2018 - Narrabeen All Nighter 12 hours
The Narrabeen lagoon is a stunning natural coastal lagoon meters from the ocean. It is surrounded by the Narrabeen State Park, a thriving bushland, home to a large variety of birds, rodents, bats, frogs, marsupials and fish. All around it, a man made walking trail is a popular training ground for runners and cyclists.
On the first weekend of January the trail becomes home for one night to the ultra running community too, thanks to the very well organised Narrabeen All Nighter on its tenth edition. With a marathon, 6 hours and 12 hours team and solo distances to choose from, the race is an out and back on a 5.2km circuit.
Perfect for those who like me, love running in circles! : )
2018 was my first year taking part and I really really REALLY enjoyed it!
This was a training run for the 24h race in March, so I didn’t have any specific goal aside assessing where my physical and mental fitness were at.
I managed to run strong throughout and I ended up recording 25.5 loops, 134.4km, taking home the win and setting a new course record.
So I am very happy where I am at! A good and welcome omen for all things to come in 2018!
On the first weekend of January the trail becomes home for one night to the ultra running community too, thanks to the very well organised Narrabeen All Nighter on its tenth edition. With a marathon, 6 hours and 12 hours team and solo distances to choose from, the race is an out and back on a 5.2km circuit.
Perfect for those who like me, love running in circles! : )
2018 was my first year taking part and I really really REALLY enjoyed it!
This was a training run for the 24h race in March, so I didn’t have any specific goal aside assessing where my physical and mental fitness were at.
I managed to run strong throughout and I ended up recording 25.5 loops, 134.4km, taking home the win and setting a new course record.
So I am very happy where I am at! A good and welcome omen for all things to come in 2018!
Only one way - Go for your life!
I RUN WITH MY HEAD
For me, running is often more about what goes on in my head than with my legs, and this race was another example of it. I had a good run because I channeled my mental energy* to useful action and I didn’t accept shortcuts. (* I’ll call it like this until I find a better way to describe it!)
The last few months have been very stressful; ever since I quit my IT career to follow my passion for running and fundraising I second guessed myself and doubted my decisions, mainly from a financial stand-point. Patience is not one of my virtues and although I am absolutely convinced it will all work out, I have been building up a lot of mental stress because things are not moving fast enough.
I got to the race day pretty worn out and overloaded of emotions. I am actually lucky I got to the race on time as I was very disorganised leaving all the logistics to the last minute - not like me. On my scooter, riding like a maniac to Narrabeen, I felt full of negative emotions and pretty upset with myself. I was still stressing about work, the things to do and change, and the future, the kids, and on and on and on. I finally had enough, I shouted to myself "Stop it! That's enough winging for the day. Do something useful with all this tension, use it to forward motion."
I know that when my subconscious voice shouts at me, I better listen. So I committed to leave all my worries for another day and just focus on moving forward with purpose. Throughout the night, every time unnecessary thoughts came to mind, I just acknowledged them and parked them for later, choosing to use that mental energy for things more useful in that moment. Simple things like taking in the surroundings, reading the nametags of other runners, listening to my body and keeping the fluids up. Not wasting any mental cycles in things irrelevant to the task ahead.
And while pushing back thoughts was initially hard, few hours into the run I felt relieved. Mentally and physically it's like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders.
For me, running is often more about what goes on in my head than with my legs, and this race was another example of it. I had a good run because I channeled my mental energy* to useful action and I didn’t accept shortcuts. (* I’ll call it like this until I find a better way to describe it!)
The last few months have been very stressful; ever since I quit my IT career to follow my passion for running and fundraising I second guessed myself and doubted my decisions, mainly from a financial stand-point. Patience is not one of my virtues and although I am absolutely convinced it will all work out, I have been building up a lot of mental stress because things are not moving fast enough.
I got to the race day pretty worn out and overloaded of emotions. I am actually lucky I got to the race on time as I was very disorganised leaving all the logistics to the last minute - not like me. On my scooter, riding like a maniac to Narrabeen, I felt full of negative emotions and pretty upset with myself. I was still stressing about work, the things to do and change, and the future, the kids, and on and on and on. I finally had enough, I shouted to myself "Stop it! That's enough winging for the day. Do something useful with all this tension, use it to forward motion."
I know that when my subconscious voice shouts at me, I better listen. So I committed to leave all my worries for another day and just focus on moving forward with purpose. Throughout the night, every time unnecessary thoughts came to mind, I just acknowledged them and parked them for later, choosing to use that mental energy for things more useful in that moment. Simple things like taking in the surroundings, reading the nametags of other runners, listening to my body and keeping the fluids up. Not wasting any mental cycles in things irrelevant to the task ahead.
And while pushing back thoughts was initially hard, few hours into the run I felt relieved. Mentally and physically it's like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders.
Not sure if Andy will agree to go out drinking with me again!
BACK TO THE RACE
The night was very warm, 25 to 27 degrees. I ran the first marathon with Andy Heyden who signed up one night we were out for a few beers - my old trick still works! We ran together chatting the whole way.
He couldn’t stay for the full 12 hours, so I was on my own from 3h:30min onwards. Which I didn’t mind to be honest as I needed some time alone to get it done. I ran every lap pretty consistently and at no point I felt it was boring, I had enough or I was pushing the pace.
The night was very warm, 25 to 27 degrees. I ran the first marathon with Andy Heyden who signed up one night we were out for a few beers - my old trick still works! We ran together chatting the whole way.
He couldn’t stay for the full 12 hours, so I was on my own from 3h:30min onwards. Which I didn’t mind to be honest as I needed some time alone to get it done. I ran every lap pretty consistently and at no point I felt it was boring, I had enough or I was pushing the pace.
Dave was a great support crew, very patient with all my demands!
After last year long training runs on a treadmill on my own, going nowhere, running 5.2km loops was so good! Being an out and back course with different races sharing the trail and starting at different times, there was always someone approaching on the other direction or someone to overtake or overtaking me. And a brief exchange of words, a chat or just a mutual nod or cheer kept me entertained. And most people were smiling, which is a great booster!
Apart from the puzzled possums staring back from the trees and one long snake crossing the path, the run was pretty uneventful. I sat on a stable and comfortable effort and reached the 100km mark in 8h 50 minutes, just before my Garmin watch ran out of battery. I continued to run totally by effort, losing track of my actual distance or pace, which felt good for a change.
I didn’t have an official support crew for the night and I was lucky Dave, one of the volunteers for the event, offered to help, keeping me fed and accomodating all my requests of different drinks every lap! It was so hot I have gone through half bottle per lap, or 7 litres of liquids in 12 hours! And every lap I felt like something different.. more ice, more electrolyte, coke, less water.. what a pain! Sorry Dave!
Apart from the puzzled possums staring back from the trees and one long snake crossing the path, the run was pretty uneventful. I sat on a stable and comfortable effort and reached the 100km mark in 8h 50 minutes, just before my Garmin watch ran out of battery. I continued to run totally by effort, losing track of my actual distance or pace, which felt good for a change.
I didn’t have an official support crew for the night and I was lucky Dave, one of the volunteers for the event, offered to help, keeping me fed and accomodating all my requests of different drinks every lap! It was so hot I have gone through half bottle per lap, or 7 litres of liquids in 12 hours! And every lap I felt like something different.. more ice, more electrolyte, coke, less water.. what a pain! Sorry Dave!
I didn't know it at the time but the extra 1/2 loop meant the course record
NO SHORTCUTS
Dave was setup at the finish line and, with about 70 minutes to go, he advised me that if I could keep my laps (5.26km) under 30 minutes, I could probably have enough time to attempt one last half lap before the 12 hours.
I started my second last loop thinking “I don’t actually need to do another half lap. This is a training run and I have already reached a good distance. Also, if I do another half lap, it means I will have to jog back from the other end of the course too… so it’s really one more lap! At the other end there is nobody to cheer when I finish. If I just keep this pace, I won’t make it and nobody would know any different!”.
Then another thought came to mind “This sounds like taking a shortcut. And that’s cheating. What’s good about that? For the rest of the day, weeks and months I’ll be thinking about it. And if I do it once, I’ll train my brain and my soul that it is ok.”.
I laughed to myself as this is the exact type of thoughts I have on my training runs. A little out of the way from my usual route, there is a short steep hill which admittedly I don’t have to run. But when I see it or acknowledge it is there, I feel I must do it otherwise I would be cheating.
So, I increased my pace just a little and surely, I got to the finish line 2 loops later with exactly 15 minutes left - enough to complete another half loop.. just! I had to bolt the last 200 meters to reach the timing mat few second under the 12h cut-off!
Dave was setup at the finish line and, with about 70 minutes to go, he advised me that if I could keep my laps (5.26km) under 30 minutes, I could probably have enough time to attempt one last half lap before the 12 hours.
I started my second last loop thinking “I don’t actually need to do another half lap. This is a training run and I have already reached a good distance. Also, if I do another half lap, it means I will have to jog back from the other end of the course too… so it’s really one more lap! At the other end there is nobody to cheer when I finish. If I just keep this pace, I won’t make it and nobody would know any different!”.
Then another thought came to mind “This sounds like taking a shortcut. And that’s cheating. What’s good about that? For the rest of the day, weeks and months I’ll be thinking about it. And if I do it once, I’ll train my brain and my soul that it is ok.”.
I laughed to myself as this is the exact type of thoughts I have on my training runs. A little out of the way from my usual route, there is a short steep hill which admittedly I don’t have to run. But when I see it or acknowledge it is there, I feel I must do it otherwise I would be cheating.
So, I increased my pace just a little and surely, I got to the finish line 2 loops later with exactly 15 minutes left - enough to complete another half loop.. just! I had to bolt the last 200 meters to reach the timing mat few second under the 12h cut-off!
Welcome home from Lidia and the kids!
STICK TO WHAT YOU KNOW BUT BE WILLING TO TRY SOMETHING NEW
My nutrition and hydration were spot on - I used the same plan I used during the 24h on treadmill, which means I am on something here. Stick to what you know!
Having said that, in the weeks leading up to the race and on the day, I experimented with a supplement recommended to me by Andy who swears by the improvement on recovery time: CurraNZ.
I was given a sample to try just before Christmas and although these are early days, I must admit I also noticed a great improvement on my recovery.
I'll continue to put it at test as in our sport consistency is everything. And to be consistent in training and racing you need to be able to recover fast. As I write this, it has been 3 days since the run and I feel pretty good with the muscle stiffness almost gone! I don't know if it was CurraNZ or the big cake Lidia baked for me, so I'll take both just to be sure to be sure!
My nutrition and hydration were spot on - I used the same plan I used during the 24h on treadmill, which means I am on something here. Stick to what you know!
Having said that, in the weeks leading up to the race and on the day, I experimented with a supplement recommended to me by Andy who swears by the improvement on recovery time: CurraNZ.
I was given a sample to try just before Christmas and although these are early days, I must admit I also noticed a great improvement on my recovery.
I'll continue to put it at test as in our sport consistency is everything. And to be consistent in training and racing you need to be able to recover fast. As I write this, it has been 3 days since the run and I feel pretty good with the muscle stiffness almost gone! I don't know if it was CurraNZ or the big cake Lidia baked for me, so I'll take both just to be sure to be sure!
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