’s also about catching up with friends and family, repairing bridges you’ve burned when you disappear of the social radar for months. Rest and recovery are a massive par of any runners calendar and need to be approached as methodically as you would a full training program. Get this period right and it is a springboard for future success, get it wrong and Mr. Fatigue comes calling and hangs around for a long time.
With this in mind I’d thought it’d be a good time to post on getting ready for the running season and tips on being your best. I picked up this post from the trailrunnermag website. It was written by David Roche in 2016 but still rings true today, good articles are timeless albeit running is a simple sport. Two of my favourite authors Arthur Lydiard ( https://www.lydiardfoundation.org/ ) and Tim Noakes, who wrote the bible of long distance running ‘ The Lore of Running‘, wrote articles and published books decades ago but are still relevant today. Albeit Tim Noakes has since recounted a lot of his advice from the Lore of Running as he spruiked a Low Carb , High Fat diet later in his career . Maybe running isn’t that simple after all ?
Consider this your 100% comprehensive guide to prepping for your best season yet. Use these tips to get yourself strong and fit for racing.
Pre-Season (a.k.a. Off-Season)
Before you can eat the cake, you have to clean and pre-heat the oven. An unstructured pre-season (usually falling right after your final race of the previous year) is essential to prevent mental burnout, reduce long-term injury risk and prepare your body for the training to come. Execute a fun—yet disciplined—pre-season, and you’ll be ready to start cooking when it counts.
Goal: “To reset, both physically and mentally,” as Stephanie Howe, Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology and Nutrition and winner of the 2014 Western States 100, puts it.
Duration: Two to 12 weeks. Generally, if you are racing 5K to half-marathon, your pre-season can be shorter since there should be less long-term muscle damage to heal. If you are racing ultramarathons, the pre-season should be longer to account for the physical and mental demands of all-day trail adventures.
Methods
A good pre-season should be chiller than a character played by early-career Matthew McConaughey, but it is important to apply some basic principles if you want your body to be “alright, alright, alright.”
Minimize pounding. “My main goal is to prevent any additional musculoskeletal breakdown,” says my wife Megan Roche, the 2014 U.S. Trail 10K and 50K Champion and a medical student at Stanford University. “I want to start each season knowing that my body is fresh. That translates to no hard downhill running or runs over one hour.” Megan runs consistently, but avoids longer, faster running for a few weeks.
Ditch the compulsion. Pre-season is the time to empower your inner child and remember that running is not a chore that earns you an allowance but a recess to get a little muddy before returning to life’s responsibilities. “I try to ensure that my mind gets a break,” says Howe. “I don’t force out any activities and try to keep things fun. That can mean that if it’s really cold and snowy outside, I’ll do warm yoga. Or I’ll bake cookies!”
Get outside and play. Find new ways to indulge your love for nature while you scale back your running (see Pre-Season Adventures, below), like skiing, mountain biking or (if you’re one of our Canadian readers) taking a curling class at your local pond. Scratching your outdoors itch through other activities increases strength for the season to come, without stressing your body in the same way running does.
Work on your weaknesses. If you’re like most runners, your hips are tight, your core is neglected and your glutes are beautifully toned but not operating at 100-percent efficiency. Get your rear in gear with yoga or simple strength routines (see Strength-Building Circuit, below).
Evaluate body composition. If you are carrying around a few extra pounds, the pre-season gives you a chance to hone your nutrition without going into workouts under-fueled, according to Maria Dalzot, a registered dietitian and the 2014 U.S. Half Marathon Trail Champion. “Experimenting with different dietary styles is a process of trial and error, so it is good to have flexible training so you can adjust your activity to meet your energy levels,” she says.
Fun, Fitness-Building Pre-Season Adventures
1.Ski Mountaineering. “Ski-mo” is the off-season choice for trail-running luminaries like Kilian Jornet, Rob Krar, Chris Vargo and Alicia Shay. In ski-mo, you trek up a mountain for a massive aerobic workout, then ski down.
2.Mountain Biking. There are few things in life more exhilarating (and sometimes humiliating) than bombing a downhill on a mountain bike. Plus, the bike builds aerobic capacity and muscular endurance. Multiple-time U.S. Mountain Running Team member Chris Lundy is also a top cyclist.
3. Hiking. Howe fills her off-season with long hikes with her dog. Hiking prepares your legs for structured trail training and delivers a surprisingly good aerobic workout. Kick it up a notch by power hiking steeper climbs to build strength.
4. Bouldering and Scrambling. If you’re feeling adventurous, add bouldering or scrambling to your next hike. Both activities build full-body strength. Top ultrarunners Anton Krupicka and Joe Grant, among others, are famous for their epic run-scramble outings on the iconic rock faces of Boulder’s Flatirons.
5.Stair Climbing. If you are stuck in a city or short on time, stairs are a great way to build strength without much injury risk. 2014 U.S. Mountain Running Champion Allie McLaughlin is famous for grueling stair workouts on the Manitou Incline in Colorado. On a set of stairs at least three stories high, alternate running every step with power walking or running two steps at a time for at least 10 minutes. Run down easily for recovery.
Strength-Building Circuit
1. Lunges. Alternate front, side and rear lunges for one to three minutes to open up your hip girdle, increase range of motion and build trail-ready strength.
2.Leg swings. Thirty seconds each of side-to-side and forward-and-back leg swings will increase range of motion and dynamic flexibility, improving your stride.
3.Hurdles. Start with your foot on the ground behind you and imagine a low hurdle at your side. Lift your foot up and over the imaginary hurdle, bringing it down on the other side. After 10 repetitions, start with your leg on the other side of the “hurdle” and do 10 more in reverse. Hurdles work your hips, glutes, and back.
4. Back bridges. Lying flat on your back, thrust your hips toward the sky 30 times to work your back and glute strength. Do them in public to increase your embarrassment threshold.
5.Planks. Do two one-minute sets each for front, left-side and right-side planks to strengthen your core.
6. Push-ups. Push-ups strengthen your arms and core.
7. Chair dips. When sitting on a chair or bench, put your hands on the edge and move your butt off the front. Then, dip down and up to work your back and shoulders.
Early Season
You are ready to start your season when you feel injury free, mentally refreshed and possibly a pound or two heavier from pre-season ice cream.
There is a saying about successful running that aptly describes the early season: “You’ve gotta put the hay in the barn.” In other words, you have to do the work, little by little, to reap the benefits, however unglamorous it may be. The early season is all about simplicity: Understand the best way to shovel the hay, and you’ll be ready for your best season yet.
Goal: Build your durability, aerobic threshold and neuromuscular efficiency.
Duration: Four to 12 weeks. If you are building mileage for a longer race, it’s important to spend more time in this phase. If you’re in a rush to get to hard workouts and peak performances, the early season can be shorter.
Methods
Apply these four principles to fill your barn with the highest-quality hay:
1. Build your base. Start at 40 to 60 percent of your sustained weekly mileage from the middle of the previous season, emphasizing frequency of runs over length.
Howe cautions that runners should anticipate the soreness that may result after a proper off-season: “The return to running can make you feel like King Kong plodding along on the trail.” After she gets over the initial sluggishness, Howe increases her mileage by no more than 10 percent per week until reaching her goal weekly mileage.
In general, the more miles you run per week, the faster you will race, so the early season could be the most important block of all. The mileage should all be comfortable, which doesn’t necessarily mean slow. If you feel frisky, pick up the pace at the end of base-building runs.
2. Stride it out. Nate Jenkins, a 2:14 marathoner and Team USA runner, swears by the power of strides to build running efficiency and economy. “I personally use them after every run, and I recommend athletes use them two to four times per week,” he says.
On strides, start relaxed and accelerate to the fastest pace you can sustain with smooth, comfortable form. Four to eight intervals of 20 seconds are enough to push you to a speed breakthrough.
3. Maintain your strength and flexibility. Keep doing the little things you started in the pre-season to avoid muscle imbalances that could lead to an injury.
4. Get to your fighting weight. With increasing mileage but no formal workouts, now is the time when it should be easiest to operate at a caloric deficit and lose weight without risking injury. As Dalzot says, “Stop complicating things!” Focus on eating whole foods and lots of vegetables and hydrating adequately.
Structuring Your Early-Season Week: The 3:2:1 Method
On the triathlon website Slowtwitch, the “BarryP Method” is spoken about in reverential tones. The man behind the method, Barry Pollock, is a former elite runner whose coaching methods have guided countless athletes to personal bests. Pollock created a system that distills running down to its simplest.
Here is how it works: Each week, do three shorter runs (the “1” in the 3:2:1); two medium runs, each twice as long as one of the shorter runs (the “2”); and one longer run that is three times as long as a shorter run (the “3”). Thus, if you’re running 20 miles per week, you’d do three two-mile runs, two four-milers and one six-miler.
Barry explains why the method has resonated with runners and triathletes alike: “It’s a good way to stay consistent on a weekly basis, while still getting in a variety of efforts throughout the week … The six runs per week approach is preferable to running less frequently, as it provides a safer way to increase the total training volume while minimizing the risk of injury.” Add some strides, increase your volume each week and you’ll be ready for your best season yet. 3 … 2 … 1 … GO!
Mid-Season
You are ready to move into the mid-season when you feel comfortable at your goal peak mileage per week.
As Mario Mendoza, the 2015 U.S. Trail Marathon and 50 Mile Champion, says, “I wait until I have built up my mileage and feel like my body is absorbing the training before I start adding intensity.”
You should now be strong enough from aerobic training to run long distances, and you should be fast over short distances from strides. Mid-season is when you put those two elements together. During mid-season, adding structured workouts and races allows you to use your aerobic strength to prolong your speed.
Goal: Improve lactate threshold, VO2 max and specific endurance (the ability to do long runs at race effort).
Duration: Six to 10 weeks. If you are running ultras, spend less time in mid-season and more time in early season. If you are running faster, shorter races, focus more energy on mid-season workouts.
Methods
The purpose of training is not to run hard; it is to run fast. Those are two distinct things: Running that is hard and painful is often not sustainable. These four principles make fast feel easy.
1. Practice progressive overload. Sustain the peak mileage that you reached in the early season, with “down” weeks every three to four weeks, where you decrease mileage by 20 to 50 percent, depending on energy levels. Maintaining your mileage while adding workouts that get progressively harder as you get closer to a big race will overload your aerobic system. That is good—strategic, progressive overload leads to adaptation. Be patient, though! As Stephanie Howe cautions, “Going from zero to crazy is a recipe for disaster.”
2. Work it out. Now is the time to kick it into high gear with one or two “workouts” per week, depending on your background. (Keep it at one if you are newer to running, running fewer than 30 miles per week or have a history of injuries.) Mid-season workouts are designed to prepare you for more taxing future workouts. Thus, as Mario Mendoza emphasizes, workouts need to be designed to improve certain running attributes (see sidebar for workout ideas). During the mid-season, you can race to your heart’s content, but approach each race as a focused tempo run, rather than a season-defining effort.
3. Run long. Each week (other than the “down” weeks) do one long run that is 20 to 45 percent of your weekly mileage, depending on the length of your goal races. For marathons or ultras, you should be at the higher end of that range, and each week should focus more on the long run. If you are racing shorter, focus more on the mid-week workouts.
View each long run as an important, focused workout. Instead of just logging the miles, focus on simulating your goal race effort (or slightly easier) for large portions of the long run, and practice fueling. Perhaps most importantly, as recommended by 2015 Leadville Trail 100 champion Ian Sharman, run the downhills in your long run with purpose. Practicing the pounding now will save your quads when it counts.
4. Prevent injuries. Your primary mid-season goal should be staying healthy. Log how you feel each day, while continuing to maintain your flexibility and strength. Never hesitate to take a day or three off to prevent a minor problem from becoming a major one. Sharman recommends “switching to a day of walking or light cross-training to test things out, then a test run is appropriate as long as the injury is improving.” Also, fuel the machine—mid-season is not the time to restrict your diet, which can impede healing from the routine muscle breakdown that occurs during training.
Setting Goal Peak Mileage
There are no hard-and-fast rules for setting your mileage goals, but you can use these guidelines to find what works for you. For context, most elite trail dudes train 50 to 90 miles per week, while most elite dudettes train 35 to 70 (with outliers in both directions). Most of the athletes I coach are between 20 and 50.
1. If your main goal is reaching the finish line, 15 to 25 miles per week is usually enough for races up to a marathon; 30 to 40 for marathons and shorter ultras; and 40 to 50 for just about any distance.
2.If you are aiming to maximize performance but have been running for less than three years, shoot for 30 to 40 miles per week up to half-marathon distance; 40 to 50 for marathons and shorter ultras; and 50 to 70 for any distance.
3.If you are aiming to maximize performance and have been running three years or more, aim to run at least 45 miles per week up to half-marathon distance; at least 55 for a marathon or 50K; and at least 65 for longer ultras.
Mid-Season Workouts With a Purpose
1. Climb Hills. Use hill intervals to improve your climbing ability and anaerobic threshold. Megan Roche does 10 x 90-second uphills at moderately hard effort with jog-down recovery. “It’s enough to really get my blood pumping, but not so much that injury risk increases,” she says. “Sometimes I’ll add a 10-minute tempo at 10K pace after the hills to teach myself to run fast on tired legs.”
2. Prevent the “Fade.” Tempo runs over variable terrain improve your lactate threshold, one of the main indicators of race-day performance. On an up-down tempo, find a loop that has both uphills and downhills. Run between 20 minutes and one hour comfortably fast, powering up the climbs and speeding down the descents.
3. Develop Speed. “Recess” repeats can improve your neuromuscular efficiency and VO2 max. On a slight downhill grade (one to three percent), do 6 to 10 intervals of one to three minutes. Lorraine Young, the second-place finisher at the 2015 JFK 50 Mile, swears by recess repeats. “I am a firm believer that speed can be learned. Teaching your body to sustain faster paces can lead to massive benefits by making all paces feel easier.”
4. Increase Aerobic Threshold. Fartleks (“speed play”) raise your aerobic threshold, translating to faster running across all distances. On a fartlek, settle into your fundamental aerobic pace—moving comfortably fast, or just slower than your marathon pace. Then, every five minutes, accelerate to 5K pace for 30 seconds before settling back into your fundamental aerobic pace. If, unlike me, you can keep from giggling at the name, fartleks will speed up the pace you do at a given heart rate, which is one of the keys to fast endurance running.
Late Season
Imagine that it’s almost time for Thanksgiving dinner, and amazing smells are coming from the oven. For the last two days, you brined, seasoned and cooked. Now, it’s almost time for the fun part—the feast. But, as any host worth their “Kiss the Cook” apron will tell you, it’s not time to eat yet! You need to finish the cooking at just the right temperature, and then let the turkey (or tofurkey) sit until all of the juices to come together.
The late season is just like that—you’ve done almost all of the work; now is the time to finish it off and let it all come together in time for race day.
The transitions between the other phases are based on how you feel, but the transition from mid-season to late season should be based on timing, taking place three to six weeks from the biggest race of the year.
Duration: Three to six weeks. If you are running ultras, spend just a few weeks in this phase. For shorter races, focus more on late-season sharpening workouts and spend more time in this phase.
Methods
Unlike Thanksgiving dinner, it isn’t as simple as sitting on the counter and letting your juices settle. Apply the following principles to get the most out of your final workouts and race taper.
1. Make easy days sacred. Now is the time to let your body heal, and to shift close to 100 percent of your mental and physical efforts to workouts that prepare you for race day. Remove strides completely to emphasize specificity; they improved your running efficiency earlier in the season, but unless you are racing 5K or below, you are unlikely to ever run that fast in your big race. Finally, as advised by Ian Sharman, never run through an injury if it hurts at all to walk.
2. Be specific. In the mid-season, as we covered earlier, workouts prepared you for harder workouts. Now, Mario Mendoza says, is the time for “workouts [that] prepare you specifically for race day.” Break down your races into their core elements and focus specifically on improving each of them (see Race-Specific Workouts With a Purpose, below, for workout ideas).
3. Sharpen the legs. “Taper” is a dirty word to me—all too often, athletes think it means they should lounge around and wait for race day to come. Instead, think of training in the few weeks before a big race as “sharpening.” Different approaches work for different athletes (and coaches have wildly varying opinions on the subject).
A linear, three-week sharpening process is a good option for ultras—decrease total volume by 10 to 15 percent in week one, 20 to 30 percent in week two and 30 to 45 percent in week three. In other words, most (or all) of your late season should be spent tapering. For shorter races, just do the first and second weeks; the rest of your late season should be focused on fast, race-specific workouts and sustained weekly mileage.
No matter what distance you race, the key is to keep the intensity and specific workouts, even during race week, to keep your aerobic system sharp.
Race-Specific Workouts With a Purpose
1. 5K to half-marathon without major climbs: 2 (for a 5K) to 6 (half-marathon) x 10 minutes at goal race pace on similar terrain (with a five-minute recovery jog between each). This works on your lactate threshold.
2. 5K to half-marathon with lots of climbing: 20 minutes (for a 5K) to 40 minutes (half-marathon) tempo at comfortably fast effort with multiple climbs and descents. This works on transitioning from up to down and back to up without frying your legs.
3. Half-marathon to marathon without major climbs: 90 minutes at moderate pace over terrain similar to the race course. This prepares your body to handle repetitive motion without breaking down.
4. Half-marathon to marathon with major climbs: 2 x 30 minutes at moderate pace with at least one long climb and descent in each interval. This readies your brain and body for the specific demands of sustained uphills and downhills.
5. Ultramarathon without major climbs: Three hours at a comfortable yet quick pace with minimal fueling at least 10 days before the race. This teaches your body to burn glycogen more efficiently. The efficacy of this workout is subject to debate, but many elite ultrarunners like Kilian Jornet swear by it..
6. Ultramarathon with major climbs: Back-to-back focused long runs on similar terrain, totaling at least five hours over two days, done at least two weeks before the race. Save this key workout for once or twice in the last six weeks to build your strength and resilience without overstressing your body (you can do this workout near the end of your mid-season as well).
Putting It All Together
With an understanding of periodization, you are equipped to reach an all-time peak when it counts. Ideally, your most important “A” race comes at the very conclusion of the late season, but you’re not constrained to one “A” race, or one season, per year.
Rebuilding based on time between “A” races
Less than four weeks. Stay in the late-season cycle. Shorter-distance mountain runners do this during the summer and fall—but be sure to cycle back to the mid-season (including “down” weeks) if you want to prolong your peak longer than four weeks.
Four to eight weeks. Spend at least one week in early season and two weeks in mid-season to rebuild your base. This is the type of cycle used by athletes who run a World Championship race that is two months after the qualifying race.
Eight to 12 weeks. Spend at least one week in the pre-season to recover, two weeks in the early season to rebuild and three weeks in the mid-season to improve. This should be the bread-and-butter of most trail racers—it gives your body time to recover without having to reset.
Twelve to 16 weeks. Spend at least one week in the pre-season, four weeks in the early season and four weeks in the mid-season. Ultrarunners should aim for three to four months between races to be sure the body completely recovers.
More than 16 weeks. Start over from the beginning. Elite road marathoners use this strategy to schedule two seasons per year; the rest of us usually implement it during the winter when we take a formal off-season.
The Long View
Most importantly, always err on the side of long-term development. So if you have an injury or life gets in the way, instead of trying to pick up where you left off, spend an equivalent amount of time in the early-season phase. For example, a two-week injury equals two weeks in early-season base building, even if you are farther along in your training cycle. Then you can jump right back to where you were in the season before the injury.
The final words of wisdom come from Megan Roche: “Don’t judge. Embrace the process.” What Megan means is that running, racing and life come with transcendent highs and sobering lows. If you always remember that you can’t have one without the other, then every season will be filled with life-affirming purpose.
Now it’s time to go make some singletrack memories.
As a final treat here are my nine tips for improving.. again I have stood by these for many years, they are a money back guaranteed rad map to running success, whatever form that may take.
Run Further. Add distance, not speed.As you can see from the table my weekly average has steadily increased year on year with this year being the first I will break the 100k a week average for the year. In 2012 I was injured with a nasty calf knot, that I didn’t treat, which explains the delta compared to the previous year. 2014 my training had plateaued which is why I turned to Raf ( http://www.therunningcentre.com.au ) to train me in 2105 where my distance increased by 10%. I have taken this training forward and will probably increase another 10% this year. Distance first, everything else comes once the ‘foundation of distance’ has been achieved.
Run Faster. This is about adding pace after you have got your foundation after rule 1. 2011 was a break out year for me after 3-4 years of building a good running base. I had ran 3 Comrades campaigns in 2008-2010 ( http://www.comrades.com ) so my distance foundation was well and truly complete. In 2011 every time I put on a bib I was confident of a pb. It was a wonderful year. Unfortunately in 2012 I had a nasty injury which set me back but towards the end of the year I was able to train consistently again and in 2013 I was again rewarded with a magical year of running.
Don’t get injured. This is the hardest rule to obey as you always want to do more of rule 1 and 2 which can result in an injury. (I even hate typing the word!) In 2012 I succumbed to a calf knot which took me out for over a month. I struggled to recover from this and as you can see from the table I only ran 3 pb’s for the year compared to 13 the previous year and 10 the following year when I recovered. If this doesn’t back up this rule nothing does.! Don’t get injured, so easy to type but in reality one of the hardest thing for a runner to do, period.
Nutrition, nutrition and nutrition… Did I mention nutrition. It’s all about the proper fuel. So underestimated by so many runners. The number of times I hear the old ‘I run xxx kilometres a week so I can eat what I want’ . Not true, imagine putting low grade fuel in a Porsche, eventually the head gasket blows and you are faced with a serious bill, not to mention a misfiring engine. The human body is a finely tuned machine and should be treated as such, we all know what is good food and what is bad (normally the nice tasting stuff!), avoid the bad and put in the good, easy really. (bar the odd Yelo muffin of course, we are after all only human.) I’ll be exploring nutrition more next year when I have one more go at a sub 2hr 40minutes marathon.
Weight. So important, use to believe because I ran 100k+ a week I could eat what I wanted. Not true. This is another golden rule so often ignored. Runners can run so much faster is they hit their racing weightrather than a running weight. My go to man , Matt Fitzgerald, when it comes to everything running even has a website dedicated to this. ( http://www.racingweight.com/ ) If Matt has a website dedicated to this subject it must be important.
Baseline, document and evaluate everything. If it isn’t on www.strava.com it didn’t happen. Once you set a goal you have to be able to know how far you have come to achieving this, small steps but constant feedback. So buy a Garmin and start recording , everything !!! Contentious subject here. I’m a Strava addict and I know it but the purest will be horrified. You need a baseline to see improvement, set new goals and realize your goals. Buy a Garmin and to quote a small clothing company ‘just do it’.
Sleep. So underestimated but the bodies way of refuelling and preparing for the next day of running. Common sense but so often ignored. Sometimes the most obvious, common sense tips are the ones ignored. Sleep is when your body repairs itself, the more sleep the more repairs can be completed. It really is that easy, go to bed and dream about running.
Consistency. No point running 100k one week and then nothing. Marathon fitness is built up over time and this works hand in hand with rule number 1. I feel the figures from my running log back this up. I’ve steadily increased the duration consistently year in, year out (bar injury) and have reaped the rewards with 2016 being my fastest year yet as I move towards my fifth sixth decade. (Thanks Dave Kennedy) Running is all about getting out there on a regular basis again and again and again. Time on feet initially and then add pace before targeting certain distance with different run types, most important thinkg to note though is always consistently putting on the trainers and just running. ‘If you build it they will come’ type approach, keep running, build the foundation and the personal records will come. (This also works for baseball pitches apparently.)
It’s all in the mind. After 32k a marathon is down to mental strength and the ability to persuade your body you can still perform at your desired pace without falling to fatigue, which is the minds way of protecting itself. Never underestimate the power of the mind in long distance racing. Finally another massive part of running, the Noakes ‘central governor’. I’ve talked about this at length in various posts on this site. With experience I believe I can mentally finish a marathon stronger now then when I first started. I know what to expect and to this end can persuade my old friend fatigue to stay away for longer allowing me to achieve better finishing times. The mind is such an important part of running and needs to be trained as much as the body. When you race a marathon you will spend time in the ‘pain box’, the runner who can spend the most time in this little box of joy, before opening the door and embracing the old enemy fatigue, will run the fastest. I spoke to Steve Moneghetti after the Perth Marathon this year after he ran the 3hr30min bus and asked him how the professional athletes are so much faster than us recreational runners. His answer surprised me as he replied that a professional runner can stand more pain and this gives them the advantage need to push through and achieve the faster times. Again turning off the ‘central governor’ and spending more time in the ‘pain box’ avoiding fatigue and thus not slowing down. Common sense really, thanks Steve.
Surrounded by legends as I pick up my double plugger, running is life, the rest really is details.
Fisiocrem is a must have in your ultra box of tricks…
Bix hydration is just ace, a product brought to life by Vlad Ixel a professional ultra runner who knows a thing or two about hydration. ( https://www.bixvitamins.com/ ) The best thing about Bix is it tastes good with many different flavours and you never get sick of drinking it, this is a big plus as Maurten and Tailwind (both great products) can be difficult to digest later in the event. From the website :-
As an Australian elite multiple trail running champion, with wins in over 40 ultra-marathon races across Asia, recovery from training and races has always been my top priority.
In searching for a solid recovery and hydration supplement, I recognized that critical vitamins and minerals – both in diversity and quantity – were missing from almost all supplements on the market. I had the feeling that in an effort to maximize their bottom-lines, companies in the hydration space, failed to deliver a product that could meaningfully assist athlete performance.
In order to address this, I began the development of a hydration product. After two and a half years of development alongside a leading German sports scientist, BIX Recovery, an advanced, high-quality recovery drink was born.
BIX boosts 12 active ingredients scientifically balanced to replace lost electrolytes and assist in immune function. It’s designed with quality vitamins and minerals, in quantities that work!
BIX is a recovery solution for everyone, that will get you to the top of your game!
Great hydration.
What can I say about HumanTecar, ( https://athleticus.com.au/ ) it looks great, smells great and is awesome for recovery or even pre-run/workout. Read about the science behind it first and then try the products. The compression bandages are just magical after a long event. Put these on and the next day you are recovered, I have used them on a number of occasions and they never fail to astound me albeit the family poke fun at me as I look like a ‘mummy and smell funny’ !
Fractel ( https://fractel.com.au/ ) have your performance headgear covered. I love the colours and the functionality of these hats, I guarantee there is one model you’ll fall in love with.
Fractel headgear, just ace.
Shokz headphones, let you keep in touch with the world around while losing yourself in quality tunes or podcasts. ( https://shokz.com.au/ )
Best running headphones EVER !
T8 running apparel is the best you can get, second to none. Designed for the ultra humid Honk Kong conditions the owners live in. It is light and does away with any chaffing worries. T8 is the name given to the highest typhoon warning in Honk Kong, storms and typhoons with gusts exceeding 180kph, which explains the branding. ( https://t8.run/)
My first backyard ultra was Birdy’s backyard in August 2020 where I made the fatal mistake of setting a target, which I reached, and then stopping feeling fresh as a daisy. ( https://www.runbkrun.com/2020/08/16/most-fun-you-will-ever-have-in-running-gear/ and the 2021 version https://www.runbkrun.com/2021/08/30/birdys-backyard-ultra-wow-just-wow/ ) The following year in March 2021 I took on the sister event, Herdy’s frontyard ultra , and surpassed myself , and everybody else , by staggering to an Australian record , at the time, assist for 47 laps helping Phil Gore to his first (of many) two hundred mile, 48 hour effort.
The video of this is available on YouTube if you’re interested, it’s done very well. https://youtu.be/-7xPfpxquOA
For the 2021 event I was as fit as a butchers dog (I’ve never understood that analogy ; surely a butchers dog would be fat not fit? ) because I had been training for Delirious West 200 miler ( https://deliriouswest200miler.com.au/ ) and it had got cancelled at the very last minute to a mini-COVID outbreak. Looking at the video I certainly gave it my all albeit it would have been nice to get one more lap but at the time I had no idea what day of the week it was.
Since then I have ran another six backyard ultras all over 24 hours including another assist to Phil Gore in November 2021 at the inaugural Hysterical Carnage backyard ultra in South Australia and a win at the inaugural No Time to Die Front yard Ultra, in Adelaide last year. This format , although brutal, seems to suit me and allows me to be competitive. Unfortunately I have not been able to replicate my Herdy’s run of 2021 and get that final lap I need for 48 hours. I maybe should have pushed on at the inaugural Hysterical Carnage event where I tapped out at 38 hours but had my daughter with me and had promised her we’d drive to Adelaide the next morning. This made it very easy to let Phil take another win and for me to sneak off to bed. When you are one on one with Phil Gore you know eventually you have to yield, remember ‘a backyard ultra is a race where everybody runs laps until Phil Gore wins.’
I was confident of a better result in 2022 Herdy’s but the legs just hadn’t recovered from the Delirious West 200 miler five weeks earlier. This time I timed out on lap 34 feeling very average, this was compounded by picking up COVID two days later so I can assume I either had it before the race started or certainly picked it up during the event. This didn’t put me off the backyard ultra format and I ran three more in 2022 for the Ultraseries Grand Slam, Herdy’s, Birdy’s , No Time to Die and Hysterical Carnage. Myself , Jen and Renton finished this but Shaun got bored with the concept so there were no prizes forth coming and the Grand Slam was put into the too hard basket. Pity, I feel it could have been quite a thing over time, similar to the Triple Crown Down under for the 200 milers.
Chan and I picking up our bib’s early at the Tribe and Trail shop, Maylands.
With a World Record field of 300 entrants predicted I got down to the event early on Friday morning to mark my territory with my Gazebo , a rug and Wanderer reclining chair ( a must for a backyard ultra) Rob Collins, my support crew for the event, came along and we were stoked to get prime real estate near the start albeit the grass could have been shorter ? I save some space for Veronika and Chan who would be sharing my gazebo, remember caring is sharing.
Must get Shaun to arrange for shorter grass next year ?
As you can see from the image below before long we had a veritable tent city on our hands, it was a pretty special to see how the event had grown and the buzz abut the place was electric. It was even cooler at night with a lot of tents lit up like Christmas trees, it was definitely a mental boost seeing the light at the end of a dark loop around the lake.
Gazebo city, a thing of natural beauty.
Rob was my crew for the event and for a backyard ultra crew is essential because you soon fall apart and all you want to do it lay back in your reclining chair and try and get as much rest as possible between laps. This can then lead to forgetting the basics, hydration and nutrition, forgot to eat and drink and before long your race is over. Rob would be there to remind me to keep my fluids and food intake on point and also help with the demands of keeping a tired ultra runner moving when all you want to do is stop and sneak off to bed. As well as a support crew he also needs to be a motivator and read my mood, he should know when to push and when to back off; when to be firm, when to cuddle. Basically a jack of all trades. It’s a thankless task as the runner gets more tired and grumpy and starts to think about quitting, also as the races progresses ,and lap times grow, the time at the aid station shortens meaning any tasks need to be finished quicker. This is when the crew take over and the runner switches to auto pilot.
I know Phil Gore and his crew have spreadsheets detailing every lap and what activities they need to complete, as well as food and drink details. Phil also has the lap times he should run and that can then dictate his walk/run strategy. He also sleeps for 15-20 minutes in the evening loops and this means putting in quicker laps and probably less food intake at the aid station; his crew need to know this in advance. Slower laps will require the crew to be ready later but have a shorter window of opportunity to accomplish the tasks on the spreadsheet. He also puts a score of how is feeling each lap , a number from 1 to 10 and he uses this to interrogate his performance for the next event. If the score is high (or low?) for a number of laps he can look at the activities and food/drink intake for that period and try to see why this happened ? It may help for the next event.
Personally I spend about $100 at Coles the day of the event on food I never end up eating. It’s so easy to buy food but when you have been running for hours your ability to eat food is compromised and nutrition issues have ruined many an ultra runners dreams. I have always been quite lucky with with food intake but would suffer at Herdy’s this year. It’s no fun when you know you need to eat but can’t , it’s then a downward spiral to DNF. I know that Phil tries to eat normal food rather than rely on supplements like GU’s or energy sachets. For me at Herdy’s I was probably saved by Weetbix and fruit cups.
Getting comfortable with my support crew Rob, not sure why he has a mallet in his hand ?
I ambled back down to the event about 2:30pm, to prepare for the 4pm start. I like the late afternoon start as you get through the first night quickly and the second day can always find a way to get to 24 hours, which is the bare minimum target for me. The place was buzzing with so many newbies walking around wide eyed and wider smiles, everybody was so excited about this event. The event village was huge, double the previous years and then some. As I mentioned earlier it was a World Record field and it showed, Shaun had even put on perfect conditions, winning. The final cherry on the cake , it was St. Patrick’s day so everybody all of a sudden had Irish heritage and there were even a few cans of Guinness floating around. Now I am partial to the odd Guinness but normally after a 200 miler and never before an event, ‘Marky’ Mark Lommers on the other hand loves his alcohol and racing; or crewing. It’s an acquired taste apparently.
The gangs all here, Veronika, Mark, Jeff, Chan, Sarah, the two Rob’s; and two cans of Guinness.
So just before four pm Shaun Kaesler, the owner of the Ultra Series group and founder of this event gave us the race briefing. Shaun is perhaps the most passionate man I know and his passion is helping other people achieve their dreams, he lives for the finish lines hugs and after receiving a few over the years they are worth investing in, the perfect compliment to the runners high is to share it. As you can see from the drone footage of the event he had a captive audience and people love his passion for the sport, it is obvious to all who know him and for all to see as the event moves on, the runners may tire but Shaun’s enthusiasm is contagious right up to the final lap, always ending up with a hug from Phil Gore. It’s tradition.
I would assume Marco took this from the step ladder he used to get some start photos. Check out his work at https://www.noeko.film
Right off to the start lap, I managed to get to the front as I’d was worried what 300 runners looked like from the middle or back of the pack. Last year Shaun invited some drummers along so we could perform a sort of Viking clap at the start, so as is now a tradition they returned. We were pressed for time but managed to get a few claps in before we set off dead on four pm. Perfect conditions ensued and we all bolted from the start line more akin to a 5k start than a backyard ultra. There were some fast times on that first lap, I think I finished well under forty minutes and top five, not ideal but you might as well enjoy lap one. You’re then faced with twenty minutes to kill chewing the fat with your fellow competitors until you all start again, and again, and again.. you get the idea.
The Viking Clap at the start of loop one, a Shaun Kaesler tradition, he has a few !
Again a bit shout out to Marco for the image below. He has the knack of being in the right place at the right time and takes beautiful photos, probably explains why he is a professional. This must have been lap one I reckon when I was just about leading the field, a burst of youthful exuberance. I did make an effort to slow down for the later laps but if you can’t stretch the legs on lap one when can you ?
This must have been lap one as Marco has caught me with both feet off the ground !
Ready for the next one… with my mate from Delirious West Tristan by my side. The shirt made have given it away, his not mine.
With the four pm start we had three laps of daylight running before it was time to add a head torch and run in the cocoon of your torch light. With nearly three hundred runners it was pretty cool looking back and seeing the snake of light follow you along the path. Not cool enough to stop and take a photo mind, a rookie error on my part and I haven’t seen any images on the social media pages yet unfortunately. I did get an image of night running in the swamp, the best I could do, I’m certainly no Marco.
The swamp/trail section was cool in the evening.
I always find the laps between five and fifteen the hardest, you’re not into your routine yet and the distance and time seems to drag while you become fatigued quickly and start to second guess yourself. Once I get over fifteen laps I can start to see my first goal of any backyard ultra, 24 hours/laps or 100 miles. With Herdy’s this means getting through the night first early which I prefer to the earlier start of most backyard ultras. One you see sunrise you’re good for another three to four hours just because the sun is up, this then puts you within five hours of the 100 mile club, simple really. This year was no different and I struggled in the early morning but knew I just had to keep moving forward and get to sunrise. I had a book on audible that didn’t quite grab me so it was back to old faithful, Taylor Swift, to serenade me in those dark morning loops. As always she didn’t let me down and before I knew it the sun had risen and I was reinvigorated, twenty four hours here we come.
Unfortunately my gazebo buddies didn’t fare so well. Veronika got to lap 14 before pulling out while Chan made it lap 13 but didn’t get to the start of the next lap, instead he headed to the toilet, priorities. As you can see they took advantage of the early morning rays and promptly fell asleep but don’t worry I woke then on the hour , every hour ! Veronika has the Marathon Des Sables in April so this was always a training run and Chan had never ran further than a half marathon so set a massive distance and time PB. The backyard ultra format allows you to achieve things you thought impossible and then dream about it afterwards.
As well as being a world record entry I’m pretty sure we had a world record number of runners get to 24 hours. This equates to 100 miles and it a goal for many starters. The distance seems easy enough , given the time, but it’s the format which makes it harder, there is no second chance if you fancy a long break or need a call at nature at an inopportune moment. We had 45 runners make 24 hours. This was my ninth backyard ultra and the ninth time I had made the 24 hour mark, consistent if nothing else ?
45 runners starting lap 24, incredible.
Saturday morning and afternoon passed quickly, I was enjoying the heat and cruising along albeit at the back of the pack. Rob was looking after me and as the sun started to dip we got a few laps of awesome light through the trail section of the course. Myself and Adrian (see below) are enjoying the afternoon sun here I’d say on Lap 25 as he failed to make the start for lap 26, missing the corral by a few minutes with Jessica Smith suffering the same fate albeit Jess missed the start by a matter of metres. This format can be cruel and although there are few rules they are enforced.
Rocking the Fisiocrem colours for the afternoo heat. credit : Andrew Yeatman.
Managed to be in the right spot at the right time for this one. The last bridge just before sunset, perfect.A great shot by Andrew Yeatman, rocking the Phil Gore top.Last lap of daylight on Saturday afternoon.
Do you know the best bit about running any ultra, stopping ! What other hobby has the same main objective, to stop as soon as possible, albeit you have to run a long way to be able to stop so when you do enjoy it ! I also say the best thing about running is the stopping and then ‘experiencing the runners high’ and I don’t mean by finding drugs on the beach; the runners high does exist and the longer you run the higher the high, so to speak. Let’s face it finishing a 5k doesn’t normally change your life, you’re not driven to tears of absolute joy , more often than not its a quick trip to the nearest coffee shop and then on with the daily routine of life. Finishing a backyard ultra you’ve normally run further than you ever thought you would and probably dug deeper into the pain cave and you really should have. Remember the old adage, you want to change your life, run a marathon. You want to talk to God run an ultra, you want God to answer , run a backyard . ! I made that last bit up but it rings true. A backyard ultra lets you have a conversation with God, it is that good. This is why in the image below myself and my co-pilot from Delirious Julie Gibson are so happy, only a runner knows the feeling.
So managed 28 laps in the end, coming in around the 58 minute mark on lap 28 and deciding enough was enough. 15th equal I think, there or there about and great to finish with Julie Gibson after our Delirious adventure earlier in the year; and the 6 inch ultra last December Big shout out to the products that keep me going, namely fisiocrem , humantecar, fractel caps, shokz headphones, T8 shorts, bix hydration , Tribe and Trial and the Running Centre. They all performed brilliantly, as they do every adventure I take them on.
Julie and I experiencing the runners high.
fisiocrem ( https://www.fisiocrem.com.au/ ) is just bloody brilliant and does exactly what it says it does , it just gets the major muscle groups moving again. I use this extensively towards the end of the race when my quads are hammered. It really makes a difference and allows me to move back through the gears towards the end of an event when most runners are stumbling home.
Fisiocrem is a must have in your ultra box of tricks…
Bix hydration is just ace, a product brought to life by Vlad Ixel a professional ultra runner who knows a thing or two about hydration. ( https://www.bixvitamins.com/ ) The best thing about Bix is it tastes good with many different flavours and you never get sick of drinking it, this is a big plus as Maurten and Tailwind (both great products) can be difficult to digest later in the event. From the website :-
As an Australian elite multiple trail running champion, with wins in over 40 ultra-marathon races across Asia, recovery from training and races has always been my top priority.
In searching for a solid recovery and hydration supplement, I recognized that critical vitamins and minerals – both in diversity and quantity – were missing from almost all supplements on the market. I had the feeling that in an effort to maximize their bottom-lines, companies in the hydration space, failed to deliver a product that could meaningfully assist athlete performance.
In order to address this, I began the development of a hydration product. After two and a half years of development alongside a leading German sports scientist, BIX Recovery, an advanced, high-quality recovery drink was born.
BIX boosts 12 active ingredients scientifically balanced to replace lost electrolytes and assist in immune function. It’s designed with quality vitamins and minerals, in quantities that work!
BIX is a recovery solution for everyone, that will get you to the top of your game!
Great hydration.
What can I say about HumanTecar, ( https://athleticus.com.au/ ) it looks great, smells great and is awesome for recovery or even pre-run/workout. Read about the science behind it first and then try the products. The compression bandages are just magical after a long event. Put these on and the next day you are recovered, I have used them on a number of occasions and they never fail to astound me albeit the family poke fun at me as I look like a ‘mummy and smell funny’ !
Fractel ( https://fractel.com.au/ ) have your performance headgear covered. I love the colours and the functionality of these hats, I guarantee there is one model you’ll fall in love with.
Fractel headgear, just ace.
Shokz headphones, let you keep in touch with the world around while losing yourself in quality tunes or podcasts. ( https://shokz.com.au/ )
Best running headphones EVER !
T8 running apparel is the best you can get, second to none. Designed for the ultra humid Honk Kong conditions the owners live in. It is light and does away with any chaffing worries. T8 is the name given to the highest typhoon warning in Honk Kong, storms and typhoons with gusts exceeding 180kph, which explains the branding. ( https://t8.run/)
A thorn between two roses, the Race Directors Ian and Michelle, presenting me with my boot.
Start slow, finish like a train. For the last three years I have always started Delirious at a steady pace rather than race pace. The goal is always to get to Mandelay Aid station (around 122km) and then sleep before attempting the difficult twenty kilometre or so stage to Mount Clare. As you can imagine any aid station with the word ‘mount’ in its title is going to have some serious elevation, and this stage does not disappoint. This year without my wingman Adam Loughnan, who was washing his hair!, I started quicker than I normally would and was running in the top five for the first day. Mark suggested I run through the night and try to make Warpole , or at least Mount Clare before taking a ninety minute break. Getting to Mandelay in the early hours of Thursday morning it looked like Warpole could be a possibility, being a small ten kilometre hop from Mount Clare and predominately downhill of course.
No sleep till Albany..
I told Mark to set up the swag at Mount Clare and we could decide once I arrived if we would rest there or continue to Warpole. As it was the run from Mandelay to Mount Clare was as bad as we expected (probably worse!) and there was no way I could have run on to Warpole, maybe crawled? It was only the company from Julie Gibson that made the journey bearable. Arriving around three thirty in the morning would mean we’d be leaving in daylight to Warpole, after a ninety minute rest. At this point in the race I was actually leading the male runners as the previous leader had got himself lost coming out of Mandelay and eventually retired.
Unfortunately the crew next to me got very excited when runners came in so my sleep was disturbed at best. I was in the swag for ninety minutes but probably an hour sleep at best. Before I knew it I was peeping outside and it was daylight, albeit very early. I think I got a bacon sandwich before setting off to Warpole where I’d grab a well earned shower and breakfast.
So is this the right tactic , starting quicker and getting deeper into the event before the first sleep? The jury is out on this one. Mandelay to Mount Clare in the early morning after a sleep is a nice section to run, in the dark, after a hard days running, it is brutal. Of course the benefit of running through the night is you are closer to the finish and further up the field on Thursday morning. You can attack the section to Warpole with added vigour. I’m still not convinced but I was certainly closer to the pointy end of the field on Thursday morning albeit not as fresh as I normally am but twenty or thirty kilometres ahead of my normal position. It really is a trade off but facing the Mount Clare section again without a rest does not fill me with joy.
Leaving Mount Clare Thursday morning, early. selfie time.
More sleep, better finishing time. This year I had less sleep then the two previous finishes, probably less than two hours in total. I also tried to spend less time in aid stations. In 2021 I had a lot of sleep, or attempted to, but this year was all about finishing with time a secondary issue. I tried to sleep at Mandelay and Tree Tops with little success but eventually got a decent sleep at Conspicuous Cliffs and the rest of the race was superb. Another couple of hours at Denmark and I finished like a rocket, catching quite a few runners towards the back end of the course. I was eventually a top ten finisher overall (6th male) after being nearly last after the first day. Last year was a similar story when my crew forgot to set the alarm and we had about four hours sleep at Mandelay. Again ran through the field from nearly last to finish fourth overall.
Both years sleep early made the last two days a lot easier and I was able to make up positions easily. In 2023 Mark and I decided to start quicker , get to the front of the pack and sleep less, hanging on to our position rather than chase runners down. Although this tactic worked and I finished second overall I was struggling on the last two days rather than exploding to the finish. I held second place for the final two days but when I put in an effort to catch the leader I was undone by tired legs, funny that.
So is this a tactic I will use again in 2024 ? Again the jury is out. With last year being an out and back this was the first time on the original point to point course since 2012. That year I ran over 83 hours , so a sub 72 hour finish this year is a massive course PB, but 2021 was all about finishing where as this year there was a racing part to the adventure. If I had slept at Mandelay and ran to Mount Clare would I eventually made up the time. I hemorrhaged time after Mandelay due to fatigue and running the testing terrain in the dark. If I had ran this section in the light and not stopped at Mount Clare would I have got to Walpole quicker ?
It is a fine balancing act getting the right amount of rest to allow yourself to perform at your best during the event. I know Shane Johnstone, the 2012 winner hardly slept at all albeit he finished in just over 54 hours. I would suggest that is about on the cusp of what is achievable before you start to see a massive downside with your running ability compromised, it isn’t called the Delirious West for no reason.
Stumbling into Denmark, where as previous years I’d have been exploding into Denmark.
The beach is so much better in the daylight. When I ran 83 hours in 2021 I hit the beaches perfectly, very little night time running instead faced with glorious days in perfect conditions, breathing in the beauty. This year I wasn’t so lucky and ended up running in the dark along some of the best scenary. I left Conspicious cliffs early afternoon and so coming into Peaceful Bay I was in the dark and with my second head torch, the less powerful one. This made navigation difficult as there was some rock hopping with little signage. On the bright side it would have been very hard to get lost as long as you kept the ocean to your right shoulder ! The coves which were so inspiring in the daylight became a challenge at night especially when in you add in some rock hopping close to the ocean. Luckily I picked up a pacer at Peaceful Bay , the lovely Sarah Dyer, and company makes up for the scenary you know you’re missing. Boat Harbour was also missed as in the dark it is just a head torch beam of light infront of you, pity as that section is so good in daylight.
Reaching Parry’s beach in the early morning meant I had the run to Monkey Rocks to look forward to in perfect daylight conditions and the coves and beaches in this section are so good. In 2021 I ran Monkey Rocks section in dark, wet conditions, not ideal. It was so much better in daylight albeit I had a full stomach thanks to Chris Gerdei and his wonderful Wife. Again the inverse was true around Cosy Corner where I was faced with a never ending section in the dark and then the run along the beach to Mutton Bird car park. From 2021 I know this section is glorious in daylight.
I suppose the only way to see the whole course in daylight is to do the event twice and make sure you run twelve hours slower or quicker the second time ? Simple really.
I was lucky to leave early morning at Parrys and had a glorious day.
Grabbing a poduim is worth it. In 2020 I DNF’d Delirious at Mandelay, 112km into the event. I was a broken man but the result was not unexpected. I had lost my running mojo months before and had ran very little the three months prior to the event. I was uncrewed and so unprepared. The fact I got to Mandelay is mainly down to Glen Smetherman taking pity on me early in the race and keeping me fed. I had no hydration or nutrition plan and eventually the quads seized up, giving me the perfect excuse to exit stage right. Although the ending was not the result I had hoped for I had fallen in love with the event and in 2021 returned to finish in just over 83 hours. As I said earlier this was all about finishing and having a great time with my crew, and we had a great time. So much laughing , in between the running, and again I couldn’t wait until 2022 to go again.
In 2022 I managed to sneak to a fourth place finish thanks to a fast finish, sorry Trevor, and although there were less laughing due to the racing I still loved the event. This year it was about trying to go faster again and this was achieved with a massive course (on the point to point course) PB. It was harder this year as I pushed myself to keep in the top three but the end result was worth all the pain and suffering. A second place on my fourth attempt more than makes up for my DNF in 2020. It’s a mission accomplished moment truth be told but I know I can go quicker next year so we still have work to do, and that’s why we do what we do. This event just keeps on giving.
Winners are grinners, the place getters for Delirious West 2023.
Finally as always I give a shout out to some of my favourite products…
fisiocrem ( https://www.fisiocrem.com.au/ ) is just bloody brilliant and does exactly what it says it does , it just gets the major muscle groups moving again. I use this extensively towards the end of the race when my quads are hammered. It really makes a difference and allows me to move back through the gears towards the end of an event when most runners are stumbling home.
Fisiocrem is a must have in your ultra box of tricks…
Bix hydration is just ace, a product brought to life by Vlad Ixel a professional ultra runner who knows a thing or two about hydration. ( https://www.bixvitamins.com/ ) The best thing about Bix is it tastes good with many different flavours and you never get sick of drinking it, this is a big plus as Maurten and Tailwind (both great products) can be difficult to digest later in the event. From the website :-
As an Australian elite multiple trail running champion, with wins in over 40 ultra-marathon races across Asia, recovery from training and races has always been my top priority.
In searching for a solid recovery and hydration supplement, I recognized that critical vitamins and minerals – both in diversity and quantity – were missing from almost all supplements on the market. I had the feeling that in an effort to maximize their bottom-lines, companies in the hydration space, failed to deliver a product that could meaningfully assist athlete performance.
In order to address this, I began the development of a hydration product. After two and a half years of development alongside a leading German sports scientist, BIX Recovery, an advanced, high-quality recovery drink was born.
BIX boosts 12 active ingredients scientifically balanced to replace lost electrolytes and assist in immune function. It’s designed with quality vitamins and minerals, in quantities that work!
BIX is a recovery solution for everyone, that will get you to the top of your game!
Great hydration.
What can I say about HumanTecar, ( https://athleticus.com.au/ ) it looks great, smells great and is awesome for recovery or even pre-run/workout. Read about the science behind it first and then try the products. The compression bandages are just magical after a long event. Put these on and the next day you are recovered, I have used them on a number of occasions and they never fail to astound me albeit the family poke fun at me as I look like a ‘mummy and smell funny’ !
Fractel ( https://fractel.com.au/ ) have your performance headgear covered. I love the colours and the functionality of these hats, I guarantee there is one model you’ll fall in love with.
Fractel headgear, just ace.
Shokz headphones, let you keep in touch with the world around while losing yourself in quality tunes or podcasts. ( https://shokz.com.au/ )
Best running headphones EVER !
T8 running apparel is the best you can get, second to none. Designed for the ultra humid Honk Kong conditions the owners live in. It is light and does away with any chaffing worries. T8 is the name given to the highest typhoon warning in Honk Kong, storms and typhoons with gusts exceeding 180kph, which explains the branding. ( https://t8.run/)
I was awoken by Rob Donkersloot early and forced to leave the comfort of my swag. I was not happy truth be told and stumbled off to the shower block to be told the water was heated by solar panels so hot water at this early time of the day was not going to happen. Great, made do with clean teeth, some deodorant and a visit to the toilet, the simple things in life. Bumped into Alexis Oostenhoff in the toilets who was not overly excited about his 60km of progress so far in his 100 miler event. Not to worry, he perked up and finished with Harmony pacing him home. Alexis is another convert of the Mind Focused Running Group led by Rob ( https://mindfocusedrunning.com/ ) , if you are part of this community you normally finish and finish with a smile on your face, albeit you’ll probably be tired !
Mark presented me with some pancakes and bacon but I wasn’t overly excited about the offering. I think I would have been happier with weetbix as my stomach was starting to get over all the sweet offerings. I can’t believe I actually just typed that but I was getting sick of pancakes, bacon and maple syrup. Wow, ultra events do weird things to you ? I have since recovered from this temporary moment of madness.
Parry’s beach is just ace., start of day three.
Parry’s to Monkey Rocks is a wonderful section of the course skirting some beautiful beaches and the day was perfect, albeit a tad warm but that is to be expected. I was rocking the legionnaires Fractel cap ( https://fractel.com.au/ ) which helped keep me cool although black may not have been the best colour for the day. Fractel help me out with headgear and you’ll see from the various images throughout this post they are my go-to headgear.
Last time I ran this section of the event it was dark so it was good to see the beaches in the daylight, it really is a chalk and cheese moment; similar to when I came into Boat Harbour in the dark the previous night. In 2021 this was daylight running and again its like two different events. Due to the length of the race you’ll eventually get some great beach running, pace dictates when that will be.
Friday just kept getting better and better.
I went past Simon Poli out of Parry’s but he was able to catch me soon after and then I bumped into Stephen Rowles relaxing in a hut at the top of a seriously nasty climb. Stephen and I share a love for all things Cornish and we were both happy for some great company. Plenty of laughs as we talked about our time in the motherland specifically our time in Penzance, my home town. Obviously Cornish pasties were a hot topic and also Jelbert’s ice cream, when you know, you know. Another topic of conversation was the menu for Monkey Rocks. Stephen’s crew had messaged him a copy of the menu and we both agreed it was the chicken, mash potato and gravy which would be the lunch of choice for both of us. As I said before Delirious is an eating and drinking competition , with running between aid stations a secondary consideration.
Another highlight of this section was a particularly large dugite snake I nearly trod on. Stephen and I were engaged in conversation, funnily enough, and we both missed the snake initially. Just before I was about to step on it I jumped to my right, thus avoiding contact. Certainly got the heart rate spiking and the two of scurried off with fresh vigor. This was my only contact with snakes for the whole event which is good, albeit others reported many sightings. This was another reason for a pacer, they can be easily sacrificed, I missed Sarah at this point.
The terrible trio.. heading towards Monkey Rocks. Never realised Simon was so tall ?
Finally we made Monkey Rocks after talking about the chicken, mashed potato and gravy for the best part of an hour. Trust me people , it didn’t disappoint. My good friend Chris and his Wife were manning the aid station and the food was gourmet, or better. Stephen, Simon and I wolfed down our lunch and it was as good as we had imagined over the morning. I’m sure I had other items but can’t remember past the chicken , I wish I’d had more but knew I had a serious climb ahead. As you can see from the images the sun was out and the climb would be in the heat of the midday sun, wouldn’t have it any other way. This was a stark contrast to the last time I ran this section in the drizzle of an October evening, the wet year, made the climb slippery and Adam and I both slipped on the granite rocks. There would be no slipping this year but it was just as challenging albeit for different reasons.
Leaving Monkey Rocks with a full stomach with Stephen, ready for a serious climb. Love the colours of the photo, so Delirious.
Not sure about Monkey Rocks, that is an Elephant all day long !
The view from the top of Monkey Rocks was worth the effort to get there ?
Monkey Rocks is a hard climb and probably not helped with a large lunch on board. I was happy to let Stephen forge ahead as I just cruised up the incline , enjoying the heat of the midday sun and also knowing that the run into Denmark would be flat and I would probably get some shut eye there. The view from the top was stunning and I started on the downside looking forward to a rest at Denmark. On the way down I caught up with Stephen and we were also joined by Astrid Volzke and her amazing cameras. She snapped the image below, she is very talented, even caught me smiling albeit I tend to perk up if there is a camera in the near vicinity.
Summiting Monkey Rocks after the best tukka ever !
After running up and then down off Monkey Rocks you’re faced with a flat run through the suburbs off sunny Denmark to the aid station. Stephen had had enough and was content to walk it in as he’d probably eaten too much at Monkey Rocks. I was chasing a seat on the 1pm shuttle bus (The bus leaves on the hour every hour) so needed to get to the aid station in a hurry. We said our goodbyes and I put on the afterburners aware that Oliver was just behind me and if I could get the next shuttle I’d put a few hours between us. I remember the last time Adam and I ran this section we both agreed it was probably the worse one of the entire race, that was in the dark, unfortunately it didn’t improve in the light. Not sure if its the frustration of the aid station always being around the next corner or the terrain, it’s mainly on suburban streets but this section just sucks.
Nice to get some flat terrain heading into Denmark after Monkey Rocks.
Eventually I made the aid station around 12:35 so had enough time for a quick snack and then got my head down for ten minutes. The image below shows the chaos that is an aid station for 200 milers, this is why you need a crew so all your processions can be moved along the route with you. How people do this race unsupported is beyond me?
I’m not sure if I got any sleep as time was against me and I was desperate to get the 1pm shuttle. I had resigned myself to the possibility of running through the night to finish early Saturday morning and , as such, there would be no more sleeping. This was a similar strategy to last years event. Sleep Wednesday and Thursday night and then run through Friday and finish early Saturday morning, hopefully before the hallucinations become too vivid.
Five minutes to the hour we started to prepare for the shuttle and luckily enough there was room for my pacer, Sarah Dyer. A sucker for punishment obviously as she was keen for some more pacing duties albeit I couldn’t promise her another kilo of cocaine as payment this time. Simon Poli, he was running the 100 miler, also made the shuttle and he was happy to join Sarah and I. I had run with Simon on and off for most of the day and he was loving his first miler, again another Rob Donkersloot Mind Focused Running convert, as is Sarah funnily enough. ( https://mindfocusedrunning.com/ ) We were joined in the shuttle by couple of 100 mile runners, as well as Simon, and then we were off on the twenty minute or so car journey to continue the adventure.
The chaos that is ultra running… surrounded by my stuff, being left alone for 5 minutes. nano nap
Denmark -> Lowlands 22.2km ( accumulated 288.2km)
The car trip to continue the race, it use to be a boat back in the day, Simon Poli riding shotgun.
The first two aid stations from Denmark are the challenge, get through these and then you are home and hosed as the final two aid stations are relatively close together and you can smell the finish. Denmark to Lowlands is the longest of the two and starts with a nasty four kilometes of trail that is difficult to run through, initially a wetlands area and then open trail where you are cooked, remember this was now early afternoon and the sun was showing us no mercy. Where as in previous years I finished strongly on the last day this year I was struggling. Simon left Sarah and I although we would meet him just before Lowlands. There were long walk breaks with the heat starting to wear me down. Eventually we made Lowlands and Mark was there with another steak which is just what I needed. Another change of clothes and the three of us were ready for the next section, to Shelley Beach, which was uncrewed so we wouldn’t see Mark until late into the evening at Cosy Corner.
The last test of Delirious is the section between Lowlands and Shelley beach. After a twenty two kilometre section post Denmark shuttle you are pretty goosed and the seventeen kilometre skip to Shelley is testing. Together they are nearly a marathon distance and you just tick over three hundred kilometres at Shelly, fatigue starts to become a factor. I was fully fueled after another steak expertly prepared by chef Mark and Simon, Sarah and I set off in good spirits. A call of nature broke up the team and Sarah waited for me while Simon stepped on knowing we’d probably catch up.
Out of lowlands and heading towards Shelley Beach and the sunset with Sarah pacing me and Simon running ahead sweeping.
Between Lowlands and Shelly we witnessed the last sunset of the event and it was a beauty, as is the norm. This is one of the main draw cards for running two hundred milers, you see a few sunrises and sunsets. As you can see from the image we had some cloud cover going into Friday evening which made a pleasant change from the sauna we have experienced most of the day.
Sunset number three for the event, Friday evening.
Sarah and I put in a burst post Lowlands in a last desperate bid to catch the leader. We’d heard John was slowing and taking his time in aid stations so with time running out we put in a five kilometre burst of pace. Unfortunately we had left our charge too late and it made little difference to the overall gap, it was the last throw of the dice and as night fell I knuckled down and started to think about beating my previous years PB of just under sixty nine hours. Even this was beyond me as the terrain made running difficult and I knew I was in for another all nighter with an early morning finish the best outcome.
The climb down into Shelly and then back up again, brutal ! Sarah forging ahead.
I was looking forward to Shelley Beach as Mel Maisey was aid station captain, she off the 60th birthday celebration a lifetime ago at Northcliffe, well the Monday of the race. Unfortunately Mel had left the event and was heading home, no worries a cup of tea was all I needed as the next aid station was close. There may have been a few minutes resting before Simon turned up , looking like he’d stolen something. He’d found a second wind but not enough to leave with Sarah and I. The descent into Shelly is steep and long but for some reason it is easier on the climb out, weird, not sure how this is possible but Sarah and I were thankful for this anomaly.
Even though it was only a short hop to Cosy Corner it did seem to take a long time. We were scooting along at a good pace and we knew the Mark would be waiting for us at the next aid station and then we had a nice beach section to Mutton Bird carpark.
There was a serious amount of wild life on this section including a Western Ring tailed possum (see image above) which I persuaded to jump from one tree to the another , over the track. We also bumped into a frog which I kissed to prove the old theory that frogs turn into princesses fake news, unfortunately it was fake news and the only thing I’d catch from kissing frogs is probably worms. (Happy to report that I seem to have dodged that bullet?)
Earlier in the day we had seen a large cat on the trail which would have been feral and this was one large feline, bordering on bob cat dimensions albeit we were both pretty tired at this stage. We saw some seriously big Kangaroos as well and one jumped out a few metres ahead of us and continued along the trail. I heard that at least one runner had a coming together with a Roo which is best avoided as these are big Roos. !
Cosy Corner was great, good food and Simon, Sarah and I had the aid station to ourselves albiet we were joined by the chaos that is one of the race directors, Michelle Hanlin. If you know Michelle you’ll know what I mean, she is a one woman race organising machine and a human whirlwind. Life is never dull when Michelle is around and it was great to see her. The RD’s of this event work long hours and travel great distance trying to herd the cats that are sixty plus 200 mile runners. As you know runners are good at running, not so good at navigating !
Heading towards Mutton Bird Carpark taking our lives in our hands.
Cosy Corner to Mutton Bird carpark is all on the beach and last time I ran this section in 2021 it was daylight and I rally enjoyed it as you could see the aid station from a long way off. It seemed to arrive very quickly. In the dark the atmosphere is completely different as you lose the main stimulus of sight, you are left with your own little bubble of headtorch light and your thoughts as the terrain is just sand. There was the small challenge of some rock hopping which, as the image above shows, was testing due to the tide being high, I assume? I wonder how many trail runners have drowned running trails ?
Sarah, being a Geologist, glided over the rocks while I stumbled at best. Simon led the way while I took time to try and get some photos for this post. The things I do for my reader(s) , I hope Mum appreciates it ?
The beach to Mutton Bird Carpark, long best describes it. Probably better in sunlight?
We moved along the beach together leap frogging each other many times before the car park light came into view. I was able to move along the wetter sand , which was harder, without getting my feet wet until the very last minute before heading to the carpark. The last wave got me so was forced to change back to the Olympus 5’s at the aid station. I had ran the entire event in the Altra Olympus 5’s, out of the box. ( https://www.altrarunning.com.au/collections/olympus-5 ) These are my trail shoes of choice, zero drop with a large footbox meaning you have a small chance of saving toenails, if you prepare with Dru’it foot balm beforehand. ( https://www.duit.com.au/product/foot-heel-balm-plus/ )
We arrived at Mutton Bird aid station and the three of us slumped into the chairs, knackered, tired , hungry and thirsty but now so close to the finish we could taste it.
Mutton Bird carpark -> Sandpatch car park 13.2km (accumulated 335.6km)
Sunrise on day four, Saturday, moving past the wind turbines just outside Albany, nearly at the last aid station, Sandpatch carpark.
As always we left the aid station together and yet again I stopped early to take off my jacket. Simon scooted off alone while yet again Sarah waited for me like good pacer should. Sarah had done an outstanding job pacing now for over a hundred kilometres over two days but I soon noticed something was wrong. The pace had slowed and after a few kilometres she admitted she wasn’t feeling that great, lack of sleep was beginning to catch up with her. As well as pacing me Sarah had also paced other runners before joining me so she was as sleep depraved as me. We discussed the options and I recommended running back to the last aid station which was only a few kilometres away as we knew Mark was hanging around sipping a VB with the volunteers, he’s good like that Mark. Sarah was determined to get to the next, penultimate, aid station and I was glad of the company, together we stumbled off in search of Simon, and when I type stumbled I mean stumbled.
This was the hardest section of the event, both Sarah and I were totally fatigued and we were running through the night for a third time, both off minimal sleep. Looking back I had maybe let my hydration and nutrition go a bit over the last few aid stations and this was coming back to bite me, excuse the pun.
The aid station seem to take an age to arrive and all thoughts of a PB went out the window as we both crawled to Sandpatch. The highlight was the sunrise, not that we noticed really, and we eventually found the aid station where Simon was waiting for us.
Sandpatch carpark -> 258 Freshmans bay Road. 11.2km (accumulated 346.8km)
The last image of the race, heading to Freshman’s Bay Road with Simon Poli.
Finally the last section to the finish. In 2021 I was racing ‘Paul Hopi ‘ and destroyed this section, not this year. I had let Sarah go as she was to meet me for the finish line jog with Mark and Rob. Simon set the pace and I struggled to hang on, he was fresh as a daisy and had the best time running the 100 miles, running with me for over half the distance; no wonder he had a good time ! He may have found his calling and I look forward to the first Poli vs Poli showdown in the near future. (His brother Felix has finished the 200 miler twice, he featured in a few videos earlier in the post) After running to the finish with my team it was time for the obligatory ‘shoey‘, its tradition.
So that was Delirious West 2023, a second place overall finish clocking in just under 72 hours, three days. John was a few hours ahead of me and Oliver a few hours behind me, happy with that. It was never about a poduim finish albeit I’ll take it of course. Delirious is about surrounding yourself with like minded people and living the dream for a week, being waited on hand and foot by aid station volunteers and your own crew, achieving more than you ever thought you could with the help of wonderful people. 2023 lived up to my all expectations and more beside, it really is the event that just keeps on giving, year on year.
I seem to remember Mark, Sarah and I heading off to the Albany park run but I fell asleep in the car as soon as we arrived while Mark (as Warwick) and Sarah ran the event. They woke me on their return and it was time for a shower, albeit using the community showers in Albany.
Oliver, John and I, the 200 miler poduim.
Post park run it was off to the local free community showers in Albany for a hot shower. I must admit I didn’t look the best I’ve ever looked, I’m calling it the Albany Hobo look, it my defence I had just run a 200 miler ! I did fit in to the community shower crew though and it was a good shower funnily enough.
The Albany hobo look, very 2023 ?
After the shower it was back to the finish line to chill out and enjoy the finish line atmosphere, cheering on fellow competitors. Of course I didn’t last long and was soon away in the land of nod dreaming of Delirious 2024. The finish line is a wonderful place , watching people achieve their dreams, it is uplifting assuming you stay awake.
Like a cobra ready to strike… relaxing at the finish.
To prove I did pay attention to the finishing runners the image below is one of my favourite runners finishing another great 200 miler. Sarah Niven already has the triple crown down under 2022 under her belt but ran Delirious this year as ‘fun’. As always she exceeded her expectations and destroyed her PB time, its becoming the norm with this young lady. Always smiling.
Another stella run from Sarah Niven, always smiling.
Spent most of Saturday at the finish line leaving only for dinner and a sleep before returning the following day to cheer on the late arrivals. Shaun and the team then went through the presentations as well as setting up a tribute to Jeff, a tree of shoes and a plaque. A beautiful tribute, very touching.
After the presentations everybody hot footed it off to the pub for an evening of stories, good food and great company. A few of us stayed till the end and got ourselves in the ‘end event’ photo, it had to be done.
Nothing more to say, off to the pub we go.
The food at the Earl of Spencer is so good and the Guinness even better, it had been a long time between drinks as my last one was after the Unreasonable East in the Blue Mountains in June last year. I’m not a big drinker. Shaun had hired out the pub so it was full of runners , family and support crew, so much laughter and stories which seem to get bigger , longer or quicker as the night went on. It was a perfect end to a perfect week, thank you Delirious 2023 you were simply ‘ace’.
A well earned Guinness, until next year.
Fisiocrem is a must have in your ultra box of tricks…
Bix hydration is just ace, a product brought to life by Vlad Ixel a professional ultra runner who knows a thing or two about hydration. ( https://www.bixvitamins.com/ ) The best thing about Bix is it tastes good with many different flavours and you never get sick of drinking it, this is a big plus as Maurten and Tailwind (both great products) can be difficult to digest later in the event. From the website :-
As an Australian elite multiple trail running champion, with wins in over 40 ultra-marathon races across Asia, recovery from training and races has always been my top priority.
In searching for a solid recovery and hydration supplement, I recognized that critical vitamins and minerals – both in diversity and quantity – were missing from almost all supplements on the market. I had the feeling that in an effort to maximize their bottom-lines, companies in the hydration space, failed to deliver a product that could meaningfully assist athlete performance.
In order to address this, I began the development of a hydration product. After two and a half years of development alongside a leading German sports scientist, BIX Recovery, an advanced, high-quality recovery drink was born.
BIX boosts 12 active ingredients scientifically balanced to replace lost electrolytes and assist in immune function. It’s designed with quality vitamins and minerals, in quantities that work!
BIX is a recovery solution for everyone, that will get you to the top of your game!
Great hydration.
What can I say about HumanTecar, ( https://athleticus.com.au/ ) it looks great, smells great and is awesome for recovery or even pre-run/workout. Read about the science behind it first and then try the products. The compression bandages are just magical after a long event. Put these on and the next day you are recovered, I have used them on a number of occasions and they never fail to astound me albeit the family poke fun at me as I look like a ‘mummy and smell funny’ !
Fractel ( https://fractel.com.au/ ) have your performance headgear covered. I love the colours and the functionality of these hats, I guarantee there is one model you’ll fall in love with.
Fractel headgear, just ace.
Shokz headphones, let you keep in touch with the world around while losing yourself in quality tunes or podcasts. ( https://shokz.com.au/ )
