In the photo above you have Scotty, the cool car salesman, ( he sells McLaren’s !) who is often the voice of reason. When he talks we listen. Next to Scotty is Rob ‘make mine a half’ Collins, famous for choosing the shortest option when racing and not racing often , also picking up injuries while racing and then running through them days later.

Adam is behind me and he is an all-round nice guy and a Qantas Pilot . Normally he would be the main man giving his profession but we have a younger, faster and prettier one in the group so he is always a poor second, bless. Desperate to run sub 3 he’ll go close at Gold Coast in July, but how close ?  Behind Rob is Super Nance our very own version of Wonder Woman, Nance is just an incredible athlete and one of the nicest women you will ever meet , also she’s Welsh. Attacks every race and training block with gusto and loves running in the middle of the night , alone on trails , swatting spiders. Swims a bit too apparently.

Behind Nance is another super calm and chilled guy Andy, who ran his first sub 3 at Bibra Lake with no aplomb just went about his business and got the job done. He’s like a diesel van with pace and consistency. Jules is next and she is one of the hardest trainers I know, week in , week out getting the job done while balancing two kids and all that entails. Incredibly focused juggling so many balls in the air and dropping none. Unlucky with injuries lately but big things on the horizon. Davin is next, the cool pilot in the group. Another runner who is just starting their journey towards faster times and new PB’s. He went sub-Bartsy last year (sub 2:52?) and will go quicker this year. Incredibly talented, pretty (apparently) nice guy and a pilot.

Jon is next and he is the conspiracy theorist of the group, every group needs one. He is anti-vax and anti-believing in anything, always good for a wind up but his heart is in the right place. He’d do anything for you and has ran over 100 marathons including over sixty sub 3 marathons. He has run more than any of us and continues to run 100 mile weeks,  week in and week out, albeit he was a lot taller when I first met him in 2008 at the Bunbury marathon (which Jon and I have both won by the way)  Behind Jon is Sarah, another consistent and big mileage runner. She has a few injury worries but will overcome these and become a very accomplished trail runner or marathon runner, she is motivated and will achieve what she sets out to achieve, just at the moment not sure what that is.  Sarah paced me at the Delirious West in 2023 and we had a ball.  Sarah is also currently the only female to finish the 24 park runs in 24 hours from WA.  Now that was a fun 24 hours, charging around in 40 degree plus heat. The post is worth a read .  ( https://www.runbkrun.com/2024/01/15/running-in-a-furnace-for-a-great-cause-24-park-runs-in-24-hours/ ) Another new comer to the group next , Vici, who has fitted right in. Another voice of reason in the group , similar to Scotty, very sensible but as motivated as the rest of us to improve. Actually I think Jeffrey is just motivated to wake up each morning ?

Bartsy is next and he is one of the founding members and most stories usually involve him together with his partner in crime , Jeffrey, (the Batman and Robin of the group?) there is much laughter listening to their adventures and there are many, many adventures.  He is the school teacher of the group and attempts to keep us inline but fails abysmally most  of the time, a real Aussi icon.  Between Bartsy and Jeffrey in the picture  is another founding father of the group , Mark Lommers.  Mark has crewed for me three times for the  Delirious West , a voice of calm in the chaos of a 200 miler.  Similar to Scotty, if we need advice we turn to Mark and avoid Bartsy and Jeffrey at all costs.  Jeffrey is the older statesman of the group , we’re not sure how old he is but I’m pretty sure it’s triple figures?

Finally Aaron has recently joined the group as we needed some young, cool blood and he fits the bill perfectly. Another motivated runner with a big future and a heap of cool tattoos, street kudos by the bucket load and another genuine guy. As you can probably gather from my comments I love sending time with these guys and my Thursday morning Yelo run is the highlight of my week.

Lately I have been supplementing my Yelo run with a BTRC  (Ben Tay Running Club) Sunday morning long run.  These guys are mostly young than the Yelo crew and aiming for fast marathon times with their best days ahead of them. The pace is quicker and distance longer so it is a challenge hanging on for the most part, albeit I always try and find a fast finish to remind them I use to be a reasonable runner , once?  What the Yelo crew lose in pace they make up for banter post run so it’s a swings and roundabouts situation.  What I like about the BTRC crew is they are motivated towards the same marathon goals I was  ten years ago. Listening to their conversations I am taken back ten years and this is infectious and probably one of the reasons I’m chasing one more sub three marathon finish, the two hours forty finish I missed in my prime is now a three hour finish at 58 years old.

Back in the day it was a 14k progressive , on for young and old.  The start started quickly and progressively ramped up to suicide pace at the end.  There were epic tussles over the years involving Myself, Mark Lee, Ross Langford and Phil Mosley with guest appearances from Zac  to stir the pot. The times we use to post back then are now way outside my capabilities, not even in the same ballpark or even car park ! In December 2016 I was coming to the end of a stella year which included a 2:41 marathon and a 1:14;59 half, my PB. Throw in three WAMC victories and many PB’s , it was a great year. Unfortunately I wouldn’t repeat those times and I started the slow decline to where I am now.  The point is the coffee still tastes as good and the conversation and banter has improved with age and more historical events to call upon, and there are many.

Ok so the average pace may have slowed but the post run banter is as quick as it was in 2016 and the coffee is always good albeit the muffins may have taken a nosedive lately. Trust me the Yelo muffin was so good that it made any other muffins look so inferior I gave up on them for a while. (other muffins. , not the Yelo version!) These days it seems to have turned into a ‘cake‘ rather than a muffin which is a pity because the Yelo muffin was special, really special.

Over the years the Yelo crew has grown and we even have a smattering of ladies who help keep us in tow, most of the time. You’d need to be pretty open minded to spend time in our company.  The point is I suppose there is a lot of laughter , post run anyway , and sometimes during the run. We all know each other so well after many years together that the banter just flows and it just works.

Recently we even has some cool Yelo tops made up so if you’re in the North Beach, Perth area around 5:30am on Thursday you’ll recognise us.  So consistency and coffee are good bed fellas, just keep showing up, keep drinking coffee with good mates and you’ll enjoy the process. Will you keep improving, not guaranteed, will you have fun trying, definitely.  Growing older with good friends over good coffee and conversation, sometimes this is enough.

Next to Jon in the photo above is the blond bullet Charles. A very religious runner but we don’t hold that against him, like all of the Yelo crew he will do anything for you and another  nice guy.  This does seem to be the theme for the Yelo runners ? Charles and his brother Trevor  are very competitive and the three of us will be going hard at Delirious West 200 miler  this April putting our friendships to the test as we become competitor’s. I’m not sure Trev’s forgiven me for pipping him at the post a few years ago so this year could be a quick time by all of us, but who will run the quickest ?

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Big shout out to fisiocrem , this product is just incredible for tired and aching legs. I use it daily and have noticed a vast improvement in recovery.

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!

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.

Shokz headphones, let you keep in touch with the world around while losing yourself in quality tunes or podcasts. ( https://shokz.com.au/ )

T8 running apparel is the best you can get, second to none. Designed for the ultra humid Hong 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/)

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Have a look at one of my previous posts , https://www.runbkrun.com/2024/01/08/distance-is-the-key-to-running-success-simples/  or one of my favourites posts from Raf Baugh, owner of the Running Centre   ( https://therunningcentre.com.au/ )

https://www.runbkrun.com/2021/04/23/the-secret-to-sub-3-marathon-success-its-all-about-the-numbers/

but a YouTuber in Japan is proving beyond any doubt that distance is the key to unlocking your running dreams (assuming you locked them up n the first place of course ? )

Jake Barraclough decided to give up his job in the UK and travel to Japan to ‘train harder, not smarter’  after reading ‘The way of the runner ‘ by Adharanand Finn, among other things. Watch this video it is EPIC !!

Jake was a talented runner, sub 2:30 for the marathon , but was continually injured. On one of his many injury layoffs he was on the stationary bike for three hours a day working his way through Netflix and then podcasts where he came across the Japanese Ediken races.

Ekiden (駅伝) is a long-distance running multi-stage relay race, mostly held on roads.^{[1]: 812 [2]}

The original Japanese term had nothing to do with a sport or a competition, but it simply referred to the age old post-horse or stagecoach courier system which transmitted communication by stages, instead of one horse or a man covering the entire long distance. Eki means “station” and den translates as “to communicate, to convey”, therefore Ekiden could be roughly translated as ”Station to station”. The original meaning of the word is reflected in its rule where each runner at the end of his or her run has to pass down his sash to the next runner.

The first ever ekiden as a sport was held in Japan in 1917 as a 3-day, 23-stage run from Kyoto to Tokyo over 507 kilometres (315 mi), to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Tokyo’s establishment as the nation’s capital (previously Kyoto was the imperial seat).

Today ekiden is a national sport in Japan, especially popular as inter-varsity competitions between schools or universities, and its popularity has since become widespread and worldwide.

The IAAF staged four editions of a World Road Relay Championship from 1992 (at Hiroshima, Japan) to 1998 as a stage race over the marathon distance with alternate stages of 5 km (3.1 mi) and 10 km (6.2 mi) before a final leg of 7.195 km (4.471 mi). The IAAF now recognizes world records for men for five stages (with a final leg of 12.195 km (7.578 mi)) and for women for six stages over the marathon distance.^[3]

So on a whim he applied for  a Japanese scholarship and got it, quit his job and off he went. He then decided to run 30k a day , massive mileage, race often and chase a quicker marathon time.

If you follow him on Strava (You do use Strava right ? http://www.strava.com ) you can see he is averaging around 230km a week and then running a PB in training , with no taper ! Incredible stuff. Jake is seeing massive improvements and although he is on the verge of being an elite professional runner he started like us , albeit a tad quicker. I really believe is you listen to his YouTube channel you will learn things that will improve your running , without having to learn Japanese and move to Japan.

I had a similar experience to Jake when I was at my peak in 2013. I had increased my training from the previous year and also raced often, as you can see in the Excel extract below I would PB in just about every race (a PB is highlighted in red and a win in yellow)

In 2016 I went one better and really added distance as you can see below. This culminated in a 10k PB and a massive half PB. This was three years past my ‘golden year’ of 2013. Also remember I was fifty at this point.  2016 showed me that distance and racing often were the key to improving your running, the evidence is in the numbers.

So there you go, as I have always maintained running is a simple process, run more, race often and don’t get injured and you will improve until father time comes calling , unfortunately no one outruns father time.

Follow me on

or follow me on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/runbkrun/

Big shout out to fisiocrem , this product is just incredible for tired and aching legs. I use it daily and have noticed a vast improvement in recovery.

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!

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.

Shokz headphones, let you keep in touch with the world around while losing yourself in quality tunes or podcasts. ( https://shokz.com.au/ )

T8 running apparel is the best you can get, second to none. Designed for the ultra humid Hong 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/)

Follow me on

or follow me on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/runbkrun/