Sunday - Kurrawa to Duranbah - Coming out party!!!

Kurrawa to Duranbah - 2nd leg 25k in 1:44:05 4th or 5th Relay Team

After more than two years of frustration battling the shins splints with only one 110% effort race in that time, this was it - my coming out party!!

My preparation had a few hiccups. Rather than get up before 3am and drive down from Brisbane, I booked MJ and I into an El Cheapo motel for the night. Unfortunately, a microwave was not provided and I was unable to make my own pasta dinner. Never mind. MJ and I then went for a drive along the course so I could scout the route and at the border, we stopped for dinner at Latitude 28, boasting magnificent views of the Pacific Ocean. We both ordered the pasta of the day which turned out to be a creamy prawn pasta rather than the tomato based pasta I was hoping for. My stomach is not used to creamy meals but I remained calm and philosophical. I had a three day carbo load under my belt and my stomach is pretty adapatable.

Race morning saw a bombshell dropped with the announcement that Jonesy had slept in and the much hyped Slash/Matty v Jonesy/Glenda PCRG Intrasquad match race was off. I said to Slash - 'lets go for a top 5 spot instead!' Slash didn't let that or the 40 minute starting delay bother him and ran a strong leg down south duelling with Phil K most of the way and arriving at Kurrawa in 7th spot, just behind Phil. Also arriving at Kurrawa was Glenda who had decided to run her leg of the relay anyway so at least the two of us could have a race! When Slash arrived Glenda didn't wait for me and grabbed an early 20m lead whilst I fumbled to strap on a borrowed Garmin (kindly lent by Chelle) after Slash passed it to me. Game on!

I ran steadily up the hill just after the start and then took my time making up the deficit to Glenda over the first two k's. As I warmed up, I increased the tempo and then caught up to Phil K's partner Stevo a sub 3 hour marathoner coming back from injury. Stevo courageously tried to hang on to me as I steadily increased the tempo but I knew that I was too fit for him and so it proved as I dropped him after a 2k duel. I then steadily reeled in Glenda by the time 5k's passed. An exciting duel then followed as Glenda and I swapped the lead a few times and steadily continued to increase the tempo, going through 10k's in 39:40. Here I took my first GU and was extremely appreciative of the cool Enervit drink that MJ handed to me. Having a reliable crew member driving along the route and handing you drinks and supplies is critical to a good run at Kurrawa.

As the temperature increased to 24 degrees, the battle continued while I counted about six or seven lead changes between Glenda and myself. I got a 10m lead on one occasion but Glenda pegged me back. By now, doubts were creeping into my mind. I was feeling ok but was unproven at this pace over this distance and I was up against a 2:55 Marathoner. I kept telling myself to trust my training and my carbo load and maintain the pace - Glenda had confessed to being underdone after missing a weeks training with a foot injury a month ago so I kept telling myself to maintain the pressure and maybe she'll crack. Finally, along Golden Four Drive around the 13-14k mark I realised that Glenda was no longer with me and I had opened up a 20m lead! I battled my way up the hill after Tallebudgera Creek and then coming down the other side, I struck my first major problem. Rushing to put on my sunscreen prior to the start, I had made the rookie mistake of putting some onto my forehead and now it was trickling into and seeping into my right eye, stinging it. I tried blinking the eye repeatedly and then ran with it shut for a minute. Just when I thought I was going to have to pull over at a water bubbler and wash it, relinquishing my lead in the process the eye came good. Phew!

I was now running alone through the streets of Burleigh, clear of Glenda but the temperature was hotting up and the doubts were coming back - could I maintain the pace solo over the last seven or eight k's? It was at this stage that I started to visualise one of my favourite all time inspirational scenes - that of Deek strongly pulling away from Olympic Gold Medallist, Carlos Lopes in the last kilometre of the 1983 Rotterdam Marathon. I love that video tape! I relaxed my body and I thought about how much Deek must have been hurting and how he dug deep and didn't give an inch. Could I do it too? Bloody oath I could!! And so it proved - as I continued to visualise Deek's powerful finish, I noticed my body had straightened, my breathing was regulated and my pace had picked up a touch.

Unfortunately, I must have got carried away with the daydreaming and as we approached the last point along the coast, I saw some witches hats(which had been designating turns all day) halfway up a long hill and figured a turn must be up there. Cresting the hill with doubts in my mind for the withces hats had not indicated a turn, I sneaked a glance over my shoulder and sure enough - Glenda was nowhere to be seen! I had taken a wrong turn! Continuing down the other side of the hill I immediately hung a right to get back onto the coast espalande and was dismayed to see that my 50m lead had been trimmed to about 20m! I knew that Glenda would sniff blood in the water if I didn't increase my lead again as quickly as possible so I dug deep and steadily upped the pace again. Despite that, it was here that I was passed for the only time by Jess Kirley, a 2:40 Marathoner coming back from a knee injury. I keep in touch with Jess by enmail when I can and he has been where I want to go with my running over the next few years so now I started telling myself to try and hang on to him - lets find out what if feels like to be a 2:40 Marathoner!! Alas, I was only able to hold onto Jess for a few hundred metres but managed to keep up the speed enough to ensure that he didn't pull too far away. While it might have felt like I was going fast I knew that my pace had dropped from the early 3:58's to around 4:10-4:15's at this stage (The Garmin lost satellite tracking around the 9k mark)

By now, the sun was scorching down, there was no shade, there was only four k's to go and I had pulled well clear of Glenda again. I could feel one of my toes blistering, my stomach was starting to get a little queasy and I was hurting more than at any other stage of the race. I kept telling myself 'its just a little further than a 3kTT and your used to hurting for the whole 10 minutes of that, so keep going!' As I sped along Hedges avenue, I could see that Jess was no longer increasing his lead over me and I knew I wasn't the only one doing it tough. As the park hosting the start/finish area loomed, I glanced at my watch which registered 3:27 and managed to coax a little more speed out ofn my weakening body to ensure that Slash and I dipped under the 3:30 mark! U beauty!

I ran through the ticker tape doing the double fist pump and then collapsed to my hands and knees - I had done it! 1:44:02 for 25k's in pretty tough conditions with three big hills thrown in. More importantly than the time, I had outduelled a 2:55 Marathoner and only been overtaken by a 2:40 Marathoner. After two years of knowing that I belonged in the company of this calibre of runner, it was bloody nice to confirm it!

I really could not have accomplished what I did without my inspirational PCRG team mate, Glenda. It was weird to be racing each other and hardly speaking after training so much together! Our duel for the first half of the race set up a good time and MJ was there for me on no less than 10 occasions along the route offering Enervit and GU's to me when I needed them.

I did all the right things in the hours after the race and pulled up well. Drank over four litres of fluids before I needed to head to the bathroom for the first time - it never ceases to amaze me how much you can lose!!

Its great to end 2006 on a high. I'll take a very easy recovery week now and then continue my Gold Coast Marathon campaign. Bring it on!!