DNFed at Checkpoint 3 this year about 46km after about 9 hours of racing...
Disappointing result, but I think it was a bit of a miracle I got to race at all...
Training leading into this was very good, and I was confident after 11,000m+ of elevation gain in April and a solid 4 months of good training with 3 visits to the Stirling Ranges mountains that I was ready to try and chase sub 20 hours...
However being unemployed means a lot of financial challenges, logistical challenges, and obstacles to having a good race.
It started with the train/bus trip to the airport, and then the bus/train trip to Katoomba, the walking around town with luggage, the difficult situation of having little or no money for food, and various stresses associated with getting ready for the race, which man't I was very stressed out the 2 days before the race, and I went into the race with poor race-day planning, insufficient preparation in many ways, and with concerns about my post race accomodation still in play while racing.
Combined with having trouble sleeping (slept 4 hours in total the night before the race, which was 2x 2hour sleeps with a 2hour break about 2am where I woke up for some reason and then couldn't get back to sleep), and felt rushed and stressed on race morning (resulting in me forgetting to take charging cable for my watch, which is really barely adequate for this race, especially without any crew to help)...
Lack of food in the 2 days before the race (other than some chips that mates shouted me at the pub, and some tins of corn I brought with me), I think contributed to insufficient energy on race day...
Probably physically could have pushed on past 46km, and might have finished the 100km again, but unlikely it would have been under 20 hours... Sadly given the obstacles and my limited resources, I think once the sub 20 hour buckle goal appeared unachievable it was probably the wise decision to call it a day, although that is something I could debate about for a long time...
On race morning we started in good conditions, lots of excitement, and to the strains of ACDC "back in black", which hopefully Australia and Western Australia will be after the Coalition government got returned that night against the odds...just like I got to the start line of this race against the odds...
KCC near the expo...
At Dunphys Checkpoint 2 aboiut 31km into it, I got to meet Alf who is a 76years? young multiple 100km finisher... He finished last year...
Afterwards me and a fellow 100km finisher went for a coffee in Scenic World, and watched some of the finishers on the big screen...
Saw this sign in the shopping centre for Coles, where I met and had a short chat with Lucy Bartholomeuw who has won UTA100km and UTA22km in recent years, and is going to do Western States ultra in USA again this year... She was 2nd woman in UTA50km this year...
Lady Darley lookout near Echo Point...
Views of Sydney coastline from the Tiger plane as we were flying to the airport.
Irontop mountain views about 34km into the 100km race...
Did a video there @ Irontop Mountain video
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