2019 plan My main ‘A’ race in the first half of the year was the 87km Comrades ultramarathon. Having completed the down run in 2010 I was keen to return one year to take on the up run, you aren’t a true Comrades runner until you have done both ! Training had gone well from January through March and April using Sixfoot track and the Canberra 50km to build and I was feeling strong and set my sights on a…
Most runners know of the Comrades Marathon, the oldest and largest ultramarathon in the world, a bucket list item for many. However, this unique event really needs to be experienced to see why it holds such a strong place in South African culture, and is loved by so many runners across the world. The race started in 1921 to commemorate the efforts of South African World War I veterans. It was run from Pietermaritzburg to Durban, a distance of approximately…
The Accidental Marathon – Western Sydney Marathon Race Report I know, I know… how do you “accidentally” run a marathon?!? The Plan After a fairly unspectacular 2018 and lazy lead up to London 2019 (April 28), it was probably no real surprise that disappointing race time was the result. It had been 10 weeks since my last 30k plus run (March 27) with the previous 30ker a month before that (Feb 24) excluding London so with few weeks of very…
I’d had this event on my radar for a couple of years, but for various reasons (being held on same weekend as SMH Half or Sydney 10, or it being sold out) I never entered. Same story this year until three weeks before the race Kroney asks if I would mind stepping in to fill his place as his knee was playing up. Was delighted to get the chance, as Brendan and his team-mate from years prior Alex have form…
In several respects, this was a unique build up to the June edition of the North Head 10km: no racing (excluding parkrun) since Boston, in contrast to most others in Hurts who did the Sydney 10 or SMH or both; managed to twinge my right ITB 4 days pre-race during a self-imposed 1km rep session which forced me to back off completely for a couple of days prior to the race. Indeed I wasn’t 100% confident I would make the…