Thursday 12 June – Sunday 15 June

Thursday we started with the Comrades expo, at the Durban exhibition centre. It started with “Chariots of fire” playing and then the opening of the doors. All I can say is that it was extremely inspiring just standing there listening to the music.

It was UN-BEE-LEAVABLE! Absolutely awesome. There were lots of exhibitors – shoe companies, nutrition, sportswear, general well being, you name it.
Then there was the Comrades shop!!! What a great place filled with clothing and lots of other must have items.

Friday morning I joined the Comrades bus tour for international novice runners. We drove over the route, with a 20 time veteran giving commentary describing the route in detail. It was good to see the hills (the big 5), although as our guide said, it is not the big hills that kill you, it’s all the smaller ones, as when you drive you route you get to see there is very rarely any flat, you are always travelling either up or down. And for the first 50km, predominantly up! We stopped at the wall of honour, and at the Comrades museum in Pietermaritzburg.

Sunday…Comrades day…The Ultimate human race…We woke up around 4am and left at 4.30 to walk to the Comrades start line. There were heaps of people around all ready, many even running and doing warm-ups, crazy people! I guess 89km is just not enough for some people.

A square perimeter some 500m around the start line stopped non-runners from getting too close. At 4.45am the vast majority of runners were already lined up, not much hope of getting a good spot if you came laterWe stood waiting some 20-30 mins just over 500m past the start line. The national anthem of South Africa played some 10 mins before the start, and then with 5 min to go, there was the unmistakable tradition of Chariots of fire. Even though I wasn’t running, it was awe inspiring. Then a minute later the gun went off and over 11500 runners were off, amidst a rapturous applause.I’m not sure if the front runners were sprinting or not, but they were travelling mightily fast. For such a huge number of runners they didn’t take that long to go through, probably between 7-10 minutes. Although the biggest cheers were for the last people, the ones who were behind all the official vehicles that were late and desperately trying to join the official field!

We stopped at Cato ridge, a designated viewing spot. Cato Ridge was some 60km into the race. And we were seeing mostly silver medallist (sub 7.30) hopefuls and Bill Rowan medallists (sub 9.00) running. It was a good experience but lost something by not having someone for us to watch or cheer.We ended in Pietermaritzburg at the finishing arena. We had just missed the first and second woman, but saw number 3 and 4 come in. Leonid Shevtsov, won the mens race in a new course record of 5.24!

I can’t wait to get training and be part of this magnificent running event in the down run of Comrades 2009!

“I think everyone should experience defeat
at least once in their career.You learn a lot from it”
Lou Holtz

On monday the leg was still sore and the motivation and mental strength to get out of bed and continue with other exercise was lacking.
By tuesday I decided that if I was to run Comrades I needed to be able to do perform one last decent run of around 25km. I managed to run 8km before deciding I just couldn’t go any further. At this point I decided to pull out.
The next couple of days however I renewed my hope one more and tested my leg out with 10km on thursday. I was pretty certain I couldn’t run after this but Rheanna got my hopes up once more and we have been working pretty hard on treating my back and leg.
Over the weekend I was hopeful I could get better and run but Sunday I could only manage 6km and the leg has been quite sore. Probably the worst it has been. So it is now all over for 2008.

Words can’t express the disappointment at not being able to run but the reality is I have no one to blame but myself. The lack of consistency in training has been the biggest problem and highlighted a number of areas I need to work on. With the earlier date of May 24 for Comrades 2009, I have less than a year already to get right and start training for the tougher down run…

Training for week Mon 26 May – Sun 1 June
Mon 26 May	0km
Tues 27 May	8km
Wed 28 May	0km
Thurs 29 May	10km
Fri 30 May	0km
Sat 31 May	0km
Sun 1 June	6km
Weekly mileage	24 km

“Our greatest glory is not in never falling,
but in rising every time we fall”
Confucius

“A man is not defeated by his opponents but by himself”
Jan Smuts, SA General

This was an extremely frustrating week.
On monday I ran 14km and was joined by Daniel. It was a nice easy run.
Tuesday I ran Mt Coot-tha (hill run) and managed a strong 25km in a fairy decent pace. Wednesday was backed up with an easy 12km.
I was starting to get a sore back during the week but was feeling pretty good after the previous couple of weeks.
On Friday morning I wanted to do a 30km run, the last decent run before Comrades. It was a struggle to get up but I hauled myself out of bed. It started out okay but after 4km or so I could start to feel a tightness through my left calf. I contiuned running as these things usually go away pretty quickly, but by 6km I had to stop as it was getting worse and I didn’t want to aggravate it. At 2.30 in the morning and 6km from home, I started the walk back very pissed off. It would have taken almost an hour to walk home so I had to suffer the embarrassment of catching a taxi home.
Saturday and Sunday it wasn’t much better. It’s so frustrating as I should have all the hard work out of the way and starting to taper down. The last thing I want is to be worrying about trying to get my back and leg right and still get some decent mileage in because I haven’t been able to run. The week ahead I have to get it right…

Training for week Mon 19 May – Sun 25 May
Mon 19 May	14km
Tues 20 May	25km
Wed 21 May	12km
Thurs 22 May	20′ cycle, total trainer
Fri 23 May	6km
Sat 24 May	0km
Sun 25 May	00km
Weekly mileage	57 km

“A life spent in making mistakes
is not only more honourable but more
useful than a life spent doing nothing”
George Bernard Shaw

“All the adversity I’ve had in my life,
all my troubles have strengthened me…
you may not realize it when it happens,
but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing for you”
Walt Disney

After my week of milestones in week 35, I have had 2 of my worst weeks. Laziness, injury and tiredness have all made this a tough period.

In the first week tuesday I ran Mt Coot-Tha and did 20 by doing 2 laps. Whilst it felt fine at the time, I think the large amount of downhill strained my shins which aren’t used to that. I took a few days off to recover and by the weekend I was both lazy and extremely tired which conspired to stop me getting out of bed to train.
On the saturday I woke up with a sore right achilles/shin. Considering I hadn’t run in 3 days I was a bit perplexed but decided to rest it. It has taken a while to start to settle, playing havoc with my emotions!

This last week I have only run 3 times for a total of 40km. Not ideal preparation but I can’t change that fact now.
With 4 weeks to go, I need to step up and have a couple more decent weeks of about 80-90km, with a 25-30km in there somewhere.
Getting the tapering right so that I am fresh on race day is the challenge, as I actually feel better the more I run and usually feel sluggish with rest.
The end is nearing…the countdown is beginning

“To describe the agony of the marathon
to someone who’s never run it is like trying to explain
colour to someone who was born blind”
Jerome Drayton

“Learn to run when feeling the pain; then push harder”
Kenyan runner William Sigei

A week of milestones and a mental shift has seen me become a lot more confident of tackling Comrades.

On monday I ran 10km and was joined by Daniel. Thanks for running with me. It may have been a bit slow for me but it helped to have an easy run.
Tuesday I ran up Mt coot-tha which involved a steady 2.2km climb to the top. A total of 26km made that a tough mid week run.
Wednesday I decided to take it easy and was meant to do 10-12km. I pushed and managed 15km which involved a short but steep hill mid way.
Thursday was an easier session as I looked to let my legs recover.

Friday was my long run and I had a daunting goal of trying to run 60km, as I knew I had to do this to have any form of endurance to run Comrades. Waking up after 5.5 hours sleep was tough, and I just wanted to stay in bed, but I knew I had to do this run. It started out well at 5 min/km pace. I ran towards creek road which involves almost 3km of undulations (not 2km hills like in Comrades but at least there are 3-4 500m inclines). By now my pace had slowed to about 5.15/km. I ran past my work and turned around after 22km. By now I was needing the toilet as I hadn’t been able to go twice before my run like I usually do, so I headed home and got there around 37km. I was struggling a bit, slowing down and my feet were starting to get a bit sore. I had a drink, a banana and went to the toilet. I also took a couple of nurofen to make sure I didn’t get a headache as my shoulders can get tight with a long run.

I started off again and felt okay although I was running 5.30 pace. I had another drink stop at42.5km and that broke up the 12-13km out and back I was trying to do. I reached the 12km mark and realised I had now run almost 50km, my highest equal run, but hey I was still feeling quite good, running a bit faster and I wasn’t stiff or sore in my legs like I should be. Oh well, maybe the last 10-12km wouldn’t be that bad.
I actually felt quite good and my pace was getting better and better. From 50-55 I was running 5.10/km, and from 55-60 I got down to 5.00/km. I was feeling really good at 60km so decided to run another 5km, although my right ankle had a slight niggle starting. I ran the last 5km in about 4.52 pace. I was happy to have achieved 65km, in a time of 5hrs 43m and for the first time I feel like an ultramarathoner. After all that is just over 1 and a half marathons.
Unfoftunately I wasn’t able to get a nap in at all and had to go to work, but I lasted till 5pm and went home 30 mins early.

Saturday was an easy day although again I felt surprisingly good. I couldn’t run fast at all but not nearly as stiff as I usually am after a long run.

Sunday I decided to tackle mt Coot-tha again even though I knew I shouldn’t push too hard. I drove out to the bottom as I wanted to do a shorter run. My aim was 8-16km, depending on how I felt. I ran up the first 500m incline. Boy was it tough with slightly stiff legs. Then a flattish 1km before a 2.2km steady incline up, up up…Then the next 4km or so were mostly down but a little undulating. Before descending down. the loop being about 9.5km. I wanted to do the hill again, visualising the big 5 of comrades, so I thought i’d run to the top and turn around to give me 16km. The second time around was slightly tougher and much slower, running just over 6.00/km. I decided i’d just do another lap so I ended up running 20km.

I’m happy to have done a 65, my longest ever run. Now I can wind down in the road home to Comrades. It was also my biggest ever week with 144km, beating the 122km I mananged early november. My biggest goals now are just to keep up some steady runs, stay injury free and make sure I don’t get sick! The last few days i’ve had a slightly phlegmy throat so I’m looking forward to an easy week coming up and looking after my health…

Training for week Mon 28 Apr – Sun 4 May
Mon 28 Apr	10km, 20′ cycle
Tues 29 Apr	26km
Wed 30 Apr	15km
Thurs 1 May	30′ cycle, weights
Fri 2 May	65km
Sat 3 May	8km
Sun 4 May	20km
Weekly mileage	144 km

“The secret of my success is this:
Every time, I tried to go as far as I could.
When I climbed the hills, I saw the mountains.
Then I started climbing the mountains…”
Ted Turner

“Good things come slow – especially in distance running”
Bill Dellinger

This week was meant to be a big one. It started off well with a 9km and then a 25km midweek run up Mt Coot Tha which involved a 1.7km steady climb. (Similar to running up ngauranga gorge for those who know Wellington)
That was tough, Comrades has 5 big ones that are all longer than that with Fields hill lasting 3.2km!
Then by wednesday I was starting to get sore. I had an easy wednesday and thursday but come long run time on friday morning I tried running but decided I needed the rest as I didn’t want to aggravate the little niggles I was feeling.
Over the weekend I could and Should have trained but I have taken it easy. After 3 hard weeks maybe the rest could be good and I need to put together another 2-3 tough weeks and do a 60km run in May. Back to work…

Training for week Mon 21 Apr – Sun 27 Apr
Mon 21 Apr	9km, 20′ cycle
Tues 22 Apr	25km
Wed 23 Apr	12km
Thurs 24 Apr	30′ cycle
Fri 25 Apr
Sat 26 Apr
Sun 27 Apr
Weekly mileage	46 km

“The real contest is between what you’ve done
and what you’re capable of doing.
You measure yourself against yourself and nobody else”
Geoffrey Gaberino

“I hated every minute of training, but I said, Don’t quit.
Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion”
Muhammad Ali

This week started slowly as I was still recovering from the Canberra marathon.
I managed a 50 minute cycle monday as I tried to give my legs a rest and 12km tuesday
Wednesday and thursday I feel the early signs of a cold So I rested and my legs appreciated the recovery time.
My goal for friday was 30km and I felt quite good but was aware of not pushing too much so I did 36km. The pleasing aspect was to back this up with a quicker 12km saturday.
Sunday was a lazy day as I took the day off. I needed some sleep and recovery for what will be a tough week ahead, as the next 4 weeks or so will be my biggest weeks before tapering…

Training for week Mon 14 Apr – Sun 20 Apr
Mon 14 Apr	50′ cycle
Tues 15 Apr	12km
Wed 16 Apr	Rest
Thurs 17 Apr	Rest
Fri 18 Apr	36km
Sat 19 Apr	12km
Sun 20 Apr
Weekly mileage	60 km

“Argue for your limitations
and sure enough, they’re yours”
Anon

“If at first you DO succeed, try something harder”
Ann Landers

The week started off with me still feeling the effects of a big week last week. But it didn’t stop me pushing hard and doing a 24km run that involved running up part of Mt Coot Tha where I ran an uninterrupted section of about 1.3km uphill. This highlighted to me how I need leg strength and hill running to achieve the required level to run comrades.
After Wednesdays effort it was time to taper down a bit for my comrades qualifier in Canberra.

I arrived on Saturday without my coach, inspiration, nagger and masseuse Rheanna! I won’t make that mistake again.

Saturday night we went out to dinner with Brett, Ollie and Dave; friends who had travelled up from Melbourne. Whilst they all ate pasta I didn’t choose the wisest in opting for the lamb curry. However I prefer rice to pasta and it tasted damn good!
Sunday morning arrived and I got through my usual 3 toilet procedures on race day. Glad to have got that out of the way, we arrived at the start line with about 50 minutes to go. The weather was cool and at 6.30 it started to rain. Went to the toilet a couple of times and was deliberating on whether to wear gloves and take sunglasses also. It was pretty overcast so decided against the sunnies, but stuck with the gloves.
I was also trying to get my bag in a safe place and made my way outside oblivious to the time as I only had my gps and hadn’t started it up yet as I was moving indoors and out. Everyone was at the start line now, it was cold and raining and I tried to turn my gps on. I couldn’t get a signal and was standing under a tree, so I made my way to where there were less people. Turned it on and next thing I heard the start gun. The race had started, I now learnt I was right at the back of the field as everyone was running away from me. And my gps was still locating satellites! 30 seconds later I started, a bit flustered.

Trying to work my way through all the slow runners was tough but I settled into a rhythm running about 5:10 a km. I was aiming for 5:15 so I was happy enough.
After 10km I had dropped down to 5:00 km’s, and needed the toilet! I went at 15km (and later again at 30km).

The course was a double out and back, with 2 looped sections so that you ran out and back twice in 2 different areas. A very frustrating way to run as for example when you have run 15km you see the sign for 30km. Nothing is more demoralising!
Also the way Canberra is laid out it was very hard to get your bearings and you constantly felt you were running around in circles. We kinda were!

The rain persisted on and off, but mostly on for the first 30km or so. After which everything was soaked so the damage was done. Then the sun came out and I missed my sunglasses.
I was taking small amounts of sports drink (High 5. Why do all aussie races have sports drink I have never heard of, let alone can train with! What happened to powerade?) every 5km. I was mindful of my carbohydrate intake so at 35km I tool a energy gel (with water). Within a kilometre I started to feel stomach cramps which made that last part of the race that much more uncomfortable.

I went through the 42.2km finish in 3:32 according to the official time, (3:29 by my time which accounted for my late start and toilet stops). I felt okay and wanted to keep going to do the 50km. at about 43km I regretted this decision! Each km felt longer and longer and harder and harder.

At this stage my feet were very uncomfortable. I think the drenched socks had caused my skin to shrivel up like prunes and now I had edges of skin that were rubbing badly and ready to get blisters. I just had to try not to think about that.
I figured just get to 45km and then it’s only 5 more. The problem was each 500m felt like a km! the turnaround point was just after 46km and then I figured just get to 48 and 2 to go. I broke it down to 4 lots of 500m and just to get through 2 of those and then the last km. With 1 km to go I started to think of Rocky VI (one of my favourite movies) and had Rocky and Duke in my ear saying “No pain” At this stage I started saying it out loud to myself and although I might’ve looked eccentric I finished quite strongly in an official time of 4:13. Mission accomplished. The legs felt okay but they were definitely getting tight through the quads and hamstrings in the last 7-8km.

Now I have qualified for Comrades.
All I have to do now is make that run twice as hard by making it uphill and then add another 40km (just a marathon) and I will have comrades!!! How do I run that??

Training for week Mon 7 Apr – Sun 13 Apr
Mon 7 Apr	8km, total trainer
Tues 8 Apr	24km
Wed 9 Apr	15km
Thurs 10 Apr	30′ cycle, total trainer
Fri 11 Apr	8km
Sat 12 Apr	Rest
Sun 13 Apr	50km – Canberra marathon
Weekly mileage	105 km

“The difference between the mile and the marathon is
the difference between burning your fingers with a match
and being slowly roasted over hot coals”
Hal Higdon

“If you’re going through hell, keep going”
Winston Churchill

With 10 training weeks to go, it was time to take things to the next level and make the focus so much stronger. I’ve decided that less running but maintaining the long sessions is the most important as I try to manage my training.
The week started off well with a 9 and a hill session of 20. Feeling a bit sore on wednesday I took it easier for 2 days.
Friday was long run day. After 3 hours sleep the alarm went off at 1am and all I wanted to do was sleep. The consequences were too unbearbable so I had to get up. My aim was a minimum of 36 but I wanted to do 42. At 42 I felt I could still do more so I decided to do 44. Then I thought it’s almost half a comrades. So I figured I better do 45 to ensure it was truly at least half a comrades!
The worst part of the recovery was only having time for a 15 minute nap and having to go to work for the rest of the day. The legs felt okay but my nipples got rubbed raw from a new t-shirt that was a bit abrasive.
Next week it’s the canberra marathon which will be my qualifier for comrades. It’s only 42km with the option of continuing on to do a 50km. I’ll see what I feel like on the day

Training for week Mon 31 Mar – Sun 6 Apr
Mon 31 Mar	9km, total trainer, 30′ cycle
Tues 1 Apr	20km
Wed 2 Apr	30′ cycle
Thurs 3 Apr	20′ cycle, 15′ crosstrainer
Fri 4 Apr	45km
Sat 5 Apr	30′ cycle, 30′ crosstrainer
Sun 6 Apr	22km
Weekly mileage	96 km

“I will continue to let others predict,
but only I can determine what I will, can, or cannot do”
Marva Collins

“It’s easy to laugh when everything is going great,
but it’s important to laugh
when everything is going wrong”
John C Maxwell

Another disrupted week when I can least afford it. Someone gave me a cold and I have struggled for a week to shake it off.
Had a good longish run with some hills on tuesday and then by wednesday I was dead and needed to rest for a day to get over the fever and cold.
I decided to have a quiet weekend and get right as I head into the toughest 10 weeks of my life!

Training for week Mon 24 Mar – Sun 30 Mar
Mon 24 Mar	45′ cycle, 15′ crosstrainer
Tues 25 Mar	22km
Wed 26 Mar	45′ cycle
Thurs 27 Mar	sick
Fri 28 Mar	30′ cycle
Sat 29 Mar	rest
Sun 30 Mar	11km
Weekly mileage	33 km

“As we are liberated from our own fear,
our presence automatically liberates others”
Nelson Mandela