The Run

2024 was my eleventh Melbourne Marathon, each of them different and each special in their own way. When I ran my first back in 2003 we ran point to point from Frankston to Melbourne. It was a long way and it was to be one and done. Nevertheless the lure of a better performance and changes to the course have brought me back another ten times and I now proudly call myself a Melbourne Marathon Spartan

In 2024 we had good weather and conditions. Cool but clear with a bit of wind to roll in later. I hadn’t had an ideal preparation with a back problem leading to a very difficult run in Sydney four weeks before. In the intervening weeks I had more consistent running but there was no time to get the long runs under the belt so we decided to run a conservative event and treat this as a long training run. The whole aim was simply to get through and not suffer as I had done in Sydney.

With that in mind I wasn’t too concerned to be further back at the start than I would normally be. I could see the 3:40 pacer up ahead and lots and lots of runners. The start was eventful as runners pushed through slower runners and tried to get some running room. We went through 1 km in 5:14 which is about where I wanted to be so I settled down and rolled along. With a bit more space 5 minute kilometres were pretty easy so I spotted the 3:30 pacers and used them as a gauge to keep my pace steady. The day started to warm up and was pretty dry so I was mindful of the need for a drink at most of the water stations. Seeing a number of runners cramping later on made me grateful that I had gotten enough fluid in. I think Boston earlier in the year had taught me that it is not necessarily the heat that can get to you. There it was cool but dry and many people suffered the same fate.

Down onto Beaconsfield parade and through the half on a good schedule and feeling OK. This was the first point at which we noticed that the wind was starting to get up. I reached the turn around down at Elwood at 23 km and wondered if and when the pain was going to start. In Sydney I hit the wall about this point and the lost nearly an hour in the last 19 km. I figured anything from here was going to be a bonus and would lower my comparative time. I was, however, feeling pretty good. I was rolling along at 5 min / km without too much drama. There was a bit of a headwind but nothing too difficult. I knew that I would run out of legs sooner or later but just kept at it. Up to Fitzroy street where there is a hill that leads to the merge with the half marathon runners, 30 km down.

We merged with the half runners and I passed the 2hr 20 pacer so those around them were running at just under 7 min/km. This made it difficult to maintain 5 min/km as we dodged and weaved around them. Most of the runners were pretty good but there were groups that were not. The half runners came out of Albert Park on our left and most stayed over to the left to give marathon runners a clear run. We could use the lane on St Kilda road adjacent to the tram track so that helped. However down behind the Arts Centre on a dodgy little back street there was not room for any finesse and all runners were caught up in the chaos. Coming around onto Linlithgow Ave near the Sydney Myer music bowl half runners went to the right and marathon runners straight ahead so half runners had to move from the left to the right side of the course.

I lost a bit of time and momentum up St Kilda Road and around into the gardens and this at 35 km is the last significant hill on the course so it was hard to get it back. I slogged up the hill and could feel I was starting to fatigue. Down Domain Road I was hoping to stride out a little and get some momentum toward the finish but I was running out of puff. The last 3 km was a bit tough but I was happy that I kept up a pace a bit over 5.10 / km through to the finish and it never really blew out. Into the MCG and around the lap of the plastic. I’m not sure of the point of covering the grass with a plastic layer, maybe to define the course but it always feels that you aren’t really running on the ground.

Finished in 3:38’53 for fifth in my Age Group and did no serious damage. Could I have gone faster? Maybe, but the chances of blowing up and really hurting myself would have been much higher. I would have to have gone out faster and hoped for the best without any logical belief that this was possible.

Time for a break and to build some strength in my back and core and to try and get some speed back into the ageing legs, A bit more track running and hills and even a bit of (ugh) stretching.

The Lead Up

After a successful trip overseas to Boston and Big Sur we turned our sights to the Sydney Marathon which incorporated the World Age Group Championship. On home soil and on Australian Eastern time this was an easy drive, a marathon and an easy drive home. I’d had a break after Big Sur and planned to put together a sixteen week training block and have a go at a (for me) competitive time.

16 weeks out. Very early on there were indications that not all was right with the world. A run here or there would take a little longer than normal or would take more effort. I put this down to the break and thought a little more work and some distance in the legs would see it all come right.

Nine weeks out. Problems. I tackled my first long run, a 30 km Sri Chinmoy event around Princes Park. This is six laps of 5 km with a hill at the 4 km mark. Dirt around the back and bitumen for the balance. It had been raining so the dirt section had some pretty serious puddles to avoid and it was pretty cool. Finished in 2:24 and won my age group. I pulled up a bit sore but it was my first run over 25 km and was quite cold. Tuesday night I ran an easy track session on the bike path and then on Wednesday morning I couldn’t walk to the end of the street…….

Problems Big, Big Problems

Walking, even short distances involved a feeling like someone sticking a knife into my hip, just behind the hip flexor and then grinding it through the joint to the top of the quadricep muscle. Every step hurt and the effect was that the leg woudn’t bear weight. Not promising with the marathon nine weeks away. I took the obvious to an old bloke approach that this was another minor problem and taking it easy for a day or two should fix it. Nope.

By Friday I gave in and made an appointment with the Physio. Dan is a nice young man with the typical Physio mean streak in him. He poked and prodded a bit to see what hurt and how he could make it hurt a bit more and then decided it may have been a soleus muscle strain in the gluteus. A bum strain in short.

A painful massage later things had loosened up a bit and we thought signs were positive. He suggested an MRI of the hip to be sure and as we were now 8 weeks out from Sydney off I went to Doctor Isaac for a referral and an MRI. Came back as normal wear and tear for age.

Hmmm. Next step up is the back. Pain might be referred from spinal nerve damage. So back we went for another MRI that showed a lesion in the L4/5 vertebrae. Dr Isaac suggested a CT guided cortisone injection into the spine. This took a couple of days to organise. Five and a half weeks before the marathon. Haven’t been out of a walk for four weeks. I asked the doctor about the likelihood of running in the near future and was given the guarded “do as your body tells you”. Not promising as my body was telling me to go and have a holiday in the sunshine.

Post Injection.

Things started to improve. Injection Thursday, walking Friday slowly, better over the weekend. I could put weight onto my leg without discomfort but we were now only four and a half weeks out. Gentle 5 km run Tuesday. Started to slowly build up distance over the next two weeks with ten and twelve km runs. I needed to find out if there was any chance to run the marathon. I needed to try a longer run.

Sandy Point Half

The Sandy Point Half is a pretty simple event. 10.5 km down Beach road, turn at the cones and run 10.5 km back. I had volunteered ages ago to be 1:45 pacer. 5 minutes/km. Simples ! I had advised the organisers that I was having issues with my back and wasn’t supremely confident but thought I could manage what is a comfortable pace for me. I was wrong. Weather was nice, cool and not much breeze, ideal running weather really. After about 8 km it became clear that I was working way too hard for the pace and if I continued at that pace I would blow up and not finish. The culprit was my left quadricep that again felt like there was a knife stuck in it. I threw away the pacing balloon, told the other pacer and jogged it in. I could hold 5.20 min /km and finished in 1:51. I was pretty sore again for a couple of days and obviously this was not the boost that I was hoping for but with little or no training for six weeks not a surprise. It didn’t give me any guide as to what I could expect nor any confidence that I could double the distance in three weeks with no time to build up.

Sydney Marathon – The Age Group World Championship

On to the main event. We had a bit of family crisis to deal with which meant Anne had to stay in Melbourne. I was on my own. Drive to the little town of Yerong Creek, South of Wagga which now boasts a lovely little cafe for a stay overnight with my sister and husband and then on to Umina Beach, North of Sydney for another overnight stay this time with my nephew Thom, his partner Greta and their two kids Eliot and Miriam. Friday into town on the train. A very pretty train trip if anyone gets the chance.

Friday night was the Meet and Greet for the Age Group Champs with a harbour cruise. I managed to catch up with Avi and Lisa and a cohort of Houston runners and a bunch of guys from Melbourne all under the sunset and lights of Sydney Harbour. A good night had by all.

Saturday I woke up early, strange bed, sleeping alone and decided to Parkrun. The local run Piramma was on part of the marathon course so that was useful and it is a very pretty course with a view of the harbour bridge. Ran 24.11 with a stop to take a photo so under 5 min/km. From there it was over to the Opera House for the picture of the runners who were to compete the next day. Wow! What a crowd. The rest of the day was spent resting up as the marathon was a 6.00 am start which means an even earlier rise to get there.

Sunday 3.00 am. Time to get going. Check the gear, go to the toilet. Hear noise next door. I didn’t realise they were runners too. Nope. Turns out they were just getting home from a night out as I was leaving. Funny old world. Metro from Barangaroo to Victoria Cross, short walk up and into the gathering area. Dark, very windy but not too cold.

5.15 gear bag in, last toilet stop, gather in the corral, out to the start and away. Sun was just up but cool and windy as we head down the first kilometre to the bridge. down to the bridge and then up onto it. The view is spectacular as the dawn rises over the harbour. I’m trying to settle in to something a little over 5 min/km. If I could Parkrun 4:50 then 5:05-5:10 should be doable. Down off the bridge and around through Darling Harbour. Everything holding together, still lots of people around and the quick runners of the “A” corral coming past. Up through Barangaroo and past the Hotel. If I’d known what was coming I might have stopped in for a rest and a coffee.

At 10 km I was around 50 minutes. It was still very windy and there are a couple of hills so I was pretty happy with how it was going. We went across Oxford St and out past the Cricket ground and on to Anzac Parade for the long out and back up to 21km. Hit the half in 1:38. Double that is 3:36, Add 10 minutes for 3:46. Would be happy with that.

I hit 23 km and 23 km hit back. Within 500 metres all of the go in my legs had gone. I had always known that this was a possibility but was hoping to get to 30 km or beyond before having to face it. The idea was then to heroically jog in at 5:30 / km and finish brightly. The reality was much, much different .

My quads basically gave out. I could do no more than shuffle and there was no brightly about it. Any attempt to speed up was met with massive indifference and threats of strike action. Uphills were bad, downhills were worse. Runners came past. Many gave words of encouragement. Thom running his first marathon came past. David running a typically solid race came past. George following up from Kangaroo Island a week before came past. There was nothing I could do but persist. 30 k around the park, 35 km back into town, 40 km agony down to Lady Macquarie’s chair and not much better coming up. Finally, to the Finish line. The young and enthusiastic running through as I shuffled in. Job done.

After a sit down came a slow walk back to the pub we were meeting at. I met up with family and friends and enjoyed sitting very still and a couple of pints of Guiness. Later. I made it back to the hotel and slept for a couple of hours, then out to the presentation dinner. Monday back to pick up the car and down to Canberra and Tuesday home. A long, long weekend.

What did I learn about Myself

I like to think that I am self aware enough to know that I am not superman. This was an occasion to remind myself of that. There is always the movie version or the advertising jingle that says all we need to do is want it enough and we can overcome anything. If finishing is enough then OK I’m happy with that. I wanted it enough to finish and I did.

What I couldn’t achieve was the Fairy tale. In that there would have been a burst of energy, a beam of light, maybe a chorus of Angels and a negative split. But would it have been justice? 9 weeks of interrupted training, six weeks including parts where I could hardly walk, medical procedures and physiotherapy to get to the start line and you want rainbows as well? Sorry. the real world doesn’t run like that. I think I’ll take the finish and be grateful. Next year in New York we’ll work on better.

Where to from here ?

Melbourne marathon in three weeks. I have no time commitments and no plan to race. It will be slow and steady and don’t look at the watch.

After that I’ll go back and talk to Physio Dan and we’ll see about a rehab plan for the back and hip which will no doubt involve lots of stretching and strengthening. There is a tightness in the left hip flexor which doesn’t allow it to straighten. I think that is what is throwing the pressure forward on to the quadricep muscle,

From there.

Who knows?

Is this the new normal ?

Time will tell.

Canberra, Boston and Big Sur

Three marathons, four weeks. Of course we can do it, and half way around the world into the equation. Hmmm… Let’s see.

Canberra Marathon

Typical for Canberra, very early (6.15 am) start on a cool, overcast day. Not as cold as last year but still very fresh. Pretty good running conditions. I was feeling reasonably positive at 5.00 am when I set out for the drive to the start, All of the pre-start preparation went well, gear on, get parked in plenty of time, toilet stops done, vaseline the rubby bits and then we lined up and were off in seemingly no time. Up around Parliament house and back down to the lake. The first five kilometres were over nice and easily. About 22.5 minutes so steady, maybe a touch quick. Aim here was to run better than 3:26 the qualifying time for the World Age Group Championship in 2025. With good conditions I thought it would be doable without hurting myself too much for the two marathons to follow. If I could get it done here then the pressure comes off for Boston and Big Sur.

Through 10 km and still a touch quick but rolling along nicely. Canberra is quite a hilly course. Up to Parliament, down to the lake, up around Telopea park, down to the lake, back up around the front of Parliament, back down to the lake. You get the picture.

At half way there isn’t a marker but by following the Garmin for 100m past the 21 km marker I was through there in 97 and a bit minutes. Still on for a pretty good time. Over the Commonwealth Ave bridge and onto the boring part of the course, the freeway. The organisers have altered timings this year so that we don’t run into the half marathoners at this point and it makes for much freer running. It’s still boring. It is also a long downhill to the turnaround and a long grind back up the hill. Just after the turn is the 30 km mark so a good time for a long uphill grind. By the time we get to the Kings Ave bridge at 36 km after 6 km on the freeway the legs are voting for change of pace and scenery. We slow a little bit but the last part is another loop around Telopea park so the scenery stays the same. Starting to feel the pain but into the last couple of kilometres and still looking at well under 3:20 so incentive to keep pushing. Over the line in 3:17 so job done. (As a postscript Abbott have sent the invitation for the Championship. We don’t know where or when but that’s a problem for another time).

Job done. Back to Geoff and Lynda’s for recovery and then Monday the lazy 8 hour trip home. Wash everything, pack and on Wednesday fly out to Auckland and then Houston.

Houston, a stopover and meeting new friends

We had one night in Houston so I contacted Avi Moss who I’d met in London a couple of years ago to ask if there were any good running tracks around the airport as we would be staying out there overnight. He responded by saying we could stay with him and Lisa Thompson his partner and an elite para athlete in her own right and run with their group. The run didn’t work out due to very slow border security at Houston airport but I did get a little loosener upperer in and Avi and Lisa took us to meet their running group over a couple of beers at their local bar at the University. It was extremely generous of them and a great reflection on the running community of Houston. Maybe we’ll get back there for the marathon another year.

Boston Marathon

So, on to Boston. I was having more trouble than usual with jet lag on this trip and the dryness of the air conditioning seemed to be affecting my ears so I was a little out of sorts leading into the marathon.

We met up with some friends that we had met by chance in Wanaka in New Zealand prior to the Queenstown marathon. While out on a walk there we had bumped into BJ and Ripp Rippberger. We were chatting about the walk and Queenstown marathon, and they mentioned that they lived in Boston and that we should catch up with them. We did that and they very generously chauffeured us up the coast from Boston through a couple of the smaller towns to the north that we had only ever heard of from stories and television like Salem and Marblehead. It was interesting to see the impressive houses and boats in that part of the world. We even tried the local favourite , the lobster roll.

The Boston Marathon has its own little quirks. One is that it starts at 10.30 am for my wave so in addition to everything else the timing makes nutrition difficult. How much can I eat before getting on a bus for an hour trip out to the start and how much before the event itself. I think in the end I needed more than I took in but that isn’t how it felt at the time. Aim here was to try to repeat the run of the week before. Boston is an easier course than Canberra and the weather was warmer. I was feeling OK on the start line but had another terrible night’s sleep beforehand. All the conditions were about to jump on me.

I started well, except that after 200 metres I needed a wee. Been to the toilet several times, no excuse for the bladder. Had to wee. Very hard to concentrate. Shouldn’t need it. Need a wee. Jumped into a portaloo a couple of kilometres in, lost 40 seconds but felt so much better. Through 5 kilometres I wsn’t far off what I’d run for the same distance in Canberra. With the toilet break it meant that I was probably 30 seconds quicker over the 5 km. This should have given me a warning to back off. I rationalized it by being downhill whereas Canberra had a pretty serious climb in the first five km. Should have listened.

Through 10 km and feeling good, a couple of small towns Framingham, Ashland, all with great crowds and high excitement. Through the scream tunnel that is the Wellsley girls college at Wellesley at 21 km. I consciously looked around going through the towns knowing it was unlikely that I would ever be here again. The support is amazing with people three and four deep through all of these small towns. Went through the half in 95 minutes and had a fleeting idea of 3:15. The day was warming up.

I was trying to get a mouthful of water at each water station, located a mile apart and thought I was doing a reasonable job of hydration but the combination of lack of sleep, jetlag and the marathon a week earlier came back to bite me. Almost as soon as we hit the first rise in Newton the legs called it a day. Unfortunately, we still had another 15 km to go. From here it was simply survival mode.

I was wearing a black armband in honour of my mentor, coach and friend Geoff Warren who passed away a week. earlier. Quitting was not an option. I tried to remember some of the advice and some of the stories that Geoff had related over the years both to pass the time and also to sideline the pain that was building with the passing kilometres.

Shuffle along and get up the hills as best as possible and try to roll down the downhills. I lost something like 10 minutes in the last 10 kilometres. The day had warmed up to one of the warmer marathon days that Boston has seen and there were runners cramping all over the course. It hurt but at this stage there was nothing to be done. I wasn’t cramping although there were some moments when I’m sure parts of me were thinking that might be a good idea.

Into town and to the final stage of right onto Hereford and left onto Boylston. I was trying to use the energy of the crowd to get over the line. Down the final straight and over the line, Made it !

Finished in 3:28 and 21st in my Age group. Certainly nothing to be sneezed at but I think this was an opportunity for something better that just got away.

Interestingly with time this run has looked better than I had originally thought. A week later and I came across some stats for the event including 980 did not finish. 120 hospitalizations with heat stroke, 1200 treated on the course. The hottest event since 2017. It hurt but I finished. Sometimes I need to give myself more credit.

Montreal/Quebec

We had made a conscious decision not to hang around Boston. We had been here before in 2015 and had walked the Freedom trail and taken in some of the sights that this city has to offer. It is pretty darned expensive over Marathon weekend and we thought we might be better served getting out and seeing something new. There is a great deal of history in Boston and it certainly worth the time to visit but it was time to move on. We flew out on the Tuesday after the Monday marathon still a bit sore and sorry and headed for Montreal in Canada.

Montreal is in the province of Quebec and is part of French speaking Canada. We had a look at several histories and still couldn’t see how that has happened. The French settled in Canada and were trading with the native American tribes and then the English moved in and took it over. The French speaking traders seemed to have remained as part of the colony. The new Canadians then repelled several attacks from the United States who were intent on expansion. As near as I can tell from there it was a matter of the French speaking peoples having a larger affect on the population and it has now passed to the point where it is the official language of Quebec. We, of course, speak little French beyond Bon Jour. It’s not big in Melbourne. What we did find what that most Quebecois are bilingual and very forgiving of our ignorance.

Montreal has some lovely architecture and is justifiably proud of its Old Town. The area back from the port has been retained with cobbled streets and marvelous old buildings that give the city much of its character. While in Montreal we ventured out to the Olympic precinct where the Olympics were held in 1976. The main stadium is still there and the velodrome has been converted to a biodome containing five distinct ecosystems from tropical through to arctic. We saw Puffins ! Also penguins and a lynx and racoons and several other animals and birds we’d never seen before. We couldn’t pick out the sloth in the tree although we were assured it was there.

We headed further North to Quebec City for the weekend. This isn’t the furthest North we have been that is still Helsinki in Finland which is several degrees of latitude further North but Quebec was in early Spring with changeable weather and a biting cold wind. It is an interesting city, a fair bit smaller than Montreal and more fortified. The river here is narrower and Quebec City sits on a pronounced hill that gives it an overview of all the traffic coming up and down the river. There are still many of the old cannons and emplacements left to demonstrate that they didn’t take defense of the city lightly. There are also fortifications to explore and the Fairmont Hotel which is advertised as the most photographed Hotel in the world. We took a picture. We tried poutine a local specialty. Basically melted cheese curd over potato french fies and smothered in a rich gravy. Comfort food. Pretty good.

We woke up one morning to a sunny morning and thought we should get out and do some touristing. Then we looked at the weather report of -4 degrees outside and decided we might wait at least until it made it to zero. No we weren’t in Melbourne where it rarely gets below 4 or 5 degrees even in Mid Winter and this is supposed to be Mid to Late Spring ! We spent one day looking at Montmorency falls which are very impressive and one day out at the other end of the bus route looking at the original site of settlement. It was there we noticed gentle flakes of something white floating around us. We were being snowed upon. It was dry so we weren’t getting wet but it was very, very cold.

Back to Montreal and the weather stayed biting cold. We spent one morning watching it snow outside the hotel. Amazingly enough the sky then cleared and the snow that had fallen evaporated so although it was still cold it was pleasant enough to go and look at one of the parks that juts out into the St Lawrence river. On the way back Anne spotted a large furry critter. A groundhog. About the size of a large cat but more in character with our wombat, it was the first of a number of these that we saw poking up out of the ground in various open areas. Our last day in Montreal was spent out at the old EXPO site that is now used as an exhibition space and parkland. The US pavillion there has been donated to the city and is called the biosphere and was designed by Buckminster Fuller as a geodesic dome. It dominates that part of the park and can be seen from across the river in the city proper.

Big Sur

Having spent 11 days recovering from Boston and Canberra with a lot of walking and several runs it was time to complete the challenge and head to Big Sur. We never actually made it to Big Sur itself. There had been a landslip on Highway 1 just North of the Bixby bridge at Rocky Creek. This is just over halfway on the normal Big Sur course. This year it would be modified to a 19.5 km out and 19.5 back with a 3.2 km (2 mile) extra loop at Point Lobos to make up the marathon distance. The pianist who plays a grand piano on the approach to the Bixby bridge under normal circumstances was relocated to about the 12 km mark so we were able to appreciate his efforts on both legs. He was playing Let it Be when I was heading down and the Theme from Chariots of fire on the way back with a crowd of people watching on and taking pictures

The start and finish was to be in Carmel. The start at 6.15 am just on dawn. Carmel doesn’t have accommodation for that many runners so buses ferry runners from Monterey down to the start at 4.30 am. Ouch! We set off and I set myself the task of not running in front of the 3:20 pacer. I knew from Boston the dangers of going out too hard and so had picked a time I felt I could handle if I could maintain discipline. The run is all on Highway 1 down along the coast and is advertised as the Run on the Ragged Edge of the World. The first couple of kilometres is on coastal road but not particularly scenic until it opens up and you can see spectacular scenery all of the way down the coast. I ran very easily behind the 3:20 pacer and then with the group and then just a little in front of them down to the turn. We could see the Bixby bridge but weren’t to run over it. On the way back I ran over the half marathon mat at 98.45 so beautifully on target. If we can hold it together for the second half.

On the way back we ran into a pronounced headwind. It was one climb that seemed to have the wind funneled right up through it. There was certainly a moment of trepidation and I’m sure it was not just me that it affected. The idea of slogging back into a solid headwind for 15-20 kms was not at all attractive so I think we were all a little relieved to find that it only seemed to be prevalent at that particular place. For the rest of the event the wind was much lighter and from slightly off to an angle. Up through 30 km and still everything going well. The camber on the road was annoying being very pronounced and hard on the lower legs but I was feeling really good. I wondered if this was the calm before the storm but was pretty positive as I wasn’t getting any pain signals from the legs or hips. In fact, I seemed to be runnng easier at this point than I had been earlier. We made it to the loop around Point Lobos. I was looking forward to some wild view from somewhere down near the point but it wasn’t to be. The road took us down to the loop at the bottom of the park but no closer. I think there might have been a walk down to a view but it wouldn’t have been suitable for runners in a competitive event. C’est la Vie.

Back onto the main road and only one hill to get up. It was always going to be a doozey. Just after the start was a long downhill so we knew at the finish there would be a long uphill. And so it was. Still, I was feeling so much better than Boston and even than Canberra so I was very happy to get over the top and see the finish. Ran through in 3:20.30. First in my age group which won me a nice timber plaque and a voucher for a pair of HOKA shoes. Same catch as occurred in NZ. They only ship to the USA. I’m not sure why events declare themselves international if their prizes are only claimable in the country they are won. Fortunately, I now know some people who will forward a pair of shoes for me. Just annoying.

So what did we learn

Three marathons in four weeks. All under 3:30. Won my age group in two out of the three. The slowest was the middle one so not seeing accumulation of damage or fatigue. I think the most interesting revelation for me is to take advantage of circumstance when it is available. The quickest marathon was the first and this gave me the chance to qualify for the World Age Group Championship 2025 which we did. A more conservative approach might have been to take Canberra, being the first marathon of the block. a bit easier and use it as a training run for one of the other two. This then would have put pressure on in the second event at Boston in conditions that were not conducive, for me, to a good time. It should be noted that many athletes had good runs in Boston so the heat is not an excuse for poor pacing and fueling.

Where to from here ? Pacing 3:45 in Brisbane in June should be fun and then a bit of a break and then coming back in for a program to run the Age Group Championships in Sydney in September. I’d like to run quicker there than in Canberra and I think that will be achievable all things going well. That would then parley into time qualifying for New York in 2025. I was 22 minutes under their qualifying with a 3:23 in Queenstown last year. Canberra’s 3:17 would be 28 minutes under. This years cut off was 25 minutes. Another couple of minutes should make it sure. Last one for this year will be my 11th Melbourne marathon and then we’ll re-assess where we are at and what we would like to do. Only Tokyo and New York to be done to complete the Abbott majors for the second time. One more Canberra to become a griffin. Places to see things to do.

Everyone, once in their life, should see a puffin.

Where we explore the relationship between marathon running and time.

Apart from the obvious biophysical factors involved in running where skeletal muscles and tendons exert force on the ground to propel us forward there is a far more interesting branch of physics that affects all marathon runners.
It was Doctor Who who described it best when he referred to fluctuations in space time as “timey wimey”. Recent ground breaking theories in physics have also suggested that time is not a constant as we have all been led to believe.

Marathon runners would have been able to provide evidence for this for years. When we look to enter a marathon particularly any of the major marathons we look far into the future and send off our application secure in the knowledge that nothing needs be done now. The event is months and even nearly a year away in some cases. A qualifying time for the 2025 World Age Group Championships can be run right now, in the right event, even though the Championship itself has no scheduled venue or date. When to start training? Who knows?
With months to prepare little achievements occur. Flights are booked and accommodation. Still, not much to worry about. A couple of events to stay interested, a bit of track work but the marathon stays stubbornly in the distance. Until it isn’t…

Our normal build up is 12-16 weeks depending on the event. Still plenty of time. Not as many months but still months away. The seconds are starting to contract but all is well.

A bit of soreness, a missed session, family responsibilities. Changed flights, rescheduled to different cities, changing accommodation, eight weeks, seven, six….

Friday we leave for the first of three marathons over the next four weeks. That’s the day after tomorrow.
Last Sunday, Easter Sunday, and the car decided to throw an ignition coil. 8 hour drive coming up Friday. Tuesday Ben the mechanic saved the day. Big shout out to Ben. Car is back and purring. Whew! Time continues…Stress levels rise.

Time is getting short to make sure everything is in place. We come back from Canberra Monday. Get everything together and clean Tuesday and fly out to Boston via Auckland and Houston Wednesday. The seconds that were so free and easy not long ago are now rapidly counting down. Surely the can’t be the same length seconds that we had when entering.

All we need is a physicist with the appropriate equipment and knowledge to measure them and we could provide evidence for a whole new theory of relativity.

Where to

First up is Canberra on Sunday. Easy drive up the Hume for about 8 hours, weekend with family, Parkrun Saturday and the Marathon on Sunday. At the moment weather looks good cool and overcast. Hopefully not as cool and overcast as last year which was more at the cold, wet and miserable end of the spectrum. Aim is to run sub 3:26 and qualify for the 2025 Age Group Championship.
Back home Monday, on the plane Wednesday. Turns out we are going to Boston via Houston. This is a saga that I touched on in my last blog where Air New Zealand decided they didn’t want to take us to San Francisco but would to L.A. but didn’t mention that they could take us to Chicago until later when they charged an extra fee and then couldn’t have a stopover until United cancelled the internal flight then we could until Air New Zealand decided they wouldn’t fly to Chicago at all but we could go to Houston. Confused? As long as we end up in Boston before Monday week ready to run we will be happy.
So, Boston Monday week. The fourth of the majors second time around. Didn’t get into New York despite being 22 minutes under qualifying. A bit stiff but that’s the way it goes. Three weeks before the race that provided the qualifying time I ran eleven minutes faster but I had a birthday in between. Would have been 22 minutes under that qualifying as well. Three weeks later 34 minutes under and would have been in easily. The second marathon in Queenstown was a much harder course. Quicker time than the 3:23 I ran in Queenstown? Worth a go.

Final event will be Big Sur marathon on the California coast. Runs from Big Sur to Carmel along Highway 1. Due to storms there a couple of weeks ago the road has subsided. Meant that the road was closed and the event might not go ahead. Latest update is that barriers have been put in place and one lane closed. We don’t take up too much room so as long as there is no further damage we should get away with the event. Hopefully. If everything has gone to (my very cunning) plan then this will be a tourist run to enjoy the run and the scenery. There is a prize for combined Boston-Big Sur time but the Masters category is over 40 so would be racing against kids.

Challenging but once on the start line the seconds stretch out into the distance as we look forward to three hours plus of running until we get near the finish where the seconds accelerate. Where are those physicists when you need them?

Where we plan out the first marathons of the New Season.

Having completed Berlin-London-Chicago over three weeks, the idea of completing the six major marathons for a second time took hold. Three down and three to go. The remaining three being Boston, New York and Tokyo. I wanted to complete the first two of these while I still had the chance to time qualify and avoid the randomness of the general ballot. It is tough enough planning a long way in advance without having to wait until the ballot is completed and then competing for accommodation and flights with tens of thousands of others.

I am fortunate that my time from London fell within the Boston qualification period. I had a fair buffer with my qualification time so this was decided to be the next event to tackle. To make the trip more worthwhile we decided to add in the Big Sur marathon on the way home. Boston-Big Sur is a thing and Wayno had run Big Sur and given it the tick of approval.

There are, of course, a couple of hurdles to overcome. The first is that Boston is eight days after Canberra marathon. I also really, really want to run Canberra as it will be my ninth and thus I’ll be only one marathon away from Griffin status. Last year we made it into the Spartan status in Melbourne (ten finishes) and a similar accolade awaits in Canberra next year.

With the idea in place then comes the planning. Three marathons in four weeks , ten and a half thousand kilometres from one end to the other and the same back again.
We stay with family in Canberra and will drive home on the Monday. A day to wash, pack and breathe and then on to a plane on Wednesday. If only it was that easy.

We booked flights back in October. Melbourne-Auckland-San Francisco-Boston. Through San Francisco made sense because we were coming back through there to run Big Sur on the California coast just to the south. All good. Until December. When we were informed that Air NZ had decided not to fly to San Francisco on a Wednesday. We could have Thursday or Tuesday. Drive home from Canberra (8hours) and into a 20 hour flight next day. Not really. Fly Thursday. Still the same 20 hour flight then San Fran to Boston (6hr) flight Friday or Saturday to run Monday. Still not great. We had what we thought were non refundable, non changeable hotel room in San Francisco but couldn’t contact the hotel. Air Nz came back with Auckland-Los Angeles-San Fran on the Wednesday. An extra change and four extra hours. Best we could get.

But wait. It gets better. Finally a response from the hotel. Management had changed but they had not only not informed us but also had not informed their hotel group so the email address we had been given belonged to the previous manager and therefore went nowhere. To top it off there was a reservation but no record of payment. We were offered a cancellation and took it gladly.

So no hotel and a long, long trip with a zig and a zag on the way. I noticed in advertising from Air New Zealand that they fly Auckland to Chicago direct. What are the chances I asked our travel agent. You’ve already changed the booking once (their fault so no charge) and if you change again they will take it as your decision and charge a change fee. So for an extra $150 each we fly Melbourne-Auckland-Chicago-Boston. Think that’s the end of it? Air NZ would not allow a stopover in Chicago as we were transferring to a domestic United airlines flight so straight through and into Boston at 1.30 am Thursday. Not happy but it is what it is. I don’t sleep well on planes so a stopover and a bed would be good but C’est La vie.
Then….. United cancelled their flight. We could have seats on the flight that leaves fifteen minutes after our flight lands in Chicago. Not going to happen. Travel agent negotiated us on to a flight the next day at lunchtime. Just as we had initially wanted. Sleepover in Chicago, light run and coffee and off to Boston. It also reinforced for us the value of a good travel agent. Thanks Andy.

From Boston we need to be in San Francisco Sunday week later. We really didn’t want to hang around Boston because it gets very expensive around marathon time. We haven’t spent time in Canada so thought this might be the chance. Flight on Tuesday to Montreal and then the weekend in Quebec, back to Montreal later the next week and fly Montreal to San Francisco. Catch a lift to Monterey with Dave and on to the very scenic third marathon. Point to point up the California coast Big Sur to Monterey. This will be a tourist run to enjoy the scenery. Might even carry the phone for some pics. Fly out of San Francisco to Auckland, spend a couple of days on the Coromandel coast as recovery and then home and on to the next adventure. Pacing up in Brisbane in June with Adam. Might leave that until the next blog when we might have a better idea of the next package of marathons at the end of the year.

How are we feeling about it all?

With eight weeks until Canberra I’m still feeling a bit underdone. Last week was solid with 96 km total but with the Sri Chinmoy half marathon this weekend and thirty seven degrees yesterday this week is lighter. I was planning a run in our local park which has my 12 km loop but it is closed due to storm damage so I’ll have to find an alternate location. I like the park because the trails are easier on my legs than hammering on the bitumen all the time.
I’m hoping I have adapted to the extra mileage well which is why I am feeling like I should be doing more. No soreness but a bit of general restlessness. I’ve done several track events over the last couple of weeks and times were good without being exceptional. Part of getting older. I can see that a sub three hour marathon is but a fading hope but on the other hand my 3.11 in Auckland gave me great hope that I can be competitive in my age group.
If I can put together a sub 3.26 in any of these three marathons it will give me automatic qualification for the 2025 world age group championships so that is my immediate aim. I already have the invitation to the 2024 event in Sydney in September so that is on the Spring calendar.
All in all, I think I am tracking ok. No serious hurts or illnesses. I’d love to find a Nike sale somewhere to bank a couple of pairs of vaporflys but there’s time for that.
Away we go.

Bring on 2024.

In which we wrap up our travels on the South Island, run Queenstown and prepare to return home.

Another day, another scenery filled grey, rainy west coast day. We left Fox glacier in the rain and tippy toed our way down the range to the west coast. On a day varying from driving rain to bright sunshine there was one constant. Wind. On the coast we swapped from vistas of snow capped peaks to beaches and rugged promontories . We paused at Haast to visit the tourist centre and find some information on the walks and sights as we headed toward the Haast pass, the lowest pass over the Southern alps but in the end only visited those close to the road because of the weather.
We stayed overnight in a chalet styled cabin and then headed into Queenstown via Wānaka where we paused long enough to hike to the top of one of the local peaks and chat to some visitors from Boston.

Milford sound

Any visitors to this part of the world do a trip to Milford sound. It’s almost a given. It’s a whole day. Five hours down through Te Anau, into the sound through the tunnel, a two hour boat trip and then the bus trip in reverse. It can be driven but I was grateful not to have to and I doubt the little car would have made the prodigious climb up out of the sound. We were driving a little Toyota vitz hybrid that was very frugal and suited for the two of us but didn’t have a lot of grunt.

Again a very grey day with clouds around the peaks. It meant we got lots of moody grey images but not the astonishing views of mountain tops that can occur. It should be noted that Milford sound gets rain sme 250 days of the year so we were not Robinson Crusoe in that respect. It was an amazing trip and we’ll worth the time.

Queenstown marathon

This trip was set up with two marathons in mind. Auckland and Queenstown. Auckland had been very successful finishing second in age group and 3.11.58. Queenstown is a different event with 70% on trail and lots of up and down. The time was never going to be as quick. Apart from that we had been touring for three weeks with lots of driving and no long runs so I wasn’t sure how it was going to go. It is a point to point event from Arrowtown, an old gold mining settlement, down the bike trail, around Lake Hayes, back onto the Queenstown trail, into town (past our apartment) and finish at the Rec reserve.
So, Friday, the day before the marathon picking up numbers in the pouring rain. Even the locals were a little on edge. We wake up Saturday, race morning to bright sunshine although only 7 degrees C. Who knows?
On the bus out to Arrowtown and have a chat to a nice young man from Christchurch, have a coffee, wait to the last minute to strip off and away we go. First kilometre has a stiff uphill and then down. Good way to shock the legs. Through the Main Street of Arrowtown and out onto the trail. Legs were wondering what was going on, not having to race for a while they thought we’d gone into a Christmas break or at least were hoping. Down to Lake Hayes, had gone out too quick again but was starting to settle, a couple of stiff rolling hills weren’t appreciated but were negotiated. A runner came past who looked to be of about my vintage. Hmmm, might be running for second. I could see him for quite a while not getting away but not coming back. Over the bridge on the Shotover river. Went through half on schedule or a bit quick and headed toward Queenstown. At about 30 kms my legs and I had a bit of a discussion. They thought that was far enough. I pointed out that this was point to point and even if they stopped we would still have to walk in and we’d be out there for a much longer time. They relented and even though we certainly didn’t get any quicker we didn’t drop lots of time.
It is always interesting at this point when spectators tell you that you are looking good but you feel not such.
Lat kms back into town and around the gardens. Keep hoping the spectators will stay their side of the fence and the half marathon walkers will stay out of the way. Up the hill down the ramp and to the finish in 3:23.23. So ten minutes slower than Auckland but a much tougher course. Turned out the old guy wasn’t so old so I won my age group. Great success! Legs pretty much shot but the rest of me did ok.
This was my eighth and final marathon for the year after Hobart (paced 4hr), Canberra (3.30 wet), McLarenvale (3.14), Brisbane(paced 3.40), Cairns (paced3.40), Melbourne (3.18), Auckland (3.12) and Queenstown (3.23). Time for a break from marathons until April of next year. A bit of track work and some tuning up.

One curious difficulty we had with both New Zealand marathons was the prize for both age group wins were ASICS vouchers. This was fabulous and much appreciated until we read the fine print that it was only for online purchase and only delivery to a New Zealand postal address. Not much use for a touring runner. Our Airbnb host in Queenstown generously allowed us to use their address and passed on the top and socks we purchased with the Auckland voucher but the voucher in Queenstown was swapped for a couple of ice coffees and some sun screen.

And then on to home. Two stars to the right and straight on to morning.

We left Queenstown and headed for Dunedin on the east coast. This involved a bit of up and down across the spine of the South Island. It was interesting to see the difference in climate and geography. The west side is very dramatic being more exposed to the winds from the Antarctic coming up from the south west. The eastern side contains more flat, fertile land and has more farming with beef, sheep and grain. We were back to touring and stopped at Larnach castle for a look see. This is one of the tourist hot spots in Dunedin and has been being refurbished for over forty years. The gardens are very impressive and the coffee and scones are pretty good too.

We were staying in a little cottage on the Otago peninsula just out of Dunedin from where we could visit a couple of beaches with fur seals and penguins. We didn’t manage to see penguins but we walked one of the beaches and came upon half a dozen fur seals or sea lions sunning themselves on the beach unconcerned about people wandering past (at a conservative distance).

Leaving Dunedin we headed up the coast, we stopped at Baldwin street in Dunedin which is in the Guinness book of Records as the steepest street in the world. Well. We had to walk up that. Not just us! It is a tourist Mecca with people coming from everywhere to walk up. I reckon I could have run it but it would have meant putting on shorts and runners. Pretty solid walk.

We kept on. Visiting the towns of Oameru and Timaru. Oameru is an important old port that has recast itself as a tourist town with many of the old warehouses repurposed as hospitality venues and retail stores. They also have a pretty nice brewery. At Timaru there was talk that the penguin colony comes in and nests on the sea wall. We went down to see but were far too keen. Arriving well before dusk we waited and waited. We sat on one of the rocks on the sea wall and a nice volunteer came and told us to move back as the penguins come up the sea wall. As we hadn’t even smelt a fishy breath by then I was starting to wonder. A while later to great excitement two penguins turned up to a quiet rock star welcome. They then disappeared under the rocks and turned up again just underneath where we’d been sitting.

Several more made their way in and waddled through the tussocks and rocks completely unconscious of the people watching on.

So. Here we are in Christchurch. The little car has gone back to the company at the airport. We thought we’d drop it off early and I would have a run back. It seemed to make more sense than paying for parking overnight and then taking it back and I needed the run. Didn’t get lost. Nice weather yesterday, raining today. Thought it would be a chance to get this done before we get on the big red bird and home, as long as qantas remember that they are an airline not just a promise of one.

Thanks for reading and Merry Christmas to all. There’s a beer in the fridge. Pop over.

As we head towards the crossing of the straits.

On our way out of Rotorua we paused for a walk through a redwood forest I’d run through earlier that morning. The story goes that in the early 1900’s foresters planted several trial crops of trees including redwoods and beech for a timber forestry. The radiata pine must have won because they are everywhere including on every second truck on rural roads. The redwoods must have not made the grade and they have grown into a forest of National significance and some really nice walking trails. After that we left Rotorua and it’s average weather and headed up into the hills over the spine of the North island and headed for Whanganui via Taupo. The weather was still intermittently showery with a solid drenching followed by periods of sunshine. At some periods we could see we were heading into heavy rain but it had moved on before we arrived. Very strange.

Along the way we found several places that had similar geothermal properties to Rotorua. Even even as far down as Fox glacier on the mid West coast of the South Island,on the walk up to the glacier viewing point there is a small warm pool. It is interesting to look out over the countryside as you drive and see steam coming up from a paddock.

We paused to have a look at Huka falls, where the water from Lake Taupo runs down the Waikato river and over an eleven metre drop. The amount of water is quite staggering and it has been set up so there some great views and walks nearby.

We spent two days in Whanganui. At first blush there isn’t a lot to do there but it was historically an important port town and at one stage had a tram line and a bustling port. These days it sits a little bit out of the way but retains some of the charm of days gone by. There are a couple of outstanding murals, some quaint gardens and their own opera house. Nothing on while we were there but we did have a look in the museum to get a feel for the area’s history.

There are a couple of beaches with dark sand which is a bit different and lots and lots of driftwood. It was coming up to Guy Fawkes night so I thought this might be an opportunity to clean some of it up but there didn’t seem to be any interest. The Whanganui river runs through town so I took the chance to run the couple of bridges where the Whanganui marathon runs but I don’t plan to be back for it.

We travelled on. To the National capital, Wellington. This was just a couple of days to prepare for the crossing of the Cook strait. Wellington is an interesting city. At about 420,000 population, according to google, it is smaller than any Australian capital bar Hobart. It is similar to Hobart in that it climbs into the hills rapidly as you move back from the water. It does give many scenic views of the harbour although going over the hills as I did on one run and you seem very remote very quickly. I did the Parkrun in Wellington and ran 21.54 for the 5 km without any stress so hopefully that showed that Auckland marathon hadn’t caused any significant harm. I found Wellington a very enjoyable place with lots of gardens and green spaces. Some fascinating houses built on ridges that you wonder how they stay up there. Impressive nonetheless.

To the boats: Go South.

Next stop, Picton on the South Island. We drove the little car on and retired to the saloon for the trip. It was very civilised with a view out the front window. We watched some of the other passengers brave the elements but watching them rug up for the Antarctic and have scarves fly sideways we decided to wait within. A very calm couple of hours during the daylight and a couple of left turns and there we were.

It doesn’t take long on the South Island before you realise that the scenery is more dramatic. A couple of walks around Picton looking down to the harbour and then a coastal sojourn and we were well underway. There are a couple of villages on the scenic route from Picton to Nelson which is probably just as well. It’s not far but there are roadworks on and off all the way along so a coffee stop every now and then is earned. We stayed in a place called “The Honest Lawyer” in Nelson. It is a quirky place on the Monaco peninsula just out of Nelson but has a bar and a restaurant and parking. Really enjoyable. I went for a run down to the Nelson athletics track for some track work but didn’t realise there was a 5 km series run from the pub every Monday night through summer. I got back pretty hammered just as they were drawing the meat raffle and giving out prizes.

We did a nice walk out into the Abel Tasman National Park. It was fascinating watching tractors used to launch and retrieve boats and kayaks due to the distance the tides move.

We move on and head underground.

Moving on from Nelson we headed over to the West coast. I had been looking for a place somewhere a couple of hours on from Nelson and we found the village of Charleston. It didn’t come up in the planning and is a tiny little place but it does have a tavern, a beach, beds, a train and caves. We sat up on the point next to the frayed New Zealand flag and watched the sun disappear into the Tasman sea a long way south and west at this time of year.

We were only overnighting in Charleston and had planned to move on but the opportunity was there to go caving and see glow worms. We ummed and ahhed for a while and then joined the 9 am tour. Very glad we did and highly recommended. A short bus ride takes you to the narrow gauge railway which chugs through temperate rain forest to the steps leading to the cave mouth.

Lights and helmets on and in we go. The guide, Ray, points out many fascinating insights into the formations and takes through several caves. At one point he says to switch off all of the lights and it is pitch black. No light at all. Can’t see your hand, can’t see anything. Slightly unnerving. Ray asks if anyone can point back to where the cave entrance is but nobody has any idea. It would be so easy to be lost down here. At another point we switch off lights and the glow worms appear as points of light. As our eyes adapt more and more become visible until it looks like a night sky but metres underground. Glow worms are the larvae of a mosquito like creature that spends its larval form hanging from cave roofs or under trees with a sticky thread extended to trap insects for food. They then pupate and have a short frenzy of adulthood where they mate, lay eggs and die.

From Charleston we had a pretty decent day’s drive to get to Fox Glacier. We stopped at several places along the way. It seemed every bend had another breathtaking view of the coastline or a pretty beach or such. We did the walk around the pancake rocks in Punakaiki and marveled at the geology and the power of the water. We passed through Greymouth, a bit too late for the Monteith brewery tour. More coastline and then up into the hills and through Franz Josef and into Fox.
Spent a couple of days here. Fox has more glacier than Franz Josef where the glacier face has retreated back up and around the corner from the viewing area. Fox also retreated back a long way so that face isn’t visible but there are a number of views from further away that show the upper parts of the glacier surface. I wonder at the future of the glaciers themselves but also as a tourist destination as the glaciers become all but invisible will they be the draw that they have been in the past. Is it worthwhile to extend paths so the face becomes visible or are they simply chasing a disappearing glacier? There are a couple of places where heavy rain and debris that washes down have taken out roadways so maybe putting in more paths is a fools bargain as the climate changes and flooding becomes more sudden and intense there are bigger problems than whether the tourists get a good view. I’ll leave that to brighter people than me.

Tomorrow we head onward to Makarora overnight and then into Queenstown for about five days including the marathon on Saturday. I’ll do one more New Zealand blog next week after the marathon to let everyone know how it went. It will contain Milford sound for those not really interested in marathons but I will leave you with a couple of bird pics. The weka is a very friendly cross between a duck and a chook. They’re happy to check whether you have anything spare you might want to share.

The kea is a whole other kettle of parrot with signs up around town saying do not feed the kea. Obviously the signs need to be translated into kea because they take no notice of them.

New Zealand, Aotaeroa, the land of the long white cloud.
I had been here just on forty years ago with three other blokes on a kontiki tour. For Anne it is the first time. Things have changed. We flew into Auckland airport a little late after Qantas decided to take a leaf out of Jetstar’s playbook and delay departure by thirty minutes. They then sent the notice of the delay two hours later while we were in the air.

Picked up the car at the airport, a neat little Toyota Yaris hybrid and headed downtown. We’d decided on an overnight in Auckland to take some stress out of arrival in case anything went wrong. Hotel was ok, a bit old but had parking and close to the piers for later in the week. Unfortunately this was the best night we spent there. Had a little shake out 12 km on part of the marathon course.

Tuesday we headed up to Paihia in the Bay of Islands. A pretty spot that would be very busy in Summer but not too bad in this, the late Spring. We did a couple of walks and a cruise to the hole in the rock but the weather was starting to turn with remnants of a tropical cyclone causing high winds and rain. Even the boat Captain described it as “a bit lumpy”

After a short intermission we headed back to Auckland for the marathon. This turned out to not as straightforward as we might have expected. We turned off the main highway and came down the coast to look at some of the beaches. Very pretty country. As part of the trip we headed to Waipu to look at a cave system that holds glow worms, a larval stage of a fungus gnat. The larvae hang from the cave ceilings and bioluminescence causes them to glow. We didn’t see glow worms but we did manage a flat tyre. And here’s where the fun started. 12 km out of a country town in a valley. All the Toyota has is an inflation kit and it didn’t inflate the tyre. The instruction manual is in Japanese. There is no mobile coverage. Hmmmm.

A life saver in the form of a nearby farmer suggested that there was some mobile coverage from the top of his property but seven or eight attempts at pressing one for roadside assistance and tell me your rego number and hold the line until it drops out please and we were getting nowhere. The farmer who seemed to prefer to be nameless but had a dog called Oscar gave us a lift to town where the men at the tyre shop were having a quiet after work ale. They replaced the tyre (our expense) and we were back to the car and on our way with many thanks to Oscar’s dad.

Back to Auckland.

We spent the night in Warkworth but I really can’t tell you much about it because it rained consistently all night and we wanted to get back to Auckland to see what could be done about the car seeing as we now didn’t have a spare or an inflation kit. Short answer is not very much.

Auckland marathon

Good night sleep on Friday before the marathon. We went to the expo held at a building called the “Cloud” which we thought was more like the idea of the sand worms from the Dune books. Everything seemed to be going ok for a four am wake up on Sunday to get to the ferry for the six am start. Could have done without the neighbours having a loud discussion of someone’s shortcomings from 2 am to 3.30 but there you go.
Out at a bit after 4.15. No rain but blowing an absolute gale. We gathered with some apprehension at the start but everyone knew what we’d signed up for and away we went. First couple of kms are always about settling in. I had a plan to be around or just in front of the 3.15 pacers and hopefully be in a group when we hit the wind. I found a nice group of about ten and settled in. The first half has all of the hills in it and the final one is over the Auckland highway bridge. Straight up and straight down. There was a prize on offer for the quickest up the one km on the bridge but with more than half to go I wasn’t playing that game. The group started to splinter at the half which went by in around 95 minutes. This was on target or slightly in front. I wanted 3.15 but knew I would tire in the second half so five minutes up the sleeve was maybe a bit willing but better than trying to make up time later.

An old bloke came past and asked me if I was 60+ like him. I only found out from the results later that he won the age group. I saw him again later but couldn’t ever really get close enough to challenge him. Heading south to the turnaround, into the wind. I guess we had gotten used to it or we were a bit protected and preoccupied but it didn’t seem as bad as earlier. Around the markers 30km down, wind behind or across and heading back to town. Starting to tire but had a time in mind and pacers to stay in front of.

At this point let me talk to you about time. Everyone knows time can be flexible. A good time is only a couple of minutes away from a bad time. A change in conditions can cause time to speed up and eke away while you watch on in desperation. In the case of this marathon I had several times in mind as a consequence of it being two events in one for me. I was running the Auckland marathon but also the Abbot Global virtual run. Why? Even curiouser.
I turn 65 in two weeks. That means I move up an age group. For qualifying for the World Age Group Championship age is taken on the day of the event. So I race in the 60-64 age group. In the virtual event on the other hand age is taken on 31st December so in that I fall into the 65-69 age group. The virtual run finishes November 5th and there are live results already. Quickest currently is 3.16.44, second is 3.21 and third is 3.31. First three get an invite to the world championships. So there was my great, good and hopeful. Similar positions for the 60-64 age group are well below three hours so guess where I’d rather be racing. Another point to bear in mind is that the virtual is taken off the gps track of my Garmin watch not the AIMS measurement which is used to certify the course. Most watches seem to read longer than the measured course due to not being able to run tightly around corners or the “racing” line on the course.

Back to the race. By 32 km official, my Garmin read 32.4 so a bit long but I was still strong and had about 50 minutes of running left to go, all going well. It was time to dig in and get the tough kms out of the way. Some soreness in the ankles and maybe a whinge from the hamstring but not slowing by much. We went over the rail bridge at 39 km and I wondered whether this might be the end of me but picked up with crowds around the pier area. At 39 km my Garmin said 39.1 so it seemed to be coming back to the measured course. Still had fifteen minutes as I came down towards the piers and was intent on not leaving anything on the course. Through 41 km and into a series of left and right turns. I was still about 400 metres from the finish when my Garmin ticked over marathon distance in 3.10.13. No, I didn’t stop there and ran through to the official finish in 3.11.59. (not 3.12).
So well under 3.15, well under 3.16.44 and a long way under the 3.18.44 from Melbourne two weeks ago. Whew!! Second in my Age group to the old bloke that went past. 163rd overall out 1763.
Received an ASICS voucher for my efforts but can only be used online and only delivered to a New Zealand address. Still to be worked out.

Get out of Auckland.

We went along to pick up a replacement car to replace the one with mismatched tires and no inflation kit and received a slightly older but still serviceable Toyota but not the Yaris. It works but doesn’t have the pickup or the information system. At least it stops the nice Japanese lady from talking at us on startup. Headed down to Rotorua via Hobbiton.

Yes, it rained, yes it was windy but good fun nonetheless. Very informative guide who could describe where parts of the movies had been filmed and how they were set up. Still raining. While not cutting the tour short, there was a keenness to get out of the rain and onto the complimentary ale at the Green dragon Inn.

Then on to Rotorua. For those who don’t know of Rotorua, it has lots of geothermal vents and there is steam coming out of the ground in many places including the park near the middle of town. Some of the pools have a slow boil continuously rolling with warnings that they sit at 100 degrees C. A byproduct of these vents is that the town has its own aroma, a slight Sulphur smell. Probably a good time to visit as the rain and wind keep the smell down.

Rotorua has its own marathon that involves one forty km lap around the lake. With the weather today we couldn’t even see the other side.

A bit of food haze after a big lunch so thought I would get the blog underway. Tomorrow we head further south towards Wellington and then on to the South Island.

Melbourne marathon recap.

The exciting thing about this year’s Melbourne Marathon was that it would be my tenth. At last! Spartan status beckons ! It has taken twenty years with my first Melbourne being in 2003. That was one and done. Definitely never needed to run another.

In 2008 I ran my second. The guys at the club were in training and we thought we could improve. Wrong! 2008 was one out of the box. Thirty degrees C and a desiccating north wind. The first 20km down to Beaumaris were a breeze, literally, with the wind behind us. Turning back into it, a whole new story. Finished, but only just.
Must be able to do better. Back we went. What do they say about people repeating things and expecting a different result? But we did improve and we started to travel to other events. We tried to get back for Melbourne but a couple of years clashed with major events like London and New York. In 2022 we ran Berlin, London and Chicago. Chicago was held the same day as Melbourne. We didn’t make it back. Cue 2023. There was a chance we would be in Washington for the Marine Corp marathon but that fell through and this was our chance.

Sunday was predicted to be cloudy with rain later. Ideal marathon weather. Also very fortunate as Saturday was windy and Monday has intermittent showers and wind. We were a bit apprehensive as Steve Monaghetti rang the start bell as rain started to fall but it quickly stopped and we were on our way. I was planning an easy run as we are heading to Auckland for the marathon there in two weeks time. Melbourne was a tune up so looking at 3.30ish and don’t hurt anything.
Didn’t look at the watch for the first 2 km as I was talking to someone but 3rd km was 4.35, a fair bit under the 5 min/km that works out to a 3.30 marathon. I tried to settle back a bit but looked over an saw running legend Rohan Day who organises some fabulous runs around Melbourne so I popped over and had a quick chat. I noticed I was near the 3.20 pacers so I figured if I sat behind them for a while and then lost a bit of time later on then I wouldn’t be far off what was intended.
Went through the half in just under 100 minutes so on schedule.

Down along the beach I just tucked in behind the pacers and had a little nap. They do a great job and it is quite hypnotic to simply watch a shoulder and run. Up Fitzroy St to 30 km and wonder where the bear is. That’s the one that jumps on you and makes the last part of the marathon difficult. On to St Kilda road. The half runners in one lane and us in the other until the Merge. We come together with half marathon runners who are running their own race at their own best pace. Unfortunately it is a slower pace than ours. I lost the first 3.20 pacer in the crowd and when we turned away from the half runners he was some 200m in front of me.
Struggled a bit up the hill to the observatory around the tan but still holding on. Back down Domain Rd and up the little pinch at Latrobe’s cottage. That’s the last hill and barring anything unforeseen it is now go as hard as you can for as long as you can. Around the corner at Flinders st station and still near the back 3.20 pacers. No way was I running 3.30 from here. The guys were a bit below 3.20 so sub 3.20 was definitely on as they were running to gun time whereas I was looking at net time.

Around Brunton Ave and stay out wide to get running room. Into the MCG and onto the plastic mat. I can understand that they don’t like 40 odd thousand runners running on the grass but it does dilute the effect of finishing on “The MCG” Line up the finish.Gun time a touch over 3.19, net time 3.18.43. Good run. Looking at the records it is my third fastest time in Melbourne only beaten by 2012 and 2014. Also ended up 7th of 108 in my age group but I move up to the next age group next month so something to look forward to. No major damage. On to…….

Where to from here.

Yes, the Land of the Long White Cloud. New Zealand.

When we didn’t get into New York we had flights to and from New Zealand that were already booked. We decided to visit as Anne has never been and my last visit was some forty years ago with a group of mates. It may have changed somewhat.

Now it just happened that the Auckland marathon is on during the time we are there. Auckland marathon is also one of the qualifying events for the World Age Group Championships which will be held in Sydney next year. So the plan was to warm up in Melbourne and go hard in Auckland. Might have gone bit harder than that plan in Melbourne but what can one do?
An interesting age group problem came up in the planning. I turn 65 on the twelfth of November but the Auckland marathon is the 29th October. This means any time I run there counts as a qualifying time for the 60-64 age group where there are some rally quick runners even though I’ll be 65 when the Competition is held. I queried this with organisers but the only answer was to run a marathon between my birthday (12 November) and the end of the qualifying period (31 December). There’s only one, it is in New Zealand and it is scheduled for two weeks after we fly home. Not going to happen. The Abbott guys came up with a suggestion that I could run the Global Run Club Virtual marathon and that has an age based on the end of the qualifying period so 31 December. If I can run quick enough to be in the top three of that event for my age group that will be enough for an invite. So that’s the plan. We’ll see how it pans out.

And then….

We still have three weeks of touring. We have hired a car and will see just how far we can get. Already booked the Cook Strait ferry so North island and South Island. I found it all just fits in with Queenstown marathon in November so that gives us a fixed point and then we fly out of Christchurch. Should be a relaxing stroll from Arrowtown to Queenstown on the trail. It appears they only have 60+ age group so no racing, just a picturesque run. And then maybe a nice NZ red wine. Fun.

The middle part of the year : Get out of Melbourne.

In the middle of the year in Melbourne it can get very depressing. Weeks and weeks of cold, wet and dark eventually take their toll. We don’t have snow but continual days of enough rain to make everything sodden and tops below sixteen degrees C. This year we thought we’d give back to marathon running by pacing a couple of events. The Atlas group run the Hobart, Brisbane, Cairns and Sunshine Coast marathons. A friend Adam with whom I paced the 2019 Melbourne Marathon suggested we pace Brisbane which led to the idea of heading somewhere warm in July and pacing in Cairns. Hobart was a later inclusion to gain some marathon conditioning for Canberra. (See earlier blog).

Brisbane

This was my second time running this marathon and one secret I can let you in on. The Storey bridge doesn’t get any easier the second time around. Actually, we run up and down it twice over the two by 21km loops so really it’s the third and fourth time. The organisers were a bit more forgiving this year and took out a hill at the 8 and 30 km marks (two laps, remember).
Adam and I were pacing 3.45 which works out to roughly 5.17 / km. This is pretty easy for us on the first lap but does get a bit more challenging later on. They don’t let pacers cut corners any more than real runners.
Early start just on sunrise and away. Conditions were good, with a cool start and we headed off from the Botanical Gardens and around to the approach for the bridge. First couple of kms were a touch quick as we chatted with those around us and I caught up with Adam’s news. We settled down and ticked off the first lap.

One of the characteristics of this and Hobart is that half and full marathons start at the same time. What that means is, at the end of the first lap 2/3 -3/4 of the field disappear. It becomes an entirely different event with many less runners around. The drink stations are less crowded and the cheering becomes more personal. There’s plenty of room to move if only we hadn’t already run 21km it would be a breeze. Back over the bridge and out along the river. This is a beautiful part of the course with views down and across the Brisbane river. Coming off the river is a bit of a climb and then a bit of running in the suburbs out to the furthest turnaround at Newfarm. Adam dashed off ahead needing a nature stop which perplexed a couple of our accompanying runners but he was soon back and more comfortable.

We headed back along the river under the bridge safe in the knowledge we didn’t have to climb it again. Adam was feeling chipper so he decided to run 3.45 to gun time while I ran it to net time. We finished within a minute of our aim time so pretty happy with that. A bit of a sit down and then to the pub on the corner near the finish for a Guinness and a cheer for those coming in later.

Cairns Marathon, a little ray of sunshine

After a wee Jetstar, we arrived in Cairns just after midnight instead of the booked 3.20 pm. Four hours at Brisbane airport instead of the direct flight. We found our lodgings and listened to the neighbours chat until 4 am. There went the night before rest. We had a quiet Saturday and went to bed early. Up at 4.30 am and down to the start to get ballooned up. About 16 degrees and just a suggestion of humidity. We started at 5.45 and completed most of the first lap before the sky lightened. A magical sunrise gave us a bit of a rush but the thought that it could well involve a sharply higher temperature gave us pause. This is 4 X 10.5 km loops again with the half runners for company. The difference between Brisbane and here is fairly marked, not only in climate but the Cairns course is pretty much dead flat. No bridges, no hills just a couple of turns and good crowd noise along the esplanade.

Again, we lost most of the field at the half and I was on pace. I was the only 3.45 pacer so conscious of not getting carried away. I ran the third lap with a nice young lady from the Atherton tablelands doing her first marathon. I talked at her and tried to take her mind of the increasing kilometres and humidity. I lost her in the last 10 km but she ended up running 3.48 which is an amazing first effort. Last lap was getting warmer and I was tiring but still on pace according to my watch. At the 40 km marker my watch said 40.4 km so there was a mismatch of about two minutes. I kept my pace through to the finish in 3.46 and with my watch reading 42. 55 km. Close enough I reckon.

Having completed the run we’d set out for, it was time to relax. Sunday afternoon we joined the after party for drinks and chat. Monday was off to the botanical gardens for brunch with friends. We had a couple of options to complete the week but wind spoilt the idea of going out onto the reef so we went to the aquarium to say we’d seen the underwater. Wednesday was the tourist train to Kuranda and back by Skyrail and then on Thursday out to the Atherton tablelands courtesy of a very kind friend Mark Sharkey.
Friday it was goodbye to Cairns but wait there’s more! We had to be out of the motel by 10 but the flight wasn’t until three so we headed off to the Cairns agricultural show for a couple of hours. Wood chopping, show jumping and farming exhibits. Good fun.
Surprisingly our flight left nearly on time. 28 degrees when we left Cairns, 8 degrees when we arrived home in Melbourne. C’est La vie

Where to from here? A bit of cross country, a couple of training half marathons and then Melbourne Marathon in October. Two weeks later is Auckland which will be the hard one as it is a qualifying event for the World Championship. A couple of weeks around New Zealand and then Queenstown marathon to round out the year. So first things first. Train hard and don’t get inured.
So far so good.

How am I feeling about it all? Still positive. I can see I am slowing down or not slowing as much as it is taking more effort to reach a pace I could maintain easily a couple of years ago. I’m not recovering as quickly from hard runs. I’m also nearly 65 so almost on to another age group. Hopefully everyone else in that age group is slowing just as quickly. The body is holding up. There are creaks and groans that are quite comical as my running group heads out but we can still complete the work. All in all, we’re doing ok.