Bruny Island Ultra 2018
They say absence makes the heart go fonder, which certainly doesn’t describe how the conservatives in the Liberal Party feel about Malcolm Turnbull, but it might explain why I had been desperately looking forward to this race after missing it last year. I wasn’t kidding myself that the race would be easy, but had a real sense of confidence that I was going to run well, even if I expected to be hobbling around at work on Monday saying (in my best Heath Ledger Joker voice) “Do you wanna know how I got these calves?”
Since the first time I ran it in 2014, this race has had a lot of meaning to me so I woke up buzzing with anticipation. Even the drive to the start line was exciting. Coming up from the south of the island, Monica Lewinski and I saw many runners going the other way, having elected to start early. We beeped and waved and cheered each time we saw someone, which happened more and more frequently the further north we got. We met Bananaman at the start line, as the three of us had planned to run the majority of the race together. I fluffed around a bit, but soon enough we were ready to begin. The individual starting process took away any of the usual concerns of congestion at the start of a race and allowed us to bound away from the start line without worrying about any other runners.
We settled into the run and quickly dropped our pace to reflect the steady uphill gradient. After almost two kilometres, we crested the hill and sped up noticeably as the next few kilometres were mainly downhill. It was already warm, so it was no surprise that my shirt landed in the back of Annie’s car in about as long as it takes Eddie McGuire to throw to an ad break.
Since the first time I ran it in 2014, this race has had a lot of meaning to me so I woke up buzzing with anticipation. Even the drive to the start line was exciting. Coming up from the south of the island, Monica Lewinski and I saw many runners going the other way, having elected to start early. We beeped and waved and cheered each time we saw someone, which happened more and more frequently the further north we got. We met Bananaman at the start line, as the three of us had planned to run the majority of the race together. I fluffed around a bit, but soon enough we were ready to begin. The individual starting process took away any of the usual concerns of congestion at the start of a race and allowed us to bound away from the start line without worrying about any other runners.
We settled into the run and quickly dropped our pace to reflect the steady uphill gradient. After almost two kilometres, we crested the hill and sped up noticeably as the next few kilometres were mainly downhill. It was already warm, so it was no surprise that my shirt landed in the back of Annie’s car in about as long as it takes Eddie McGuire to throw to an ad break.
I had some early moments of concern after around three kilometres when I began to notice a moderate level of pain in my left ankle. I’m sure if I asked most medical professionals about the wisdom of running more than 60km on an ankle that is already sore they would advise pretty strongly against it, but if the immigration department doesn’t have to listen to doctors I decided I don’t either. Instead I tried to ignore it and hoped it would go away (which is also a preferred Immigration Department strategy).
The course continued to rise and fall, taking a winding and scenic course through the beautiful scenic hillside. We must have picked a quiet time to start, as we saw few other runners early on, but we were lucky enough to be running alongside the TRR T-Rex team, which gave us plenty of smiles. Aside from the T-Rex and of course the giant banana running alongside me, there was a range of interesting people and wildlife both on the course and grazing in the fields we ran past. At one stage, I even thought I saw federal senator, Barry O’Sullivan, but it turned out to be a particularly ugly pig that had momentarily raised its head out of its trough as we went past (you can see how I got confused). Seeing no women to make crude innuendos about, the pig showed little interest in the run and returned its snout to its trough (once again, you get why I thought it was the senator).
The course continued to rise and fall, taking a winding and scenic course through the beautiful scenic hillside. We must have picked a quiet time to start, as we saw few other runners early on, but we were lucky enough to be running alongside the TRR T-Rex team, which gave us plenty of smiles. Aside from the T-Rex and of course the giant banana running alongside me, there was a range of interesting people and wildlife both on the course and grazing in the fields we ran past. At one stage, I even thought I saw federal senator, Barry O’Sullivan, but it turned out to be a particularly ugly pig that had momentarily raised its head out of its trough as we went past (you can see how I got confused). Seeing no women to make crude innuendos about, the pig showed little interest in the run and returned its snout to its trough (once again, you get why I thought it was the senator).
After a couple of kilometres, the pain in my ankle lessened, but poor old Monica Lewinski hadn’t shaken his cold from the previous week so every time we hit a hill he started heavy breathing like a creepy nuisance caller. Knowing we had a long way to go, we tried to hit the brakes during the climbing sections and just keep the legs ticking over, before striding out again each time we got onto flatter ground.
Annie was doing a fantastic job as our support driver, taking requests as she drove past us and then having everything out ready at every 2km stop. In seemingly little time we had reached the highway, which began with a glorious gentle downhill stretch that we were able to fully lengthen our stride into. We flew through the next couple check points, as Lewinski’s breathing seemed to have cleared up and everyone was feeling great.
Katy Parry had started just a few minutes before us and eventually came into sight as we approached the Neck. The Neck itself was stunning, with barely a wind to disturb the still water and the bright sun shining down from above. We gradually pulled closer to Katy Parry, and the four of us were running together as we passed Moroney and crossed onto the southern side of the island.
Annie was doing a fantastic job as our support driver, taking requests as she drove past us and then having everything out ready at every 2km stop. In seemingly little time we had reached the highway, which began with a glorious gentle downhill stretch that we were able to fully lengthen our stride into. We flew through the next couple check points, as Lewinski’s breathing seemed to have cleared up and everyone was feeling great.
Katy Parry had started just a few minutes before us and eventually came into sight as we approached the Neck. The Neck itself was stunning, with barely a wind to disturb the still water and the bright sun shining down from above. We gradually pulled closer to Katy Parry, and the four of us were running together as we passed Moroney and crossed onto the southern side of the island.
After over an hour of running on flat ground, we began to encounter hills as we got closer to Allonah. There is a particularly long one at about 36km that we all knew would be coming. I had built it up in my head from previous years but although I dropped speed considerably, it actually wasn’t as bad as I expected and in no time I was past it and following the rolling road into Allonah.
I got separated from Lewinski and Bananaman at around this stage, which was earlier than we had thought we would break up, but you just can’t run at someone else’s speed in this race. Knowing I would likely see a number of other friends over the second half of the race, I wasn’t too worried about running on my own for while. Sure enough, it was only a few minutes before I think I saw the President (at the very least, there was a moving beard and a big pair of sunglasses, that might have had a person attached). In what seems to be 2018 presidential style he had vowed to make Bruny great again this year, as we swapped some banter when I passed, it became clear he was not exactly having a great time after all.
I should take a moment to give a grateful shoutout of appreciation and admiration to all the awesome support drivers out there too. Support driving is a tough gig. Annie had already been working overtime getting food and drink to the three of us and now that we had separated, her job got harder again. When I repeatedly asked between the 30 and 40km mark, “Annie are you okay?” it wasn’t just an homage to the Michael Jackson classic, Smooth Criminal. I was genuinely concerned she mightn’t have had time to eat or drink for the last three hours.
The other side of Allonah there is a long hill that stretches for almost exactly a kilometre and finishes at around the marathon point. Again, this didn’t come as a surprise and I let my pace drop accordingly, trying to run the hill, feeling as comfortable as I had on the flat. Ahead of me on the hill I could see my friend Adrian, which gave me a chance to channel my inner Rocky. Unfortunately this didn’t give me a sudden burst of strength, it just prompted me to shout, “Adrienne!” repeatedly in a slurred voice as I approached.
Things started feeling a little tighter from around the 45km mark and I gradually began to slow my pace. My body was starting to hurt a bit too, especially my quads and feet, but for the most part I was still in pretty good spirits.
This changed abruptly as I got to the top of a small hill in Lunawanna and tried to return to my normal stride. My legs just refused and with nearly 20km to go, I was a bit reticent to over stress them this far from the end. I slowed markedly on the tree-lined dirt roads the other side the town and began to get a bit down on myself. With my pace fading badly, I had to accept that I had probably gone out too hard, meaning I hadn’t heeded the lessons of my disastrous attempt at the Gold Coast Marathon earlier this year. Remembering how hard the final kilometres of that race had been, I steeled myself for a painful end to the run.
I got separated from Lewinski and Bananaman at around this stage, which was earlier than we had thought we would break up, but you just can’t run at someone else’s speed in this race. Knowing I would likely see a number of other friends over the second half of the race, I wasn’t too worried about running on my own for while. Sure enough, it was only a few minutes before I think I saw the President (at the very least, there was a moving beard and a big pair of sunglasses, that might have had a person attached). In what seems to be 2018 presidential style he had vowed to make Bruny great again this year, as we swapped some banter when I passed, it became clear he was not exactly having a great time after all.
I should take a moment to give a grateful shoutout of appreciation and admiration to all the awesome support drivers out there too. Support driving is a tough gig. Annie had already been working overtime getting food and drink to the three of us and now that we had separated, her job got harder again. When I repeatedly asked between the 30 and 40km mark, “Annie are you okay?” it wasn’t just an homage to the Michael Jackson classic, Smooth Criminal. I was genuinely concerned she mightn’t have had time to eat or drink for the last three hours.
The other side of Allonah there is a long hill that stretches for almost exactly a kilometre and finishes at around the marathon point. Again, this didn’t come as a surprise and I let my pace drop accordingly, trying to run the hill, feeling as comfortable as I had on the flat. Ahead of me on the hill I could see my friend Adrian, which gave me a chance to channel my inner Rocky. Unfortunately this didn’t give me a sudden burst of strength, it just prompted me to shout, “Adrienne!” repeatedly in a slurred voice as I approached.
Things started feeling a little tighter from around the 45km mark and I gradually began to slow my pace. My body was starting to hurt a bit too, especially my quads and feet, but for the most part I was still in pretty good spirits.
This changed abruptly as I got to the top of a small hill in Lunawanna and tried to return to my normal stride. My legs just refused and with nearly 20km to go, I was a bit reticent to over stress them this far from the end. I slowed markedly on the tree-lined dirt roads the other side the town and began to get a bit down on myself. With my pace fading badly, I had to accept that I had probably gone out too hard, meaning I hadn’t heeded the lessons of my disastrous attempt at the Gold Coast Marathon earlier this year. Remembering how hard the final kilometres of that race had been, I steeled myself for a painful end to the run.
I got a huge burst when the Runphoria team caught up to me. Will, Elaine and Di drove alongside me shouting encouragement before driving off ahead and getting some supplies out for me. A few minutes later, I could hear Naomi shouting from behind me, as the diminutive powerhouse quickly caught up to me running her leg of a relay and then stayed to run with me further. It was really great to have some company and the team’s enthusiasm and energy was infectious, although the way I was struggling, any comment that I was running well or looking strong felt about as convincing as Kelly O’Dwyer calling out her own government for being anti-women (she didn’t seem bothered by it when Michaelia Cash threatened to smear female staffers in Bill Shorten’s office with unfounded rumours of impropriety).
Like the Bourne trilogy (I’ve almost convinced myself the most recent two Bourne movies never happened), all good things must come to an end and all too soon, Team Runphoria had to run ahead as I began the slow climb up one of the long hills at around the 54km mark. There was no point trying to run fast by this point. It was just about survival.
And I was truly hurting now. I hadn’t managed my nutrition very well during the race- eating and drinking too much early, and upsetting my stomach- and was now struggling to hold down anything but water. My feet had swelled so much I was expecting them to turn green and explode out of my shoes and my quads were objecting to each step. It was really hot out there. I had followed Nelly’s advice about 75% of the way, but wasn’t confident taking off any more clothes would have helped.
I fought on through the next five kilometres, which featured some savage climbs and steep descents. Unfortunately I am hopeless at running downhill at the best of times and with my legs cramping up really couldn’t make the most of these downhill sections. I had discovered when I ran Gone Nuts earlier in the year that sometimes it is actually smarter to walk up hills and make up the time by running faster when you get to the top of them feeling fresher. I made a tactical decision to try to walk a couple of hills at one point but didn’t feel like I was any better off for doing so. Reckon I’ll stick to running them next year.
Like the Bourne trilogy (I’ve almost convinced myself the most recent two Bourne movies never happened), all good things must come to an end and all too soon, Team Runphoria had to run ahead as I began the slow climb up one of the long hills at around the 54km mark. There was no point trying to run fast by this point. It was just about survival.
And I was truly hurting now. I hadn’t managed my nutrition very well during the race- eating and drinking too much early, and upsetting my stomach- and was now struggling to hold down anything but water. My feet had swelled so much I was expecting them to turn green and explode out of my shoes and my quads were objecting to each step. It was really hot out there. I had followed Nelly’s advice about 75% of the way, but wasn’t confident taking off any more clothes would have helped.
I fought on through the next five kilometres, which featured some savage climbs and steep descents. Unfortunately I am hopeless at running downhill at the best of times and with my legs cramping up really couldn’t make the most of these downhill sections. I had discovered when I ran Gone Nuts earlier in the year that sometimes it is actually smarter to walk up hills and make up the time by running faster when you get to the top of them feeling fresher. I made a tactical decision to try to walk a couple of hills at one point but didn’t feel like I was any better off for doing so. Reckon I’ll stick to running them next year.
I was approaching 60km when I was caught by another Solemates team of Jill, Phil, Bouch and Kev. While I was stoked to see them, I was suffering pretty badly by this point and I’m not sure whether I was still capable of managing a smile. As a result, I probably looked about as happy to see them as a remote Sentinelese tribe is to see Christian missionaries, but I hope they knew how much I appreciated it.
Finally the lighthouse was in sight. I ran down the hill towards it and hit the gentle climb towards the steps on very tired legs. I struggled up the final steps and hit the timing pad before being engulfed by a wave of friends at the lighthouse. And about a minute later, Naomi reminded me to stop my Garmin.
I had slowed a lot more than I had hoped in the last third of the race, especially considering how strong I had felt running up hills at the Point to Pinnacle two weeks earlier. As a result I had basically run the same time that I ran two years earlier. Considering how much fitter I am now, I was a little disappointed, having expected to run considerably quicker. As with any race that doesn’t go to plan it is hard to pinpoint exactly what went wrong, but aside from feeling a little underwhelmed, I was okay with a sub-optimal result.
It can’t always be my day, but sometimes it can be someone else’s and you can enjoy their accomplishment too. A number of friends, including Gabby, Roady and Katy Parry all ran amazing runs (go here for the results page), and even allowing for the slower time, I felt very lucky to interact with so many friends out on course and finish another ultramarathon without serious injury. Moreover, if things always went to plan, the times when everything comes together (as they have a couple of times this year) would be less meaningful.
I’ll have to do some thinking about how to run this race next year. I’m not sure if I came in overconfident, but I will certainly look at adjusting my plan so that I can finish stronger. I probably need a bit more training for longer distances too, having largely focused on marathons this year. But I certainly plan to be back and try again anyway.
Finally the lighthouse was in sight. I ran down the hill towards it and hit the gentle climb towards the steps on very tired legs. I struggled up the final steps and hit the timing pad before being engulfed by a wave of friends at the lighthouse. And about a minute later, Naomi reminded me to stop my Garmin.
I had slowed a lot more than I had hoped in the last third of the race, especially considering how strong I had felt running up hills at the Point to Pinnacle two weeks earlier. As a result I had basically run the same time that I ran two years earlier. Considering how much fitter I am now, I was a little disappointed, having expected to run considerably quicker. As with any race that doesn’t go to plan it is hard to pinpoint exactly what went wrong, but aside from feeling a little underwhelmed, I was okay with a sub-optimal result.
It can’t always be my day, but sometimes it can be someone else’s and you can enjoy their accomplishment too. A number of friends, including Gabby, Roady and Katy Parry all ran amazing runs (go here for the results page), and even allowing for the slower time, I felt very lucky to interact with so many friends out on course and finish another ultramarathon without serious injury. Moreover, if things always went to plan, the times when everything comes together (as they have a couple of times this year) would be less meaningful.
I’ll have to do some thinking about how to run this race next year. I’m not sure if I came in overconfident, but I will certainly look at adjusting my plan so that I can finish stronger. I probably need a bit more training for longer distances too, having largely focused on marathons this year. But I certainly plan to be back and try again anyway.