52 in 52 - Race #1 ..... T42

Well it finally arrived… the first race of the 52 in 52 Challenge. 

I deliberately chose a tough marathon to start and will finish on a marathon with a host of Half Marathons or longer in between.

Pre Start - fresh and clean!

It was a no-brainer to start with the T42… firstly it was on my birthday, secondly it is one of Total Sports flagship events and they have been fantastic with my support of this venture and finally it’s bloody tough – a reminder (if I needed one), that this is no walk in the park.

I filled up Friday night at my local Gull using some of the vouchers they have sponsored me with. 

The budget for my side of these events is very tight, so I passed on getting accommodation the night before and was up at 5am eating breakfast and taping my knees with fabulous RockTape – who have just today come on as a product sponsor, donned one of my splendid race-shirts from All Sew Embroidery and then off around the corner to pick up Tarawera Ultra Race Director Paul Charteris who was entered in the 24km event.

The further we went the better the weather got and by the time Paul dropped me off at ‘the Farm’ it was clear with the sun peeking through regularly – although a touch chilly.

Through the comprehensive gear check and then shoes checked for external dirt (my inov-8 X-Talons were spotless) and pick up my number and transponder. Caught up with and thanked Total Sport owners Nicola and Aaron Carter, this challenge would have been nearly impossible without their support. Then shelter out of the wind and wait for the bus to arrive to take me to the start.

With Marcus Daws, awesome Ostepath, great runner

Met a few new friends on the bus – Sarah Lei from my town of Rotorua and the lovely Barb Carson from Wanganui, both of whom I would encounter in the race. Once at the start it was great to catch up with some of my favourite people, Steve Neary, Marcus Daws (my Osteopath Sponsor from Waikato Osteopathic and a bloody good bloke), Jeremy Weight, Kerry Suter and Tom Frenz (who towed me up the last 3 km of last years Goat) to name a few… one of the best reasons to run events is the fantastic community of runners.

The MTB’s, that had to pass before we started, were a bit slow, so a few minutes later than expected we got away to a good steady start. The 2km loop around farmland at the start always gets the blood pumping and once on to the main 42^nd Traverse trail the merino top disappeared rather quickly. I planned to take it easy, being the first of the challenge, and it felt like I was… but when I looked at the Garmin my pace was faster than planned so I made myself gear back. 

Inov-8 Race Elite 2 Pack

One thing I was loving was the new Inov-8 waist hydration pack, I have never enjoyed running with a backpack and the waist solution worked for me on many levels. It felt comfortable, the bladder holds up to 2 litres (I only had 1.5 for the race), I also had my rain jacket, gloves, beanie, first-aid kit and emergency blanket all around my waist. The difference – usually about 20 - 25km my back starts hurting, being 6’2” I tend to have back problems. However with the new pack it was great until about 38km... at which stage all of me was dying anyway!

Barb Carson on the left

Anyway, a few km’s in and struggling to settle on a pace I was joined by Barb Carson, another 50+ and an Iron-man competitor extraordinaire! I latched on to her pace and we had a great chat for about the next 12km or so which really made the race slide by. Barb’s previous T42 was in a similar time to my previous efforts, so the pace was great. We also had a tail! A lovely Italian lady (from Auckland) Alice Domenichini was quietly sitting behind us… we got a few words out of her but Barb and I did most of the chatting. The first half of the course is rolling with an overall drop in altitude and 3 or 4 stream crossings, not exactly easy, but gentler than the second half of the race.

Around about 18km where the climbing started was the first surprise, in previous years I have walked as much as I have run in these sections, however this year for some reason was different (maybe I was fresher). I ran about 90% of the uphills and passed an awful lot of runners. My time was scaring me but I was feeling good so just kept plodding. I didn’t notice Barb slip back, she just suddenly wasn’t there any more.

A little later Italian Alice passed me, then I passed her and then a wee bit later she steamed past me and into the distance.

Tom Frenz... always smiling!

All was great until about the big bridge where I started to seriously run out of steam. Sarah Lei passed me at the start of the last bit of farmland with some lovely words of encouragement and I managed to stagger/run/walk up the last kilometre or so of trail to the finish… could have done with Tom Frenz (pic at left) to tow me at about this stage… but he let me down and I had to struggle up alone.

In the end 4:23:04, nearly 16 minutes faster than last year and over 20 minutes faster than 2011 and 2^nd in my age group! Happy, but sore and tired.

A Winning Steve Neary and the LTH!

At the finish a beer and a burger and lots of catch-up with the others, Kerry Suter had blitzed the field by over 14 minutes in a race record 2:52:20 – over 90 minutes faster than my time and I thought I did ok! Steve Neary had a great run to win the 40-49 age group (interestingly I would have been second in this group as well). Also caught up with Susan Prater at the Inov-8 tent, she had won her class in the MTB race and the LTH, last years ladies winner was there nursing her broken toe that stopped her defending her title.

Keith Crook shares tactic with Jeremy Weight

Barb Carson won the Vets ladies and Sarah Lei was 3^rd in the Ladies Open with Italian Alice 2^nd.

My good mate Keith Crook on the comeback after a broken ankle was 4^th in the 24km event.

As usual another fantastic day, well run, with a great bunch of people… Total Sport you are tops!!!

Another medal to my small collection

A big thanks to all my sponsors who have got me to the start line... Kaz Dezign from Cambridge for their great work with my logo, website banner and facebook banner. W3 Web Design from Hamilton for getting the website up and running. All Sew have been fabulous with my shirts and are currently helping me get some shirts to sell ready... all without question and making no profit at all! Waikato Osteopaths and Marcus (who ran an excellent time for 11th overall) and who I will be visiting later in the week.

But last word for this race goes to Inov-8, Susan and Richard have been fantastic in their support for me

already and I can say without a word of doubt that the shoes are fabulous… 2 events = 2 PB’s. Many, many runners were wearing X-Talons and for a reason... the grip was out of this world. They were snug on my feet and even in mud and on slippery rocks the grip was solid. Add to this the wonderful waist pack and my trusty race-cap and I could not ask for more!

Roll on Race 2 in the Hawkes Bay on the 19^th… unless I find a race this weekend!

Please... it's not too late... every dollar counts... head to 52in52.org.nz and click in the menu where it says 'Sponsors'. There is an easy form on the right-hand side that will allow you to support me and of course help Hospice!