Narrabeen 12hr/100k Ultra Options

[MrD]

Just woke up after a good kip and although I'm hurting, the satisfaction of running a good race tactically is dulling the pain. Am over the moon with my time, and this is the most satisfying. The place was a bonus. Thanks for everyone who has posted your nice words. It is much appreciated!

As Horrie said, 6 foot is the longest I've raced, but was pretty confident I could cover the distance of 100km. It was just a matter of knowing what pace and how far the pace would blow out as the race wore on. My awesome crewer Emjay lent me her Garmin at the start of the race and this helped me reign in my natural tendencies to run faster. I've just had a look at my lap splits, and couldn't be happier. Only a 5 minute range from my quickest to slowest 5km split. Rapt in that!

As far as the race went, although only a small 100km field, it was very competive, especially in the first 40km when the top four were all within a km of eachother. I thought young Tim McKenzie ran an awesome race for a 25 year old, he took it out hard and wasn't afraid to lead. This guys got a heap of potential. Sorry to hear you struggled a bit towards the end that ultimately cost you a third place, but it's an awesome debut time! Michael Baldock from WA also ran a very consistent, solid race and it was a pleasure to run with you in those early stages and have a chat. Your consistent pacing was something I tried to mimic.

The course threw up its share of highlights, from 2 local women having a big bash on, copping abuse from the local lads early on and of course the possum and other fauna kept me alert. The place is packed with Possums, rabbits and other nocturnal animals and they are all far from shy as Beaver's photos showed. I almost ran over a couple of possums out there.

The comraderie from other runners and crews was awesome and thank you to all the nice words people said to me out there. I hope to get to a few more ultras this year hopefully!

I tip my hat to all the 12 hour runners. Thats an incredible effort, and as I sat having a nice massage from Emjay, I watched you all with a lot of admiration.

Thanks to Ron and his crew for putting on an awesome event. Thanks to off course Emjay, who did an absolute sterling job crewing for Tim2 and myself and countless others as the night and morning wore on! Oh and did I mention that the massage was gold?

I have posted some photos, mostly of the presentations here Anyone can add photos to this gallery if you have some of your own.

I really enjoyed meeting a lot of you for the first time today.

This post has been edited by MrD: Jan 11 2009, 04:34 PM

[Barefoot]

Congratulations to all who took part, what a pleasure to watch so many runners taking part. Great work to Ron and his crew who put on the event.

Early in the morning, as the locals where geting about, they asked me why these pepole were running? They were surprised to here that these runners wished to achieve 100km's or 12 hours, some trying for both. Again they asked why?, I said because that's what Ultra runners do!

I'll be there next year to help out, or if Ron organisers a Team- Relay, I will run.

[fat bloke]

some very solid performances out there, in what sound like a great event (good on ya ron)

congrats to all who took part.

nice to see taz devil get a big total and milov banging out another very solid perfomance.

hope to be able to take part in this one some time in the future.

looking forward to reading some more reports

ps horrie , a couple more ales and then the panadol and you would have been floating!!!!

[seris]

My first 12 hour event and really no idea what distance I could cover. All the ultras I'd done were on hilly trails like Trailwalker and GNW, so a flat course was the unknown.
From the start Bunny and I ran together after realising in the first 100 metres that we both wanted to do the first 50kms in 5:30. (Thanks Ray for your advice ) Apart from the first lap (30mins) we managed to clock each lap at around 32 mins which was right on pace. We reached 50kms right on 5:30. For some reason from that point on I was sure I wouldn't get to the magic 100km and even started to think about how much walking I could do and still have a respectable total of 80 plus K's. Luckily I was running with ERB and we pushed each other along.
The wildlife was pretty amazing and kept us awake. Firstly it was the girl in the sparkly dress trying to high five us and offer us beer, cheers from the restaurants as we ran past, then Bunny's little friends, possums, geese, ducks and duckings and maybe a rat or two running across our path. The guy with the bong (?) on the bridge and a few comments from drunks early in the morning kept us both amused.
For the last 25kms I just kept on telling myself I was out here to run and not walk. Didn't really think I'd get close to 100....... maybe 95kms if I was lucky. To get to 98.4kms was as far as I was concerned a big effort and I really found it quite funny to get that close to 100kms......... NO it doesn't mean I have to do it all again to prove I can run another 1.6kms!
The 5 km loop made it great for watching the other competitors and seeing how fast some of these guys are. To all those friendly CR's out on the course..... you made the race.
The best part of the race was the support crew at around the 1.6k mark. Thanks Mrs Anth, Ross, Emjay, Ourimbah, Beaver, Bandanna, Blubel, Timmeister and Carmel. You guys are the best. The most demoralising part of the race was running right behind Mr D when he finished his 100km event 4 hours before I was to finish the 12 hour and then seeing Emjay giving him A MASSAGE for the next few laps!
Thanks to Ron and all the helpers........ I'll be back. Thanks for making the event possible.
.... oh, and after 12hours out on a track with a bunch of stinky runners, the sight of a freshly washed, well groomed, well slept Plod cooking breakfast was heaven.

This post has been edited by seris: Jan 12 2009, 05:02 AM

[elma]

I have posted some photos, mostly of the presentations here Anyone can add photos to this gallery if you have some of your own.

Hi all
I have added a few local scenic photos taken at 2.5 km on Saturday night and near the finish on Sunday morning. Stunning scenery, great course, well organised and great effort by the runners.

[emjay]

Congratulations Ron, a fantastic debut event.

First of all, commiserations to Anth and Tim2 who both withdrew. Anth soldiered on through headache and nausea for several hours, showing a lot of guts and determination. Tim bravely started the race despite feeling decidedly under the weather after working too many nightshifts, but made the wise decision not to torture himself and rested up in the car before joining the support crew in the morning.

Thanks to Bluebel, Ourimbah, Beaver, Kaz, Bandanna, Carmen, Timmeister and the Possum for your company in pit lane, you helped to make the night fly by.

There were so many great performances including Seris and the C2Kers. But I am going to single out a few who really stood out to me.

Crazypup She was in pain from the very beginning with a knee injury but never gave up. A brave performance if ever I saw one.

Becky O After 3-4 months off, Becky decided to enter as a walker. After receiving some wrong directions, she nearly didn't make the start. At 2am, Becky suddenly found her mojo and started running. There was no stopping her from there as she did 75km. You rock, girlfriend!

Billy Pearce Billy was last seen at Dalgety, frightening C2K runners by leaping out of the dark and asking them a lot of strange questions. This time, Billy made the long bus trip from Canberra to support a new event. It was certainly worthwhile, as Billy managed to produce a 42min PB for 100km! I'm sure it was the glo-sticks that did it. Things are looking good for Caboolture.

And of course ....

MrD What can I say. The boy did good. MrD has never run more than a marathon before, so it was interesting to see how he would go. No doubt Tim2 had a lot of influence here - not only getting him to enter, but also those sekrit training sessions really paid off. MrD set off at (for him) an easy pace, but before long was already leading the pack, and by about 7hrs had lapped everyone. He was still flying even at the end, to win the 100km event in 8h07m before sitting down to watch everyone else. Not bad for a rookie!!

(edit - I had the wrong distance for Becky)

This post has been edited by emjay: Jan 12 2009, 04:26 PM

[Brick]

I have race report up on my blog Narrabeen Allnighter

Brick

[Beaver]

I just remembered a couple of funny incidents from pit lane:

* The couple who walked past pit lane on Saturday night and thought the food laid out for the runners was free and was part of the Sydney Festival.

* The drunk who kept telling us repeatedly about his friend who had done Hawaiian ironman - when I replied (repeatedly) "That's cool mate" he went off at me telling me I had no idea how much of a selfish guy his friend was and that he is not cool. Of course I have no idea - he's your friend mate and it was your story in the first place!

* The local runners out for their jog on Sunday morning, jealously eyeing off the lollies. Darrel kept telling them, only another 11 hours and you guys can have some lollies too.

* The drunk guy on Sunday morning - he could barely stand up. Kept saying "Have you seen Ditya, have you seen Ditya?" Darrel said nope haven't seen her mate. Then the guy said, "Oh yeah, what colour is he?" Such a weird question to ask!

There were plenty of other funny incidents, mostly involving the runners debating the answers to the trivia questions.

I think we made about 15 cups of tea during the night - not bad with no tea bags or sugar on hand. Thank goodness for 7-11.

[djbleakman]

I think we made about 15 cups of tea during the night - not bad with no tea bags or sugar on hand. Thank goodness for 7-11.

Those cups of tea were a godsend, I have never wanted anything so much as when Brick said at the CP, "cup of tea - I need a cup of tea"... I think I must have had a good 10 of those cups... The latest addition to the MDS kitlist: teabags, powdered milk and sugar....

[Ponkey]

I entered this run to use it as a bit of a kick start to my year of trying to run long distances and a kick it certainly gave me, both physically and mentally.

It was a series of firsts for me, to begin with it was my first timed event so I had no idea what to expect apart from a clock ticking down the hours from 12 to zero, it was also my first race that started at 8pm which made the preparation throughout saturday day very interesting (when to eat, how long to sleep friday night etc) and I would love to hear more comments on how you all prepared? Also it is close to my first full year trying to run beyond 42km and I am on a big learning curve and this race taught me a lot more about precise prep than just taking off for a run in the mountains. And finally it was a new surface for me and I have only really focussed on trail runs until this one as concrete is not my friend when you weigh 90kgs.

I had no real plans on distance because I have not really done any running since Kepler in early December so I hid behind the excuse of being unfit and over raced but this was soon put into perspective when I was introduced to Brick on the first lap and he was saying something about a "little run" he had done just prior to christmas called C2K. That certainly put it into perspective especially after he clocked up over 105km.

The location was excellent, a beautiful spot by the water and a magical sunset greeted us as we set out after what should have been a quick and simple lesson on how to pick up our personalised lap counters and deposit them in the bin at the turnaround point at 2.5km. I can tell you the fear that strikes you as you are approaching the drop off point for the card and you cant feel it in your pocket. The exhaustion plays havock with your rational thinking and on more than one occasion after scrabbiling in my right pocket for the card to have found the card in my left hand where it had been for the entire lap! I must admit to an incident with one of my lap cards, but more of that later.

The format of timed 5km out and back loops is great because you get to see how everyone is going and more importantly for newbies like me at the back of the pack to see how fast people like Tim2 and Mr D cover the ground. I think Tim2 lapped me twice in the first 15kms ! You also get to see all of the varied wildlife both natural and post pub in all its glory several times an hour ! All I can say is that the blokes on the bridge were not doing much fishing !

After meeting Brick and Mark and running a lap with Brick he quickly said that you cant really tell that you are fully recovered from a big race like C2K until about 5-7hrs in, so I took this as a good motivator for me and I decided to split my race into two parts, firstly to run the first 50km without any breaks, namely quick transitions for food and drink every5-10km and no walking. I did this in approx 5.30hrs and I was pleased considering I am out of condition. I then decided to break the last 6 hours into walk and run and then give myself the last hour when they shortened the course whatever I had left in the tank. It also allowed me to focus on a distance to achieve which up until then I had no number in mind and this was further helped as each person was able to see their laptimes and projected total on a large screen at the start finish line. Whilst this informationi s very useful it also has the ability to be upsetting as the moment you drop your pace inevitably your projected distance also drops rapidly. At 60kms I was on for 101kms.

From 60kms onwards it started to get tough as the legs felt tired so I alternated between walking the first 2.5km and at the turnaround running the last 2.5km and this seemed to help because as the race progressed I was able to start running earlier and earlier on the lap until at 80km I was running full laps again. A number of people have made reference to the speed of the walkers out there and it is amazing to see how fast you really have to run to pull away from a power walker like Jan and well done to Dan for clocking up over 90kms with a mixture of walking and running as well even when dosed up on voltarol.

In the end I ended up with 94kms which is a better effort than I expected and whilst 100km would be a badge I want someday this run gives me the confidence to come back another day and get it. And talking to Brick and Milov and Darrel at the end of the race and observing the guys and girls at the pointy end of the race I can lock all these things away and train smarter if not harder.

This course whilst flat gives you lots of opportunities to think about your race strategy and apply different tactics every 5km or so, some work some dont. For example my post 60km walk/run a lap certainly allowed me to make it to the end, but the change of footwear to something more cushioned at 70kms only aggravated a newly formed blister, so another lesson there, although im not sure if its better foot care on better shoes or both or the fact that concrete is so damn hard. And it was this change of foot wear that caused me my biggest panic, whilst I was in the chair changing shoes, I asked Oriel if she would like to walk with me to the turnaround point for some company and as the sun was rising she could also see the course. I asked her not to let me forget my lap counter which I obviously proceeded to do! I only remembered it about 500m into the lap and proceeded to send her back for it whilst I stayed out on the course. Ron, I hope this is not cheating ?

Can I thank the support crew and supporters out there, firstly my own partner Oriel who managed to catch cat naps every 20-40 mins between laps and kept me fuelled up on soup, noodles, peanut butter and flat coke and my adopted crew at 1.6kms especially Darrel who always had a postive word twice a lap to keep me going and made me a nice cup of tea at about 4am in the morning and a special mention of great idea of quiz questions posted on the flip chart on their table. These kept my mind off the pain trying to work out where the worlds biggest McDonalds is and what is DJBleakmans favourite food (no idea and still dont know the answer).

Finally, thanks to Ron and his band of organisers, great event, well organised and im sure one to put in the diary for the long run, especially when you put on such fabulous sunsets, exotic exhibitions of wildlife and a fabulous recovery breakfast overlooking the lake.

Marcus (Ponkey)

ps Milov you mentioned to me after the race that long runs on concrete or other hard surfaces can take a lot longer to revover from than trails or softer more forgiving surfaces. Any idea on how much longer I should give them compared to my normal benchmark of mountain trails ?

pps phots to follow once I work out how to pu them somewhere for everyone to view

[milov]

ps Milov you mentioned to me after the race that long runs on concrete or other hard surfaces can take a lot longer to revover from than trails or softer more forgiving surfaces. Any idea on how much longer I should give them compared to my normal benchmark of mountain trails ?

Hey Ponkey,

that really depends on how bad you feel... but you should really try to shake some of the pain away in small doses... I did 2 x 5km runs today

Great to meet you out there

milov

[Beaver]

I did 2 x 5km runs today

Are you already in training for next year?

[djbleakman]

I did 2 x 5km runs today

I just got up from my chair here at work and forgot that I couldn't walk and almost fell over... Milov you're a machine.

[Ourimbah]

How good was that.

It was good to be on the other side of the fence and see what crewing is about.To see different people and the different needs they have.It was great.

Milov great stuff,big effort and thanks for taking it easy on the crewing virgin.

ERB and Seris you girls are the bomb.Crazypup well done it would have been easy to stop
so congrats for finishing.

Horrie,your wife is a machine she treats you like you are king.

Beaver,very cool

But my last bit of help for the run is...Tim what about INFANTOLOGIST as your new CR name.


Darrel

[Horrie]

Horrie,your wife is a machine she treats you like you are king.

So are you telling me to change my handle to King Horrie? I like it. It has a nice ring to it.

I am very lucky to have someone that will fuss over me for up to 40 hours. I know it can't be easy. That is why I crew for her when required and run with her when I can.

[seris]

I am very lucky to have someone that will fuss over me for up to 40 hours.

........ I think it's been longer than that Horrie

[Horrie]

........ I think it's been longer than that Horrie

You are quite right seris. She has been putting up with me a lot longer than 40 hours. I meant 40 hours in a crewing capacity.

After putting up with me as long as she has, 40 hours of crewing would have her thinking she got off lightly.

[Crazypup]

I started this event with the goal of just being on my feet after 12 hours. The idea was to use the event as a qualifier for 6ft after having just missed the cut off at BTBS. Overall I’m happy with how I went and am glad to now have a qualifier for 6ft.

Running in the dark was a new thing but I found the course was long and varied enough that I could just chill out and enjoy the run. Highlights included seeing the sun set over the lake, moonrise and the ducks that never seemed to wake up despite how close to the path they were. Lower points were getting lost on lap 2, being chased by hyperactive possums and the guys who decided that doing burnouts right near the course was a good idea.

A big thank you to Beaver for being an excellent crew, ever ready with whatever I needed and words of encouragement when I considered bailing altogether. Also many thanks to Emjay and Bluebel for helping me strap my knee after injuring it 2 hours into the event – that kept me running for the rest of the race! Thanks also to Ourimbah for feeding Beaver and keeping him on his toes.

ERB, Seris, Dutchie and Michelle – you girls are amazing – I was so impressed with how well you ran and thanks for the smiles and words of encouragement whenever we passed on the course.

Thanks sportsman for a great event – I’m now looking forward to next year.

[AngelicOne]

Great report Ponkey ... I enjoyed reading it.

What was the deal with the cards and lap counting etc? Did you have to do your own? But if so, how did it appear on a big screen?

[MrD]

pps phots to follow once I work out how to pu them somewhere for everyone to view

Hi Ponkey, great report, you brought back some memories...

if you want to put the photos in the CR gallery, go to this link and select the login link in the top right section of the page. On the new page, put info@coolrunning.com.au in the email box and coolphotosrus in the password box. Once logged in there will be some new buttons on the page that will allow you to add photos. From there select one of the options to add the photos from your computer.

Hope it helps, I look forward to seeing them. By the way, elma, those photos are awesome. Thanks for them!

[Anth]

a special mention of great idea of quiz questions posted on the flip chart on their table. These kept my mind off the pain trying to work out where the worlds biggest McDonalds is and what is DJBleakmans favourite food (no idea and still dont know the answer).

Sausage rolls I do believe.

Congrats to everyone on their efforts on Saturday night, whether it be any of the runners who "challenged the pride of frightening distance" in either event, or the superb support crews who lined the course and treated and welcomed each runner as if they were their own.

Congrats to MrD for his win in the 100km (great run), seris for taking out 2nd in the 12hr in grand style and with a superb distance to her name (how can someone so tough have such a great smile on their face all of the time?), and djb who looked solid as a rock with his walk/run tactics powering him to what is a more than respectable distance for a non-injured runner, let alone the walking barber pole of strapping tape that he is. Full respect as always to Milov, Brick and Horrie who continue to turn in big distances, event after event without fail.

[Sportsman]

Speaking of Bluebell, I forgot to thank her at the presentation for first aid services.
She was itching for a bit of action in the race and Ken Smith obliged by falling twice.

A O. The numbered lap cards were picked up at the start of each lap and dropped at the turn point.
I used a projector to show updates during the race. It was not a great sucess as the screen resolution dropped automatically when I plugged it to the laptop. However, Buzz was reading projected distances from it, and relaying to runners as they turned.
Plus the wind blew it over 3 times.

Revised provisional results are here- Results
I will add major splits in the fial version.

This post has been edited by Sportsman: Jan 12 2009, 09:42 PM

[Brick]

I had no real plans on distance because I have not really done any running since Kepler in early December so I hid behind the excuse of being unfit and over raced but this was soon put into perspective when I was introduced to Brick on the first lap and he was saying something about a "little run" he had done just prior to christmas called C2K. That certainly put it into perspective especially after he clocked up over 105km.

Nice to Chat Marcus and also Mark,

The three of us were close after the first lap so I slowed a little to let them both catch up and being the quiet person I Am started talking to them both for about a hour or three.
It was only a joke about it being a short race but after doing it I think it was an honest reply for me I am better at longer races.
I found the concrete knocked my legs around a lot my quads are shot.
I ran to work this morning a very easy 11KMs and the down hills hurt a lot but it was so nice running up hill. (Go figure)

I also forgot to say thanks for my first ever running trophy and it was a real surprise coming fourth again in a race and then my name is called out for "Best Age Performance (Male)" my daughter was so happy to get the trophy she would not give it back to me.

Brick


This post has been edited by sook54: Jan 13 2009, 05:45 PM

Reason for edit: reduce long quote

[Ponkey]

It was only a joke about it being a short race but after doing it I think it was an honest reply for me I am better at longer races.

Sorry to confuse, what I meant to say in my report is that you humbly said that your last race before this one was a "short race" referring to C2K.

Agree, concrete has knocked my quads around a bit as well, but a gentle 5km this morning soon brought them back to life.

[Sportsman]

Could it be possible to split or indicate the walkers in the event.

Most of the intending walkers ran/walked the race.
That left Jan and Dane McIntosh (pulled out at 6 hours), and have noted them in the results

[Maggot]

It was good to be on the other side of the fence and see what crewing is about.To see different people and the different needs they have.It was great

Darrel

Ourimbah, thanks heaps for all the encouragement and support throughout the race, and also to Camp Horrie too w BlueBel and Timmeister on hand to adopt all the runners.
I entered the event w some trepidation, having withdrawn from Coast 2 Kosci last month with a shin muscle injury. On the advice of physio I elected to do a flat event as against Bogong To Hotham in Victoria (very unflat ). The obvious risk was the much harder surface (cement) and slightly longer duration ie 12 hours. Also, the other (better) half made the real call (online photos of Narrabeen Beach may have had some influence on her decision)
Pacing went well early and stuck to my plan to go through each lap in half hour lots: av 10kms / hour. As a strategy for targeting 115kms + this was probably not fast enough as post-injury I came into the race under-done w no real quality training for a month. Just oval / grass and short conservative runs. The first half of the race was really about making sure my niggles didn't flare up. Some pre-emptive Neurofen assisted in this regard I think.
Anyway, back to the race: it was awesome seeing the 100km guys whizzing around and they all put in stellar performances. Specail mention to the winner in a cracking time on debut!
In the 12 Hour, Milov was consistent as usual, although the scary thing is I reckon if he didn't have C2k on his legs, ???
Same goes for Brick, Horrie, Marie, Bunny etc who clearly were delving into the unknown in terms of how they were going to go with such a massive race fresh on the legs.
After 6 hours or so, my pace started to drop off significantly. This seemed to be a leg-fatigue thing, as against the usual 'it's 3 in the morning, what the hell are you doing running and not sleeping?' thing. At 7 or 8 hours in, I knew it was going to be well under 115kms for the 12 hours.
With about 67 minutes to go, I realised if I could pick up again and crank out 10ks, I'd get 110kms. I don't why, but there seemed in my mind to be a difference between 109 and 110: some kind of double-figure thing. Anyway, in hindsight it seems petty, but at the time it allowed me to focus and finish at 110.2 kms.
Well done to all competitors, especially the brave souls who took on the challenge for the first time.
I was quite dehydrated and nauseous post-race, the final hour effort had taken it's toll, so apologies if I wasn't overly sociable.
Anth, yet again we didn't manage to catch up properly. Nice meeting Brett W: great race mate!
Well done to Taz Devil on his impressive win in the 12 hour ~ 130kms +! In another league...
Thanks Ron on taking the initiative to stage the event. The format worked really well and I'm sure you've had plenty of positive feedback.
Maggotman

This post has been edited by Maggot: Jan 13 2009, 05:20 PM

[thomo]

Most of the intending walkers ran/walked the race.
That left Jan and Dane McIntosh (pulled out at 6 hours), and have noted them in the results

Thank you.

Ensuring people are walking over 5km course would be very dificult. 1 km laps would be more manageable.

Again, great work on a successful event.

This post has been edited by thomo: Jan 13 2009, 05:35 PM

[AngelicOne]

After 6 hours or so, my pace started to drop off significantly. This seemed to be a leg-fatigue thing, as against the usual 'it's 3 in the morning, what the hell are you doing running and not sleeping?' thing. At 7 or 8 hours in, I knew it was going to be well under 115kms for the 12 hours.

finish at 110.2 kms.


I was quite dehydrated and nauseous post-race, the final hour effort had taken it's toll, so apologies if I wasn't overly sociable.

"What the hell are you doing running and not sleeping"? That sounds very familiar! We lay together in the front seat of Brett's car a couple of times in early December from my recollection!


110.2km ... I do have to bow to you mate ... considering how you were at Dalgety during the C2K, to then turn around and a few weeks later be able to churn out that amount of k's on a hard surface. Fantastic effort. I hope you pull up ok and are able to continue on with your training. Awesome stuff fella.

Don't believe him folks ... unsociable because of dehydration ... don't believe that for a sec!

[Maggot]

"What the hell are you doing running and not sleeping"? That sounds very familiar!

I hope you pull up ok and are able to continue on with your training...

If I was a true hard-arse, it'd be "what the hell are you doing sleeping and not running?" Actually, it was amazing the difference starting an all-nighter effort not having already been awake running since dawn! . I know it sounds like one of those 'der Fred' statements, but on speaking to others in the race, they similarly didn't feel sleep / body clock issues.

And as for my injuries I have been pussy-footing around with all Christmas, now this may sound ridiculous, but it's a miracle: I'm cured (well, for this week anyway) I actually feel much better for the hitout... it's a crazy caper this ultra gig!
Mgtman

[TazDevil]

Posted on ACTrun:
http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/ACTrun/
-------------------------------------------------------

Narrabeen Allnighter Jan 2009 Race Report

It had been two years since the last attempt at a track event – the Gosford Coastal Classic Jan 2007. That period of time was required to get over the nightmares and to forget the pain endured…

So, with brain disconnected I lobbed in an entry for the Narrabeen Allnighter held weekend of 10/11 Jan, and put it out of my mind for awhile.

http://www.aura.asn.au/NarrabeenAllNighter.html

My training regime was not complicated, but sure as heck was tiring – especially in the last 4 weeks leading up to the event. All well over 100Km weeks. A couple of weeks out I tried to nut out some goals, in order they were:

1. 130Km
2. 100km in under 9 hours
3. PB (previous 121K)

The last bit of training included the last long training run 10 days out from the race and then just did a whole bunch of 15km runs, 8 in 5 days then two days off prior to racing. Those 2 days were spent at Jenolan Caves and the Blue Mountains. Some short walks and nice food and scenery kept my mind off the task at hand.

The race involved a 5km out and back loop (2.5K each way) around the edge of Narrabeen Lakes (Sydney Northern Beaches). Flat (well mostly, some ever so slight inclines which are noticeable after numerous hours…) and a mixture of bitumen and concrete surfaces. The surface was of serious concern – my body falling apart was a distinct possibility considering I was an absolute wreck after the Gosford 12 hour – could not run for a week (and even then it was a hobble), pain in bed for a week, stairs were major obstacles…

Ron Schwebel the event director had everything in hand and the start was on time at 8pm. The start was startlingly f.a.s.t…! There was also a 100Km race, and these runners set off like startled gazelles!

Most runners (including myself) had their little tables set up with food and drink. Someone nearby cautioned runners about lure of the chair later on in the race… I had the usual fare – water, sports drink, flavoured milk, Lucozsade, Coke and Redbull (both for the last 3 hours). Creamed rice, salty chips, Promite sandwiches, tinned fruit, sports bars, lollies, and Gu. Ron also had a table set up with a selection of race food and drink, which was handy if you had forgotten or had run out of something. Helpers could also access this during the course of the night to warm up with a hot drink.

Early on my pace was OK, my aim was for 27 min per 5k lap (this time had to include rest for drink, food, loo etc) for 100km (9 hours) then the last 3 hours at 6min Km, total 130Km. Well that was the plan…

Obstacles on the course included fat ducks and fat geese waddling across the path at dusk and dawn. Drunks providing advice as to how to run faster. People jogging up and down on the spot as I went past some of the outdoor restaurants. Bike riders trying to provide support by handing out cans of beer… Two fat middle-aged ladies arm in arm lurching towards me asking for something… Choking on the worlds biggest burn out conducted on the road close to the path. All in all quite funny and in some ways provided entertainment to keep one’s mind busy!

An aid station was set up at about 1.6Km along the course and you got to see them again on the way back to the start/finish. This was of great mental relief, otherwise it would only be once every half hour of so would you have seen helpers associated with the race.

It was suggested to use a head lamp – about half of us did not – I could not cope with something strapped onto my head for about 10 hours – it was dark in some spots – I ran off onto the grass at one point, but that was the only detour I made.

Round and round we went. The 100km runners had already lapped most of the field after less than 2 hours I think, frightening. At about 6 hours I began to realise after slow mental calculations that achieving 100km under 9 hours was possibly not going to happen, I was in time debt and possibly another major loo stop was going to have to be conducted… at least a 3 minute major operation… At 15Km to go to reach 100Km I gave that goal away – it was too tough a pace to maintain, trying to do so would have impacted on the 130Km goal which also was in trouble anyhow. My feet were terrific – again Gosford had torn them to pieces. This time armed with a ‘foot book’, every toe was individually taped and the forefoot was double taped. Some general foot soreness, but nothing to worry about. Somewhere between 65K and 90K I felt occasional momentary nauseous and all food was unappetising, even sports drink did not appeal. Water was fine though to wash down a Lava Salt (2 per hour). With about 4 or 5 hours to go I managed to snatch a glance at the electronic tally board for positions. Having bungled this also at Gosford I felt best to ignore it. My goal was 130K, period. I had no desire to walk at all, I would only walk for about 10 seconds getting out of the aid station to adjust singlet and radio (2GO Party Mix – again a mental savior) and was quite happy to get going again – did not sit in the chair at all (did sit on the throne twice though…!)

I went thought 100K in about 9:10. My race plan involved 30min per 5km for the remainder of the event, and I was now in debt. The second major loo stop was performed ‘quickly’ and a Redbull downed (first caffeine drink) and off I shuffled into the on coming dawn (5:10am now) wondering how I was going to retrieve the 10 lost minutes…

I never had the urge to sleep, time did not seem to go by slowly either – a good feeling.

The next four 5Km laps were made in about 2 hours, and was told with 2 hours to go I was about a 5K lap ahead of 2nd place. A couple of cokes and caffeine Gus were downed too. The last 50 minutes I had 10K to do to reach the goal. The last hour of the race we were all now running a 1K loop, so somehow I had to perform 5min laps. I thought I would probably reach 129K but the 130K goal was looking unlikely. I now also thought winning the race would be nice, but if I suffered a catastrophic mechanical/body failure I might well have not made the full 12 hours! At 5K to go I was quite close to 5 min laps so if I could just run that little bit faster… I kept running a fraction over 5 min laps with about 4 mins and 50 seconds left to get in the last lap. I ‘ran’ as ‘fast’ as I could that last 1k with 10 seconds to spare, hence the extra 70m!

<just spent 1.5 hours trying to recover corrupt doc file #$%&^@#!!!!!>

Second place getter Michael Lovric came up to congratulate me on my efforts. His 121.1K was off the back of Coast to Kozi held in December!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I simply could not believe his awesome effort. There was another C2K nutter/s lurking somewhere too, not sure of their name/s…

Hot showers, a hot breakfast, hot drinks and continental style breakfast were available for runners and helpers afterwards – a very nice and welcome touch.

Male 12 hour
1st Andrew Johnson 130.067Km
2nd Michael Lovric 121.104Km
3rd Malcolm Gamble 110.199Km

Female 12 hour
1st Michelle Thompson 121.409Km
2nd Jane Trumper 98.409Km
3rd Allison Lilley 96.138Km

Male 100Km
1st Brendan Davies 8:07:16
2nd Michael Baldock 8:39:04
3rd Brett Worley 8:53:24

Female 100km
Marie Doke 11:12:42

Full Results:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=puM...KacIQ&gid=0

Photos at:
http://photos.coolrunning.com.au/gallery/7...452717753_32DMW

My body feels like a million dollars compared to the Gosford 12 hour held 2 years ago. I can actually walk and negotiate stairs without fear. I can sleep without pain and my feet are intact except for 2 blood blisters on 2 toes. Yes I am a little sore, but only a little more than I would be after a long tough Sunday training run.

Ron, the race organiser and his helpers were all friendly and willing to help anyone who needed it. Runners helpers were more than willing to help other runners too. Thanks to those who encouraged me during the night and to friends who came to see me at the end of the race. A well organised event, except for those pesky possums!!

Cheers
Taz

This post has been edited by TazDevil: Jan 13 2009, 07:10 PM

[Minus15]

If I was a true hard-arse, it'd be "what the hell are you doing sleeping and not running?" Actually, it was amazing the difference starting an all-nighter effort not having already been awake running since dawn! . I know it sounds like one of those 'der Fred' statements, but on speaking to others in the race, they similarly didn't feel sleep / body clock issues.

And as for my injuries I have been pussy-footing around with all Christmas, now this may sound ridiculous, but it's a miracle: I'm cured (well, for this week anyway) I actually feel much better for the hitout... it's a crazy caper this ultra gig!
Mgtman

Fantastic effort Mal.So good to hear your C2K injury has come good.All the best for 2009.

[djbleakman]

And as for my injuries I have been pussy-footing around with all Christmas, now this may sound ridiculous, but it's a miracle: I'm cured (well, for this week anyway) I actually feel much better for the hitout... it's a crazy caper this ultra gig!
Mgtman

Now there's an advert for all us injured people. I've been exactly the same, and was resigned to swimming for 3 weeks in December and hasn't done further than 5kms in 4 weeks prior to this race - it was a bit of an unknown. But low and behold, 91kms on hard concrete seems to have done the trick (I'm praying too). So if you're injured and worried - don't be, here's a step-by-step guide:

- Think about running a 12 hour track race
- Sign up for said race because all your mates are and you feel stupid if you don't
- Start the race with a 9kg backpack and take through to at least marathon distance
- Make sure all of the race is on rock solid concrete
- INJURY CURED!

[TimMcK]

Hello,

I just wanted to post on here for the first time to also thank everyone involved with the race.

It was the first time I have entered a race longer than 24km, and I was quite nervous about trying for 100km.

I was glad to meet a number of friendly people and could not have hoped for a better outcome in terms of enjoying the experience and being able to finish just within nine hours.

Thank especially to Ron, Brendan and Michael, and everyone out at the tables in the middle of the course, each time I went past there the encouragement helped me keep going.

I hope to see people again at the 6 foot track or perhaps at this next year.

[Becky O]

Firstly I would like to say well done and a huge thankyou to Ron for organising this event as well as all the volunteers who helped on the night. Ultra's are a huge committment for people who arent running, staying awake for that long when you arent active is a big ask so it is always much appreciated to have people out there on the course.

A quick race report from me. As many of you know I have been fairly quiet since I got back from MdS last year. It took so much effort for me to get to that race that I just wanted to relax and enjoy my running afterwards. Then I had the "bee incident" at bulls head and have not run at all since. It was a mental thing, I just really did not have the desire to get out there and run and have the pressure of training. I had been walking to and from work and around Centennial Park just for fitness and relaxation. While I was staying down my parents place over Xmas I noticed that Ron had organised this race and thought I would like to support someone having the initiative to start a new race in NSW and thought it might be fun to experience an ultra from a walking perspective.

I rocked up by bus on the day and everyone knows my ability to get lost (dont know how I managed in the Sahara), long story short I just made the start. I walked the first 6 hours and it was great to see Bluebell, Carmen and Seb out there supporting. At 2am in the morning I found that my knees were hurting quite a bit from the impact of walking so decided to see what it felt like to shuffle and it took quite a bit of pressure off my knees and that was it. Didnt stop for the next 6 hours. I managed 32km in the first half and 43km in the second half for a total of 75km. Considering I was aiming for 50 I am very happy with that. I had lost my mojo to run and managed to find it at 2am in the morning in the middle of an ultra... wierd I can only put it down to being around such amazing people such as ERB, Horrie, Milov etc. You guys always seem to inspire me.

So, thankyou again to Ron for organising the event. I dont think there are enough of these events on the calendar. A great way for people to get into ultra's. Thanks to all the volunteers. Thanks to my friend and ultra style consultant ShufflinSam for joining me for the last 16km as she thought she was coming for a nice stroll and I made her jog It was a shame I didnt get to catch up with some of you properly as it has been a while, but I am excited about getting back into training now and seeing what I can do for one of these now if I actually train properly.

[Blue Dog]

Congratulations Ron and all participants. I've enjoyed reading the accounts and it all sounds like it went off well in this first year.

Well done everyone.

Cheers, Blue Dog.

[Horrie]

I am happy to announce that I received confirmation from AURA today that I am now the Australian 45-49 Age Group Record Holder for a 12 Hour Road Race.

Thanks to Sportsman for firstly putting on the event and then tipping me off about the record.

[Carmen]

I am happy to announce that I received confirmation from AURA today that I am now the Australian 45-49 Age Group Record Holder for a 12 Hour Road Race.

Onya Horrie well done! That's heaps cool

[thomo]

I am happy to announce that I received confirmation from AURA today that I am now the Australian 45-49 Age Group Record Holder for a 12 Hour Road Race.

Well done.

Edited to add Forgot to mention, Horrie gave me some words to inspire me on Monday.

This post has been edited by thomo: Apr 1 2009, 07:47 PM

[Bandanna]

I am happy to announce that I received confirmation from AURA today that I am now the Australian 45-49 Age Group Record Holder for a 12 Hour Road Race.

Congratulations Horrie, that's brilliant - well done!

[Anth]

I am happy to announce that I received confirmation from AURA today that I am now the Australian 45-49 Age Group Record Holder for a 12 Hour Road Race.

Awesome stuff Horrie, great reward for your efforts

[PlodBod]

Congratulations Horrie

[Hamburglar]

I am happy to announce that I received confirmation from AURA today that I am now the Australian 45-49 Age Group Record Holder for a 12 Hour Road Race.

Thanks to Sportsman for firstly putting on the event and then tipping me off about the record.

Well done Horrie. Didn't think you were that young.

[brettsrun]

Good work mate - great stuff.
Hey will you still be in that category when I get to it
Just lost me guts, not my sense of ridiculous

[JustinS007]

I am happy to announce that I received confirmation from AURA today that I am now the Australian 45-49 Age Group Record Holder for a 12 Hour Road Race.

Wow, you're old. But well done.

[emjay]

I am happy to announce that I received confirmation from AURA today that I am now the Australian 45-49 Age Group Record Holder for a 12 Hour Road Race.

Thanks to Sportsman for firstly putting on the event and then tipping me off about the record.

how appropriate, April Fools Day.

nice one, Horrie!!

[Ponkey]

Hi all
I have added a few local scenic photos taken at 2.5 km on Saturday night and near the finish on Sunday morning. Stunning scenery, great course, well organised and great effort by the runners.

Finally added some photos from the run, only took me five months! Mirrors my running Usual suspects, Brick, Maggot, Milov, ERB and Ourimbah make an appearance

This post has been edited by Ponkey: May 24 2009, 07:18 PM

[Maggot]

Finally added some photos from the run, only took me five months! Mirrors my running Usual suspects, Brick, Maggot, Milov, ERB and Ourimbah make an appearance

Thanks Ponkey, brings back some (nice ) memories.
I'll try to visualise some of that early morning heat when I'm running through a cold and dank Melbourne Winter.
Great pics of Brick at the finish gun. He certainly had a cracking final hour or two after mid-race struggles.
Maggotman

[Brick]

Thanks for the photos Ponkey.
I really like the tree/lake photos just shows how picturesque it is.

Thanks Ponkey, brings back some (nice ) memories.
I'll try to visualise some of that early morning heat when I'm running through a cold and dank Melbourne Winter.
Great pics of Brick at the finish gun. He certainly had a cracking final hour or two after mid-race struggles.
Maggotman

Getting cold for you mate, maybe it will slow you down a bit you speed machine.
I seem to be having the good last hour of late and the struggle middle part of races, if only I could nail a race the same way as you mate.