145 days to go

When you say it like that it can freak you out. Yep, 145 days until
WS100. Shit, I better get organised. I have to do some service of some
sort. I need a new passport, visa, insurance........Oh, and I need to
do some more training. With all the 6' nonsense on CR it is easy to
forget that all these little ultras are just training runs for the big
one. And then there is the added distraction of Hardrock and Kosci
after WS. I need to get some focus back. And some early nights.
Had a split run today. An hour in the morning with Wendy and my eldest
daughter at an easy pace wasn't really enough for the day. So I went
out for another hour and a 1/4 tonight after walking the dogs. It was
surprisingly easy and I found I had to hold myself back as I floated
along the golf course in the waxing moonlight. I am trying to keep my
runs slow and easy to build an aerobic base. And to build a solid base
of mileage. I need to get in some bike miles as well. The little jaunts
into town or to work are not really cutting it. Time. The same old
problem. Making time. Balance. It's all about the balance. And
perspective. I don't want to make hard work of it and lose all the
enjoyment.

Build a base

Slept in this morning so didn't get down the coast for my planned long
run. Managed a solid couple of hours on my local trail and with the
temperature moderate for the first time in weeks, I found myself
pushing a solid pace. I switched to fast walking on the hills as part
of my 6' hill-walk training. It's always a good sign when you finish
feeling better than when you started. So no long run this week but with
2 1/2 hours on Friday backed up with a solid 2 hours today I feel I'm
starting to build that base for later in the year. 4 weeks until
Maroondah which I plan to take fairly conservatively and then just 3
weeks to 6 Foot, where I might have a go. Someone suggested that I go
hard and either A) set a great time or B) crash spectacularly. I really
don't like the taste of those DNF cookies so I think I will settle for
a plan somewhere in between. In fact I reckon if I stick with Spud as
long as I can and then just try to finish off I should do OK. Hang on,
that's starting to sound too much like plan A. Maybe plan C where I
stick with Tim and just outsprint him on the line? :)

Entry is in......

<excerpt><fontfamily><param>Times</param>I have been trail running and
bushwalking pretty much all my life. I am quite comfortable in the
bush with a map and compass. I have backcountry hiked solo for many
years. While I enjoy most trail running my preference is for technical
alpine trail. When I started running ultras I looked at Hardrock as
the ultimate goal but for many years felt it was beyond my
capabilities. Over the last two years I have completed three 100 mile
trail ultras. While the opportunity to run 100 milers (yet alone
mountainous 100 milers) in Australia is obviously very limited, last
November I completed the Great North Walk 100 miler. This is a 108
mile trail race with a 36 hour cut-off. There are only 6 checkpoints
and the course is only minimally marked. This years race was held in
very hot conditions (high 30’s degree Centigrade) necessitating
runners carry up to 3 litres of water, plus food and emergency gear
between checkpoints, which could be up to 5 hours apart. While not run
at altitude, there are 6,200 metres (20,000 ft) of elevation gain and
loss. Of the 28 starters only 10 finished. In those pulling out there
were some very experienced runners including a multiple finisher of
Hardrock (5th place 2001) and several other 100 mile veterans,
including 2 Western States finishers.

When I broke 24 hours at the Glasshouse 100 last September it gave me
great confidence that I could complete Great North Walk 100. When I
completed the Great North Walk 100 miler last November it gave me
great confidence that I could complete Hardrock 100. I feel I have
served my apprenticeship and now want the opportunity to graduate.
Completing Hardrock would for me, be that graduation.

</fontfamily></excerpt>

Along with some personal groveling that I have edited, this forms the
basis of my Hardrock application. Posted today. Where are those dice?

Hardrock entry

I've wanted to run Hardrock for some time. I'm going to be in the
States for WS and flying home just 2 weeks before Hardrock this year.
It seems crazy not to put an entry in just in case I can pull off a
spot in the ballot and get a start. I've just flicked through some guys
photo journal of Hardrock from 2006 and I have to say the course freaks
me out a little. It is definitely one of those runs that both excite
you and scare you at the same time. What if I get an entry? What the
hell, I'll send in my application and just see what happens. It's all
Dave's fault. I was happy to just let it lie for another year but he
put an entry in and put it firmly back on the agenda.

Building a base

The coach has impressed upon me the need for a solid mileage base
leading into 6 Foot Track. I have a reasonable base but my mileage is
still way too low. So I have been adding some length to my regular runs
and plan to include more long runs. My 2 1/2 run today was slower than
usual but I ran 12km last night and I seldom run 2 days in a row. Plus
I did a brutal weight session on Wednesday night. My legs were like
jelly when I finished. I have been more consistent with my weight
regime so am confident the strength is building and hopefully that will
help resist injuries. I also have started the dreaded treadmill uphill
power walking training. If all these come together as planned I should
be in much better shape than last year. The added incentive of the beer
bet has really motivated me to get out there and put in some really
solid work. Hopefully it will pay off on the day.

2 Bays Trail Fatass

Headed across the bay to run Brendan's 2 Bays Fatass in lieu of the
cancelled Bogong. Drove around the night before in a howling gale and
slept at the start in the kombi. Didn't get a lot of sleep due to the
wind but it was much better than getting up at 4am for the 2 hr drive
across. There was a good turn-out for such an impromptu run with about
12 doing the full 55km and another 4 or 5 doing the half. I decided to
carry 2 handhelds despite really only needing one, so that I had the
extra space for my phone and gels on the straps. Carried some food but
didn't eat most of it. There is a huge climb at the start and then some
continuous undulation all the way across the peninsula through some
scenic bush and open heathland. Generally good trail under foot with a
couple of sections of gravel road and short hauls of bitumen. I ran all
the way across with Brendan and we leap frogged 2 Ballarat boys. The
highlight was the snake encounter towards the turn-around. The 2 in
front hadn't seen it but had obviously stood on it or kicked it as it
was raised up to strike as I jumped over it. There was no time to stop
as I was so close behind the others and they were freaking out with my
yelling. In fact my yelling caused them to jump and the snake appeared
to pass through Brian's legs. It was at least 4-5 foot long and very
thick. Needless to say we were very attentive from then on. The 4 of us
arrived pretty close together at the turnaround. Julliet was there with
fruit-cake and water. And I bought a pepsi. I should have bought
another and filled one of my bottles for the return trip. The Ballarat
boys left well ahead of us and when I realised Brendan was traveling a
lot slower than I wanted to, I gave him a wave and took off in pursuit.
I eventually caught them with the aid of the pepsi rush. We had some
cooling rain on the way back and I almost got cold in my bike shirt. I
pulled away from the guys until the sugar wore off and I tripped and
face-planted indignantly. No damage but they ran serenely by. Forced a
GU down and ate all my ginger bears and picked up. Ran them down again
and took off on the long gravel road. I thought they might catch up on
the climb back up to Arthur's Seat but it never happened. Was feeling
really strong by the time I crossed the highest point again and pushed
it hard all the way back to the finish. Took 3:01 out, 10:04 at the
stop, then back in 3:07. Very even split so I am happy with that. If it
hadn't been for the energy lows through lack of food on the way back I
could have easily negatively split the course. Will need to work on
some portable food options for Maroondah and 6'. Rest day monday and
went out for an easy 7.5 km tonight to loosen up. Feeling fit and
healthy so compared to this time last year I am way ahead of the game.
I can almost taste that 6' beer.........mmmmmmmm

2 Bays horizon

Heading across the bay to run Brendan's Fatass 2 Bay Trail 55km on the
weekend. I've been trying to find some new trail shoes to preserve my
supply of montrails for the lead up to WS but no luck. So I will just
wear my leonas. Went out for a couple of hours of trail this morning
and it was stinking hot. I've started using the HR monitor again. I've
decided to get more serious about my training. I figure if I can run
some ok ultras off a little haphazard training I should be able to run
some good ones off a more structured and solid prep. So I'm building
mileage and strength in readiness for some quality work later in the
year. It will make it hard to run fast at the shorter ultras but I am
hoping that my fitness will allow me to run strongly through to the
finish and more than compensate for any loss of speed and freshness. In
fact Tim has thrown down the gauntlet for 6' and wants me to spot him
1/2 an hour for a beer. You know, I reckon I'm a good chance of pulling
it off and it will sure make things interesting. Especially that long
wait at Caves watching the clock tick down.

2006

So I can sign off a fairly successful running year. Started pretty
ordinary with itb problems forcing a dnf at Bogong. The fact that I
hadn't really trained at all meant this was no surprise. Then an
absolute crap run at Maroondah and I was thinking this could be a bad
year. Debuted 6' with a sub 5 hr-beer-bet-winning run that hurt like
hell, but got me back on track. Ran 88 mins in a "training run" at the
local 1/2 marathon. Happy with that. Had an absolute pearler of a run
at the Prom 100 before missing a late turn and adding a few kms and a
couple of hours. But it's hard to beat the Prom runs. I love that
place. Headed north for a cameo appearance at the GH50miler. Ran hard
with Spud and Dom for the first half then limped home on a sore itb for
a good hour pb. What's a few soft tissue issues between friends? For
some unknown reason I then decided to run the GC100 again. I guess the
kids holiday thing combined looked like a good package. Had probably
the worst run of my life and came away with a lasting momento of an
arthritic big toe. That was it for road/track races forever. I now had
a definite WS qualifier and the wait was on. Got the confirmed entry in
July. Lost a good month to the toe. 12' track in August was an
excursion into the familiar territory of ultras on no training. Well,
not quite. Once my toe allowed I had started logging some consistent
miles, albeit low volume, with a wish to avoid ever repeating the GC100
disaster. 12' was a race rather than a run this year. I was unprepared
for the competitiveness and was caught napping. That and some more itb
issues saw me tird to round up the mellum podium still in a pb of 12:20
something. Only 3 weeks until GH100. At least I didn't have a
Trailwalker to worry about. Given my limited prep I had no
expectations. Realistically I hoped to go 25 hours. That would have
been a pb and a good run. 22:38 and finishing with a near sprint over
the last 8 km was beyond my wildest dreams. Gave me endless confidence.
Went to Brindabella to see what everyone raves about. With a bit of an
affinity for down hill runs I thought I would have some fun. Boring
firetrail that pounded my quads and blew out one of my shoes midsoles
leaving me with a trashed achilles. 3 weeks to GNW and the pressure was
on. Tried a 10km run 2 weeks out and couldn't walk the next day. That
was it: no running and intensive rehab and icing for 2 weeks. It was
still tender through GNW but held together and another surprising
success with a finish after 5 weeks of averaging less than 15 km per
week (including Brindy). For the first time I actually thought I
wouldn't mind a crack at Kosci. Not this year, though. Crewing turned
into pacing after Tim pulled up lame and I managed to run/walk with
Spud for the last 90km up the mountain. Good taste for what is needed.
Maybe next year? So I haven't worked out my average mileage but I
wouldn't be surprised if I raced more than I trained. But it worked
when it counted. It confirmed my belief that running ultras is way more
mental than physical. Next year is WS year and everything pretty much
revolves around that. But I'm kicking the year off fitter and healthier
than the last so hopefully I can convert that into some good races.
Starting with 6'. This will be my launching pad. I have filled in my
calendar for the year but I am focused on 6' for now. Time to get
serious. Lets see what can be done when I really put my mind to it.

Fun run

Hammies are a little sore today after the tough session yesterday so
took it easy with just a couple of hours on the bike. Felt good and
cruised through the hills. I think losing those couple of extra kilos
that I've been carrying is really making a difference. That and all the
strength work in the gym is starting to pay off. Tomorrow Wendy makes
her racing debut with the Dawnbuster funrun around town. I haven't run
it since I was a member of the local running club years ago but she
wanted a target to build up to and the 5.5 km was achievable in the
time frame we had. I will run with her as pacer and possibly run home
to get a few more kms in to end the year on a positive note. Roll on
2007.

Focus on 6'

After 6' 2006 I said I wouldn't come back. While I love the course and
the race is really well organised, I had a real problem with the crowd.
I had won the infamous beer bet and gone sub 5 off a very limited prep
so decided to quit while I was ahead. But I've been seduced into a
return visit. And once Bogong was cancelled the deal was sealed. Now I
am focused on producing a good time. The only problem with that is the
associated obligation to train hard. I still have the Maroondah 50
first but I'm pretty much using that as a training run.
So with that in mind I hit the trail again today with a renewed
purpose. Well at least until UCB rang to confer on some important gear
purchase. I pushed the hills and floated that flats with fast turnover.
I was a little tired by the end but had cranked out some quality ks.
The tricky achilles was a little sore once I cooled down but I'm on the
road again. The 2 Bays next weekend will be a good measure of where I'm
at.

Small steps

Short run tonight. Short week at work but still tired. I should be
bursting with energy with all the days off and the build up for Bogong.
I think I overdid the weights. And I was back on the stairs today......

Ready to start the new year

So I haven't had time, energy or inclination to post to this blog in
ages. But as the year draws to a close I start to refocus on my main
aim for 2007: Western States. I had a solid trail run today. Since
Bogong was cancelled I stopped with the heat acclimatisation and
carrying 5kg on my back with every run. I still had a pack on after
running with W and the dogs but it was near empty. I did 3 hard hill
repeats on the Nature Trail loop. I bombed the steep technical downhill
section. On the second run there were a couple of old walkers on their
way up and I couldn't resist getting some big air time off one of the
bike ramps as I went past. I don't think my knees were too
appreciative, but it sure was a buzz. I was out for about 3 hours total
with some solid up-hill power walking and fast and furious downs. I
will do 2 Bays in a couple of weeks, 55km. Then Maroondah, 54km in
February. Six foot in March, 46km. Prom in April, 100km. May still
deciding between the 80km night run at Glasshouse, as I have done the
last couple of years or Walhalla. I figure with petrol the way it is it
will be just as cheap to go to GH. And it is a perfect training run.
Then I need one last solid hitout at the end of May. I would love to do
a Fatass 12' but the credits are already wearing thin. And with GH100
and GNW100 still to go in the year I could be in big trouble........So
many races and so little cartilage left. Every run now feels like a
training run for WS. Common sense and the coach say that all the races
should be run and not raced. But that is near impossible. And I'm only
doing 6' if I'm in good shape. Which I should be. And after the shocker
at Maroondah last year I will want to run that hard. And GH50 is hard
to hold back with the first 10km all downhill. Oh well, I guess that's
the way I approach all my ultras so why should I change this year?

Niggles and going soft

The entry is in for Brindy. If I worried about every pain I got I'd
never run. Someone suggested the soft option of doing the half-Brindy.
Not likely. That's just not Mellum. Next they'll suggest I should do a
track race! Or worse: join a squad and get a coach! :P
Won't be doing much between now and heading up to Canberra but hey, do
I ever? This will be my last big hit out before GNW. That is the focus.
Finish the year with a big one. GNW or bust.

Brindy or not to Brindy?

Ran tired tonight. But was more concerned about my knee. It was OK on
the run but has been worrying me all day at work. And to make matters
worse my boss has come back from leave and I'm sure he's mashed his
meniscus. Too close to home......
I have to lodge my entry tomorrow if I'm going to Brindabella. Where
are those dice?

Count?

Oh yeah, only 258 more sleeps.
Hang in there knee.

Kniggles

Managed 3 hours of solid trail today. The knee niggled again. Not itb.
It's intra-articular. Never a good thing. The question is do I risk
pounding the crap out of it with 50 kms of downhills at Brindabella or
save it for GNW? I need the hit-out before GNW and I just won't get it
training on my own. And if it's gonna go then it's gonna go. And I've
wanted to run Brindy for years and never been fit (ie uninjured) or
been able to get there or the course was changed for the fires. So this
is it. Now or never. I'm beginning to look at each run as potentially
my last on that course so I have to give my all. When have I not?

Perils of track

While out on my evening run I was pondering the recent 24hr track race
and puzzling how some of the regulars had had such bad runs. I was
thinking I shouldn't criticise as I haven't run one. Then I got to
thinking: how hard could it be? Maybe I could just do one so that I can
cast judgment from experience. And I was thinking how far could I go. I
was running effortlessly on the open grassy fairway of a golf course
under a full moon contemplating these possibilities when a sharp pain
jabbed me in the knee, almost collapsing my leg and me with it. I
stopped and walked. Damn track. Even just thinking about it is bad for
you. The trail gods were not happy. I reaffirmed my pledge to not run
track and gingerly started running again. My knee gradually came good.
Amazing.

On target for 12' and the Mellum Mothership is launched.

Had an easy 20km run today. Was a little stiff to start out after a
solid weight session last night but loosened up after an hour or so.
Stuck to trails as much as possible, crossing at the falls twice
despite the river being up. The crossing was slippery and under water
but only ankle deep and not so strong that I feared being washed over
the falls. The constant drizzle made the rocks greasy on the long
downhill back to the golf course. I figured if I didn't actually touch
the ground then I couldn't slip so tried to float across them. It
seemed to work.

I have meetings all week after work so will be pressed for time so will
probably just do a couple of sharpening sessions to freshen up for
Saturday.

The new kombi is settling in well. It's going to make a great crew
vehicle. If I was going solo to 12' I would have driven it up. The
personalised plates finish it off nicely.

WS100 ENTRY; Finding zen on the trail......

So I'm in. Confirmed acceptance as an automatic foreign entrant.
Suddenly I can relax and just enjoy my runnning until the build up next
year.

Planned on doing 20km today but events conspired against me so I headed
out for 15 km on the local trail. I figured squeezing in a hard 15
might balance missing an easy 20. Felt great. Flew down the cementies
hill. I swear at one point it felt like I had wings. Turned into a
solid tempo style run. Ground out a couple of sub 4 min ks along the
river. Even ran strong back up the cementies hill. Passed a
mountain-biker on the way up. He had run out of gears. I still had a
couple left. I reckon the fatigue of that horror day at the GC100 has
finally been washed out of my legs. Had a solid 40 km on the tough
trails last weekend just a couple of weeks after the 45km Fat Ass.
Bugger cruising 12'. I might have a hit-out and see what happens. Like
the coach said: respect the miles, but also respect the miles in the
legs. With the toe in remission I'm banking more solid consistent miles
than the lead up to GH last year. Bring it on.

WS Entries are open! and Ironbark 45

I typed this on July 22nd but didn't get around to posting it to the
blog..........

I've been having trouble accessing coolrunning this week which is
frustrating. As if to compensate, there has been a million emails from
the Mellum crew to keep me entertained and of course the Tour which is
coming to a close. I've been checking the WS web site nightly waiting
for the application for entry to go up. And then Kelvin posted on cr
today that they are up. I have results of the GC100 photocopied. I just
need the money order for the entry fee and I'm entering. Here's hoping.

Ran the 45km Ironbark Fat Ass last Sunday. After some interest when I
first announced the idea a couple of months ago, there was only 4
starters, with only 2 of us planning to go the full distance. It had
rained steadily all day Saturday so I was half expecting no-one to
show. I arrived early but dismissed plans of marking a couple of
corners seeing as how there was likely to be no-one coming. About 8:45
CathyP and Gary arrived from Melbourne. They were planning to just go
out for an hour and turn around. No sign of Damien who lives locally
and had emailed me just Friday. So we took a self-portrait photo and
were about to head down to the beach at a couple of minutes to 9 when
Damien rolled into the carpark. So we were 4. We had a great run. Cathy
and Gary turned back at the top of the Jarosite mine track for a
roughly 20km round trip. Damien and I picked up the pace a little and
ran well to the scout camp. The rain set in and the trail got slippery
but we made it to the turnaround in Anglesea in about 2:40ish. Damien
was met by his wife, daughter and friend. We refueled and headed back
into the misty rain.We ran hard to keep warm on the way back. We pretty
much had the trail to ourselves. A n old guy hooked up with us on the
ridge track and ran with us back to the Jarosite Mine track. I left
them behind on the down-hill. It was like a skating rink so I figured
the best defence was offence so I attacked the down-hill. We lost the
old guy but he took the road and caught us at the Bells carpark and ran
back to Jan Juc with us. The visibility was now terrible and I was glad
to reach the warmth of the car in a tick over 5 hours. WE jumped in and
I drove Damien home. You know you're running well when you start to
warm up after 4 hours of running. Felt good at the finish. I'll
organise this again but promote it a little more to get some more of
the Melbourne crew down.