WAMC, Peninsula 10k , 3rd place. Quality time with Jon.
After the Darlington half last weekend I was buoyed and ready for another race to continue my comeback from the year from hell that was 2018. Seven months of no speed work what so ever had certainly taken it’s toll but the Elliptigo commuting ( http://www.elliptigo.com ) had kept my aerobic fitness and running around like a headless chicken in Kings Park has also helped, albeit on trails and as slow as Jon Pendse running Darlington with a hangover!
Rocking up to the start of the Peninsula I decided that, unlike last year when I set off like a scolded cat, this year I would try and hang onto the leaders and work my way into the race, hoping the time on the Elliptigo would give me enough cardio base to finish strong. I had tried this at the Point Walter 16k last year and it seemed to work, from what I remembered. Looking at the splits below it does look like we went out too fast but at the start of the race I was running within myself and I’m surprised the first kilometre was so fast. There was a 5k runner taking point but it was obvious he was not in the longer race, so ignored. At about the 2k mark the different race distance part ways and I was disappointed to see three runners ahead of me take a right turn indicating they were racing the 10k like myself. That put me in my least favourite position, 4th, the first person to win nothing (assuming the top 3 get medals , which in this case they do.) Worse still one of the runners ahead was a 12 year old running prodigy and who had never beaten me and I had boasted to the boys on many occasions that no runner less than 13 would ever beat me, was today going to be the day I ate my words, again !
Right, 3k in and fourth position, nestled a 100m’s or so behind the leading pack of three runners. Things took a turn for the worst when another runner over took me and I was relegated to 5th place, with the thoughts of a medal disappearing fast. It was at this point I decided to roll the dice on my fitness and put in three fast kilometres to try and get back into medal contention. The game plan was to establish a buffer for the last 2k which would be used to hang on to 3rd place. Digging in from the fifth to the seventh kilometre achieved this and I was confident the gap was enough, assuming I didn’t blow a gasket, to get me to the podium.
As it turned out the plan worked perfectly and the last two kilometres , although still very ‘trying‘ (and that’s putting it nicely), were do-able and there was no time blow-out as such. That’s not to say it was easy and that is the point of this post.
A ‘regressive’ 10k
What is the best way to run a good 10k ? First of all I believe you need to either race quite a few 10k races, on a regular basis, to nail them or in training put yourself in the 10k ‘pain box‘ once a week and continually improve your time. This could mean starting 2-4 minutes outside your PB time but getting to within a minute in training, once a week, on tired legs. Thus when you get on your racing shoes (I assume you’ll have the Nike Vaproflys 4% ?) and you’re rested , together with the racing mentality of a bib on your chest or training chip on your shoe. you can produce the time you need. As with all things running experience and practice play such an important role. The more you run 10k the better you will become at running 10k, it really isn’t rocket science. (I’ve lost track of the number of times I have said that .) This , of course, goes for all distances.
Looking at my ‘regressive’ splits above you’d be right in thinking that today was probably not the best way to run a 10k but I was more interested in the medal, not the time. At 52 years old my days of getting on the podium are probably limited and I treat every time now as the possibility it may be my last, especially at the shorter distances. Today I worked very hard to get that third place but I was always have that reminder in my medal collection and it will bring back all the happy(?) memories of the race. (Well I enjoyed the last 100m’s ?)
You can break a 10k down into three stages, the first 1-5k you should be able to maintain your desired pace, if you can’t the second 5k ain’t going to be pretty. The hardest part of the 10k is then upon you, maintaining your race pace through kilometres 6-8k, this is where the 10k is won or lost in relation to reaching your required time. The last 2k you can normally find something and the mind will release the last bit of energy left to get the job done, bye bye fatigue , hello ‘sprint to the finish’ and vow never to do this again. !
Why is the 10k so hard ? A 5k is a hard race but worst case scenario, you won’t hit the wall until 3k so only have to hang on for the final 2k. In the 10k this can be double that distance. So many runners set of , full of beans, at their 5k pace. The one problem with 5k pace is at 5k you suddenly realise why it’s 5k pace. Your body reminds the mind that 5k pace is good for, well, 5k ? Not surprise there, leaving you with maybe 1-2 kilometres to digest this information from body to brain and then unfortunately four kilometres to reflect on your mistake , deep, deep in the pain box. To compound your mistake your body starts to remind your mind that its time to shut down vital bits to survive your earlier exuberance, starting with your legs , lungs and eventually mind. Trust me it ain’t pretty.
Is a 10k harder than a half marathon ? Yes, because for a half you’re a tad more sensible. No 5k pace for a half and also no 10k pace because a half isn just too long to fall apart before half way. The same for a full marathon, these are planned and people are usually sensible enough to set a goal pace and stick to it, at least for the first half of the race. Of course the marathon is a 10k race in itself , albeit with a 32k warm up ! Anyhow the half and full lend themselves to sensible pacing.
So whats the answer to run a good 10k ? As I said earlier practice and this can be either run a 10k race once a month or try and run within 1-2 minutes of your 10k PB once a week. Another option is running a park run every Saturday because if you can get to the end of a 5k and still feel fresh you can certainly last a few more kilometres before hitting the wall. Also if you can get to 8k you can always find something for the last 2k, surely ?
As I predicted in my post last week Nic Harman did break Robert De Castella’s (Deeks) Darlington half record today. Deek’s had ran 1:06:50 the day of his wedding and that record had stood for over 20 years. Today Nic ran a 1:06 dead to become the fastest runner to conquer the Darlington hills on the 50th anniversary of the event. In Deek’s defence Nic has no plans to get married today so he was probably a little more focused than Deek’s when he ran today.
So how good is Nic ? He has a PB for the half of 1:03:46 set in Cardiff this year as a member of the Australian Commonwealth team and he is at that stage in his career when every run is a personal best. (How I miss those days but unfortunately Father Time seems to have caught up with me , finally! ) If he was to find four minutes for the half he’s running sub one hour and all of a sudden he’s playing with the Kenyans and setting Australian best times. Of course finding four minutes is a big task but he is up for it and has the right team behind him to achieve this and more beside.
Speaking to Nic after the Darlington half this morning it’s clear his new goal is the marathon and specifically his first in July this year, the Gold Coast Marathon, on the 7th. To me the marathon is the perfect distance for Nic , he is the ideal weight, has the mental toughness required to compete at the highest level, the boy is focused , motivated and has Raf in his corner. Put all that together and you have the possibility of greatness.
Winners are Grinners.. can Nic become Australia’s greatest ever marathon runner?
Right enough about Nic , a talented runner with his whole glittering career ahead of him and more hair than is fair ! Let’s talk about a runner hanging on for dear life before being dragged, kicking and screaming, back to the pack with very little hair, which is unfair. After such a long lay off I always knew Darlington was going to be mentally and physically tough. I was not let down on either count. At 5k I was ready to pull the pin and started to think about all the posts I could write on failure and taking the positives from the negatives. It was only my good mate the T-train ( https://www.tonysmithruncoaching.com ) catching me at around the 5k mark that kept me honest. I slotted in behind Tony for a few kilometres and left the group I was running with and continued up the hill.
As you can see from the elevation below Darlington is about 12k up hill and 9k downhill (I’m never sure how that works but there is a loop you don’t run on the way back?) Anyhow I convinced myself things would be better on the final 9k and if I could get to this point I could ‘stumble’ home for a semi-reasonable time. So between 6k and 12k I got my head down and just kept Tony in sight as he gradually moved away from me.
As with all racing it’s easy to think you could have gone faster when you’re sitting at your computer screen, freshly showered and fed and watered. All of a sudden you think you could have gone a few seconds faster here, pushed a bit harder there but truth be told people you ran your heart out and there probably was nothing left in the tank to give. Well that’s racing for me and today was no different. I was not a pretty sight at the end of this little adventure but I’m blaming the humidity which was brutal.
Right we left with me watching the T-train disappear into the distance hanging on to a top 10 position with the downhill section of the race ahead of me. Not much to report on this part really , got my head down and knew if I could maintain some resemblance of pace I’d be a shoe in for a top 10 , which before the start was the main goal. I’ve raced Darlington seven time before and on a few occasions I’ve ‘exploded ‘down the hill hitting times I have never repeated on the flat, today was not going to be one of those days. My splits were best described as consistent and my last 5k was the quickest but really this is a given at Darlington. That’s not to say it’s easy , you just go faster for the same amount of pain ! The Nike Vaporfly 4%’s flyknit’s got their first hit out and I am happy to report they are even better than the original versions. Lighter and more ‘bounce‘ and they fitted perfectly. Thankyou Nike, we really are not worthy.
Finished in 1:22:55 which of course will be rounded down to 1:22 at work tomorrow, sounds so much better and no need to bother non-runners with seconds, it confuses them. I think I was 9th ( mainly due to runners ahead of me deciding to reinvent the course and getting lost within spitting distance of the finish. ) which will be great is that is confirmed and pretty sure I was the ‘first old bugger‘ as Tony puts it. (50-55 age group) All in all a very successfully day but not for all.
Jon had decided to sacrifice a good time at Darlington by watching Kylie Minogue last night and taking on board 6 beers and a bottle of wine. Let’s just say he was not firing on all cylinders and looked like death warmed up at the finish. Certainly proves the well held theory that alcohol and racing really do not mix, like beer and wine eh Jon ? H made up for his slow running by driving like ‘Michael Schumacher on meth‘ to and from the event, blaming his BMW , apparently that’s the way you have to drive it? He also wore the oldest and most worn racing flats I have ever seen. Jon is famous for running the Rottnest marathon in 2017 and then attempting the 5k straight after, with his kids, when the soles of his racing shoes came away from the rest of the shoe, the show literally broke in half ! Jon likes to get his money’s worth from his trainers!
One of the few half marathons where a negative split is just about a dead cert.
So the lesson learned from today is trust in your training and although it would be easy to pull the pin early that initial feeling of despair , and ‘total abject pain‘ will normally subside over time. Your training will eventually kick in and some sort of bearable pain threshold achieved, this is racing. Nothing beats a bib on your chest and the feeling your heart is about to explode through your ribcage, nothing. The benefits far out weight the pain that you need to put yourself in during the event, you come out the other end a better runner.(or in Jon’s case ….sober!)
I’ve always maintained the fastest way to improve is to race, as much as humanly possible, after your initial “building” training block of course. (and maybe a speed block and some resting ?, check out anything by Arthur Lydiard.) I’m hoping today will be the springboard to a reasonable 10k next Sunday and then maybe, just maybe, the Bunbury Marathon in April. I won this event in 2013 and went back in 2014 fitter and more focused than ever but totally blew up at 10k, made for a very painful lesson. Haven’t been back so it’s about time I returned to right a few wrongs….
Apart from the start line this is the closest I got to Nic all day ! The boy is quick….
This weekend is the 50th running of the Darlington half marathon, ( http://www.wamc.org.au ) the longest running race in the West Australian Racing calendar. ( I mean longest running race in the sense it has been running the longest , it’s not the longest running race in distance of course. .. but you probably realised that and I’ve wasted my time typing this and wasted your time reading it…I digress…..) It will also be an opportunity for young Nic Harman to take on the Darlington Half course record set by the great Robert De Castella. How great is Robert De Castella (Deeks) ? Well his Boston Marathon winning time of 2:07:51 is still an Australian record and he set it in 1986. His Darlington record is 66 minutes and change and he ran it on the morning of his wedding, so he probably had other things on his mind. I told you he was a great !!
An Aussi Icon. “Deeks” Castella
I predict, if conditions are right, Nic will beat the time set by “Deeks” and I’m even going to go as far as to say I also predict one day he will beat the Australian Marathon time as well, the boy has talent. Nic is running his maiden marathon at the Gold Coast in July this year and if he runs to his potential I reckon he’s got a chance of a Olympic Qualifier for next years big dance in Japan. It’s probably a year or two too early but I believe when you’re good enough you’re good enough, age is not a pre-requisite. Experience would be nice of course and for the next Olympics if Nic continues to improve I would think he would be a shoe-in for the team. There is the Commonwealth Games in two years of course which is probably the wiser option but sometimes youth disregards wisdom and exuberance wins the day. It’ll come down to his coach and manager I suppose and with Raf and his team currently on a high from his latest racing results the sky could be the limit. ( http://therunningcentre.com.au )
The next Deeks… time will tell ?
Talking of Raf, he took a team of runners to Japan recently and they all outdid even what he thought possible. None more than local celebrity Rochelle ‘rocket’ Rogers who propelled herself into Olympic contention. Rochelle worked in Raf’s store for many years and has been a prodigy of his for some time. In Japan she shocked herself and the Australian running community with a run that basically redefined her. A quantum leap in running times and if she can keep on improving the Olympics is a real possibility. Wow ! Local girl done good , big time. With Rochelle and Nic firing Western Australia is well and truly in the running spotlight….Enjoy the article below from http://www.runnerstribe.com .
Before you read the article below I’d like to put what Rochelle did into context. Mature marathon runners have a set time they aim for and pace themselves accordingly. We all know it is suicide to run how you feel at the start of a marathon as you are fully rested, carboloaded and full of adrenaline for the task ahead. You could easily run a 10k PB but after that you’re spent with 32k of pain infront of you. This as I have always said ‘the fastest marathon runner is the one who slows the least’. This means set yourself a goal pace and stick to it. If you do for the 42.2k you have your goal time, easy really. The only downside to this is you never really have the opportunity to smash a PB as you mature because you restrict yourself by sometimes holding back until it’s too late to do any real damage to your PB. I can normally predict between 1-5 minutes my finish time in any marathon, I can do this through experience of finishing forty three of them and counting. I know my chances of running anything faster than 5 minutes from my goal pace will never happen because I pace myself to a set time; also at 52 my days of running PB’s are probably behind me (probably?). Rochelle ignored all her experience and that of her coach and ran on feel, throwing caution to the wind and just basically ‘going for it’. This was going end one of two ways, total success or abject failure. in this instance total success.
I believe another reason for her startling time comes down to her footwear. The new Nike Vaporflys 4% flyknit I reckon is good for between 3-5 minutes , depending on your finish time, in a marathon, minimum. Longer if you’re a plodder with the caveat you need to get on your toes for these bad boys to really kick-in. I saw a photo of the start of the Tokyo marathon and all you could see on the elite runners were these new red flyknits. They really are game changers and now they seem to be available, just in time for the new Nike 5%’s to come out . Yep, Nike have overhauled the 4% and produced another 1% from somewhere. To non-runners this is negligible, to runners this is huge. Another 1% boost in pace and efficiency, with no extra training, where do I sign up. Word on the street is they are even more expensive than the 4%’s of course but whatever the cost I’ll be buying a pair to add to my two pairs of 4%’s I currently own. (not including my first pair of 4%’s which are now done.)
Of course the now ‘fly in young Nic’s running ointment’ is he is sponsored by Saucony. Now I rate Saucony, they make great shoes as do Adidas, Asics, New Balance etc etc.. but no one, and I mean no one, produces anything that comes close to the Nike Vaprofly 4%’s… not even in the same ball park, hell the same planet ! If Nic is really serious about breaking records and going to the Olympics he will eventually need to buy a pair of Vaporflys and I’m not sure how Saucony will feel about this. This is an issue for next year I suppose and one Nic and his coach will have to think very carefully about. Personally it’s a done deal, you want to compete with the best you need to be on a level playing field; at the moment Nic isn’t. On the bright side Nike do seem to have a bit of money to throw around so I’m sure once Nic has moved onto their radar he’ll be propositioned and before long I’m sure we’ll see him zipping around Carine in his Porsche 911 covered in Nike ‘ticks’, he just has to learn to drive first ?
Legalised cheating ? Who cares, just get a pair quickly before they get banned !!!
The art of placing one foot in front of another offers up an infinite collection of incredible stories. Too many of which will never be told. It is an inadvertent omission, a regrettable consequence of the modern worlds saturation of inspiration. Due to this, some people simply fly under the radar, only noticed when they stare you in the face. One of these people is Rochelle Rodgers. She is now one of Australia’s best marathon runners.
On February 24, Rodgers won the Shizuoka Marathon (Japan), her time of 2:34:45 shaving a nine-minute chunk from her previous best time set in Melbourne two years earlier. As she battled to the line, her bewildered coach Raf Baugh had screamed support from the side of the road, barely believing what he was witnessing. It was not just the Australian running community that would be shocked by the performance. Even her closest teammates did not see it coming — at least not yet. Nevertheless, it was real; there was no more need for dreaming. The new contender had arrived. The only question: where had she come from?
Shizuoka Marathon podium 2019
One reason for Rodgers’ relative anonymity in the upper echelons of the Australian running scene might have been her geographic placement. Residing in Perth (WA), her steadily improving results would often go unnoticed by her eastern competitors. For years, her performances consistently placed her on the precipice of the elite level, always thereabouts but not quite.
In 2013, aged 26, Rodgers ran her first Marathon in Melbourne. Placing 17th in a time of 2:57:20, she was introduced to the gruelling nature of the distance. Instead of being perturbed, it emboldened her. It was confirmation that she was exactly where she wanted to be.
“I can’t remember a thing about it,” she said, recalling that first race. “[But] I love the Marathon. I kind of find it therapeutic. I just enjoy my own time, my own space, and I love the challenge about it as well. I really enjoy the process.”
The next few years were indeed a process. Joining forces with Raf Baugh’s Front Runner Performance squad, she began to chip away at her time. A 2:50:19 for 6th in the 2015 Melbourne Marathon, followed by a 2:47:19 for 5th the following year signalled the first steps of progression. A 2:44:35 in Tokyo then preceded her first podium at Melbourne in 2017, where she placed 3rd in 2:43:50. In 2018, there was no improvement, but a win in Perth assured her that she had lost no ground. These were all good results, but nothing that foreshadowed what was to come.
“I couldn’t quite comprehend [her breakthrough run in Shizuoka],” Baugh said. “I’ve been coaching her for a lot of time. We’ve seen a lot of breakthroughs, but I think we were all a little bewildered by this one. There was no conscious expectation that running that fast was possible.”
Shizuoka Marathon
The goal heading into the Shizuoka Marathon was to run under 2:40:00. A modest aim in hindsight, but a time that would still have delivered a significant improvement on Rodgers’ fastest time. It was this aim that established the plan to run no quicker than 3:42/km, but no matter how hard she tried, holding back proved impossible.
“I felt really refreshed. I woke up feeling quite fresh in the legs, feeling quite good. I just felt comfortable and at ease with what I was about to do,” she said. “Early on we realised we were going too fast. We tried to slow the pace down, but then at the same time I felt really comfortable with how we were running, and I wanted to hold onto that for as long as possible.”
Moving into the lead at the halfway mark spurred Rodgers on, and by 30km it began to dawn on her that something special was on the cards.
“I realised I was probably going to achieve a faster time that I had set out to run,” she said. “But in the back of my mind, I knew that I had never run that fast for this long before. I didn’t know what the next 12km was going to be like.”
Now the only thing that could stand between Rodgers and the greatest run of her life was the will of her mind in dealing with the mounting discomfort. Utilising mental imagery that took her back to the idyllic sanctuary of her local trails, she powered on. Meanwhile, following on the train, coach Baugh was riddled by nerves.
“I’m pretty invested. I love it. It gets to the point where I’m almost like — I’m sitting on the train completely waiting for the next timing split to come through,” he said. “You’re just willing the athletes on even though, at that point, you can have no impact on what’s going on in front of you. You’re praying to the gods.”
Shizuoka Marathon
Ultimately those prayers were answered. With one final effort, Rodgers breached the tape, recording a monumental victory.
“We turned a corner and Matt (her training/racing partner) looked behind me and said ‘you’ve got this’. Then I heard Raf say I was on for 2:34, and I just legged it,” she said. “I crossed the line and collapsed to the ground, and was like ‘what have I just done?’”
Rodgers’ time of 2:34:45 was not just a mammoth personal best, but also over two minutes quicker than the IAAF world championship qualifying standard of 2:37:00. It took nearly an hour for her to realise the significance of what she achieved.
“When I crossed the line I didn’t realise I’d run the world champs qualifying time. I didn’t realise until later, once we got back to the hotel. I didn’t even know what the [qualifying] time was. It wasn’t even in the back of my mind,” she said. “I wasn’t expecting it at all. It was never the plan.”
With many marathon runners considering to opt out of the 2019 IAAF World Championships in Doha (Qatar), Rodgers is well aware of the opportunity she may receive. It would be the completion of a lifelong dream to pull on the green and gold.
“Ever since I was a little girl my dream has been to represent Australia. For me that’s always been my main focus,” she said. “It’s unbelievable. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do, and it’s an opportunity that I’m going to grab with both hands and take it. It’s incredible that I’ve been able to put myself in a position where it’s possible that I could be running for Australia.”
Such an achievement could potentially place Rodgers alongside some of the runners she looks up to the most, such as Sinead Diver and Jess Trengove. It is something that may take a while to sink in.
“It’s almost surreal,” she said. “I look up to those women because they inspire and motivate me to run and push myself. So, to be saying that I’m in that same sort of category is unbelievable. It’s just so surreal.”
Shizuoka Marathon
If she does stand on that midnight start line in Qatar, it will be a treasured moment. At 31 years of age, it would be a reward for her persistence. The innumerable kilometres covered chasing the faint glint of hope — the dream that came true.
“I’m willing to take on the challenge,” she said. “I’ll be soaking it up. It will be an unforgettable moment and a very overwhelming moment, but I will be very proud if I am able to [run for Australia].”
The inevitable question: what about 2020? What about the Olympic Games? Her response is measured, but her voice betrays the once impossible thought. Why not?
“Never say never. I’ve learnt that the body is capable of a lot more than what you believe it is. Impossible is nothing.”
Her days of flying under the radar are gone. Rochelle Rodgers is here to stay.
As I was taken down with the dreaded man-flu a week out from the Australia Day Ultra I will leave the race report to my usual partner in crime, Jon ‘swipe right’ Pendse. Jon is a marathon and ultra marathon running machine and it has been a honour to run with him over the last 10 years or so, after meeting in out office changing rooms.
In the early days Jon was a lot quicker than me and I regularly ran with him for the first 10-20k of a marathon before dropping off the pace. It wasn’t until the City to Surf Marathon of 2011 when I was able to pip him to the finish line by a few seconds after we both discussed finishing together. Sorry Jon but white line fever got the better of me !! Since then we have ran most events together and a large proportion of my training runs.
Anyhow I digress, Jon has written a great race report on the Australia Day Ultra which is certainly worth a read and it’s fitting he should be the first ‘guest writer’ for the blog as he has been involved with most of my posts in some manner and had to put up with man hours of BK putting the world to rights, which, truth be told has normally been a two way process… Enjoy.
Coming in to this year’s 100km ultra (http://australiadayultra.com/) I felt I had done my apprenticeship having completed the previous 3 years of ADU (having ran 8.53, 8.56, and 8.06), and this year was to be my first year ‘racing’ over 100km. This is a ‘race’, not a long training run right?
Although I had a breakthrough result in 2018, I didn’t really feel I was ‘racing‘ the distance at that time. Off the back of a consistent year with plenty of k’s in the legs (around 6,300 clocked up over the year), 2018 completing 7 marathons, 3 ultras, 5 half marathons, I felt I was ready to push for a sub8 hour 100km, given 2018 I only really aimed for sub 8.30 and managed 8.06!
Going in this year I set the following Goals; A sub 8 hours, B sub 8hrs-30, and C sub 9hours. Hmm an hour difference between an A goal and C goal, only races over 100km could you get away with such a large variance!
So here are my race splits;
Lap splits (12.5k) of 55, 57, 60, 67, 80, 80, 72, 64
25k splits of 112, 127, 160 (ouch), 136
Spoiler (it’s a very long race report!): I finished in 8:58:53
What I didn’t really consider was ‘racing’ in humid warm conditions, ok, even if its 18-20 degrees, the sun isn’t out so surely it’s not that bad? After all I’ve ran the previous years before in similar conditions (although I guess I treated those as long training runs), whereas this year I was going out at race pace, basically 10-15 minutes slower than a 50k race time.
To make things harder, my wingman & ultra-extraordinaire BK (www.runbkrun.com) narrowly avoided pneumonia only 2 nights before race night and gallantly chose to DNS rather than risk a death sentence.
So, this race was set to be a solo time trial. This is not a Sunday stroll! 😊
Unfortunately, I came undone in the 4th lap where I knew I was working way to hard and dropping too much time. 8 laps and sub 8 hour target even my 8-year-old can work out the pacing strategy… 1-hour laps or less and repeat x 8, easy?
Well the first lap was quick, but I felt good (probably due to the taper) and more importantly I felt in control. Second lap slightly slower but 57 was about spot on to where i needed to be (57-58), knowing I would need close to 10 minutes banked by 50k for the customary slow down on the second 50k. The plan was to hit 50k in 3.48-3.55 (which is 12-20 minutes slower than 50k race pace).
The 4th lap blowout meant I hit 50k just on 4hrs, at this point i knew sub8 was off the cards.
Suddenly I hit the dreaded marathon wall around 53k and was soon reduced to a walk/jog strategy… problem being hitting the wall in a marathon and you might have 10-15k left to go (I’ve hit the wall many times in marathons) … but this time around I still have 47k to go! I remember thinking how the f**k am i going to run the remaining 47k (which is the 6-inch trail marathon distance minus the hills). I was walking and could barely run. This km split was around 10minutes! Doing maths at this pace I’d be lucky to finish before noon! I should have been finishing around 8-8.30am.
This was never part of the plan, what the f**k can I do… (Please note Runbkrun does not condone this language but in the context of this post it is allowable!)
I did have a few positives going for me though… 1. Yes, I’ve hit the wall but it’s very early and only around 4.30am, the sun hasn’t even come up yet. 2. the chase pack (Margie and Chris) will very shortly be approaching 3. I wasn’t cramping or injured, so it was ‘possible’ I could regroup and rebuild.
So once Margie and Chris joined me, I soon found out they were in quite a similar state having hit a similar wall not that much earlier…
All 3 of us ran several km’s together, running low 6-minute k’s.
At this point I was happy just moving along and ticking of a few more km’s.
Margie told me she’d been running through a couple of niggles/injuries and was now seriously considering stopping. It was here I also agreed and said I’m seriously thinking of making it to 75k and calling it a day. Only in Ron’s race can you stop at any shorter distance and still claim a finishers medal albeit a shorter distance. (There was that famous DNF from Rhys a few years earlier when he stopped at 25k thus winning the race 3-4 hours before it had even started!) Besides 75km is still an ‘Ultra’ marathon and you get a finish time. That’s still a good day out in my books, and an experience to learn from for next time.
So, at my slower pace laps 5 & 6 I managed 80 minutes each, but usually in a marathon you get slower not quicker, and so after some more maths i was staring at 90 minutes for lap 7 and +90 minutes for the last lap… that would put me around a marginal sub10 hours.
This was all in the back of my mind, I’d now been dropped by Margie and Chris, and was heading back to complete my 5th lap.
It was here I saw Mick Francis on the middle aid station (must have been about 59km), and I quickly stopped for a brief chat, I heard he had to withdraw earlier with injury! But was still out supporting those remaining in the race, what a champ! [Mick’s our local legend and ultra-marathon god (he’s run more than 100 marathons and if that wasn’t enough has also ran more than 100 ultra-marathons), I’ve known mick for many years now, good mate and many races completed together], perfect place now for me to pick Mick’s running brain;
I told Mick I’d hit the wall at 50k and i could probably just make it to 75k and what’s the ultra-etiquette for pulling the pin…? Surely no point me running the extra 25km just to finish, that could be an extra 3hours in the sun walking and jogging! Besides I’ve run the 100km three times previous so have nothing to prove, surely he would agree and say yes stop at 75k call it a day recover and look for the next race, or try again next year.
Mick said it so simply… Jon are you injured? No. Then get back out and do the job. You’ll get respect and will teach you something you can’t read about. (Wise words from the man known as ‘Yoda‘ in the WA running community. A real , true blue Aussi’ Icon; Mick not Yoda.. please note I am assuming Yoda is not from the WA?)
Well the way he said it I was like why did I even ask, ha-ha. I knew the answer already, but I was also seeking acceptance that it would have been ok for me to stop. (Obviously I still could have stopped, but ultras aren’t for the faint hearted, those out there have something regular runners don’t have and many will never experience – no offence, but wait until you’ve done 100km, it will teach you many many lessons – I’m still learning).
This gave me a bit of a mental boost, and I continued my marathon shuffle at 6min k’s.
Margie was still a good 6 or 7 minutes ahead, I was stoked to see she went back out for the 6th lap which meant she’d make at least 75km, and likewise I went back out to start my 6th lap.
Meanwhile T-Train express had been setting a blistering pace in the 50km, well in front of his counterparts… he went on to win and smash out a PB and run 3hrs-27, wow!
But when T-Train was coming back on his final lap I yelled out to him phone BK at the finish line tell him Jon’s f’d, reckons he won’t break 10hours, can he do a quick poll in the BK Run Group and get the opinion on stopping at 75km?
I needed at least one person to say stop if anyone would the BK Group would… surely better to claim a 75km finishers medal than the +10hour potential finishing time (please).. Besides 75km is the point of no return, once you run past 75km there are no more finishers medals left other than the next barrier at 100km.
So, if you’re going to pull the pin, stop at 75km!
So now on this 6th lap I was still struggling and still shuffling.
I saw Margie again on the turnaround and she was going back out again for her 7th lap, wow what a champ especially with injuries and hitting the wall. Well that was it, if Margie is going to see it through, so am I (not that Mick hadn’t already told me earlier). And just before i went back out again for my 7th lap, T-Train looking fresh as ever… goes “spoke with BK he says it’s a 100km race not a 75km race.” (He lied, Tone never called me , though I would have said that !)
Alright decision made well and truly.
So, going back out now on my 7th lap things are warming up, but I’ve had almost 25k of shuffling along, and I’m starting to feel a slight second wind.
I started running a few sub 6-minute k’s, and soon enough was running around 5.30’s… so a lot more running and a lot less walking! Albeit tough and still a challenge ahead but at least I only have less than 2 laps to go! Things are starting to look up.
The whole race I’d been consistent with nutrition/hydration, had my strategy and didn’t really deviate. Setup my own esky at mid aid station, have a gel every 10k, and grab 2x250ml water bottles every time i passed that aid station. Although I’d been drinking around 600ml-700ml per hour (the other 300ml-400ml) I’d tip on my head to try and cool the core body temp) I still felt dehydrated and physically couldn’t take on any more fluids. It had been a long warm night that was for sure.
So with my new determination, I had the remaining 25k to go. Between 75k-82k I averaged around 6:30s, however I was definitely starting to feel some running legs returning, a lot less walking! The tide had turned. At the out turn-around I had a quick toilet stop, and then I was good to go. It was from here I was able to hold 5:15s, more importantly I was feeling great again, and could almost feel the finish line in sight although I did still have the final lap to run. Ron had chocolate medals this year right…! We often joke ultra-running is not actually about the running, it’s all about the food and my impartial attraction to the distance.
On completion of the 7th lap I clocked in at 7:54:05, which was a 1:12:45 lap time. Maths time again… I was feeling great, could it be possible I could break 9 hours? Sub 1:06 final lap?? Hmm. Challenge accepted. After all, given how I was feeling and could taste the finishers 100k medal, may as well go for it I had nothing to lose. Sub9 hours would be a fantastic result given where I was at 53km. Still managing to hold 5:15s, felt great at this speed again… I couldn’t work out what pace the sub 1:06 equated to, however if I could hold the 5:15s and get to the final turn-around in 33 minutes, then I would be in the ball park. And that’s exactly what happened, held the pace and got to the turnaround just under 33 minutes, a look at my watch slightly under 8hrs27. About bang on if I wanted to go under 9 hours. Still feeling great at this stage, no sign of cramping, and this was it, the final home stretch. Only 6.25km remaining and the last time I’ll see this end of the course for 12 months. It’s game on. I didn’t really have to do anything special, I didn’t need to speed up, just hold the pace and see it through to the finish. As I left the mid aid station, I yelled out to Mick I’ve got a sniff of a sub9 hour so bring it on. The final 3k was magical, this is how I had hoped I would run the final lap or at least this feeling, something you can’t replicate. I’d smashed my mental barriers and now I could enjoy the achievement of finishing my fourth 100km. I soaked up the atmosphere and ran beaming with smiles. Ok, not a sub8 and not a sub8:30, but who cares. I was so close to calling it a day, getting to this point everything was forgotten. The endorphin runners high here was more than worth hitting the wall at 53km.
This was a personal journey and my story of the day. Never give up. Respect. Pride. Proud. Redemption. And just plain mental! We are runners. And we are warriors.
I’ll be back next year to join the 500 Club -ADU Hall of Fame! Hopefully BK will have recovered by then and raring to go, I still have a sub8 hour in me?? (have I learnt anything, hmm)
Anyone interested here is my Australian 100 marathon club profile page as I endeavour to run 100 marathons (currently at 56 and 13 ultras).
2018 has been a bitter sweet year for me. It started well enough with a top 5 finish at the Darlington half, my best placing and then breaking the AURA (Australian Ultra Runners Association) age group record 50-55 for 100k was a massive goal achieved. Then the Australian Masters came along and it all sort of went horribly wrong. The Plantar Fasciitis that was ‘lingering’ announced itself well and truly after I ran the steeplechase in spikes , that really was a ‘what was I thinking’ moment which basically destroyed my year. I scuttled off to Kings Parks and like a leper with Ebola quarantined myself on the sand trails for 6-7 months. No longer was I the concrete pounding , marathon eating, show pony of the last 10 years. No, I was hidden amongst the trails of Kings Park and hidden well and truly from view. Of course I had my Elliptigo ( https://www.elliptigo.com/ ) but this was also constrained to commuting to and from work and although there were some ‘apparent‘ sightings ,as far as the running scene was concerned, the enigma that was BK was gone.
I missed the Perth Marathon in June, City to Surf in August (what would have been my 10th in a row and continue my streak of running from the inaugural event) and Rottnest in October , together with the usual family holiday afterwards to recover. Yep, that steeplechase and racing spikes combination really was a very, very bad decision akin to investing in the hosing market with a recession on the horizon. (Funnily enough I did that as well but nobodies perfect ?)
Right, the 6 inch ultra was my last chance to reboot the BK legend (if such a thing actually exists ?) or at least have something positive to write about for the blog which, for the last 7 months, had concentrated on injuries starting with plantar and ending with fasciitis; after a while even I got bored writing about it ! Although there are 101 cures and after researching most of them I firmly believe time is the best healer with a bit of physio and exercise helping to speed things up a tad, no miracle cures unfortunately.
Luckily for me time was and is a great healer and the last few weeks I have noticed a definite improvement with the initial steps to the bathroom in the morning become easier and easier. After running two recon runs , both over 25k, I was ready and with the aid of my co-pilot Voltaren, got to the start line pain free. Truth be told the number of Voltaren I swallowed I could have probably got to the start line minus a leg and not noticed. (Note: I am no condoning taking drugs to mask injuries, and then running ultra marathons on trails but in the interest of this blog, and for you, the readers who have probably have enough of posts about plantar fasciitis, I was willing to give it a go….)
So at 3:58am on Sunday morning I found myself in the North Dandelup Community Hall checking in for my 10th (in a row) 6 Inch Trail Ultra Marathon ( http://www.6inchtrailmarathon.com) with the usual suspects of course.
4am check-in grimace… 3:58 to be exact.. Barts, Mike K., Jon, me and Marky Mark (with his Mum’s socks?)
After the obligatory check-in and pre-race find a toilet or it’s into the dark armed with toilet paper and little else (an activity thwart with danger as in the dark you can never really be sure the job is complete…) we are bused to the start line for the final pre-race banter. This normally involves geeing up Jon Phillips to put in his customary first 100m sprint and then spend 10 minutes recovering while we all jog off into the dark highly amused at his antics. For all non-Perth runners , i.e. Mum, Jon is a past master at sprinting the first few hundred metres and then recovering, hands-on-hips, bent over, while we all run past. His sacrifice is commendable and we all benefit from this tradition, in our own way.
Some pre-race banter with TB..4:27am apparently. (I think Jon is still asleep!)
So at 4:30am off we all went up Goldmine hill…If you know Goldmine hill you will know it’s a big, steep unforgiving mother of a hill. I’ve certainly waxed lyrical about it on a number of occasions over the years in this blog so feel free to search my previous posts on the subject. I’ve probably run out of descriptions for this bad boy and will leave my past posts to paint the picture. Needless to say we all managed to get to the top and off onto the Munda Biddi bike trail we all scuttled, enjoying another year of just about perfect conditions for December in Perth i.e. it wasn’t stinking hot !
I settled in with a group behind the three leaders who had set of at a pace I can only describe as ‘unsustainable for us mere mortals’. This leading group contained two professional athletes and a three time event winner. The second group was running at a more ‘human’ pace and we started to settle into a rhythm that would hopefully get us to the finish line quicker than 4 hours, the first goal of the 6 inch. The second goal was a top 10 finish and the final goal a Masters age group win (over 50) and the nice plaque that comes with it. With my nearest rival for this award having his normal interrupted training schedule I was confident I could retain this award from last year. Unfortunately this all changed at around the 5k mark when one of my running nemesis’s run up beside me . (I say running nemesis is the nicest sense of the word.) Stephen Stockwell had entered this event for this first time unbeknown to me though I should have twigged when I heard his daughter had entered, a rookie mistake. Me and Stephen have had some real battles over the year and it’s only been the last couple I have been able to keep him honest and when I do it’s always a struggle for both parties. Seeing Stephen cruise up to my side I knew my thoughts of a Masters win were suddenly no longer the ”walk I the park’ I had envisaged a few seconds prior, I was now going to work very, very hard for the privilege.
True to form Stephen set the pace in his normal racing strategy of ‘surging’ when the he feels the need and then slowing for no real reason I have ever worked out ? This continued until we got to the first road crossing at around 17k where I saw the first chink in his armour. There is a small but steep hill after the crossing and Stephen , together with a couple of other runners in the group, started to walk. It’s little things like this that in a racing scenario can be the difference between winning and losing. Mentally I was struggling with young Mr.Stockwell turning up, unexpected. This had initially thrown me and I was struggling with his early pace but determined to hang on. I figured the race for positions at the 6 inch starts in earnest after aid station 2 at the top of the escalator hill , around 37k into the race. This last 10k is where you really start racing for positions and also it’s in that last 10k you can haemorrhage time quicker than an ebola patient on blood thinners!
Right back to the race. My race strategy is always to stop to refill my water bottles, half full in each, at aid station 1 and then try and finish the race without stopping at aid station 2 and 3. It’s worked in previous years so my stop at aid 1 is longer than the rest of the chasing pack who then left me and the roles reversed. I prefer to be the chaser compared to the chased so I was more than happy to sit behind the few runners who had leap frogged me. I knew the conveyor hill was coming up (and the highest part of the course) and this one is a real test for the unaware, as this was my 10th running I knew what to expect, so prepared myself for what lay ahead.. Young Mr.Stockwell of course had never seen the Conveyor hill before and it served to be his downfall. We started the hill together but that was the last I saw of him until he came in 15 minutes behind me with his Daughter who won the Women’s event, finishing just over four hours. I think they both made top 15 which was very impressive as it was the first time for both of them, also a nice touch to finish together albeit Katherine insists she crossed the line first and Stephen, being the Gentleman and proud Father he is, was happy to concur.
Starting to feel the pressure of the chase at halfway….
After I dropped Stephen the rest of the race was uneventful until probably the last 5k. My friend Justin caught me on the Conveyor Hill and we ran together for around 10k which was nice as usually I’m alone at this point. Unfortunately for Justin his ITB started to play up and after the Escalator Hill (More like the Escalator Wall!!) I was agin cast adrift and left to my own devices.
During the 6 inch there was points on the course where I aim for, mental targets that I use to help the mind release the handbrake that is fatigue, at 42k there is a sharp right turn into a sweeping downhill section that, when I reach it, I know the race is done and all I have to do now is hang on. Mentally I find this point is where I can start to think about the finish and I always feel a surge of energy as I start to count down the k’s to the finish. This year as I cruised down this part of the course I noticed a runner ahead and started to dream of a top 5 finish. As this was the first time I had seen anyone ahead of me for well over 15k I knew I was catching him, and fast. This was then compounded by another runner , so all of a sudden a top 4 placing was on offer.
Last year I would have caught them but this year I was paying the price for my earlier over exuberance racing Stephen Stockwell and could only manage to maintain a sub 5min/k pace, just. In the end this was enough to nearly snatch fifth place from Gerry Hill (a three times winner) who was having a very bad day at the office but he managed to hang on and beat me by 9 seconds. So overall a 6th place finish and 3:46 finishing time, and of course, first Master. Before the race I was hoping for a top 10 and predicted 3:47 as my finishing time so more than happy with the end result. It really was just about the perfect race really.
As is the norm when I finish the 6 inch I make a beeline for the nearest esky and plonk myself in it ! This is a throw back to the ‘hot year‘ of 2013 I think and ever since I have made it a tradition, much to everybody’s disgust of course !!
The traditional head in the esky shot.
After I dragged myself out of the esky there is the ‘wait at the finish line and see who runs sub4‘ time. All the boys had talked up their chances but none made the cutoff. Jon was , as always, the closest to the goal time and missed it by 1 minute. I think Jon may have the record for the number of ‘near misses‘ in his racing career, it must be at least 10 races where he missed the goal by less than a minute ! He’s infamous for taking too long to finish, he probably puts that on his ‘tinder account‘ where taking too long to finish could be considered a plus rather than a minus ? (By the way Jon is recently single so if any reader fancies some ‘Jon time‘ let me know…) Next in line was Marky Mark finishing just under 4 and a quarter hours but if his mum reads this it was 3:59… she’ll be so proud. Rhys and Mike K were next in great times with the only expiation to a great days running being Barts. Due to a suspect stress fracture and a 5kg Chicken Parmi at the local pub the night before he had to walk in the last 15k. He admitted he was close to DNF’ing but has ran one more 6 inch than Jon and he couldn’t let Jon catch him up, this was enough to get him to the finish line. Jon apparantly, who is the owner of the 6 inch finishers spreadsheet , has threatened to add an ‘average time’ column to give himself at least one more numerical advantage over Bart’s…. these lads are very competitive with Bart’s still insisting he is taller than Jon, albeit by centimetres! Special mention to Damo’ who placed 5th in the 3 inch (the half marathon version) with a respectable time and hopefully this will springboard him to new heights in 2019.
6 Inch Finishers shirts all-round bar Mike, a rookie error ! (albeit it was his first time)
Once all the boys were in it was the obligatory shower, honey on toast and a cup of tea at the campsite before returning to the finish line resplendent in our 6 Inch finishers shirt. All bar Mike K. of course but being his first 6 inch he was forgiven and Jon will photoshop a 6 inch short on him for the offical photo! After the photo of the lads it was time for the handing over of the Masters trophy from Dave before we all scootered off back to the big smoke that is Perth and started to make plans for the 2019 running and a possible long weekend, boys only of course. It go without saying we’ll be back in 2019, if you’re reading this and fancy this race I highly recommend you pop along, you’ll see the usual suspects described in this post and more besides. It really is the prefect race to end the year and prepare to let your hair down (I wish I could !!) pre-Crimbo. For the BK crew there is one more race of course, the highlight of the year but that is another story for another time…. Merry Christmas all….Yours in running…BK.
Receiving my Masters Trophy from the Race Director, Dave Kennedy.
This Sunday is the 14th running of the 6 inch trail ultra ( http://www.6inchtrailmarathon.com/ ) , probably my favourite race of the year as its not about the finishing time , the 6 inch really is all about the journey.
I’ve written various posts on this race over the course of this blog and they’re probably worth a revisit for some back ground before I wax lyrical about the main event…
Due to getting lost twice in the last three years (and three times in the last nine years!) I even went down to Dwellingup with the lads for a couple of recon runs this year. So am confident this year there will be no navigation errors. Saying that in previous years I’ve worn two Garmins and still managed to get myself lost, it’s a curse ! Funny thing is the 6 Inch is probably one of the easiest trail events around, on a proper trail race you might as well send out the search party now, I’m not coming home without help.
6 inch recon with the posse. 27k of fun on the trails…
This year we are expecting good conditions with a low of 14 and a high of 25, which for December in Perth is probably about as good as you are going to get. For example today was 38 ! Last year was unseasonably wet and driving to the start line Brett’s wipers could hardly keep up with the deluge. Once we got off the scarp things calmed down and we had a great mornings trail running.
The lads and I all stay at the Heritage Centre in Dwellingup the night before the race as it’s a 4:30am kick off and if you factor in a couple of hours driving from Perth and getting ready at the start it makes for a very early wake up call on Sunday morning. This way we get to lay-in until 3am!
The couple of recon runs this year has really wetted my appetite for the trial running and combined with the Choo-Choo run earlier in the year I feel I’m turning into a trail runner as I mature. The Choo-Choo is another trail run where this time we race a train, hence the name… worth a read..I digress…
So what to expect over the weekend. It’s a boy weekend away truth be told and a time to relax , albeit after racing 47k, and finish the year running with good friends on amazing trails looking forward to a few days break and Christmas with the family. The 6 Inch has found a place in mine and the boys hearts and if you are ever in Perth for the last Sunday before Christmas you really need to come and join us.. ho ho ho !
Footnote: I never published this post in time pre-race and now it’s Monday and the race has been and gone. I’ll post a full race report this week and it’s worth reading, it was a beauty !!
Gotta love the heat…love my esky time at the end of the 6 inch.
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On Thursday the usual Yelo progressive crew did what they had to do to justify the best coffee and muffin combination in Perth, maybe even Australia ? This week we were graced with a couple of new recruits namely Nic Harman, fresh from representing Australia at the Commonwealth Games half marathon (The Australian team got Silver) and Rob Robertson , a local identity who wanted advice on banting, keto and diets generally. The eight of us set off on a relaxing 10k out and back as the company and post run conversation (with coffee and muffins of course) was the real reason behind the run and we all knew it. Towards the end of the run the group did splinter but not enough to warrant any real complaints, truth be told we were all impressed young Nic managed to hold himself back albeit he had ran 10k, pre-Yeo run, at a pace a minute or more a kilometre quicker.
The usual suspects and possibly the fastest runner from WA , Nic Harman, and Rob Rob, a NSRG legend.
The talk soon turned to the 6 inch trail ultra marathon ( http://www.6inchtrailmarathon.com/ ) and the second recon run this weekend. We had ran the first 27k last weekend and the plan this week was 29k from the 17k mark to the finish, including the infamous ‘escalator’ hill. They say hill, it looks more like a wall to me as you hit it at around the 35k mark and you’re normally ‘goosed’! Hills always look steeper when you’re goosed..!!
Me taking on the escalator, trust me it is steep!!
So this weekend we’re off back to North Dandelup and on the Munda Biddi trail ( https://www.mundabiddi.org.au/ ) to sunny Dwellingup for the second half of the 6 inch. Must admit to being very excited as this part of the trail is inspiring and I know its going to be a good ‘crack‘ running with the posse. It won’t be the fastest traverse but it’ll probably be one of the funniest, depending on the state of Bart’s legs at the start. (He was dropped in the first 100 metres last week and didn’t we hear about it!)
If you don’t run trails then you really should, it’s the surface that keeps giving. First, it’s easy on the joints , next it’s harder on the core as you need to watch your step and finally it’s a better workout because you need to concentrate on what you are doing. The last point is clearly ratified at the end of any trail race when half the finishers are coming in ‘covered in claret’ (i.e. bleeding from falls.) On the run last week Gerry Hill, a two times 6 inch winner, stacked it big time and we were all surprised nothing was seriously damaged bar his pride. The trails demand respect. Finally the scenery on the trails is just damn right beautiful and you get reminded why you do what you do, running in its purest sense, no bib on your chest or time target, just being ‘out there’ with friends.
6 inch recon with the posse. 27k of fun on the trails…
To prepare for the 6 inch I had stuck to my Elliptigo and running trails lunchtime diet and now feel ready for another tilt at a sub 4 hour finish and possible top 10. I have six sub 4 finishes under my belt and the other three times I got lost , just got to stay focused this year, Maybe these recon runs will help as really, after running the event nine times, I have no excuse for getting lost this year.
Top of the escalator, my happy place !
If the Plantar Fasciitis decides to hang around next year I may be forced to do a season of trail races, which truth be told isn’t such a bad thing, at my age it could be time to go longer on the trails and use my experience to gain an edge over the younger competition. I’ve always said ultra marathons are ready made for the older runner when mental toughness and preparation are more than enough to take on youthful exuberance. In WA at the moment there is a smorgasbord of trail racing so I’ll have enough to keep me busy but I’ll miss my one true love, the good old fashioned marathon on the city streets. Nothing beats this distance and terrain but a good trail distance may be the only alternative next year, we’ll see.
Of course there is one race next year that would certainly test me, The Delirious West 200 mile . ( http://deliriouswest200miler.com.au/ ) This is the first of its kind in WA and it looks like its going to be a beaut race in its inaugural year. If you run trails and live in Australia you need to seriously look at this one. If my PF hangs around and I’m restricted to the softer surface it will come into my radar early next year, just got to persuade my current Wife $1,200 is a reasonable race entry, I feel that may be harder than the race itself ?
200 miles, how hard can it really be ?
Finally if you do decide to run the 6 inch ultra trail marathon this December 16th I highly recommend the bacon and egg sandwich , cappuccino combo at the only cafe in Dwellingup, The blue Wren Cafe, it kept me going for the last 10k today, the thought of it that is; it really is a thing of natural beauty sand did not disappoint!
A runners treat, after 47k of trails you’ve earned it !
WA Athletics Stadium, home for the four days of competition.
As I mentioned in my last post I intended to run four events at the Australian Masters Competition in Perth . I had entered the 10,000m on Thursday, the 3,000m Steeplechase on Friday , the 5000m on Saturday and the 8,000m cross country on Sunday. My target was a top three age group finish in all four with a stretch goal of a clean sweep age group gold medals to mimic Usain Bolt on the Olympics. (If only in the number of goal medals.)
So I took Thursday and Friday off work and toddled off to the West Australian Athletics Stadium to run my first event, the 10,000m . Not knowing the calibre of competition for this event my game plan was to start like a scolded cat and hang on for as long as possible to my mate Ross’s shirt-tails. Ross was in good form and would certainly break 35 minutes. My track PB was 35:35 (I think? ) so I knew somewhere along the way I would be jettisoned from behind Ross but the idea was to make this inevitable event as late as possible in the 25 lap race. Secondly I would checking the bib numbers on the back on all athletes ahead of me as I was really only racing the clock and anyone in my age group, there is no prize for the first three runners, it’s all age group determined, with a 1,2 and 3 in each age group presented with the gold, silver and bronze medals. Looking around at the starting group I could see a few runners in my age group and made a mental note to track them if they dared run ahead of me !
As soon as the gun went off Ross and I set the early pace before being passed by a 55-59 runner, this may have been a knock to the ego, being passed by an older runner, but he was in a different age group so I wasn’t racing him. I managed to hang on to Ross for around 10 laps before he started to pull away and I was left chasing the older runner who had taken 5-10 metres off me. No worries, I was happy enough in third place , happy in the fact I was running in the age group gold medal position. This continued up to the halfway mark when , as always, I realised I had gone out too quick and dropped deep into the pain box and I mean deep. I always say the 10,000m is one of the hardest races you can run as you always race it at 5k pace and at 5k you find out why it’s called 5k pace! Normally I can hold out until about 7k before I start too question my sanity and asking why I shouldn’t just stop and let the pain go away. Unfortunately today I was at that stage of the race a few kilometres earlier than normal, joy, some real pain box time.
I continued on to the finish counting down each lap and giving myself small targets to aim for, last 15 laps, single figure to go laps, last 5 laps , 2 laps to go and then finally last lap. I find in this race this helps, anything to take your mind off the pain. Eventually I finish in a new track PB time of 34:40 and third overall but more importantly I had won my age group by just under 5 minutes, the benefit of hindsight would have been useful but as I said earlier you really racing the clock and the age group runners. Of course I could have slowed towards the end and still won comfortably but that’s not racing, as I said many times when you put on a bib it’s on like donkey-kong, pain box time. Today was extra painful but, at 51, to get a track PB there was no other alternative really.
One down, three to go. 10,000m age group gold. Jeff Gray second and Lindsay Scholle third. Presented by local legend John Gilmour.
Next on the running menu was a new dish, the 3,000m steeplechase. I mean how bad can a 3,000m race possibly be, I was about to find out ! Truth be told I knew nothing about the steeplechase and it was only chosen as I suspected that chances of a medal would be high. This was confirmed when the competitor list was published and there was only three other runners in my age group, better still on the day one runner scratched so I was on the podium if I finished. I did make an effort to do some pre-race training on the Wednesday before the race but couldn’t being myself to jump the water jump when it was empty. Trust me people it is intimidating as the drop is extremely large before the slope back to track level. I decided to wait until the race proper before I launched myself over the hurdle into the water, what could possibly go wrong ? Thursday evening was spent researching hurdling techniques and avoiding the ‘when steeplechase goes bad‘ videos on YouTube. This gave me a new found confidence and I was confident on race day that I could at least finish ? I also found out that there are four hurdles plus the water jump per lap, so with seven laps and a half laps there was 30 hurdles to clear. Again seemed a reasonable amount , boy was I about to get a shock. !
We set off at breakneck speed as always, c’mon 3,000m what was there to hold back for ? I managed to clear the first two hurdles placing my right spike on top and leaping off , (Did I mention that half-an-hour before the race I brought a pair of spikes, my first ever pair. Seemed like a good idea at the time ?) managing some forward motion but I remember thinking that was quite high , higher that it looked on YouTube. No worries I had the water jump next and this was my first time so I decided to land two footed and just at least get round one lap comfortably. As you can see from the photograph below my technique was not text book, little forward motion but I survived.
No technique but I managed to move forward, albeit slowly? I call this the ‘crucifix’ method..
Funnily enough the hurdles seemed to be getting bigger each lap,I was sure as I went over them someone was sneaking behind me and moving them up a few inches each time. I remember looking at the lap counter with 3 laps to go (remember this is only a seven and a half lap race!) and thinking I was in trouble as the legs had well and truely gone. The last few laps I’m not sure I made any forward progress as I jumped over the hurdles (and I use the word ‘jump’ in the broadest sense of the word.) In the end I finished in 11 minutes and 24 seconds but my 1k splits told the story, 3:26, 3:56 and 4:01 . It was not pretty but I had managed fourth place finish and more importantly age group gold medal number two. Please note I have officially retired from steeplechasing, it is without doubt the hardest thing I have done in my running career, never again !
Steeplechase podium. Lindsay pipped Jeff this time.
Next was the 5,000m and I knew I had some serious conception. Doing my research on the competitor list I found a world recorder holder for the 1,500m , albeit 6 years ago and another runner with a sub 17 minute recent PB. I knew if I was going to grab gold I would need to run sub 17 minutes. On a normal day that would be quite do-able but my legs were destroyed from the 10,000m and the race from hell. (otherwise known as the steeplechase?) I put my trust in my Nike Vaporflys 4% as these had got me a track PB a few days earlier and certainly seem to work on the track. Again my game plan was to hold onto Ross for as long as possible , the basic ‘scolded cat‘ start, why change a winning formula ? So when the start pistol went off so did I , like a rocket. The first kilometre was 3:05 which was way too quick and I knew this would come back to haunt me. The next kilometre was slightly slower but I knew my time in the pain box was coming and boy I wasn’t disappointed. It was starting to heat up on the track but I was in a good position with my nearest 50-54 age group rival behind me and dropping back each lap. In the end I ran just under 17 minutes, 16:54, which was another track PB, couldn’t be happier. Fourth overall and again an age group gold medal. Three down, one to go.
5,000m podium with some serious Victorian competition. Robert Schwerkolt and Luke Goodman.
Finally day four we had the 8k cross country. The course was mainly on grass with some sand sections but no real hills to talk off. Four laps of a 2k course which infact turned out to be slightly less, turning the 8k into a 7.4k, after three days of competition I was more than happy with the shorter course. As with all previous events I was racing the clock and anyone in my age group. I noticed Jeff Grey from the previous three days but no one else. Could this be my fourth age group gold ? As it was I worked hard for the first two laps and then seeing no one anyone near me cruised home in just over 27 minutes. I say ‘cruised’ , my legs were gone and it was the steeplechase all over again but this time with grass and sand. Got to love multi day events ?
Mission accomplished, four days, four events, four age group golds. Jeff Gray in Silver and Rob Italia in a bronze medal position.
Finally how good was it to find these Australian Championships were also the Western Australian Masters Championships, so as the first WA runner in each event (in my age group) I was entitled to four more gold medals. So Mr.Bolt it seems I managed to acquire eight gold medals at the Masters, not the original four I was chasing. Seems like a fair deal because trust me I earned them ! As someone commented on facebook I look like a modern day Mr.T, albeit a tad thinner ?
You can never have too many Gold medals ? So stoked.
So would I recommend the Masters to all runners over thirty ? Very much so , the four days ran like clockwork and I’m a big believer with improvement linked to racing, so the opportunity to race at so many distances over a short period of time will certainly help your running. (not sure about the steeplechase mind, that one may take a bit of convincing once I mentally recover from those last two laps !) I met some great people over the four days of competition and even my first African (Algerian) follower (I’m assuming?) of my blog. Yassine Belaabed was just beaten into second place in the M65 8,000m cross county and I’m sure he can find the 13 or so seconds he needs to put Giovanni Puglisi in his place at the next games in Melbourne. That’s the thing with Masters, there always next year and you know what, I may even be there to watch Yassine do it, when it comes to Masters racing age is just another opportunity to level the playing field but really it’s more about the camaraderie of competition, amongst like minded people, doing what they love.
WA Athletics Stadium 400m track, home for the weekend.
On Thursday I’ll compete in the Australian Masters Athletics Championships in Perth. It’s a four day event and I must admit to getting carried away with entries when I first registered. I mean I was offered so many events it was easy to click here, click there, next thing I know I’m running four days straight in events I’ve never ran before some with hurdles and water jumps, what could possibly go wrong ? If it’s half as good as the World Masters in 2016 it will be an awesome event. Back in 2016 me and the boys put on the Green and Gold and did Australia proud with some great results in the Marathon as well as other events. It was a unique experience to be running for the same country and you certainly felt a huge sense of pride and solidarity as you all worked towards the same cause, on the same team.
World Masters 2016 Team Aussi!…. (Truth be told in the photo you have the T-train, English, Mike K. Ukranian English, myself English, a token Australian in Mark L, Brett a South African and Mark C as Scottish as sleet and snow!) We’re a diverse lot us Australians.
This time it will be for my state rather than country but I’m hoping the feeling of togetherness will be the same as the Worlds. If nothing else I’ll get to run on the track which I find challenging but in a nice way. Twenty five laps on Thursday for the 10,000m and then seven and a half laps Friday for the 3,000m steeplechase. On Saturday another twelve and a half laps for the 5,000m before concluding on Sunday for an 8k cross country . Doesn’t sound that bad does it ?
The steeplechase will be interesting as I’ve never ran it and truth be told I don’t remember every leaping over a hurdle or water jump. It will be a baptism of fire on Friday but I’m hoping to master the technique tomorrow afternoon when we are allowed to practice on the track. Just to be sure I also watched some YouTube footage this afternoon at work and it looked very do-able. (Well the 20 something American track team made it looked easy enough?) I must admit to avoid the videos showing ‘when steeplechase goes bad‘ because no point focusing on the negative right ? Maybe I should wear speedos under my shorts just incase I spend more time in the water on the water jump than planned. I could always borrow Jon’s floaties that he was made to wear on the first hill of the 6 inch ultra after falling in the one and only puddle on the whole course the year before, actually I think he fell in twice if I remember correctly. Not sure the pink would go with my WA singlet though and they don’t look very aero-dynamic ?
Maybe I need to borrow these for the water jump?
Competing in a four day event will be good fun, assuming I can avoid pulling a hammy on Friday leaping like a young gazelle over that water jump and hurdles, and I’m targeting a top 3 finish in all events for my age group. It’s important to keep yourself honest when you enter a race and the best way to do that is to let people know what you’re aiming for, can be the difference when you’re suffering and need to pull yourself together. Think about the water cooler conversation if you achieve your goal time or alternatively when Sharon from accounts gives you grief for falling short, nothing worse than verbal abuse from Sharon from accounts I can assure you. I wonder if Sharon reads this blog and, if she does, I’d better prepare myself on Monday if I fail to podium four times over the event.
Right I got more Youtube videos to watch , I really need to nail that steeplechase , I mean imagine if I slipped, the family jewels would never forgive me, now that would be a post worth reading ? (assuming I could type from the emergency ward?)
Finally today I went segment hunting on Strava. ( http://www.strava.com ) This is where you target segments and then you and your friends see who can get the furthest up the leader board and/or ahead of each other. This is good race preparation as the segment will force you to run as though you have a bib on your chest and are being chased by Lucifer himself. At work currently there is some rivalry between two of my colleagues, Chan the Singaporian Scud missile and Sascha the South African Stallion. Sascha had bragging rights over Chan and myself until we both decided to bring our times down on a segment close to work in Kings Park. Today I managed to sneak a quick time in to put myself above my two colleagues but the Stallion was disappointed to only draw level with the Scud Missile. There was much head shaking and look of bewilderment in the afternoon as Sascha checked and double checked Strava. I’m sure on Thursday as I’m racing at the Masters Sascha will be planing his next assault on that segment and probably gaining those extra few seconds needed to wrestle that 2nd place from the missile. The point of this is you can find excuses to race everywhere and with Strava you can track your times and compete against your fellow runners. Hell if you get lucky you may even find a few segments Sharon from Accounts has run but I’d probably avoid running faster than her times, she can take things personally and she controls the purse strings and the water cooler conversations…..
I have mentioned a few times about the need to keep testing yourself and the best way to do that is by entering a race. Here you are judged on time or distance and your own goals and dreams. There’s no hiding with a number on your chest and you will be judged according to the result married with expectation and prediction. If either of these variables is out there will be consequences on the day (expectation) and afterwards around the water-cooler at work. (prediction) (Do people still congregate around the water cooler at work and really did they ever ? These days it’d be a ‘Red Bull cooler’ as this seems to be the liquid refreshment of choice <sigh> )
Get your expectation wrong and you’ll be setting yourself up for failure at the ‘pointy’ end of the race , where you will be empty of all fuel and hemorrhaging time. It is so easy to start a race too quick as you’re ‘full of beans’ and energy but you must remember you’re racing the whole distance, not just the first 1500m, which is the pace everybody normally starts at. In a 10k race you’ll find your 5k pace early but at 5k you’ll realize why they call it ‘your 5k pace’ . Suddenly the brain starts to ask for payment for all the chips cashed by your legs earlier in the race, when it all felt ‘so easy’. When this happens the last 5k seems to go on forever. Trust me I’m talking from experience here and funnily enough will be racing the Bridges 10k this weekend where I found myself in that situation last year.
I remember how easy the first 4k felt and even started to dream about a PB, this of course was an illusion built on a foundation that could not possibly sustain the PB dream. At 6k the walls came tumbling down and I had to endure 2k deep within the pain box, and I mean deep! Luckily I found a second wind for the last 2k of the race, from where I have no idea, but enough to help me to a respectable 12th place overall and 11th male. Yep, I was ‘chicked’.
Lesson learnt , I hope, but probably not truth be told. I’m getting famous for my ‘scolded cat’ start and hanging on for dear life at the end. Is this the way to run races, hell no. Will I learn, hell no ! We each face our demons when we race and this is another reason why we do it. You ain’t going to push yourself to exhaustion in a training run, or at least not on a regular basis. Put a bib on my chest and it’s on for young and old, all bets are off and my goal is to run faster , over that distance, than I have ever run before. This is why I train for hours and hours in all conditions. (I say in ‘all conditions’, in Perth it’s only really sunny and hot, sunny and really hot or just sunny. It’s a curse.) Training is enjoyable but only a part of being a runner. You also need to test yourself against who you were yesterday , ‘today is all about being better than yesterday.’ Only by constantly testing yourself can you become the best you can be.
Of course this constant testing does not have to be time, throw in distance and try to run further than you have ever run, be this on a weekly basis, monthly basis or even a ultra-type event; 24 or 48 hour race anyone ? Running the Australia Day Ultra ( http://australiadayultra.com/ ) 100k race the last two years has taught me the benefit of proper pacing and the challenge of long distance racing including the hydration and nutrition needed to complete an event of this length. The activity has been testing but also rewarding in so many ways. Running a distance most people find difficult driving is satisfying and worth a few kudos points around the water cooler, though neither is the real reason you run such a distance. You run ultras to really see what you are made of, to test yourself and confront your fears. Add a bib to the equation and you need to measure yourself against your peers, even more pressure. I’m probably not selling this that well am I but the truth is by putting yourself in these situations you find out about yourself, who you really are. For the most part the reward is liberating and this is why we do what we do. People who don’t run just see a lot of people running around randomly, normally with a look of anguish or pain on their faces, and wonder why they do it? They don’t understand the joy of what we do, they don’t experience the runners high (and trust me people this is real!) we experience when we finish a race and can look within ourselves and think ‘ we could have done no more’, today I am a better person for the experience and have moved another step closer to being the best I can be.
This is the look of finishing a 10k race but starting at 5k pace and finding out at 5k why it’s called ‘5k pace’…!
As always I seemed to have digressed from whatever the subject was at the start of this post, I’ve actually forgotten myself so you, the reader, will probably be as confused as I am. Looking back I seem to have started to talk about setting achievable expectations and predictions to avoid failure. Of course I may have written a long winded version of that last sentence and added a photo, as is my way. To sum up you need to race more (or run longer distances) and set yourself goals you can achieve and, by doing this, you will constantly be a better version of yourself, daily, and that can’t be a bad thing.
