North Face 100 Tips 2014

Posted on May 14, 2014 by Adam Connor

Probably the thing I get asked most in person is ‘what tips do you have for me?’. Now truthfully I’m not a better runner than you. Anything I’ve got to share I’ve stolen from others or gained through studying the electrons on the internet. Terror will do that to you. Some of these things might work for you, some probably won’t. Be very careful about changing your race plan because of anything I write here- you need to be comfortable with your choices, and remember ‘nothing new on race day’!

I wear my sunglasses at night
This tip from Nick Weinholt was a big winner. I have 2 pairs of sunglasses, and at checkpoint 4 swapped my daytime pair for a pair from my checkpoint bag that had clear lenses. This worked really well for two reasons- in the cold it kept my eyes a bit warmer and stopped them streaming like a sad panda, and during leg 5 it meant I could run through the bush without worrying about getting hit in the face by branches. So in a way, it made me run faster! You’ll look like a bit of a wanker, but it’s night, hardly anyone will see you……

Papa’s got a brand new bag
You should buy a bunch of blue cool bags from a supermarket- or even better get some that look different from everyone else’s . You’ll need 3- one each for checkpoint 3, 4, and 5. Each will need to be labelled clearly with your race number so the race crews can put them in order (so you can find your bag when you hit the CP). You should also try to make it look a bit DIFFERENT from all the other blue bags- tie something on to the handle, like a piece of ribbon or even another plastic bag- but MAKE THEM ALL THE SAME SORT OF DIFFERENT so you can recognise them. Inside the lid of each CP bag have a list of stuff you need to do. If you have crew, MAKE SURE they go through the list before you leave the checkpoint- in 2012 I forgot to fill my bladder before leaving CP4, meaning I ran out of water on the longest leg of the race. This was because my wife was there to help me and I hadn’t planned on her being there, so I forgot to ask her to check the list. Completely my fault and it could have been a disaster. My bag notes look something like this

All that suff including the instruction sheet, goes inside the bag

The text is large so I can read in low light. I also have treats in each bag, so I’ll have a quick look inside to see if anything takes my fancy- WARNING- this did not work very well in 2013, I spent too much time looking at treats- just have one or 2 things in the bag that you would consider a treat and don’t buy the entire contents of Coles. Some of these items on the list are just guides rather than instructions- for instance there is no way I could have eaten fruit going out of CP3, but at least I got to consider it because it was on the list. Also dumping your rubbish in your drop bag will save you having to find a bin. Not a big deal, but could save you some time when you’ve completely lost your mind later in the race.

Bag Raiders
Pack a FINISH line bag. It should contain some food, warm clothes (your old trakky daks are FINE), a towel in case you get to have a shower, baby wipes in case you can’t stand the smell of your own body, deodorant, thongs or thick socks so you can take those vile shoes off, maybe some sparkling mineral water because you’re sick of soft drink, sports drink and water. Chocolate milk, first aid kit and a sick bag have all been suggested too….. Also include a couple of plastic bags to put your stinky crap in, if you’re really chatty a mobile charger or external battery so you can wake up your folks at 3am and tell them how you did. Don’t include anything valuable- I’ve never heard of anyone stealing stuff at this event, but it could happen one day. Stick 20 bucks in the bottom of your running pack so you can buy something at the end if you want.

Keep Warm
I thought I’d be really smart and use cycling style arm warmers for the early part of the race when it is often very cold. It’s a great theory, but didn’t work in practice because the arm warmers have some rubber at the top to keep them from slipping off, and this rubbed my arms raw. UPDATE- I used them again in 2013, and simply turned the rubber bit at the top inside out. This worked quite well and I am likely to do this again in 2014. Also the 2 bits of clothing you want to have in large sizes are your reflective vest, and your rain jacket. You don’t really want to have to take your pack off to put either of these on, and indeed the reflective vest MUST be visible over your pack, so make sure you haven’t got a midget version. I’m most comfortable running in a singlet, and can do this at temps down to about 10 degrees, but in 2011 the temp never got above 6 degrees even though the sun was shining. Have a plan, decide what you are going to do if it is cold and wet. My big problem is I hate having sweaty underarms, which means T- shirts are not ideal. Maybe I can wear a second singlet under my NRG top- I could use the 2010 Six Foot one, it’s about the size of a postage stamp! UPDATE- wearing 2 singlets did work well to keep my core warm. Test your clothing, you only need a tiny problem to make your clothes dig a hole into your flesh over 100km. Trust me, that’s not fun. For instance- I now know that the seam on my compression shorts will take bits of flesh out of my back after a 100km run, so I have to tuck my singlet into my shorts. It’s not a fashion parade……

The Race
Buy a race number belt, or even better a SpiBelt with race number holders. you may need multiple clothing changes during the race and it is a requirement that your race number be visible at all times. Having to move all those pins with freezing or tired hands is not going to be fun

Energy 52
Eat early and often. Don’t let your energy levels drop. On a normal run I’ll probably have my first gel at 8-12km. Race day I will be eating at 5km and about every half hour after that. But don’t eat too much- in 2012 I ate quite a bit of macaroni and cheese at CP3, then couldn’t run some of the easiest bits up towards Nellie’s Glen- that mistake cost me up to 30 minutes. In 2013 I ate the same food, but less of it and still had problems. Will try boiled eggs in 2014, they’ve been good in other races like GNW.

Silence
Later in the race you’ll probably spend a bit of time on your own. There’s always plenty of people around, but perhaps all the people going up the stairs are too slow for you. I will have my headphones around my neck and connected at the start of the race so I don’t have to fiddle around in the dark if I want some tunes. I’ll be listening to a few trance podcasts by John ‘OO’ Fleming. These can be downloaded for free from iTunes or choose something else that you might like more. One of the reasons to choose this style of music is because it has the right cadence to keep your legs moving a bit faster than normal. Warning- the RD has instituted rules around the use of iPods, make sure you read them and comply. No iPods at all in Leg 1, See point 4 in the event rules.

Fade to Grey
If you’re feeling like crap (and you will!) you need to have the presence of mind to recognise it and take action. This is the difference between a finish and a DNF. In my limited experience you need 4 things. Look at your fingers and repeat after me ‘sugar, water, salt, caffeine’. Attach those words to your fingers in your mind. Do not forget them. When you feel bad, look at your fingers and repeat ‘sugar, water, salt, caffeine’. You need at least one of these things. Have it and you WILL feel better. Usually for me it is sugar…….at a recent run I had a coke at the halfway mark and immediately felt better and went on to finish a run that I didn’t think I could. Think about it- Coca Cola has 3 out of the 4 essential ingredients!

Relax
Spend as much time as you need in checkpoints, but no more. In 2011 I got into CP4 and told my wife I was quitting. She told me not to quit straight away. After spending nearly an hour in that CP, I felt better, got up and went out and finished. The key thing here is that I would not have finished if I’d gone straight over to the desk and quit. I wasn’t really injured, and taking that time allowed me to get back some energy. But the biggest tip I can give is GET OUT OF CP4. That’s right- if you can get out of the aquatic centre you’ve just committed to the longest unsupported leg of the race (CP5-Finish is longer but has water), once you get down the Giant Staircase there is no turning back until you get to CP5, Queen Victoria Hospital. And of course once you get to CP5 you’ve only got 22km to go… this is going to be mentally challenging but go on, do it!

Welcome to the Pleasure Dome
When you get back to Scenic World, get some warm clothes on and EAT SOMETHING. I forgot in 2012 and my wife woke up to me looking for food in my drop bags in the dark. Congratulations, you’ve just completed the North Face 100, you awesome person you!

North Face 100 Nutrition Plan & Drop Bags 2014

Posted on May 12, 2014 by Adam Connor

This post had 40 likes in 2012 so I think it’s worthwhile updating with what worked and what didn’t. As you can see, it’s an eating competition with a bit of running thrown in. This year I’ve been making my own gels, so where I write ‘flask of gel’ I actually mean apx 4x commercial gels, because each flask holds about 4. I’ll probably carry a few commercial gels as well, this will help fight flavour fatigue. Let’s go……

Provided at Checkpoints

Endura sports drink (pre mixed)
Water to fill bladders
Fruit
Bread/buns (Not at CP1)
Lollies
Cliff Bars- New sponsor for 2014
Gels are available at some checkpoints, but you can’t depend on them, and if you do, you might have to take grape flavour, which is quite vile tasting. Other items I will have to carry.

Running Start to Checkpoint 1- 10.5km
Drink 600ml sports drink at the start, discard bottle
1x Banana
1x Gel
At CP1- Drink 500ml Endura at checkpoint, fill 2x 750ml bottles when leaving.
Pick up 2x mandarin to eat while waiting at Tarro’s Ladders
*May carry little or no water on this section as much of it is on road and the section is short.

To Eat While Running Checkpoint 1 to Checkpoint 2- 20.5km, total 31km
2x Gel
1x packet Gu chomps
2x Salt tablet
1x Perpetuem solid

At CP2
Drink 500ml Endura at checkpoint,
Check bottles/ fill with Endura

To Eat While Running Checkpoint 2 to Checkpoint 3- 15km, total 46km
Eat a Growling Dog bar while exiting CP2 before the climb up Ironpot Ridge
3x Gel
1x packet Gu chomps
1x Perpetuem solid
1-2 salt tablets

At CP3
Drink 500ml Endura
Check bottles/ fill with Endura- don’t fill up too much- only 11km to CP4!
Pick up Gel flask
Pick up 6x Perpetuem solids
Pick up 2 boiled eggs and some fruit
Get a treat- possibly a coffee from the van or a 600ml Coke

To Eat While Running Checkpoint 3 to Checkpoint 4- 11km, total 57km
2x Gels
1x Fruit
1x Gu chomps
1x Perpetuem solid
1-2x Salt tablet
Important- must eat at bottom and part way up Nellie’s Glen!

At CP4
drink 500ml Endura
Check bottles/ fill with Endura <<21km to next checkpoint
Pick up Gel flask
Take a cup noodle with me, drink Coca cola from drop bag

To Eat While Running Checkpoint 4 to Checkpoint 5- 21km, total 78km
4x Gels
1x Gu chomps
1x Perpetuem solid
1x Growling Dog bar
1-2x Salt tablet

At CP5
drink 500ml Endura
Check bottles/ fill with Endura <<22km to Finish!
Pick up Gel flask
Pick up Coke

To Eat While Running Checkpoint 5 to Finish- 22km, total 100km
4x Gels
1x Gu chomps
1x Perpetuem solid
1x Growling Dog bar
1-2x Salt tablet

At the Finish
Need to make sure you eat something or you’ll be ridiculously hungry when you get back to your hotel room!

Contents of Checkpoint Bags

This means I’ll need to carry from the start of the race to checkpoint 3-
8x Gel (2 flasks)
3x Gu Chomps (1 spare)
1x banana
Tube of 6x Perpetuem solids
Loads of salt tablets

And I’ll need to pack the following

Checkpoint 3 bag
3x Gels (1 flask)
2x boiled eggs (peeled, in a sandwich bag)
Banana
Gu Chomps
600ml Coke

Checkpoint 4 bag
4x Gels (1 flask)
Gu Chomps
Growling Dog bar
Chips
600ml Coke
Proper headlights (will be carrying low weight versions during the day)
Clothing for night time- Fleece as per rules
Leave sunglasses in bag here
Pick up sunglasses with clear lenses for night running

extra mandatory gear if required

Checkpoint 5 bag
Lemonade/ Coke
Gels (1 flask)
Gu Chomps
Chips

Discussion
Where it says ‘Drink 500ml Endura’ that is about 3x 150ml cups. I can usually drink that much at once without bad effects, you may find otherwise. The instructions to eat more up Nellie’s and along Federal Pass are because these have been where I’ve had low points, and more food usually helps. The Growling Dog bars are hard to eat, and need to be cut into squares and put into a sandwich bag in prep. I also quite like the James Magnusson Missile bars from Body Science. I will also try to incorporate some Perpetuem Solids in the early part of the race, they seem to work well for me, probably one or two per section. I probably can’t eat that many bananas, but not a bad idea to have them available.

I’m going to do this race without a bladder in my pack. I will carry 2x 750ml bottles on my front and a 5-600ml bottle in my pack. This will give me the required 2l of fluid carrying capacity.
Gu Chomps- I also like the Cliff Shot Blocks, particularly the Margarita flavour, but really- these things can be easily and CHEAPLY substituted with bags of lollies from a supermarket. Sure they have electrolytes etc, but just shove a handful of lollies in your face and a salt tablet. Sorted.
Fruit- they often provide watermelon, mandarins etc and sometimes I prefer these even though bananas are probably better race food.
Cliff Bars- I find these a bit hard to chew but if they have a nice sounding flavour available I might have one or two during the race.
Nellies Glen- I have found over 3x doing this race that I don’t have a major crash if I eat at Nellie’s Glen once when entering the single track (this goes for about1500m) and again part way up the stairs. There are about 511 stairs, so count them off in lots of 100. Each 100 stairs is about 20% of the distance. This makes it easier mentally. Forgot your count? Who cares? Just go again from a logical number. You’re trying to keep your mind off the task, not really counting stairs anyway! Same goes for Golden Stairs (xx stairs?)and Furber stairs (933 stairs) at the end
CP4-5- This section will take a long time, must make sure to take enough fluids and food.
Cp5-Finish- this section is even longer, but there is an emergency water stop at 91km, so don’t worry too much about fluids. Remember to DUMP YOUR WATER at the bottom of the Furber steps up to the finish- NOT on the trail. You don’t want to be carrying much up those final 933 steps!

Real food- I had some macaroni & cheese at CP3 last year, and to be honest that was a bit heavy, or maybe I just ate too much of it. Another suggestion has been potato salad- yum! This has some decent carbs and is easy to get down because of the mayonnaise- don’t skimp on the mayo! But what I really like is boiled eggs- I will probably boil, shell, then freeze a couple of these in a container full of water so they aren’t full of salmonella when I get to them at CP3.

In 2013 I went a bit crazy and spent 2 weeks shopping for treats to put in my drop bags. This is not necessary and will cost you time because you can’t decide what to eat. Just put one or two things in there- you may not eat them but it will make you happy knowing they are there.

North Face Non Mandatory gear 2014

Posted on May 9, 2014 by Adam Connor

Again, this is just a rehash of my 2013 list with a few updates, I hope you enjoy!

Here’s a list of a few things I’ll be carrying in the 2014 version of The North Face 100 Australia. They’re not on the mandatory gear list, but don’t make life hard for yourself- if it will make your race easier, take it!

Sunglasses- I’ll be wearing Serfas Portal sunnies, thanks to the local importer VeloVita for getting them in on time! Why wear sunglasses all day? Lots of reasons- you won’t get a headache from the sun, if you get hit in the face with a branch on the single track you won’t get an eye injury, and if you get photo chromatic lenses they’ll adjust to the available light.

Tip- I also have a second pair of these in a checkpoint bag for use at night. You look like a bit of a dickhead but in cold weather it stops your eyes from streaming and when going through bushy sections allows you to go a bit faster without needing to worry about getting hit in the face by branches.

Garmin 910XT– how else will I know how slowly I’m running? Lots of people using Suunto this year which is also a good option.

Nipple tape– You may not need it, I do.

Spibelt– I’ll most likely have my 2 pieces of mandatory emergency food in the pocket, and hang my race number on the front using the optional elastic toggle thingys. You can put your race number on to your shirt, but if you put a jumper on, you’ll need to move it. The race number belt is great because you can have as many costume changes as you like and not have to deal with pins……

Socks- I’ll be wearing Injinji socks. The higher versions because I’ll put anti leech stuff under the socks so the little blighters can’t get inside- this really works. If I have time I’ll also try out the new Injinji socks

Before a bush run I always apply a wide area of this from below the sock line to halfway up my calves. Since starting this I have not had an uninvited guest suck my blood, but they could be just biding their time for a mass attack.
Update 2014– I no longer need this because I will be wearing the BSc calf guards below

BSc calf guards

Skins- Depends on the weather. I wear long compression tights when it’s really cold or if I’ll be running through a lot of single track- it’s a small amount of protection. I’m not really an athlete that can tell the difference in performance from compression. Most likely I’ll wear Linebreak compression shorts under my running shorts, and BodyScience calf guards tucked into my socks to prevent leech entry. There is no science behind these choices, these were just the cheapest version of these things available when I needed to buy them. The compression shorts are good for preventing chaffing when my fat legs rub together.

Shorts with a pocket- I love the Patagonia Ultra shorts. Sadly unavailable now, however they are great because they have nice big pockets on each side. I reserve one pocket for rubbish and clean out at each checkpoint, the other pocket for stuff I need close to hand.

I have found it really difficult to buy running shorts with enough storage for long runs, but I’ve been recommended to try these, not tried them yet but have a look at Race Ready

iPod- I’ll use my iPhone 4S with Lifeproof case. Turns out that the case I bought was a fake, these are available from eBay for about $10, but you definitely get what you pay for. Anybody who knows me understands that my first priority is chatting to other runners, but in both 2011 and 2012 when leaving checkpoint 4 I was alone and loved putting on some choons as I descended the Giant Staircase.

Headphones- the Sennheiser PMX-680i are very comfortable and pretty easy to route the cables. I’ve destroyed one set of these by using accidental violence, so I bought a second set. These have been replaced with the PMX-685i but I purchased the 680i cheaply from MWave <– this link has the new version fairly cheap

Bodyglide– it’s not fun to put lube where the sun doesn’t shine- but if you don’t, it’s going to hurt bad. Insert prison joke here.

Gloves- for me, something like these is ideal, they have a mesh back so my hands don’t get too sweaty but they give some protection. Yes I know they’re ugly.

Salt Stick capsules– this is very much a personal ‘feel’ thing. In a road marathon I’d have one at 20km and one at 30km to stave off cramps. During TNF I’ll probably have a couple more- 1-2 every 10km or so. I always take a few extra, because I ALWAYS see someone on the course who needs them. You should consider what you’ll be taking for cramps! By the way- the super huge ‘this will last me for 10 years’ bottle was only slightly more expensive than the ‘3 marathon’ bottle. Colin Jeftha- Six Foot Track Race Director, says ‘there is no proven link between salts (electrolytes) and cramping. He’s right, but in my experience if I have salt capsules they do relieve the cramps

Aspirin- I’m a simple bloke so a simple solution for headaches seems in order. Might be some Panadol in the first aid kit too but I’m mostly looking to follow Jane Trumpers advice and steer clear of drugs. Unless someone lights a joint up for the Kedumba descent, then I’ll try to warm my hands on it.

Compeeds– These things are like magic on blisters and hot spots. If you get a hot spot, stop immediately and slap one of these super sticky things on, the pain will go away and you can carry on- an absolute must in your kit. DON’T buy the ‘Band Aid’ branded copies- they do not work as well. I gave one to a guy on Kedumba in 2011 and I think he would’ve named his children after me. Poor kids.

Ventolin inhaler – I would never have survived childhood if it wasn’t for Ventolin, and while I’ve only had one asthma attack in recent memory, cold weather can cause EIA- Exercise Induced Asthma. I’d be silly not to carry it.

North Face 100 Mandatory Gear 2014

Posted on May 8, 2014 by Adam Connor

This is basically a copy/ paste of my 2013 entry with updates as required. Please let me know if you spot any errors, it was done in a hurry…….

-I also want to acknowledge the huge help I’ve gained from others. In 2011 I was crapping myself at the huge task I’d jumped into, and probably the best source of info was Nick Weinholt’s Enduroexplorer.com website. I’ve since found out that he’s a helpful and approachable bloke too. You should read the website and particularly the training and gear list he did for the 2010 race. And although the Ultra168 guys are a whole new level of crazy (er, I mean commitment) you should read their adventures too- lots of good info there. You should also check out the gear thread on Coolrunning for 2012. Pasty has put another good summary there, and you can ask questions too! Check out the Facebook groups- official, unofficial, and training.

UPDATE- Ultra168 have just added a post that takes in some of the gear here

I’ve seen a lot of discussion on various sites about the mandatory gear for TNF100, so I thought I’d share a few insights I gained last year in the hope that it will help some other competitors. Following is a list of the gear taken directly from the event website with my own explanations and links etc. It will be updated if the gear list changes, or if someone provides an interesting view that we should share here. Description of the mandatory item in italics, explanation below-

1 x long sleeve thermal top (polypropylene, wool or similar). Cotton, coolmax, lycra and any compression garment will not be sufficient even if the compression garment is called a “thermal compression garment”. You may still use compression garments however they do not replace this mandatory item. Refer to this link for an explanation.

My wife has just been to Patagonia in Sydney and purchased for me a Capilene long sleeved top. In her words- the silk weight version probably does not comply, and the lightweight version is ok for summer but probably not a Blue Mountains winter. The Midweight probably best matches the polypropylene specified in the mandatory item description. Weight 221g

1 x long leg thermal pants (polypropylene, wool or similar). Cotton, coolmax, lycra and any compression garment will not be sufficient even if the compression garment is called a “thermal compression garment”. You may still use compression garments however they do not replace this mandatory item. Refer to this link for an explanation.

I used a pair of polypropylene thermals I had purchased for a trip to NZ. Fairly lightweight, these were purchased from Khatmandu- they are from the Ultracore range- linkWeight: 173g

1 x waterproof and breathable jacket with fully taped (not critically taped) waterproof seams and hood. The jacket must fit the wearer correctly. A recommendation only for a good jacket is one that has a waterproof rating of over 20,000mm hydrostatic head and a breathability MVTR rating of 25,000g/m2/25hrs. (plastic rain poncho, wind jacket, water resistant jacket etc. not acceptable)

This is probably the item that causes the most discussion. You should get a good one, as the rules will allow my Montane this year, Tom Landon Smith has flagged that in future he wants to enforce a stricter international standard for ‘waterproofness’, it must have a hood and actually fit you. Yes, people have tried to get through check in with child sized items to save weight. Don’t do it. I can confirm that the lightest jacket that has been passed is the Montane Lightspeed H2O at 132g. Unfortunately this may not meet the spec in future years because it is a coated nylon fabric that won’t stay waterproof once the coating is gone- or in other words ‘the only way that jacket will stay waterproof is if you continue to not wear it’. I recommend going up to the Montane Minimus which weighs 215g. Why? Because the Minimus contains Pertex fabric which is much more breathable- and this will likely be the absolute minimum spec in 2013. I’m sure the Minimus will probably last longer too! In 2011 I used a Mont jacket (different brand) which weighs about 450g, so you can save a lot of weight here. I have the Montane Litespeed H2O Weight: 132g, which is no longer available, but a mate has bought the North Face Feather Lite Storm and it’s great but expensive….

1 x beanie, balaclava or buff

at Trailwalker 2010 I was given a buff about the halfway point, and it was the most glorious feeling to be putting on something so warm- it has a drawstring so it can be made into a beanie, and I’m going to use that instead of the achingly expensive snow beanie. Remember you lose a lot of heat out of your head, and it’s going to be bloody cold. If it’s reasonably warm like 2012 and 2013 you might get away with a light fabric buff, but in 2011 it was soooo cold! Weight: 46g

1 x full-fingered lightweight thermal gloves (polypropylene, wool or similar)

I have some black mountain biking gloves for this purpose. These gloves stayed in their packet, as I have a personal preference for non sweaty hands, and covering them up makes me very sweaty. The best compromise I have found here is some old leather weightlifting gloves that have an open mesh back- they are not full fingered so I have to carry the mandatory gloves as well. Lots of protection for your hands if you fall, but not too sweaty. Remember fairly early in the race you will be going down some stairs with nasty rusted iron hand holds. Weight: 34g (nylon cycling gloves)

1 x High Visibility Safety Vest that complies with Australian Standard AS/NZS 4602:1999 -N Class for night time wear.

*I borrowed one of these from my wife’s work. You might have contacts who can loan you one of these, or you can buy them from Bunnings/ Masters Hardware etc. Not expensive, but make sure it meets the specs- and it use go OVER your pack so you can be seen from behind at night- get a large size. Remember it’s the reflective stripes that allow the night rating. No stripes= doesn’t comply. Weight: 155g

1 x headlamp (test your headlamp on bush tracks at night prior to the event to make sure it provides enough light to both see the track and the course markings)

* My main light here is the Petzl Nao. It outputs up to 355 lumens and has lots of options, the big bonus being it has regulated output- this means that as your batteries wear out it will keep a constant light output- your light doesn’t get dimmer over time. And it can sense how much light is available and dim itself, saving batteries. At my favourite setting, the battery will last about 6-8 hours which means I should get to the finish without needing to change batteries, but I will be carrying a spare. The Nao will be in my drop bag at CP4, if you are a 16.5+ hour runner you will want to have your headlamp in your CP3 bag. During the day I will carry 2 tiny ‘Keyring Mini Hand Torch‘, these are on the website for $7.98 each- ouch in 2014 they are now $19.98, but Kathmandu is always on special anyway…..

*I have spoken to the Race Director about whether a hand held torch is ok rather than a headlamp, and he agreed it was ok. He couldn’t see why you would want to use a hand held torch if a headlamp as available (me too) however it will pass. Weight: 10g (light until CP3). Weight: 187g (Petzl Nao with battery)

1 x small backup light in case of headlamp failure but still bright enough for you to walk by and see course markings

* I will use a Petzl Tikka XP2 for my backup light. it is perfectly ok for an event like the North Face 100 as your main light, but I’m lucky that my wife works for the local distributor so these things breed like rabbits in our house. Weight: 10g (light until CP3). Weight: 88g (Petzl Tikka XP2 including batteries)

1 x mobile phone (Telstra Next G is strongly recommended as coverage on the course is far better than any other network)

*Yes Telstra aren’t my favourite people either, but my phone is with them and the network is pretty good. iPhone 4S including Lifeproof waterproof case Weight: 171g

1 x compass for navigation in the very unlikely event that you get lost. While we recommend a good quality compass such as the Silva Field 7, you can bring any compass as long as the magnetic needle will settle quickly and will point to magnetic North. A waterproof watch compass is allowed as long as you can calibrate it and use it correctly. An iPhone compass is not acceptable as it is not waterproof and the batteries may be needed for making emergency calls.

I’ve bought this from eBay, Weight: 10g

UPDATE- just got an email from the Race Director which says the following- Can I use an iPhone as my compass? Answer is no.

1 x whistle

*most Salomon packs seem to have a whistle built in, so I have 3. You should either borrow one from someone who owns a Salomon pack, or buy one from a toy or sports store- Rebel Sport will have these. Weight: included with pack

1 x emergency space blanket, light bivvy sack or equivalent

* Salomon Advanced Skin XT Wings Super Nuclear Speedcross Blah packs have these inside, or I bought one for about $5 from Khatmandu last year. Hint- Khatmandu seems to always be on sale……Weight: 55g (or included with pack)

This image lifted straight from the TNF100 website…..

1 x compression bandage minimum dimensions 7.5cm wide x 2.3m long unstretched. If in doubt the wrapping should list ‘heavy weight cotton crepe bandage’ or ‘heavy cotton elastic bandage’ (this item is used for the treatment of sprains or snake bite).

I asked, but never got to the bottom of what makes a suitable compression bandage- common sense says that it’s the elastic in the bandage that will provide the compression. Supplied by my wife from our medical box, but you can buy these from Chemists. Weight: 45g

1 x full box of waterproof & windproof safety matches (provided by organisers)

1 x firelighter block for emergency use only (Jiffy Firelighter provided by organisers). You will need to provide your own zip lock bag or container.

*pretty self explanatory- there will be a table at check-in with these items on it. Grab a small amount and stash them in a zip lock sandwich bag that you have brought along. You’ll need a couple of extras for this and following items. Weight: no idea, say 30g

1 x lightweight Dry Sack to keep your compulsory clothing dry (plastic bags or zip lock bags are fine but Sea to Summit Ultra-Sil dry sack is recommended)

*You don’t need to buy a Dry Sack if you put everything in individual zip lock sandwich bags. I also wrote on the outside of each bag what the contents were, and found that I never had to look far for anything. This is important and could save time when you are cold and mentally shattered. Weight: 3g each, you’ll need about 10 of these

Capacity to carry 2 litres of water (water bladder or water bottles)

* the Salomon Super Advanced XT Wings Wooshka Skinbag comes with a bladder that holds 1.5 litres, so it doesn’t technically meet these requirements. I bought some Platypus bendy bottles and a 2l Platypus bladder and now I have more than enough capacity. Indeed, I could smuggle a cheeky red and some fine cognac on to the course. But won’t.

2014 Update– I now carry 2x 750ml mineral water bottles in the front pockets of my pack, so I am going to go over the course description to decide wether I can leave my bladder at home and simply carry an extra 600ml handheld which will take me over the minimum requirements. Benefits are not having to take pack off, and relatively easy to fill up each bottle when needed. Weight (not measured)
Weight: 2l water = 2Kg, Weight: 157g (bladder)

2 x bars / food portions

* When you pull everything out of your pack after the event, you probably won’t remember why you have 2 squished muesli bars at the bottom. These were your emergency food items. Equally important- if you get into trouble, don’t forget they are there!
2014 update- this is probably the only rule loophole that isn’t yet closed. You could theoretically take no extra food portions and claim you had an emergency and ate them. You most likely would not get in trouble for this, but don’t be an idiot- take extra food!
Weight: 39g (muesli bar) Weight: 33g (packet of Gu chomps)

1 x Ziploc bag for your personal rubbish

*Oh no! You’ve just added 3g to your running weight! Don’t worry, you’ll sweat it out.

1 x set of maps and course descriptions (provided by organisers). At registration, you will be provided with one set of maps and course notes. You will need to protect these from getting wet (using item below)

* provided on A3/ sometimes A4 paper, you will put these in a safe place and forget they are there. It’s unlikely you will refer to the maps- the course is very clearly marked. You won’t get lost- but don’t forget where your maps are- there was a gear check mid race in 2012 and we had to show them to scrutineers. Weight: 62g (I weighed another competitors handout from 2010)

Sea_to_Summit_TPU_Map_Case__jpg_508x300_q85

1 x waterproof map case or any other way to keep your maps protected such as map contact

*The best of these I’ve seen is by Sea to Summit, but it isn’t quite a full A4 size. I have a Sealine one that is big and bulky. The Sea To Summit should be available from most of the camping stores around Kent St in Sydney- Update, purchased this 4.4.12 for 15% off at Paddy Pallin, $25.50 apx), Weight: 128g (Sealine from 2011). Weight: 53g (Sea to Summit 2012)

Note- as suggested by Andy Hewat, you can put your maps into an A4 sized ziplock bag. This will pass, and weighs less than a map case. Honestly, you won’t need to use your maps during the race.

1 x A5 Participant Emergency Instructions card on waterproof paper (provided by organisers)

*self explanatory. Don’t need to memorise it, just know where it is if you get in trouble. Weight: 6g (pretty sure this info is on the back of your race number, so I weighed one from another race)

1 x race number with timing chip to be worn on your front and visible at all times (provided by organisers). A recommended method of securing your race number is to use an elastic waist strap like a triathlon band which allows you to easily have your number visible over the top of your outermost item of clothing. You will need to provide your own elastic waist strap if you choose to do this.

*remember if you aren’t near the front of the pack you will most likely experience a few weather changes during your event, and you’ll probably want to change clothes. If the extra fleece and waterproof pants are declared mandatory during he race you could be changing both your bottom and top clothing, meaning that the best way of having your race number visible at all times is to have it on a race belt or a SPI-Belt. For some unknown reason Running Wild NSW were giving these away at the Knapsack race, so I have one- but if you don’t you should find them at Rebel Sport/ Performance Sport or other sports stores. By the way- you should join Running Wild NSW- they have some great events! Weight: 6g as noted above + race belt weight. Weight: 60g (SpiBelt with 2 pockets)

1 x long leg waterproof pants

* I bought mine from Rebel Sport for about $40, they are Team brand. You can get some for about $20, but they were non breathable plastic and looked easy to rip, and very heavy. You may not have to carry this for the whole race, see the explanation below. Weight: 191g

1 x 100-weight long sleeve synthetic fleece top

* 100 weight polar fleece is not very heavy. You may not have to carry this for the whole race, see the explanation below. An example of a 100 weight fleece top here, but I actually ordered this 200 weight one here because it was lighter and cheaper. Weight: 346g

Here is the explanation of the last two items- the waterproof pants and the fleece taken directly from the website here–

*** You will only be required to carry the waterproof pants if weather conditions are wet. You will be notified during the Friday night registration if they must be carried on person from the start, or if they need to be left with your support crew or in a specified drop bag for use during the event.

**** There will be two different scenarios for what you will need to do with your fleece top. These will depend on weather conditions:

SCENARIO 1. The fleece top may be compulsory from the start if weather conditions are expected to be bad. You will be notified at the Friday night registration if the fleece top must be carried from the start.

SCENARIO 2. If not made compulsory from the start, the fleece top will be compulsory to carry from CP4 from 4:30pm and compulsory to carry from CP5 from 7:30pm. Depending on your speed, you will need to have your fleece available at either CP4 or CP5. Please read the following recommendations and decide which option will guarantee you have the fleece top in the right location for when it becomes compulsory:

a) You will definitely be though CP4 well before 4:30pm so you should put your fleece into your CP5 drop bag
b) You will definitely be through Cp4 after 4:30pm so you should put your fleece into your CP4 drop bag
c) You will be through CP4 around 4:30pm or are not sure what time you will be through CP4; either put the items into CP4 drop bag and carry them from CP4 regardless of the time or have two fleeces with one in CP4 drop bag and one in your CP5 drop bag. If you have a support crew this will be easier as they can have your fleece available at CP4 and at CP5.

Other things to remember- If there is any discrepancy between my explanations and the official line, the officials win. No arguments.

There will be at least one random gear check- usually two. Don’t try to skimp on any of the mandatory gear, it could ruin your race if you have to wait for a crew member to drive one to you- which is the best case scenario.

In 2011 we were required to carry a first aid kit. I use an Aide Void kit which is very small and has lots of worthwhile stuff in it. Declaration- yes my wife works for the company that distributes these but I will carry one anyway in 2012…….and 2013……. and 2014

All of the outdoor shops seem to be on sale right now (Khatmandu permanently!) and I saw some of the mandatory gear at great prices where they all cluster around Kent St Sydney.

Recommended items via TNF website:

Vaseline, Body Glide or other body lubricant
Sunscreen
Cap or sun hat
Spare socks
Spare headlight batteries
Additional warmer clothing at supported checkpoints
A spare headlamp in case your main light stops working.
More substantial first aid kit (sterile dressings, roll of strapping tape, blister care such as blister block patches, Compeed or Fixamol, antiseptic wipes, painkillers, and any relevant personal medications).

I’ll do another post soon about the non mandatory items you should consider……….

List of North Face 100 Training Runs 2014

Posted on February 14, 2014 by Adam Connor

Remember to check the training page on FaceBook regularly for updates, it’s here

Week 1
Saturday 15 March
The HahnMich Manoeuvre 17-34km options

Week 2
Saturday 22 March
TNF100 CP1 to CP2, Shortcut to CP3 then back up Nellies Glen 42km

Week 3
Saturday 29 March
North Face Start to finish via Jamison Valley- 2014 course! 40-44km

Week 4
Saturday 5 April
Greater Nosh 32km

Week 5
Sunday 13 April
Canberra Marathon/ Ultra 42/50km

Week 6
Saturday 19 April
Fatass Hellgate Gorge 45km

Week 7
Saturday 26 April
Double Coastal Classic/ Mt Solitary 60km/45km

Week 8
Saturday 3 May
Inner Harbour Loop 30km

Week 9
Saturday 10 May
Manly Dam 25km

The maps will be linked on the FaceBook event (in the ‘get tickets’ section) by Friday 21 Feb.

The Great North Walk 100s 2013 (GNW100s)

Posted on November 13, 2013 by Adam Connor

CARNAGE!

That one word appeared a lot last weekend. In the few days before the race Michael McGrath kept on looking at the weather forecast and saying ‘it’s going to be carnage’. I think he was kind of looking forward to the challenge after last year, which was considered to be an ‘easy’ year because of the slightly gentler weather.

L-R- Adam Connor, Adam Darwin, Rob Mattingly, Martyn Dawson, Rocco Smit, Jennie Sharland Riggs, Aileen Waldron. Only 2 of these people would finish their race….

He was soooo right. I think the race paid us back in spades this year. We dealt with temps in the high 30’s (possibly 37) and overnight down to about 15 (estimated), and bucketing rain. It was completely bipolar. We started at 6am on the dot, a quiet but excited atmosphere gripping us from Teralba sports ground. We settled into a good rhythm, mostly surrounded by my NRG mates and chatted as we went. I saw Sebastian Warmedam take off, but I knew both Allison Lilley and Kirrily Dear were behind me. This was ok for the moment, but I mustn’t get too far in front because these two are great at pacing themselves. In 2012 Allison arrived at CP1 in nearly 100th place but finished 8th overall, and I knew on a good day Kirrily and I should be close. Sure enough, she came past just as we got past the hugging post climb and I yelled out ‘follow that woman, she knows the way!’

So I was very lucky to be guided through the tricky rainforest section. Had a weird moment here- felt a couple of sharp stings on my calf and thought ‘I’ve been bitten by a snake or something’, when I put my fingers on the spot it was wet. However I was sure the punctures were not deep as I had calf guards on, and nothing bad happened so I carried on. Jennie Sharland-Riggs and Martyn Dawson had taken the lead by then, but as it flattened out I got past them again and after those ridiculous climbs we finally got to checkpoint 1. I filled my bottles, had a coke and some food and took off. Martyn had been injured so I had a quiet word to him- told him that my wife would be at CP2 and would drive him out if he needed to quit. I also told him that the next section was all downhill. That’s what it shows on the map, I didn’t know that this was a filthy lie- there’s plenty of uphill into CP2.

Annabel, Wyatt, Rocco, Michael and Marina

I caught up to Roger Hanney (very interesting guy, you should read his blog) and made some conversation with him. He was polite, but something was obviously on his mind so I left it. Only later did I find out he was having problems with his insulin delivery system, and was understandably worried. He’d done 3x 100km races in that month and was finishing with the GNW 175km. You might have read where I thought about doing something similar but not quite so crazy, and I didn’t make it! Adam Darwin caught me here and it was starting to get hot- where we were exposed the sun was at microwave levels of heat.

We discussed this and agreed that all we had to do was knuckle down, stay slow, and outlast the sunny part of the day. So we settled in for a long hot section. I’m very glad that Adam stayed with me, it was quickly turning into a death march. Along the road into Congewai we started seeing all sorts of people in trouble, many had run out of water. Even Adam ran out about 8km before the checkpoint but he would’t take any from me- although I had plenty. One bright spot here was seeing Jane Trumper– I’d thought she was still in the USA but she came out especially to see us and it was a lovely gesture.

Aileen coming into CP1

Coming into Congewai Public School was like entering an Army field hospital. News travels fast- before we entered the grounds we’d been told that both Rob Mattingly and Michael McGrath had been held back for losing too much weight. Rob had lost about 6kg and Michael had lost 6.9kg in only 8 hours. Yep, it was that hot. Another shock was seeing Rocco Smit coming out of the CP as we were coming in. He should have been about 1-1.5 hours ahead by then, but it seems the conditions had gotten him too. I was so glad to have Sarah there- I asked her to apply some sunscreen, ate some dolmades, swigged some soft drink and tried to balance my breathing and get my head right.

Seb at Heaton Gap- from a training run

I was sitting right next to a guy who was lying on a stretcher having involuntary spasms. Alex was fascinated as they administered a saline drip. Michael had drunk about 2 litres of Coke and was allowed to leave, so it was myself, Adam Darwin and Michael on the way out to one of the biggest climbs of the day- the dreaded communications tower. With the 3 of us travelling together it was like getting the band back together- we run together quite a bit. Only one person was missing, but we’ll get to him soon.

Kiki climbing up to the hugging post- from a training run

Rocco gets weighed at CP2

It got worse from there. We met a female runner (could have been Erika Brann) just before heading through a paddock of slightly pissed off looking cows. And they were huge. But no incidents and we soon started the climb. Only to see Nikolay Nikolaev climbing down. He didn’t look too bad, but what we didn’t know is that Antoniya Bachvarova (female winner of the 175km race in 29:04) had already spent 30 minutes with him to make sure he was ok.

Then the carnage went into overdrive. I think I lost count at 4 runners heading back down the hill to pull out at CP2, including some super tough runners that I hold in very high regard. We found Rob Mattingly, our missing musketeer, sitting on a rock about half way up. He joined us for a while and got to within 100m of the summit, but I heard him grunting in pain from cramps. When I arrived at the top, I got a phone call from him saying he was heading back down. I suppose what we forget is that even if you make it to the top, there’s still about 22km of track to make it to the next cp. Erika had taken off, then at various stages Michael, Adam and myself all felt good enough to push on, so we swapped places for a while.

I got a huge boost from putting on some music but of course that couldn’t last. I caught up to Erika in a very technical section and she was very relieved as she hadn’t seen another human for hours. Some time later, wallaby bounded away in the bush and I made the mistake of saying ‘it’s probably a 15 foot long feral pig with rotten, sharp tusks and a taste for human flesh.’ She freaked out just a little. So Erika, if you read this- I’m sorry. I thought it was hilarious at the time, but maybe not.

CP3- The Basin Campground

Michael caught up but was having trouble by this time, I wasn’t very happy but the three of us came into CP3 together. The vollies here were fantastic- they filled my bottles, got me food and encouraged me as much as you can a grumpy tired old man. It was great to see Lea Marsh, and Diane and Paul Every- next month is their unforgettable race- the Coast to Kosciuszko!

Adam Connor arriving at CP3. Yes it’s bloody dark

The next section was the only one I had absolutely no experience on. So when Erika and Rocco both asked me to come with them I should have gone. Instead I stayed in the comfy seat and worked on Michael to try to get him to come along for the last bit of the 100km race. To his credit he agreed, but it soon became clear that he wasn’t well. This section includes a big climb out of the basin, and I understood it to be a gentle downhill of fire trail and then road to Yarramalong.

Nope. It’s gentle fire trail, and then that disappears and you have to descend into the bowels of the earth along some difficult single track until you finally hit the road. I’d lost a lot of time here- not being organised to go with Rocco, and then doing a death march with Michael cost a lot of time. This isn’t a criticism of him, he’s helped me more times than I can count, and he was doing it again by showing me the way to Yarramalong. He’s a very tough guy, but was having a very tough day. Jason Wheeler caught up with us just before the road and I left Michael, tried to run up to Jason to offer him some lollies, but he took off and was too fast for me to catch.

I was trying to get some speed up on this section as it is nice flat road, but my body would only cooperate for a few minutes at a time. Soon I noticed that it was 19:35 race time, and if I wanted a sub 20 hour time for the first 100km I’d have to boogie.

Surprisingly I was able to keep up a pretty decent speed and caught Marina Bruin- Smits just before the CP. I asked her to run with me because she looked like she was feeling ok, but I had to push on to get my time. She came in less than a minute after me and got a sub 20 too. nice work.

Rocco makes the 103km finish

I’d covered that section slightly faster than Adam Darwin, but because of the amount of time I’d spent in cp3 he’d left about half an hour before I got there. Rocco had pulled the plug and gone home after a valiant 103km dash, so it was now up to me to decide whether to pack up my toys and go home, or press on into what it the longest section of the race.

I’d had the great fortune to sit down next to Jess Baker (Roger Hanney’s girlfriend), and she was heavily interested in getting me to carry on. I was disappointed to be 3-4 hours later into the checkpoint than I’d promised Gillian Russell, my pacer. And I wasn’t sure that she’d be ok to keep going until 6pm the next night which was my new expected finishing time. So I looked her in the eye and said ‘if you’re ok to help me- we’re going all the way to Patonga. Are you ok with that?’ She replied yes. I can be such a wanker sometimes.

So we headed out into the night and made pretty rapid progress on the Bumble Hill section. In fact Gillian managed to pick up 3 Strava course records and 6x second places during the next 6.5 hours.

Then it all started falling apart. My mental capacity (which wasn’t great to start) was suffering all sorts of logic problems. No matter which way I split the next 2 sections, I couldn’t figure out how we would beat the cut. I was terrified of getting to the unmanned water stop and seeing a man (or a woman) there. This would mean I was out of the race only 15km from the end. the rain started pelting down and nothing would help my mood. I tried to catch up eating (I was sure I was missing nutrition slots, despite being reminded by Gillian) but nothing worked. Then my throat started to really hurt, it was swollen and pressing up against something painfully.

I told Gillian I was quitting at the next checkpoint. I tried to figure out a way to get scraped off the course from 40 acre farm onwards, but there was no way out except up those stupid bloody climbs. I said a few choice swear words at Keith Hong’s Golden Compass corner, and up we went.

I could hear somebody playing the radio very softly, but of course we were alone in the bush. There was literally nobody around for miles. I wished they’d find some better music. Gillian started telling me about how she’d had to buy the wrong type of potato for her run food. I wondered if there was a right kind of potato, and then perhaps if there was a left kind of potato. Isomeric potatoes, mixed in a racemate. Are potatoes chiral? How would you separate the left and right chiral spuds in a solution? I had 3D models of spuds floating around in my head, trying to figure out how the polar surfaces interacted. Why the f@ck are potatoes so important? Was that a bush turkey?

As we popped out of the bush, I popped the entrails of my crazy thoughts back where they belonged, and tried to act normal for our entry into CP5. Thankfully Sarah was there with Alex and Gillians friend Wayne had arrived to pick her up. It was an easy decision to pull out, I still feel like I made the right choice, although below you’ll see some points for and against.

Massive thanks for Gillian Russell’s help this weekend. She kept her poise when I was hours late, unable to speak and threatening to vomit out my ears. It can be a thankless job being a pacer and she was awesome. And to my wife Sarah for allowing me to give this dream a try, and for turning up when I needed her, even when I wasn’t expecting to see her.

THANK YOU to Jess and Roger Hanney for trying to get me to come with them out of CP5. You guys did an incredible job, it was amazing to watch you come from an almost impossible time behind to finish before the cut. Well done!

Jane Trumper was gutted for me but I couldn’t understand it. It was a classic glass half full argument, with her saying ‘oh no you DNF’d’. And me saying ‘I ran 30% further than I’ve ever done before’. Niether of us is completely right, but I’m comfortable with what I’ve achieved. I MIGHT have made a different decision if I was better informed, but I wasn’t. No time for regrets.

I was fit enough, just too tired and sick to finish. War wounds? A nasty sore from a flying ant bite, friction burn from my pack where I didn’t put it on at CP2 correctly, another bad one from my heart rate strap, 2 along my back from my compression shorts, a few bumps on my legs and a couple of blisters, but overall I survived really well.

If you never do this race, please consider coming down to Patonga on a Sunday afternoon to watch the milers finish. It’s a very special experience- just a small number of people hanging around on a beach giving massive cheers to these incredible athletes who can can run for up to 36 hours. And you’ll see a few grown men cry. This is without doubt the most brutal, and definitely one of the most beautiful races in Australia.

Adam Darwin comes in for a massive finish

Adam Connor Checkpoint Times

Checkpoint 1
Arrival time 10:47am
Stage 1 time 4:47
Time in CP 5 minutes
Total Race Time 4:52
Position 116

Checkpoint 2
Arrival time 2:19pm
Stage 2 time 3:56
Time in CP 20 minutes
Total Race Time 9:08
Position 108

Checkpoint 3
Arrival Time 9:16pm
Stage 3 time 5:08
Time in CP 45 minutes
Total Race Time 15:16
Position 64

Checkpoint 4
Arrival Time 1:56am
Stage 4 time 3:55
Time in CP 41 minutes
Total Race Time 19:56
Position 21

Checkpoint 5
Arrival time Just before 9am
Stage 5 time apx 6:30
Total race time 27 hours
Retired

Martyn, Allan and Jen at Patonga on Sunday

What did I do wrong

– Not knowing the cutoffs. I had no idea I would come close to the cuts so I hadn’t even looked at them. Between CP4-5 this was weighing heavily on my mind and I convinced myself I wouldn’t make the cuts. I was wrong. Roger Hanney arrived at CP4 and CP5 after me but still managed to finish….

– Not knowing approximate running times between checkpoints. I’d had a look at these but not memorised them. I had the arrival times for a 32 and 34 hour finish written in each of my checkpoint bags but had not included anything for 36 hours.

– Not being prepared for a 36 hour finish. I simply couldn’t face the prospect of finishing at 6pm on Sunday.

– Not managing my caffeine intake well. My plan called for not having any coke until CP3 at 80km. I lasted until 29km. If I’d stuck to the plan I may have flamed out earlier, but by going this way I lost the ability to keep myself awake far into the next day. I don’t think this one is controllable, it’s dependant on conditions

– Not waiting until the checkpoint to make the decision. I’d told Gillian (my pacer) that I wasn’t going to make it. So she (quite reasonably) rang her flatmate to come and pick her up. By the time we got into the checkpoint he’d driven the 2 hours to get there and meet us, so I could hardly say ‘er, sorry- we’ll be ready for you in another 9 hours or so’

– related to the above point- I couldn’t add up anymore. I thought it was over 50km to the finish at CP5. If somebody had yelled in my face ‘it’s only 43km you dick’ I would have gotten up and gone. I could have handled another 43km. Possibly

Things that went right

– I don’t want to make too much of this because its a way of measuring success that requires others to fail, but- I’m very pleased I managed to outlast some of the toughest guys and girls in the business. Running slowly sometimes has benefits.

– My body held up really well. I was really keen to get under 20 hours for the first 100km, so I was busting my lungs to get to Yarramalong. I physically could have made it to the end, no massive problems with my legs- I just let the demons get to me.

-Dolmades. I had a tin of these delicious rice wrapped in vine leaves treats in my bag for cp2 and they worked great.

-Eggs. On Friday morning I boiled 3 eggs, left them in the hotel fridge overnight and peeled them, put them in a sandwich bag and ran with them on Saturday morning. I had one during stage 1, and another during stage 2 and discarded the last one at cp2. Easy to eat, not too large as to make me sick, full of protein. Probably full of germs after 8 hours in my backpack at 37 degrees, but they seemed to work well.

-I carried a Garmin e-Trex 30 which was loaded with all of the maps of the course. Did not get lost once. Not even a little bit. Although the instruction manual sucks balls.

What I’m most proud of- being able to pull off a sub 5:30 min/km at the 100km mark. It shows as 98km here but that’s probably because of the corrections applied by software. Yes- the Garmin gave me 102km but a 5:32 min/km for number 100

Results
If you want to know what kind of carnage this race caused, just have a look at the provisional results. I’m putting some of my friends performances down here as a roll call of heroes- every one of them succeeded in making a dent in this most difficult race.

Adam Connor 132km, 27hours retired at CP5
Adam Darwin 175km, 35:30 Finished!
Brendan Davies 132km, 12hr +, retired at CP5
Martyn Dawson 80km 15:22, retired at CP3
Kirrily Dear 80km, 15:52, retired at CP3
Andy DuBois 52km, 8:02, retired at CP2
Geoff Evison 175km, 30:28 Finished!
Jeremy Gordon 52km, 7:41 retired at CP2
Michael Hanavan 132km, 24:54 retired at CP5
Roger Hanney 175km, 35:18 Finished!
Michael Hardie 29km 5:02 retired at CP1
Annabel Hepworth 80km 15:18 retired at CP3
Ray James 103km 21:44 retired at CP4
Lise Lafferty 52-80km 7:09 retired at CP2-3
Allison Lilley 175km 34:02 Finished!
Sarah Jane Marshall 52km 9:56 retired at CP2
Rob Mattingly 52km 7:23 retired at CP2
Michael McGrath 103km 20:14 retired at CP4
Ana Penteado 125-132km 21:08 Retired at CP4-5
Jill Saker 52km 10:33 retired at CP2
Kylie Ann Scott 29km 7:06 retired at CP1
Jennie Sharland Riggs 80km 16:21 retired at CP3
Rocco Smit 103km 19:26 retired at CP4
Sebastian Warmerdam 52km 10:01 retired at CP2
Jason Wheeler 175km 33:27 Finished!

A special mention should go to Aileen Waldron who smashed the 103km race, coming in 15:47- 2nd female and 3rd overall! What an amazing performance!

How tough are these races? Well, a time that wouldn’t even get you a silver buckle at the North Face 100 would have got you a podium here. In the Miler, only two males and one female over 50 years old finished. Out of 114 original entries, only 31 people finished the miler. ‘Nuff said.

*Thanks to Sally Mcilwaine for most of these photos

Poor Mans Comrades 2013- 2nd Attempt

Posted on November 4, 2013 by Adam Connor

Success at last! Well, sort of- we didn’t start at the Opera House steps where the ‘official’ run begins. Here’s the story-

Kirrily Dear suggested doing this run as a last big hit out before the Great North Walk 100 miler on November 9. So when she suggested the date I said yes without thinking about it too much. I really only wanted to do about 60km and I thought that if there were a few of us I could run to the top of Bobbin Head and back. I’ve been doing a fair few long runs lately and I wanted a decent road run to practise ‘not stopping’. Most of the long runs had been in the bush and I’ve been guilty of stopping for dumb reasons. I really needed to whip my mind into a new attitude of ‘relentless forward progress’ while not worrying at all about speed.

Kirrily is doing the GNW and has also been accepted into Coast to Kosciuszko– a 240km race along roads in December. So she wanted to practise her all day, all night, all day, etc pace.

Here’s the docs- Poor Mans Comrades

So we started on Friday 18th October at 5am from the corner of Shirley Rd and Pacific Highway in Crows Nest. The pace was nice and easy, a big contrast to last time when I was just outside my comfort zone trying to keep Annabel Hepworth in my sights.

Going up the Pacific Highway was a bit of a shock- noisy and stinky during peak ‘hour’, and Kirrily reminded me that’s why she doesn’t like the big smoke. I’d have to agree. The run down to Bobbin Head was fun, lots of smiling older people on bikes headed back towards us- if that’s what you get to do when you retire I’d like to retire now please, and after a comfort stop and some food watching the bay wake up, we headed up the hill on the next stage past Kalkari, over the freeway and on to Mt Colah.

The best thing about this section is that there’s a whole bunch of service stations and shops – it’s like having a checkpoint every 500m stocked with cold Coke, chips and pies. Awesome.

We finally got on to the Old Pacific Highway and a few km later got to stop at Pie in The Sky. Unfortunately we were held up here for more than 20 minutes because I had to make a support call, but it gave me the opportunity to snarf down a sausage roll and some Powerade.

From Pie in the Sky it’s a loooong downhill to cross the Hawkesbury River on the old bridge, then a loooong climb out to Mt White. At Mt White we made our last major stop at the Road Warrior Cafe (also known as the Old Road Cafe) and had a brief chat to some guys who were out for a bike ride. We saw lots of people who have nice carbon bikes, but apparently no jobs. It was here that I pulled the pin last time, so from here on I was in new territory. Honestly there was more of the same, roads through bush. We went through Calga and came out at an industrial area near Gosford with about 8km to go. It was here I said goodbye to Kirrily- she had to head elsewhere for a lift home with her boyfriend. I was a little worried- she was wearing tiny shorts and as we said our goodbyes a few local tradesmen nearly had accidents as they drove past. OK they weren’t THAT tiny but I was pretty sure the tradies weren’t looking at me.

The descent into Gosford was terrifying- it’s a little winding road with barely 2 lanes, no pavement, a cliff on one side and a rock wall on the other. And I happened to be there at 4pm on Friday afternoon when everyone was knocking off work. Sub optimal. But the road finally widened out and I came out back on to the Pacific Highway besides Jax Tyres. I’d truly entered the ‘suffer zone’ by now, and when I looked on the instructions I had 1200m to go! Yay, all I had to do was keep it together for a few more minutes……

But no. It was actually about 4km to the end, so I was a bit grumpy when I finally sat down on the steps to the station. And of course there was no one to tell about my run. So I asked some cops if there was a Subway sandwich shop nearby. They said yes, about 500m away- but I thought nope, I’ll eat anything that’s close. They told me about a noodle place only 50m away. Should have gone to Subway- it was the filthiest place I’ve eaten in for a long time- and I’m generally not a fussy person. Perhaps telling the cops later that they mustn’t have high standards wasn’t smart either, but I escaped without a cavity search.

Oh well, off to the train station where I did manage to tell the people sitting next to me how far I’d run, then a noisy trip home in the train with some teenagers, Coles at St Leonards to buy some random stuff that I didn’t really want then a walk home for a shower and bed.

Elapsed time was 12 hours 14 minutes 59 seconds for a distance of just over 87km. Well under 12 hours if we remove the tech support calls. I didn’t feel as if I’d over exerted myself, nutrition went well and overall I’m very happy.

Garmin link

As soon as I posted the details, Andy DuBois posted this article. I have no idea if it was just a coincidence or just a not-so-gentle reminder, but I still feel as though doing that run was worthwhile for me. I was back running fairly quickly afterwards, but the reasons I wanted to do it weren’t really about the distance, it was all about consistency. I definitely got a few ‘free’ kilometres that I wouldn’t have chosen to do if I’d been following a strict training plan, but it was a great day, great company and I finally finished a run that I’d previously DNF’d.

but Andy is a great guy who’s probably forgotten more about running than I will ever know, so he’s probably right.

Spiny Cray Ultra 2013

Posted on October 1, 2013 by Adam Connor

Yes, that’s pretty much the entire field

* Please note that as far as I know, all the photos in this blog post were taken by Kimberly White. She did a great job didn’t she!

I’d had this run on my mind for some time. Not sure why, must have been the name. Basically it’s an out and back along a fire trail up Mt Molloy from Jullatten pub, about 90km from Cairns, and just up the road from the attractively named Abbatoir Swamp Environmental Park.

Nope, I have no idea what is going on here either

I’m guessing that the driving made the field a bit small- 9 males and 4 females rocked up for the 3rd running of this event. I’m amazed and extremely grateful that the organisers put so much effort into running such a small event- did I mention that I love small events? There were km markers every km on the way up and down, friendly faces at the aid stations, and did I mention the food? Gourmet delights everywhere, I’m just sad I didn’t have more eating time at this race.

How awesome is this checkpoint food?

After the race briefing in the first photons of sunlight, we assembled at the start line just outside the Jullatten Highlander Tavern (great spot) and the RD quietly counted down the last 10 seconds, and we were off. We settled into a nice easy pace about 5:44/km and I had a good look at the people in front. The entire race of only 13 entrants made it easy to count the people in front- 6 guys and one female. This meant for a top 5 (male) finish I only had to outlast one of the guys in front. That’s good, because my only talent is outlasting people.

The first 10km is fairly harsh uphill, it’s possible to run some of it, but the primary goal is not to blow up too much, there’s still a long way to go. I managed to catch up to the leading woman Sarah Warren and we had a short chat. She wasn’t feeling very confident, but I could tell she was a classy runner, very consistent and pacing herself nicely. I let her go, and a couple of km later noticed that I was being hunted down by another runner behind. I’d noticed a group of 3 blokes in front and one of them was starting to weaken. I felt I had a good chance at making that one extra place I needed so I stopped a bit and waited for the guy behind to catch up. No point in suffering alone!

Adam & Paul ran together for a few hours

just enough energy left to wave

This turned out to be a good move, as my new friend Paul Firth was an Army guy and very interesting to talk to. At about 16km Shawn caught up with us- he was part of a group in front, but had left the tail for a comfort stop and we’d passed him. He then turned around at the 18km mark for a 36km total. This meant that Paul and I had 5th place and would have to fight it out. We encouraged each other to keep moving and generally had a great time up to the 29km turn around point. My father in law (Andrew Campbell) was manning this aid station, so I had a quick chat but tried not to get too comfortable! I restocked my gel, had some Pepsi and dropped a few things I wouldn’t need. I’d previously given Paul the pep talk ‘don’t let me get in front of you on the way down as I won’t give up that 5th place easily’. Me and my big mouth- he put his headphones on and blasted down the hill, making up nearly 20 minutes in the last 29km. Great performance, and he totally deserved that 5th place!

Sarah goes it alone

My legs had been hurting from the training load from very early on, and it was difficult to take advantage of the lovely downhills. There was a creek crossing at the 22/36km mark and I stopped there to fill up my water- what a huge pleasure it is to be able to drink the water! I can only hope that one day we get cleaner water in Sydney for our runs. On the way down the sun became an issue- we’d gone up in mostly shade with only a few patches of sun, but now it was hot and unrelenting. My headphones that had been around my neck were only playing on one channel as one bud was so full of sweat. Yum.

I spent the last few hours counting down the k’s and trying to concentrate on keeping good form and turning the legs over as fast as possible without blowing up my heart rate. It became clear that a 6:30 finish was not going to happen (the loose calculation was 3:30 up the hill, 3:00 down the hill) so I relaxed and tried to make progress.

That, my friends, is precisely how much it hurts

With 3km to go I started to fall apart, my body not wanting to listen to my brains ‘come on, surely you can run 3000m’ but I held on and finished in 6:47. Pretty much exactly in between my predictions of 6:30-7:00. Placed 7th overall, 6th male and 2nd in my ‘masters’ category. Dear race directors- I’m not sure being over 40 should put you in the masters category, you cheeky (young) bastards.

Feeling very tropical

Our race entry fee included a beer which I gratefully accepted, then I ordered a chicken burger (I love races that finish at a pub) and sat around waiting for Sarah. It was getting hotter, and after her experience at last years Glenbrook Half, I was quite worried about her reaction to the conditions. When we spotted her I went out to run the last 50m with her- that was long enough for her to tell me ‘I never want to do this again’ over and over. I hope her result makes her have second thoughts- her time of 8:47 got her 3rd female and 1st in the masters category.

Female Podium Winners

Sarah & Tennille having way too much fun

full results here but you’ll have to scroll down.

I want to congratulate all of the hard working organisers and volunteers, this was a small race (for us- there were 2 other distances run and finished while we were on the run) and impeccably managed. The food, the run and the people were all fantastic. Also thanks to MountainSports for providing a couple of entries to the Glow Worm tunnel Marathon– I didn’t score one but you may see me there anyway.

The 4×100 Relay

Posted on September 9, 2013 by Adam Connor

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been having a lot of trouble getting excited about running since it’s turned cold. After the North Face 100 I had a brain wave and decided I’d like a new challenge, and that’s when I started working on an event I would call the ‘4×100 Relay’. It consisted of 4x 100km runs, one each weekend for a month. I chose the month of August, and it went like this-

Week 1- Saturday 3rd August 2013
CONVICTtON- This is a new run devised by Mad Mike (Michael McGrath) along a 50km section of an old convict built road as an out and back. Done as a Fatass/ unsupported run with no support.

Week 2- Saturday 10th August 2013
12 Foot Track– Another Fatass run, another out and back. Yes, it’s ‘only’ about 90km so you’d have to do the City to Surf on Sunday to make up the distance

Week 3- Saturday 17th August 2013
Capital to Coast 100km stage race. This one is 100km over 2 days, so a great ‘warm down’ for the main event which is-

Week 4- Friday 23rd August
Trailwalker Sydney– I did this in 2010 as a walker, and 29.5 hours of walking is pretty difficult. I think it will be much better as a runner!

It didn’t work out- I wanted to use the Poor Mans Comrades as a test, and I failed the test. With 3 weeks recovery after TNF100 I was still feeling it in the legs and realised that it was going to be impossible to do so much running in such a short time. What I’ve only realised today is that I COULD have been a little less ambitious and done 4×100 over 4 months. It would have looked like this

May- The north Face 100
June- Poor Mans Comrades
July- 3 Marathons in 3 Days, Adelaide 12/24 Hour, Kokoda Challenge
August- Trailwalker

So if I’d finished PMC I’d be halfway through my challenge! Oh well. Maybe if we start with Trailwalker we could do something that looks like this-

August- Trailwalker
September- Centennial Park Ultra
October- Hume & Hovell 100/Ned Kelly Chase
November- Great North Walk 100s

I really need to have something to focus on and help me get outside while the weather is chilly, maybe this is it. What about you, will you join me?

UPDATE 9.9.13. I’ve just completed the CONVICTtON (it was rescheduled several times), so we might be on target for ‘Plan B’ after all…….

Joe Ward 276km Great North Walk- Pacing

Posted on August 7, 2013 by Adam Connor

Joe doing his best impression of the GNW Logo

I woke up at 12:30am to the sound of David Brown’s alarm. Three seconds later I hear him say ‘Hello? Where are we?’

My first thought was why is he talking to his phone? My second thought was ‘oh no, we’ve just committed the ultimate sin. We weren’t at the changeover point for our duties as pacers.’
Sure enough, it was Ronald Stevens calling us to let us know that Joey, who has started in Newcastle at 4am on Friday, the day before. He was making an attempt on the record for a complete traverse of the Great North Walk, a 276km trail from Newcastle to Sydney opened in our bicentennial year 1988. One of the records was 54 hours, set by Meredith Quinlan and Jess Baker. Kirrily Dear and Alison Lilley had previously set the record at 81 hours by simply completing it! There had also been a group including Andrew Vize in about 66 hours. Get the picture? All Joey had to do was to FINISH, and he would take the record for the first SOLO traverse of the complete GNW. And be only the 11th recorded non stop run of the course.

Ron, always unflappable made some arrangements for the current pacer to continue and for us to be inserted part way through the section we were meant to be pacing. We were meant to start at Yarramalong and go to Patonga, a couple of sections of the Terrigal Trotters GNW100s course that I knew fairly well from pacing Jane Trumper last year. This meant that we had to rely on the current pacer to get Joey through the infamous ‘dead horse creek’ section where someone got so lost last year she was timed out of the race. I felt like I’d really let him down because I was the one who had the course loaded on 2 different GPS devices, including maps, course descriptions etc. I take the job of pacer very seriously and was gutted to let Joe down.

We got to the intersection of Ourimbah Creek Rd and Forty Acre Farm at 2:30am. Then waited, and waited. Sitting in the ute in the dark with the apparent temp below zero was a surreal experience. We took bets about when they would turn up, and I sat there and worried about them getting lost. At 5am I said ‘I’m going to get them’ and we saddled up our gear and headed up the trail. Luckily about 600m up we discovered 2 happy chirpy lads coming towards us.

Only 7km to go until the Somersby checkpoint, but Joey was moving strongly at ~150km and 25 hours. At Somersby we were met by Emma (Joe’s fiancé) and the irrepressible Sarah Jane Marshal in a hilarious disco outfit. A quick fuel up, then we were off into the early morning sunshine towards Mooney Mooney. It was lovely being alone on the trails, having a chat and making sure Joe was eating and drinking to a schedule.

Mooney Mooney welcome committee, Saturday afternoon. Helping Joe stay grounded in reality

At Mooney Mooney we arrived to a thunderous reception with Alison Thomas in a onesie and some very confused cyclists going past. One cyclist who did stop was Andrew Vize! He’s come down to see how Joe was going- I’m constantly humbled by the willingness of heroes of the sport to help other. Well, it kind of went the other way this time- we filled Andrews bidon with water, gave him some snakes and he wished us well! After a massage and fill up we were off again- this time with Tanya Carrol as an addition to the pacing team. It was great adding Tanya- I think Joe was thankful that my jokes became a bit cleaner.

Bananaman getting more value from his sponsors

Next stop was Patonga, where Ben Pearce and girlfriend Jen were waiting to take Joe across the bay to Brooklyn, where Ben Blackshaw and Alison Lilley would continue for his last 76km. This was a difficult section, and one that Joe was dreading, but I know that worse was to come! We arrived at 6pm Saturday night to another great reception including my wife Sarah and son Alex. Joe spent a few moments staring at the post which marks the end of the GNW100s Miler (on this occasion it marked the 200km mark of his journey).

Joe contemplates the achievement and tries to ignore what is still to come

I insisted on a beer at the Patonga pub and retired to our lodgings to sleep. I hadn’t slept since Friday morning and was really feeling it. I could only imagine what Joe was going through.

So what next? I slept for nearly 12 hours, helped clean the house, drove back to Sydney, showered, changed, had a big boozy lunch and…… well I couldn’t just leave it there.

Lane Cove National Park welcome committee, Sunday night

I went home, got into my running gear and went out to Lane Cove National Park to do the last section. Joe by this time had been travelling for over 60 hours with no real rest. He arrived with Ben Blackshaw and Alison Lilley after 8pm and just before 9pm we were on the trail again. There was a huge welcome committee from his Manly Beach Running Club! Ben was continuing however Alison was nursing a knee injury and had to go home. During the day on Sunday some of the terrain was so tough they were averaging only 2-3km per hour. The call had gone out for more pacers as some had needed to pull out because of work the next morning, others were injured, it was all looking a bit dodgy. I was happy to step up, also Sebastian Warmerdam and Gillian Russell joined up too. Matt McCarron, who had spent most of the day Saturday helping and then ran the M7 Marathon on Sunday came back out and ran the last section several times just to make sure we wouldn’t get lost. What an incredible team.

We spent the last few hours joking and having light hearted conversation. But we had a problem. The last section of the course ends at Woolwich Pier, and then you have to go across the water to Circular Quay, and from there it is only 300 metres to the ends- an obelisk in Macquarie Place. The plan was to take a ferry from Woolwich to Circular Quay, but its was too late on Sunday night for a ferry. The backup plan was to get a water taxi – guess what? Too late! In desperation the wonderful Sally Dean ( grand organiser extraordinaire) rang the Water Police. The first time her reception was predictably brusque, but as time went on golden tongued Sally managed to convince them that it was not only a good idea, but needed to be done.

Ben had been waiting at Patonga since midday Saturday, and pacing since the 6pm trip across to Brooklyn. It was no surprise that he was a bit quiet, but I had to press on being lively and encouraging, telling bad jokes and generally getting in peoples faces to try to keep Joe going. I’d apologise for being annoying, but I do feel it’s kind of my job as pacer to be inexhaustible and positive. Ben you did an incredible job, you can decide if I’m truly a d!ckhead next time we meet!

I gave Joe a mini Mars bar and some Coke, ten minutes later he breaks out into a run. That’s right- he ran his 270th km, breaking Gillian in the process. This brings to well, uncountable numbers of pacers who lay figuratively broken in his wake. Three km later we see the high wear off and he’s asking ‘where’s the @##$%^ boat? I can’t see the wharf!’ A second application of Mars bar and Coke did not work, remember refined sugars are baaaad kids.

The water police were awesome, picking us up right on time and taking half a dozen of us across the harbour, well fast! Check out the Garmin…….

At Circular Quay we were met by Ngaire Anna and a whole bunch of people, Joe was able to speak to his fiancé via Facetime back to Boston. She had hopped on a plane after supporting him to Somersby. Did I mention they got married a week after this little adventure? Yes, Joe just had to finish by Wednesday, get on a plane and get hitched in the US. Tex Whitney Productions whom I’d been having the big boozy lunch with were there to film the finish.

Bizarre- a little over 24 hours earlier Emma was helping Joe, here he is at the end talking to her in Boston!

Joe removed the course marking tape he’d been carrying with him for 276km and laid it on the fence around the obelisk. We cheered, hugged and shed a little tear for his incredible achievement. It had taken 69.5 hours, and even though I’d only seen a small part of it I’d witnessed an amazing feat of human endurance, with a great bunch of people who all donated their time and effort for a great cause. I’m very humbled to be a small part of a community like this.

I can’t believe that it’s actually possible to run/ walk from 4am Friday morning until 1:30am on the Monday, but I saw it happen!

You- I’m talking to you. Think about crewing or pacing someone on a ridiculously long run. I’ve done it several times now and it’s very rewarding. Now, who needs crew for Coast to Kosci?

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