Saturday 22 November 2014

RACV Marysville Marathon Festival - 50km ultra race report

"I've never seen that before."

Not the words you want to hear from an SES volunteer at 6:20am, 40 minutes before you're due to start an ultramarathon. Thankfully, they weren't directed at me, but to the woman two cars ahead of me, who had a length (measured in metres) of what looked like hair protruding from her car's exhaust pipe. Upon parking my car, the SES rep suggested they stop pulling it out after it reached about five metres long. The things you see at ultra marathon events...

The event in question, in this case, was the 50km ultra event held during the RACV Marysville Marathon Festival, organised by Brett Saxon of Trails+.

The ultramarathon course

Of course, that wasn't the only car-related fun to be had that morning. Between Healesville and Marysville lies the Black Spur, a 30km stretch of winding road, just perfect for dry, early mornings, with no traffic, a manual car and no kids in the back. I was reminded in part of the concluding pages of Hunter S. Thompson's classic Hell's Angels, although (1) I wasn't riding a chopper and (2) I was obeying the speed limit, even though it's difficult to exceed the mandated 80kph in most places (for me, anyway).

So, I'd had quite an eventful morning to that point and I hadn't even started the race yet. However, as much as you, dear reader, are no doubt impressed by tales of hairy exhaust pipes and torturous (deluded?) comparisons between a 1.4L Volkswagen and a 1,200cc Harley Davidson, what I hope you came here for were some of my thoughts on how the race went. So, without further adieu...

Pre race
  • Caught up with DTR-regulars Nigel, Oliver, Ashley, Paul, Vanessa and Stuart.
  • Brett and race patron Lachlan Fraser seemed quite pleased with themselves when they described the new climb up to Keppel Lookout towards the end of the race: "You'll get a chance for a nice rest when you're walking up there...", Lachlan told us.

Early stages
  • Climb up Red Hill (900m at 10%) wasn't too bad.
  • Lots of people passed me on the descent. 'Hope to see you later', I thought to myself.
  • Ran for a bit with Stuart, exchanged ultra mantras (me: "I will not cramp!", him: "race to the finish, not from the start").
  • Gradient picked up, I was feeling good so I pushed ahead alone.

First test
  • Cameron's Cascade.... Oliver's pre-race warning was ringing in my ears: "Enjoy Cameron's". 1.6km at an average 17%. I kind of did enjoy it. Passed a couple of people which was nice.

Stocktake
  • On the next out-and-back section I saw a very friendly face fly back past me in the other direction. It was Ashley, leading the race, smiling as always! I was also able to gauge where I was in the field - I made it about 23rd.

Ups and downs
  • The good: we get to run (ok, walk) up Red Hill again and I'm doing well on the climbs.
  • The bad: The 7.5km quad-busting descent before we got there. Yet another opportunity to liken my descending skills to pensioners with Zimmer frames.
  • The ugly: the photographic evidence of me walking, not running, up Red Hill.
Taking it easy on Red Hill

...and the just plain cruel
  • At about the 35k mark, ultra runners have to go past the start/finish area and head back out of town for the last 15km loop. Why do race directors take a sadistic delight in dangling the finish line in front of tired, sore, long distance runners who still have 10 miles to run?

Keppel
  • A long, steep climb, most of it involving walking rather than running. Even though I was walking, I reeled in a number of ultra and marathon runners on my way up. Somehow, despite the gradient, I enjoyed every minute of the climb
  • When I got to the top, I was greeted by some glam rock pumping out of a car stereo, and the day's best aid station accompanied by the day's best view from the top of Keppel Lookout.
The view from Keppel Lookout (courtesy australiantraveller.com)

"It's all downhill from here"
  • That's what I was told by the aid station volunteers, like this is supposed to be good news! With the state my quads were in, negative gradients at this stage weren't something to be celebrated, rather something to get over with.
  • That said, I made my way down what must be said was a very enjoyable track, on my way to Stephensons Falls.
The comparisons to Kilian are undeniable...


On the way home
  • I gave up a few positions on the descent, unable to match the pace of some of the others, including another DTR member Morgan who was running well this deep into the marathon. 
  • The flatter run in to the finish line, along the Steavenson River allowed me to stretch out and pick up the pace and I reclaimed a few positions.
  • I didn't want to push too hard, because (a) this was shaping up as the first ultra I'd completed where I hadn't cramped and, (b) I knew I'd be slowing down at the end to greet my family, and maybe run with my boys to the finish line, so turning on a sprint finish only to stop before the finish line would look a bit stupid.

Morgan and I at Stephensons Falls

The finish line!
  • This time, the finish line is here for real!
  • As I ran onto the oval, I could see my wife and two sons waiting for me. My eldest (4yo) asked if he could run with me and, not wanting my youngest (2yo) to feel left out, I grabbed him in one arm whilst holding my eldest's hand. 'Just a few more metres', I think to myself.
  • WRONG!
  • I headed towards what I thought was the finish line, when a volunteer reminded me I still had three quarters of a lap to run, and here I was carrying a 17kg 2yo in one arm and holding my other son with my other free hand! The last few hundred metres were as big a struggle as any of the climbs as I laboured under the weight, getting passed ! However, it did make for a pretty cool photo when I crossed the line...
Thank goodness I can put him down!

Some final thoughts

I'd finished in 5:28, and later found out it was good enough for 15th place, although it's possible I could have made it to 13th if not for the last lap. One of my big goals in ultras now that I have done a few is to make up positions in the second half. Big tick on that front, given I was 23rd on that out-and-back section and probably ~30th or so a little bit earlier on the downhill/flat section.

As well as my family, there were plenty of DTR regulars at the finish line. Lachie was there straight away, having done himself proud by finishing 5th on a very tough 10km course. Bryan had finished fourth in the half marathon as last year's defending champion. Ashley had gone one better by reaching the podium of the 50k - third place in his first ultra on his birthday! Soon after I crossed the line, Stuart, Nigel and Paul all finished, together with Vanessa who was treating this as yet another training run for her soon-to-be run Alpine Challenge miler.

The atmosphere at the finish line was terrific. Plenty of runners, stalls and activities for the kids, plus the Freedom Sports Medicine team of Ross and Caleb (himself the winner of the 10km event) providing massages to leg-weary runners. This really was a community event to get behind.

So, my fourth ultra is now in the bag, the first without cramping, and the first trying out a new fueling strategy (I had used Tailwind Nutrition exclusively, mixed into a 1.5 litre bladder and 2x 500ml bottles of my Salomon pack). It certainly bodes well for the coming months, which will include Two Bays and the Roller Coaster as further training runs before next year's major goal: the 75km Buffalo Stampede Ultra SkyMarathon.

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End note: according to a quick internet search, it appears that Stuart Hughes' suggestion of the exhaust 'hair' being the muffler lining was spot on.

Photo credits: Thanks to Brett Saxon and his team for putting on the event, and taking/publishing the photos of the race I've included in this post.

Tuesday 21 October 2014

The Quadruple Bypass


“Watching a coast as it slips by the ship is like thinking about an enigma. There it is before you, smiling, frowning, inviting, grand, mean, insipid, or savage, and always mute with an air of whispering, "Come and find out".”
― Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness


Conrad was a seafarer, but if he was born in a different era, he may have written those words about the trails that beckon runners like me to see what we can find. 

Me, and I don't know how many others arrive at the Basin Theatre to run the Quadruple Bypass, a 26km route encompassing four ascents of Mount Dandenong. For argument's sake, let's say there's 20 of us. That's 20 people who apparently ignored the fact that this is a course that Peter Mitchell has not wanted to attempt since he last ran it 15 years ago. I get extra "crazy" points, because I'm doing it on a morning when my kids are at my parents and I have elected to go running instead of sleep in.

I arrive a few minutes before we're due to depart and learn that we'll be splitting into two groups - one led by Peter and one by miler-in-training Vanessa. I'm in Peter's group, which includes, among others:*

  • Peter. Australian marathon representative, winner Gold Coast marathon, 2x winner Bogong to Hotham (B2H), winner Oxfam Trailwalker Melbourne
  • Kevin. Winner Maroondah Dam 50, multiple podiums including Maroondah Dam, B2H
  • Ray. Multiple podiums including Maroondah Dam 50, B2H
  • Rohan. Course record holder Oxfam Trailwalker Melbourne
  • Kirra. Winner You Yangs 50, winner Lake Manchester 22km trail
  • Cheryl. Winner Salomon Plenty Gorge long course.

In other words, I'm looking around, thinking to myself "I hope these guys can keep up."

[* These achievements are based on trail running chats and a very quick Google search. It would not surprise me in the least if I have dramatically understated the wins and podiums of these men and women. In fact, I'm sure I have.]

Ascent 1. Dodds Track and Caterpillar Track (3.02km, 370m elevation gain, 12.3% average gradient)

If you've ever run the Roller Coaster course, you'll know Dodds Track - it's the nastiest climb on the course. On today's course, Dodds is a warm up, the early ground work of a sick joke whose punchline won't come for another three hours. After cresting Dodds, we continue on to a climb I've never been up before - Caterpillar Track, a little gem of a hill (420m @ 22%). I think I remember smiling as I went up that one. Oh, the hilarity.

Ascent 2. Ridge Track and Range Road (2.84km, 360m elevation gain, 12.7% average gradient) 

After heading down School and Banksia Tracks, we begin the next ascent to the top of Range Road. After run-walking up Ridge Track, you know what sounded like a good idea? Running side-by-side with Ray all the way to the top of Range Road. I haven't since asked the guys behind me if they could see the vapour of fuel tickets being burned, but I wouldn't be surprised if they did. Now that I think of it, I also didn't check to see if Ray was wearing a t-shirt with an "I'm with Stupid" arrow pointed at me.

Well, I got to the top of Range Road without stopping to walk and felt secure in the knowledge that I'd at least have a bloody good time for the Strava segment that someone, I was sure, had already created. Imagine my disappointment when I later discovered that the segment, for some inexplicable reason, ends about 100m AFTER the summit, which I reach after about five minutes of rest. If it's not on Strava.....

Ascent 3. Birthday Hill (1.39km, 372m elevation gain, 26.8% average gradient) 

You know when you're running with Peter and it's meant to be "all downhill from here"? Of course, the descent to the start of Birthday Hill included a couple of bonus inclines on Dandenong Creek Track. But those "hills" are forgotten as soon as we start the toughest test so far - Birthday Hill. Three single track segments linking Edgar Track to the top of Zig Zag Track. Ray runs off on us all, followed by Kevin and Rohan. I remember running up this first segment once. Ba hahahahahaha. 

And what's this? We get to the end of the first segment and those guys at the front aren't stopping. We ALWAYS stop here. Do I keep going? Do I wait for everyone else? Oh, ok, I guess I'll keep going. Somehow I manage to get to the top only 40 seconds slower than I had the previous week, when I had 'only' gone up Glasgow Track once before tackling Birthday Hill. In hindsight, I wish I had left just a bit more in the tank, because we had just a little 'pinch' to tackle before we could call it a day: Glasgow Track.


Birthday Hill
(Photo credit: Luke Johnston)

Ascent 4. Glasgow Track (1.33km, 389m elevation gain, 29.2% average gradient) 

Trust Peter to leave Glasgow to last. Known variously as "The Scar", "The Firebreak", "The Overcrowded Hiking Tour Group Mecca", it's a rutted, rocky track that goes straight up the west face of Mount Dandenong and has a kick like a mule, even before the point where it reaches 50% gradient. We meet up with Peter's wife Jenny at the foot of the climb, who has brought fresh, cold water, and a positive attitude. I vaguely recall having one of these, once. But not now.

The climb starts and I'm reduced to a walk before I even get off the bitumen lead-up to the main track. This is not going to be pleasant. I know what's coming, having gone up it (fresh) the week before, in 20:38. I know I have at least 25 minutes, maybe 30, before I get to the top of this bastard. Ray, Kevin and Rohan disappear like phantoms, with Cheryl in hot pursuit. Jenny, having probably decided that grunted, single word responses didn't exactly constitute great conversation, powers ahead too.

One. Foot. In. Front. Of. The. Other.

Stupid. Range. Road. Schoolboy. Error.

Stupid. Peter. Mitchell.

Wait a minute... I'm almost there. I'm almost there! I reach the top after nearly 26 minutes and it's not Stupid Peter Mitchell any more. He's the Peter Mitchell who, over the course of countless trail runs, has helped prepared me for runs like this. Peter Mitchell, who shares his time, knowledge of the trails, and words of wisdom with hacks like me who could never even dream of achieving what he has in this running caper. The Peter Mitchell I'm glad to call my friend.


At the top of Glasgow Track
(Photo credit: Cheryl Martin)

Once we're all at the top, we remember that we're not actually at the top. There's just one little climb to go - there always is. 

Extra Credit: Summit of Mount Dandenong

We partake in a wobbly-legged shuffle along Kyeema Track and just after the lookout, there it is - the track that leads to the highest point on Mount Dandenong (at least I think it is). We clamber up it and, like little kids, stand on a mound of gravel to make sure we're as high as possible. That's when Kevin reminds us that we're standing on the wrong mound, the official one is over there. And, again like kids, we run over and stand on that mound. 


Standing on the (wrong) summit
(Photo credit: Cheryl Martin)

For once, it is all downhill from here. We arrive back at the Basin Theatre car park and my watch tells me we've covered 26.3km and climbed 1,728m in 4 hours and 5 minutes. The pain is forgotten, the ... No, actually, the pain is still there. Big style. But it's worth it. Or at least it will be. When I can think of something other than the pain. 


Quadruple Bypass Profile


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So, will it take me 15 years to run this course again? Well, after signing up for the 75km Buffalo Stampede next April, I dare say that it won't even be another 15 weeks before I give it another try. If you've read this far and you're thinking you might want to join me, all I can say is, "Come and find out".