Athlete: Rob Donkersloot

For Rottnest last year I had joined Bruce and Nigel for the race weekend on the island, but because I was in the middle of my spate of running injuries, I was there on cheer squad and marshalling duties. 12 months later, after a stop / start year of comebacks, I was finally ready for my first race of marathon distance since the 40 Miler in April 2010. It’s been a long time between race reports, so I thought I would make up for lost time.

For this year’s trip across we had a team of five…Nigel and Bruce again, plus Rob Rob and Mick Hearne. We met at the ferry at 2pm on Saturday, only to find out that Rob Rob had injured his leg in during his 24 hour Cape to Cape attempt a couple of weeks earlier. So for 2011 it was Rob Rob’s turn to don the mini skirt and pom poms at the Thompson’s Bay marathon turnaround point.

After a worrying couple of hours needlessly wondering where our luggage with running gear had got to, Saturday night was spent enjoying Nigel’s culinary spaghetti delight, and a game of cards. As well, Rob Rob had co-opted me to provide a half hour lecture on the benefits and features of the iPad, which Rob Rob appeared to enjoy, but assisted giving the other three an early night’s sleep.

Race day morning involved a 4am start, a few pikelets for brekky, and last minute race instructions from Rob Rob. He gave each of us a clue from his cryptic crossword, which we were to solve on the first lap, after which Rob Rob would provide a second clue etc. So with four runners, solving four clues each over the four laps, that would just about have the crossword solved by marathon’s end. Rob Rob is certainly a very resourceful fellow.

We walked the small distance to the start line to catchup with the rest of the Northern Suburbs starters including Chris, Coops, Simon, Annie and Julie, and after the piper had done his thing on the bag pipes we were off.

Now the goal for me was to run a sub four hour marathon, and if things went really well I thought I might be a chance to beat my Rotto PB of 3:51 set in 2008 running with Roy, Coops and Ali. So the goal average km pace was 5:25, which would get me a 3:50, but no slower than a 5:41 which was needed for four hours. Nigel, Chris and I had run most of the training run together, and Nigel and I had discussed running together, as he would also be happy with a sub four result. Like a lot of people, I have taken off too fast in previous marathons, so I had told myself this time I would definitely not go any faster than 5:15k’s.

Mick as you probably know has also had some big injury issues, with his last marathon being over 12 months ago, and having to have surgery back in May. He was also hopeful of a sub four, but “just happy to be running again”. Bruce has had a stellar year with some great times at other races and he was hoping to finish his last marathon of the year with another quick one.
Anyway, the gun went…and by the time we had run the 200 metres to the bakery, the running together strategy had evaporated with Nigel taking off in hot pursuit of Chris, Mick and Bruce. I was running by myself some distance back….trying to keep that pace to the 5:15’s.

The first part of the race is a 2km trek out to Kingston Barracks and by the time we got to the turnaround point I was a good 200 metres behind the NSRG group of Julie, Chris, Bruce and Nigel and as we came back to Thompson’s Bay and ran along the causeway between the lakes, I watched them slowly disappear into the distance.

I was still trying to keep the pace to around the 5:15 to 5:20 mark, and felt great. The half way point of the Rotto Marathon lap is always marshaled by Bob and Deb Edwards, and it was fantastic to see them at their usual location.
A few hundred metres further at the Armstrong Bay aid station I spotted Nigel, and he was running towards me rather than away from me. I was glad to hear everything was ok, and that he had decided to ditch the rest of the rabbits and join me instead.
As Nigel and I do on a regular basis during our runs, we discussed the state of world macroeconomics, molecular physics and the like, as well as solving the two cryptic crossword clues Rob Rob had set us.

As we finished the first lap I was eagerly looking out for Rob Rob to give him the answer so I could get the next cryptic clue to ponder on lap two. Unfortunately there were no pom poms to be seen…Rob Rob had gone missing. I reasoned that Bob Braid of the WAMC must have collared him and given him an important job to do at race HQ.

The second lap was uneventful, other than us catching Chris who was struggling a bit. A two week cold, plus overnight tummy problems had taken its toll unfortunately.

When we got back to Thompsons Bay the second time there was still no sight of Rob Rob, so we set off on lap three, still (cryptic) clueless.

Lap three is always the hard one, and it was turning out that way again, as I looked at the average pace on my Garmin starting to slip alarmingly. After a couple of 5:40 laps I said to Nigel that I was worried about the pace starting to slow, and that he should run his own race from here on. Nigel took my advice, and slowly started to move ahead.

Tory had been out on her bike shouting lots of support every time we saw her, but this time when I ran into her, she didn’t seem to be quite as convincing when she said I was looking good. Coming down the hill past Geordie Bay with 10k to go I looked at my watch and saw there was an hour and two minutes left to get my four hour goal, so I set my mind to running each of the last ten at 6 minute pace or better.

As I ran into Thompson’s Bay the last time I spotted Rob Rob, who was offering me one of Mick’s gels…but all I could think of was to tell him the answer to the crossword clue…”artichoke” I shouted. He looked at me puzzled and answered “artichoke???”
It was only in the pub afterwards that I found out that Rob Rob hadn’t been working hard at race HQ at all…rather he had figured that he would go back to the cabin for a nap for the first hour of the race, and then come back to cheer us on. Well one hour turned into three.

And when I shouted “Artichoke” at him, he had totally forgotten about the crossword. Instead he thought I was asking for assistance of some kind, but couldn’t figure out what I was after…had I said ”Flat Coke” or maybe I had some special artichoke gels somewhere? Anyway he decided it was important enough to race back the kilometer to the cabin and back to search for anything that may match my strange needs for the last lap.

The last lap was difficult going, but every km was below 6 minute pace, so I was starting to feel pretty comfortable about the four hour finish. Nearing Longreach for the last time I spotted Nigel who was slowing a bit, and soon caught him up. Luckily he had enough left to latch onto me for the last bit, and despite Nigel getting an attack of his usual case of cramps in the last kilometer; we crossed the line together in 3 hours and 57 minutes.

Bruce and Mick had meanwhile finished exactly 10 minutes earlier in a time of 3:47 after racing each other over the last few miles to the finish…with Bruce winning the uphills, and Mick catching him on the downhills. Bruce won their race to the finish by a short head, however that didn’t stop Mick being arguably the happiest person on the island; you couldn’t wipe the smile off his face all afternoon.

Soon after the finish I heard the race announcer talk about the race winners, and I was super surprised (and delighted) to hear our very own Eulalia had won the women’s race. I hadn’t spotted her at the start or during the race, so wasn’t even aware she was running…it was fantastic news though.

After the race we went back to the cabin for a shower, and watched Rob Rob do a great job at cleaning sweeping and mopping, before going back to listen to the presentations. Once they were over it was over to the pub, and we had a very pleasant afternoon drinking Coronas and swapping war stories with the usual WAMC suspects. One hot topic of discussion was the price of the beer which ran at $10 a stubby. Rob Rob worked out that with the money we spent on stubbies at the bar that afternoon, we could have each bought two cartons of Coronas at the bottle shop.

Soon it was time to get on the 4:30 ferry back to Hillarys and after a pleasant journey back, we were dismayed to find that our luggage had not made it back with us from Rottnest. Members of our travelling party were far from impressed, so much so that Nigel called radio 6PR’s breakfast show the next morning to give the whole of Rotto Ferries and administration a blast on air. 6PR rang him back an hour later to tell him he had won “whinge of the day” and a prize of a $200 restaurant voucher. Dinner for five coming up!

This was my third Rottnest, and it’s an event I really enjoy. It’s not just about the race, which is certainly a challenging and spectacular one, but it’s also about a great couple of days away with good mates. Thanks to all the support from the NSRG guys and girls, both the runners and the cheer squad. It’s all part of what makes the Rotto weekend magic.
We’ve already have cabin 715 booked for Rottnest 2013, but as Rob Rob is set on running next year, we have a vacancy for someone willing to put on the pom poms.

Rob

Note: I am hopeless at crosswords, cryptic ones especially…and wouldn’t have a hope in hell of solving Rob Rob’s question for him normally, let alone while running a marathon. “Artichoke” was just a wild guess.

Athlete: Keith Darwin

Hi Everyone,

I also just want to start by saying a great big thankyou to the whole gang at NSRG for their fabulous support in making such a great day so much more memorable and enjoyable.

The weather was great, fine, slightly cloudy, no wind, the odd little shower and the sun not too hot. There was a real buzz at the clubrooms leading up to the start, everyone a bit anxious and the cameras coming out for a few group shots.

It was real nice to see those not running, there to wish everyone well, including Lui, Howard, Dennis, Fiona, Heather, Tori, Terry, Lee and the girls, just to name a few (sorry if I don’t mention everyone).

The race started and I was off to a fairly quick pace (for me) and had to try and hold back. It didn’t seem long before I remember Dennis and one of his signs saying there was only 35 km’s to go – great, is that all! Along the way everyone was so friendly from the other runners to all the spectators and marshals and helpers. Thanks Lui and Bob G. I had a run/walk strategy where I would run for about 2.4km’s and then walk for 100m (repeat this 17 times – just a long interval session really). Most of the time is sort of coincided with the water stations so that was good. It felt a bit unnecessary at the start but I was sure I would be glad of it later. It does help break the race down into little parts and when the going gets tough it’s not that long before you get a ‘rest’ and then you feel revived again and off you go with a bit more pep. And it doesn’t do your head in thinking about all those km’s left just run for about 12- 15 mins at a time – anyone can do that.

By the time I got to 28 km’s I was starting to feel rather tired in the legs and was getting pains in my groin and feet, but 2 thirds of the way there so I kept pushing on. I would see the occasional runner from NSRG up just ahead or behind like Chris and that would spur me on. After a while the quicker runners started coming back from the turn around point like Bob W, Simon, Brucey, Kevin, Ed, Rob F, Vince and it was good seeing everyone again. When I started back I saw another bunch of NSRG runners that were behind me and everyone was encouraging and seemed in good spirits but also probably starting to feel the pain. I remember seeing Heather and Terry and Dennis, Ali and so many others numerous times as they would make their way around the circuit ahead of us and then cheer us on and take photos etc. It was fantastic and I thank you all. Even complete strangers were cheering us on as well as other runners that you would end up alongside for a few k’s.

They recon the race starts at 32 k and I guess in away it does. That’s when it started to get tough and it just gets harder all the way to the finish. But with all the wonderful support you get it makes you find that little bit extra and you don’t want to let everyone down. Terry even made me sprint the last 200m to the finish as she ran along side me for a while.

Thankyou all for helping me achieve my first Marathon, from all the support on the day, to all the encouragement over the last eight or nine months running with the group, Bob’s interval training and all the friendships made. If you have never done a Marathon before but were unsure you could do it, give it a go, you’ll be amazed at what you can achieve. I have been running for just under a year and I never imagined that it was possible for me. I wasn’t that long ago that a 5k race was a big deal. So if I can do it so can you.

Cheers
Keith

Athlete: Neph Janssen

Dear All!
Last Sunday was the culmination of 5 months of training. It was a steep “training” curve for me but I learned a lot from you, my fellow runners. Four weeks ago I thought I have to pull out due to an injury. But I made it to the start line with “butterflies” that comes along with all the excitement. I was relieved when Gail, Lynette and Annie turn up alongside me just before gun start.

It was such a glorious day, I couldn’t have asked for anything more. The weather was great; the crowd was exhilarating, great support from hubby and a lot of familiar faces from members from the club. As I ran the first few kms of the course there is that quiet confidence building up in me knowing that there a good number of people out there like me that will be plodding through their first marathon.

I would like to extend my special thanks to Rob Robartson that kept me company and chatted through the good half of the course that made the time goes faster. I would like to extend my special thanks to him. As I progress through the course, I keep seeing you guys on the sideline, it was fantastic! I couldn’t have done it without you cheering us on –Lee, Sylvia, Nicola, Helen, Sam and many others…of course not to forget Dennis!

They say the last 5kms would be the most difficult and I believe you now! Many full grown men and women were brought to tears at this point of the run, I did too! They also said that you will be a different person when you completed your first marathon… I think a have mutated from being a weekend warrior!

You all are an inspiration to me!

Thanks heaps!
Neph

Athlete: Sean Cooper

I ran with the Monday night group last night and Rob Rob pushed me to send this to you. So here it is.

As you know four years ago I went along to a NSRG meet and started running. Never did I believe I would run over 100kms in a race. Attached are my recollections of 103 kms up and down hills along trails from Northam to Mundaring Weir in the Kep Ultra 2011.

The Kep Ultra is in total a 103km or 75km race from Northam to Mundaring Weir. Over three years ago it was the dream of Rob Donkersloot from NSRG and Perth Trail Runners to run this event. He invented it, manages it, and as a result of his skills and abilities it is becoming one of the races on the Ultra Marathon running calendar in Australia. He is the premium race organiser in WA and should look at doing this for a career.

Preparation for this event was good, for a change. It times well with the marathon season in Perth so there are many from NSRG that I can tag along with, and if not Rob Fowler is always there to help out for extra runs and motivation. Apart from training (with NSRG members) it took me a day to prepare for the race with packs and gear tucked away for every aid station which were all about 20k apart. I even practiced aid station stops. I’m sure I’m going nuts but it was worth practising.

The race kicks off at 7am in Northam. I was lucky to score a lift with a few mates who are all well accomplished ultra runners (Dave Kennedy and Nathan Fawkes, 24 hour and 12 hour running freaks) and they were talking about running 4.45 pace for the whole 100k and the other was talking about doing the 75k in 6 hours. I had two goals, the first was to finish as I have never run over 66kms before and the second was to do it under 12 hours. I didn’t want to talk it up more than that but at the start line felling good, anything can happen.

Rob kicks the race off, (he is very strict) and it’s perfect conditions. Freezing cold but clearing to a beautiful Perth day with a slight breeze. I started off a bit quick and got stung by the first hill/mountain. I eased up a bit, was happy to see a couple of runners go past and paced myself up the hills from Northam to Clackline. It’s a lot hillier here than I imagined or wanted and I was in about position 7 for the 100k runners into Clackline which is about 19k from Northam. I must point out I made a mistake of borrowing a mates Garmin GPS watch as mine has poor battery life. I didn’t check it and it wasn’t displaying what I wanted. Where it helped me was I just kept it on day time and I was able to calculate how I was travelling which worked well. It was that hilly here that a guy on a push bike who was supporting someone else would try and get away from me. I would pass him on the hills and he would pass me on the descents. Running is much more fun and the hills were too big for bikes.

Clackline to Woorooloo (Station 1 to Station 2) was a better place for humans to run as it flattened out a bit. It’s quite scenic taking in Bakers Hill and running through old railway sidings and machinery as well as farms and fields. The trails were soft, damp but easy to run on and enjoyable. I passed David Deany for the second time, then worked out I was doing 4.20′s so eased up again. Just prior to Woorooloo I ran past Nathan who was talking about a 6 hour 75k finish earlier but was not in any condition to go on. I knew that the Kowalski’s would be up ahead so I focused on trying to look OK as I entered their aid station at Woorooloo. Its a great feeling when you see faces you know well and they are super supportive. At this point I had probably run just over the marathon distance and was feeling good. A quick stop and I was off again.

Damn hills. It’s hillier than I thought out of Woorooloo and again David Deany went past me, that’s the 4th time I’d seen him so far and I had another runner up with me pushing me along. I ran past Dave who was intending on running the 100k in 4.45 splits, he took off again but had pulled out of going the whole 100k and opted for the 75k. I went past a horse show and had a couple of riders riding large horses in front of me for a while which was great until they left their lunch in there wake for me to stumble over.

The hills flatten out near Chidlow and I found a comfortable rhythm to enter the Mt Helena 61k point just behind a couple of runners. At Mt Helena I entered the aid station at least 30 minutes earlier than I had hoped for, and about an hour ahead of where I thought I would be. It was a good feeling and a sign of encouragement especially to see the familiar NSRG faces there and I had to use all my strength to stop Rob Fowler from trying to kiss me. His support was fantastic for the rest of the race and he would just pop out of the bush occasionally and encourage me to keep going. I don’t normally run away from pubs, it’s more the other way round so it was sad to see the back of the pub as I pushed along.

I gained and kept up with another runner (John) and close to Bellevue (Aid Station 4) had the occasional view of David Deany at about the 82 km mark. I liked this section as we have done it a lot with NSRG. Going past the old railway tunnel I thought of Nigel hitting the wall (literally) and had a laugh. I had the confidence to get through this and without thinking about it had run further than ever before. I was looking forward to catching up with the NSRG girls at Bellevue but was too early for them, but again got great support from Rob Fowler who saw me off. I had a swig of beer at this stop, only I know how good it tasted! I needed the carbs, trust me.

The last 20 k’s are mainly uphill and I started to really struggle. John and I worked together and we made a pact that if we got to near the finish together that we would in fact finish together. So running with him we pushed each other towards Darlington. Amazingly we caught and passed David and I’m told we went past another runner but I don’t remember that. Half way up the mountain to Mundaring we caught site of the guys coming second and third. I never thought I would be in a position to race for a podium and whilst we tried to catch them, they were too far ahead so we eased up a bit to ensure a safe finish.

As equal 4th was becoming a reality I was starting to really struggle. I had eaten and drank well (except for the swig of beer) but I found that I had pushed myself so hard I was struggling to balance and see. Oddly I could run straight but if I slowed to a walk I would almost fall of the track and go side wards so I just kept pushing ahead as quick as we could. This feeling lasted for about the last 15k’s and I managed to stay upright, although I was kicking the insides of my ankles heaps which were bleeding badly. I didn’t want to stop and lose a position so we just kept going until the last steep hill 400m from the finish where we decided that we would walk and try to gain our composure.

At the top near the finish we jogged up to the line to achieve equal 4th. We also went through the 100km mark just under 10 hours. I wasn’t crook at the finish, but was out of it and felt like I was disorientated from pushing myself so hard. I remember some NSRG people were there, but I’m sorry if I didnt talk much, I couldn’t. I struggled to eat or drink and I had trouble balancing and Rob and others helped me to the car where I went and had a shower and freshen up. After that I was fine and went back to the finish to watch the majority come through and enjoy their race. I must have been unwell as I tried to drink a beer and couldn’t.

The next couple of days were rough on the legs but they are ok now apart from the insides of my ankles which look messy. I would like to thank everyone I have run with over the last few months, you all know who you are. Running in a group like hours makes us push each other, set goals, learn from each other and assist each other in achieving our goals. This was my goal for the year and everyone helped me achieve it.

I’m going to go to the Perth Marathon to cheer on our group runners, I may even jog along with some of us to help them achieve their goals.

See you out there.

Coops.

Athlete: Kevin Matthews

Right ..40 Miler 2011..highlights…course record smashed by Chris O’Neil…Unbelievable running given the hot conditions ! Geoffa runs a sub 5, again unreal..! I was with him to about half way @ 2:30 but there was no way I could repeat that for the next 32k…I reckon that run rates up there with Chris’s record breaking. Geoffa was second, not sure who the guy was who was third but he can run !! Colin Francis (a 40 miler legend and previos winner) ran 4th, Dave Kennedy 5th and BK bringing up 6th with a massive (?) 3 minute pb..made it all worth while

So what went wrong with the BK express…I ran with Geoffa and Wonderboy Watson to half way (Geoffa was a tad infront at the half way point)…went through half way dead on 5hour pace (@ 2hrs 30min) which set alarm bells ringing as I was aiming for 5:10. Virtually after the half way on the 6k down leg me and Chris started to slow and the earlier easy 4:30min/k pace disappeared as we both struggled to break 4:45min/k.. This was then compounded by the turn around and the 16k up to the last turn around point. My favourite part of the course….K’s 44 to 55…It’s in this part of the race you get to ask yourself all sort of questions (like why am I doing this..? surely a marathon distance is enough ? that hill wasn’t there last time ? etc etc ..you get the picture!)

I was ontime for a good pb at the last turn around and only had to struggle home for the last 9k to get a sub 5:20 finish. Not this time…..entered a world of pain starting at 58k and the last 5-6k was not pretty. Even 3 small walks to ease the pain….and that last hill was a monster.! Couldn’t even muster running down the last k into the finish..I was spent.. Did manage a 3 minute pb but it was a case of what could have beeen…too many short races recently and not enough runs over 30k this year (one in January and one more last month…not enough and you get found out big time in this race !)

Was a lot of DNF’s this year so I reckon the conditions played a part. Wonderboy bailed at 46k as did Nate (not before trying to catch me knowing he was going to finish at the start line! Luckily he didn’t as that would have resulted in a race , which I would have lost !)

Calum maintained his 6 foot form with a massive 40min+ pb. I noticed he was within striking distace at the last turn around and was checking over my shoulder for his Kenyan like finish.

There were a lot of people out there doing it hard this year, the conditions made the back of the field suffer big time..Respect to all finishers as everybody earned it today.

right….no “keep running” tonight….just enjoy finishing and I hope everybody got the times they were after…

As you were, BK

Athlete: Mark O’Gara

Hi NSRG,

I miss being out with my olde running mates and the catch ups for a coffee afterwards in some beautiful locations, but life moves on and I find myself back here in little ole England in a whole new world of running. As I only started running just before moving to Australia, the London marathon was probably my sole knowledge of marathons. My only running experience was the Brighton 10k and half marathon just before the move to Perth. I think I can comfortably say I have moved on some way since then and with big thanks to the group and the ones who kept me honest on those long training runs and for all the good advice.

I couple of race reports to give you an idea of running in Europe.

Berlin Marathon – 26.09.2010
I do not know where to start on describing the experience of running my first big City marathon in a City I have always wanted to visit. It was like a running tour of the sights of Berlin. The expo at the old Templehof airport on the Saturday was huge and provided an insight and injection of excitement into the upcoming marathon. It was like the United Nations with people from so many Countries I could not begin to keep track. There were around 41,000 marathon runners gathered close to the Brandenburg gate on a very very wet Sunday morning for the start. The organisation was German efficiency and I was through the start within a few minutes and the pack was moving. From the start the support was absolutely fantastic and this continued throughout with people lining the streets and cheering you on and loads of live bands along the way and high fives (except 37k – 40k – see later). I’d like to say I have a clear memory of the race but to be honest It is all just a blur but I know I really enjoyed the experience and tried to soak up the atmosphere as much as possible. I remember all the main landmarks and running through some of the suburbs of East Berlin and this was just how I imagined it was like.

The run itself! I was on my target pace of 4.30 within 2k due to the wide flat road at the start. It was when we turned into smaller streets that I was caught in traffic, I was still running 4.40 pace but could not get through the crowd any quicker and decided to go with the flow until it naturally opened up which it did at around 8k. Even when it did open up you were always running in a mass of people but you could run at your own pace. I seemed to find myself with a lots of guys from Denmark (in fact, there seemed to be more Danish runners than German and it felt at times that half the crowd were Danish). My mate who I went with has told me I need to now slow down as it was a much more enjoyable experience running with the mass of Danish women a bit further back. After a toilet stop I managed to get into a rhythm for much of the remainder of the race. The atmosphere, all the people and the sights helped take the mind off the distance. There were plenty of drink stations with water, energy drink; fruit and hot tea (yes tea!!).
I made a point of drinking at each one and as a result felt good throughout. I held a little in the locker as I still had the memory of hitting the wall at 35k in the Perth marathon the previous year. But instead of a long desolate stretch of cycle path along the freeway, this time I had a line of pom pom girls for a while at 35k. I decided I was not going to hit the wall and pushed on. My last 10k was my quickest. It wasn’t easy, I was very tired but felt I could step up a gear. When I approached and passed through the Brandenburg gate at km 42 and then the last 400m past the Grandstand it was pure emotional heaven with the cheers and sense of achievement. I finished in 3.10.48. A PB of 9 minutes. The aim was 3.15 so very happy. Medal, photos, goody bag and free beer (alcohol free – boo) in the warm down area.

Overall, absolutely loved the Berlin marathon and strongly recommend, I am thinking of going again next year. My mate’s opinion was great marathon and fantastic course but a little short of crowd support in km 37-40. This could be due to this 3k being close to Brandenburg gate and everyone heads for this area and the finish line. Also, the weather was truly awful so hats off to the crowds for coming out in the first place. Good thing about this marathon is no ballots, get your entry in early and you are in. 2011 entries open in October.

Chippenham – Wiltshire 12.09.2010
Running through the lovely country lanes and villages of Chippenham area with lots of local support and music playing and then great little fete/party organised afterwards and loads of free food goodies to help you recover and a t-shirt. Even though only 1300 completed the race, you can see it means a lot to the local community and running club who organise the race. I clocked 1.29.29 a pb of 3 minutes which under the circumstances that on the Friday night I was at a school reunion in Manchester drinking and partying from 6pm – 2am. I then travelled back to London on the train the next day still feeling half p****d before driving down for the half marathon the next morning in Wiltshire. The last 3.5k was also a gradual hill, nothing major but went on an on and on. Very good news is that as I achieved under 1.30 and I have guaranteed good for age entry for New York marathon next year.

There seem to be lots of races here every week and every City in Europe seems to have a marathon in Spring or Autumn (Florence, Rome, Budapest, Prague to name a few). For the really big ones you have to get in quick. For example I had my place for Brighton 2011 in May this year and it sold out in June. I think we only have 3 really big marathons in the UK which are London, Edinburgh, Brighton and Robin Hood marathons. There are a couple of huge half marathons that are famous and on live tv (great North run and great South run), probably missed some but I’m still finding out as well. I was going to do Amsterdam marathon in October as well but have to go to India for 2 weeks with work this Sunday. I then have 2 weekends with family and then go back to India for a week. So, I may put events on hold until the New Year.

Joined a running club over here and the track speedwork sessions are definitely improving my overall speed so I would recommend Bob’s equivalent sessions if you want to improve times. Does not beat NSRG for friendliness and camaraderie – cheers for the experience.

If anyone is planning on visiting Europe and wants to run and needs any advice let me know if I can help.

Cheers

Mark

PS I had my 5 seconds of fame. Berlin marathon was live on Eurosport and I was in shot for a while

Athlete: Nicola

If you add on another hour and a bit of pain and suffering that would just about be my story too. My Garmin was working and we were doing very well up until the 22 km mark and were on target for a 4 hr finish. I said goodbye to Angela at 24 km “save yourself, just leave me, I’ll be fine (besides I didn’t need any close witnesses to my slow decline) Then….. the long windy Kings Park hill. Halfway up I decided that if I ever said I was going to do another one of these marathon thingys that I should remember this pain. I told myself to get out of Kings park, find the crowd and let the excitement carry me the last 11 km. I found the crowd and was buoyed for a bit but then I turned left and the crowd kept going and I was alone again. I had a weird sense of achievement when I passed the man with the wheelbarrow. I can run faster than a man pushing a wheelbarrow! The next plan was to get to 35km where hubby and the kids would be watching. I decided to skip across to the other track only to find they had the same idea. I waved at the kids through the fence and when I found an opening I ran back to give them a hug. Some smartypants told me I was running the wrong way. A quick smile/imbecilic grin for Louis with the camera. My arms were working really really fast but my legs couldn’t match the pace. Then my mobile beeped (I use phone for music) and as I was walking at that stage I decided to see who the message was from. It was Alison sending congratulations and hoping it went well… hmmm, I decided it would be rude not to reply so at 39 km I was walking up a hill sending a text message. I managed to trot up the last bit of the hill past Fiona and my arms propelled me to the finish for 4 hrs and 15 minutes. I particularly enjoyed the 4km walk back to the car with a medal round my neck the size of a Jim’ll Fix It badge. I am in awe of anyone who can run a marathon in less than 4 hours let alone close to 3 hours, it is incredible to me. My theory now is that if I never run the
same marathon twice, I never have to beat my time.

x Nicola

p.s when I got home and the kids asked the usual question – did you win mummy? I said nope and my son said well it must have been Bob then.

Athlete: Big Kev in the City 2 Surf Marathon

Well, where do start..at the beginning.?..All preparation went well and got to the start line confident of another sub 3 time to go with my 2:58 at last years city-2-surf. Perfect conditions, felt great, good preparation..it was all looking rosy. Even the added benefit of some pretty nurses dressed in short skirts to look at (though the moustache was off putting!)…so turn on the Garmin..and ….nothing ! Bugger !  If you’re ever running for a set time you need a Garmin, the GPS tells you your current speed (which is always slower than you think it is..?), average speed, distance etc etc.. a wealth of useful information which can help while away the kilometres. I love my Garmin, when I run I check it continually and without it I am lost. I actually have a spare one just in case my main one breaks..I am that anal about the whole timing thing…so..as you can imagine..NOT HAPPY JAN !!

My mate Jon promised to pace me through the race and with his help I got to half way in 87mins which was right on time but it was around this time I felt the legs had lost some of their zip. Malcolm Street served to reinforce this and where as last year I powered up this hill, this year I struggled. I made up time running to the bottom of the Kings Pk loop (aided by gravity!) but again the hill out of Kings Park was painful and when I reached the top I was in a world of pain.

I did manage to find my second wind down into Subiaco but had given up all hope of a sub 3 by then and with no watch had no idea what speed I was running or how long.  I found myself chasing a   runner a few hundred metres ahead and I could feel one behind me so I had enough going on to keep me interested. The heat was starting to get noticeable by now and the hills were becoming steeper than I remembered them from previous years..!!

One of then benefits of being nearer the front of the pack is there is little or no congestion but this can backfire when you’re not having a good run as each water stop you are faced with about 10-15 people all looking at you , offering you water/powerade etc and cheering you on. You then feel you need to make an effort to run past them with some ‘gusto’ which then saps more energy…the worse ones were the Westpac stations on Oceanic Drive when they would start cheering you a good 500metres before you get to them and you have to step it up for this distance…sometimes it’d be nice to sneak past the odd aid station and suffer quietly…!!!!

Anyway…I digress..back to the race…when I turned onto Oceanic Drive I knew I was in for some serious pain and I was not disappointed..that last 6-8K is hard yakka and the heat and distance weren’t helping..I managed to catch the runner I was chasing at the bottom of the last hill (mountain!) and made my way  up the final hurdle before the run home. Fiona was cheering me up the hill and I’m sure she was then glad her Hami’ had gone at the half so she’d not have to go though what I, and probably a large proportion of the marathon runners, went though on the last hill.  I’d like to thank the city-2-surf organisers for adding this gem of a hill at the end of a marathon..priceless move !

So…to the top ..and the ocean…a welcome relief..gravity again was my friend and I even managed to catch someone on the line for a 30^th placing and a 3hrs 3min finish. This was the first sight of my time so I was disappointed that I hadn’t gone closer to the sub-3 barrier but with no watch it was always going to be a challenge….

..so next year..2 watches ..and game on….

Melbourne next and then Rottnest the following weekend…gotta love racing..

BK

Athlete: Fiona Longden

Hi All

Well Misson – To complete the Half Ironman in under 6 hours…..Misson complete time completed 5hrs and 57 mins!

It was a close thing. Extremely nervous Friday evening mainly due to some events happening at home, thats another story. Saturday morning not much better, but conditions were perfect. Start of the swim we were the 5th wave to go in, it was a very hectic start and really we only seem to have space around us when we were on the way back from the Jetty. Got out happy as I was 2mins faster than last attempt in 2008. Got on the bike, feeling really good all the way round and no punctures! Look at watch after transisition 3hrs 45, wow I think to myself I am going to smash my goal, but all that changed on the 2nd lap of the run, had absolutely no energy and had to walk, obviously had not taken on enough fuel during the cycle and my husband thinks I did not eat enough the day before either, so tough lesson learnt. On the 3rd lap looked at my watch and thought I better put on some speed to get to the end and was very relieved to make it in under the 6hrs. Great day again and would certainly recomend it to anyone, will certainly be going back next year, but still think I am few years away from doing the full Ironman.

See you all running again soon.

Fiona

Athlete: Chris Kowalski

The Six Foot Track Marathon follows the exact same path as the walking track from The Explorer’s Tree, Katoomba to Jenolan Caves. It is 45.0km. This is basically the same route as been followed since the days of the first European explorers to the area.

The course varies from narrow, rocky track near the start in Nellies Glen, to meadows, sandy gravel track, and dirt fire-trail road – of course with a number of hills (big and small) and rivers (big and small). The course climbs a total of 1,528m and drops a total 1,788m giving a net drop of 260m.

What a fantastic race to do and enjoyed by all of us (after we had finished) I now know why Jane Elton, Kate Summerfield & John Collins decided to go back this year and do the race again.

Alli, Phil Selfe, Kevin Johnson & I had decided to do the 6 ft Track Race after hearing to the stories about the 7hr time limit & the sweepers who are the official runners that are running at the 7 hr cut off time, if they catch you that is it you are out of the race ( to stop people being out there all day). Also we had all done the Comrades race and I think we had that desire to do something a bit different again. Race entries didn’t open until the 1st December 2009 at midnight Sydney time and were capped at 850 runners. Phil, Kevin & I managed to get in but Alli missed out due to waiting until the next morning to do her entry and being surprised that the race had filled in 10 hrs, last year it took a month to fill. Alli was put on the wait list at position 64 so she thought she had no chance of getting in the race. Phil & I were confident that Alli would get in only because last year they accepted up to 70 plus runners from the wait list.

Training started on the 28 November with a 20km run at Darlington and we all wondered how we were ever going to be able to do a Hilly 45km run in March 2010. We trained mostly with the WAMC Saturday morning group which meets at Darlington in the foothills east of Perth mainly to get used to running hills and also to try and find out as much about the race. We also did extra hills on a Tuesday night at interval & then did the group runs and other training runs with our NSRG running mates.3 months later we were ready. Alli & Phil were carrying knee injuries but managed to get through the training..

Alli had managed to get into the race mainly through people withdrawing or those unable to qualify in time. I remember the day that Alli had got the email to say she had got into the race she was so surprised we were all so happy that she was able to join us and her training wasn’t wasted.

Tory and I left Perth on the Thursday before the race and spent a day in Richmond west of Sydney.We used to live there 32 years earlier when I was in the Air force and our eldest daughter Belinda was born in nearby Windsor, it was nice catching up with the places we used to live & did a lot of reminiscing. On Friday we drove to Katoomba in the Blue Mountains and spent some time sight seeing at the 3 sisters lookout whick overlooks the run we would be doing.and catching up with the other runners from Perth and eventually drove to Jenolan caves which is where we were staying and where the race finished.

Race day was Saturday the 13/3/2010 so Friday night was the pasta loading party and we were all trying to eat as much as we could but only managed a plate and a half before I was done. We were all tempted by the great desserts and Simon & Tory had a good taste and Phil also had a huge plate. Because we were staying at the finish point of the race we had to be up early next morning to catch the bus to the start line so we all agreed to meet out the front of our accommodation at 5am.

After a very restless night thinking about the race and not failing to finish etc the alarm went off at 4.15 am and I was dressed and had some food and out the front Alli was standing there ready to go I think this was the first time ever she had been ready first. The bus rides was to take an hour and a quarter so we had lots of time to think and talk & get a bit more nervous. The bus had to make a unscheduled stop due to a toilet break for one runners, he got a clap when he got back on the bus. We finally arrived at the start point and the morning was very cool and misty, we headed for the toilet and a cup of tea and damper as we still had over an hour before our wave of runners started.

They have 4 waves of runners because the track is so narrow and after about 400 mtrs you go down 800 steps to the valley floor. After seeing a couple of waves start and giving them a big cheer it was our turn to line up and wish each other luck & then the gun fired and we were off. The first thing you notice is how rough the track is and once you go across the timing mat you are onto the sandy rocky track. Phil & I were together and we came to the steps and it was walking pace down

and being very careful not to slip and the steps were wet and muddy we heard and saw a few people slip and fall but luckily not hurt.

Finally at the valley floor we could finally start to stretch the legs out but had to look down the whole time as to not trip. We were checking our pace on our garmin watches and we were running at 5 min / km pace we both said too fast but do you think we would slow down. The terrain was starting to open up and finally we came to our first style over a fence and through a paddock. We knew the first major hurdle would be the river crossing at 15kms so I was not sure how deep the water was going to be but the rumour was that it would be up to our chest at the deepest point. As we were getting closer to the river we could hear the water and the trail got really narrow and technical and very much like the Eagle view trail that some of you have done. I really enjoyed that part and was loving the run. People were coming up behind but couldn’t pass because it was so narrow and rocky.

Finally we came to the Cox river crossing you were able to hold onto the rope across the river and the marshal said its deep in the middle so I took my carry belt off and I had my camera in my hand and then no spare hand to hang onto the rope luckily the current wasn’t too strong and kept the camera dry and only put my Garmin in the water once but it kept working I even managed to take a photo of Phil in front of me. Out of the water and there was the official photographer taking shots of us looking like a drowned rat.

Phil started to get away from me here and that was the last I was to see of him until the finish. I remember looking at the course profile during our training that the hills would start now but I wasn’t really ready for the constant climbing that was going to happen for the next 11 kms to the top of the Pluviometer hill at a height of 990m. During our training we were told not to smash your legs by trying to run the hills and save them for later. I thought in was a reasonable walker but I was being found out and lots were going past me and I thought what a long day this will be. I was starting to get a bit stressed about taking so long and at the halfway point it had taken me about 3hrs .15 mins

The next section to the caves road at 37 kms included more hills and longer sections of almost flattish sections with shorter hills included. I continued to walk run and tried to maintain some sort of reasonable pace but as soon as I came to a hill I was back walking. Being ever alert and not being able to take in the ever changing scenery because of the roughness of the track and soon saw a female runner in front of me stumble and fall heavily to the ground I thought she had broken her leg as it was tucked up under her but she said she was ok and we were told to keep going.

17 Drink station were located at strategic places on the course and manned by the volunteer fire brigade,each station had a mix of drinks available, water, coke, energy drinks and food, mainly fruit & sweets which was great. First aide was also on hand if required. They were also taking note of your race number and if someone was lost they would know that you had made it to the previous station but not the next so could cut down the search area if required. I remember one drink station was manned by people in fancy dress and a witch tried to give me poison.

I finally reached the caves road crossing at the highest point of the course 1215m. It had taken me 5hrs to this point and I knew I would be able to finish within the 7hr cutoff and possibly within the 6 hrs that I had hoped for . Only 7kms to go and the last 3 kms was down hill. I was so looking forward to not to be running up hills. Chatting to runners as I do they were warning me of the last 3kms and the steep decent & the slippery loose rock track and the pounding the quads would take. Just to add to the fun there was a big drop off at the edge of the track if you went over the edge you would end up wrapped around a tree. I really didn’t want anything bad to happen now to have done so much and not be able to finish. I made sure I kept my feet and kicked a few rocks and managed to keep upright. I continued to run and was passing lots who had reduced their run to a walk. I thought come on now is the time to keep running but carefully. All of a sudden I heard a runner coming up quickly behind me and he was trying to stop but the momentum was just pushing him on and I thought this is going to end up very ugly, somehow he managed to get under control and didn’t fall.

I could see the top of the caves House accommodation and was able to hear the PA address. Looking at my watch I saw that I still had 10 minutes to get under 6 hrs. The last section to the finish line is a zig zag path. Turning the last corner to the finish line I heard my name called out and saw Phil, John, & Kevin didn’t see Alli or Jane or Kate. I gave then all a hand slap and went through the finish line in 5hrs.54m.

Job done, what a hard long day, but worth it. I finally found Tory and gave her a kiss and then, It suddenly hit me what a tough day it really had been and how great it was too have finished such a tough race and then the happy tears started to flow.

We waited to see Alli & Jane come through the finish. not too long after me. Alli had a great big smile on her face and had done really well with her knee injury.Jane ran very strong and is in training for another Comrades run in May. Unlucky for Kate she didn’t make it to the end because of a fall early in the race but persisted until being caught by the sweepers at the Pulvometer hill. That’s 2 years in a row that Kate hasn’t finished, she is going back next year and will succeed I am sure.

Phil had a fantastic race and shows even a worn out knee could not stop him doing what he loves. John and Kevin had good runs also they seemed a little disappointed but that will be only temporary.

We all met up at the pub after refreshing and had a well deserved drink and talked about the run. We said it was like an off road version of the Comrades marathon only half the distance but made harder by the severity and length of the hills. Some said they would do it again. I definitely would. It was such an awesome race to do with everything I enjoy about running. Overall we had a fantastic trip away with great people and Caves House was a great place to stay and visit.