Reflecting on TNF100 2011

... three weeks on and I finally have some time to sit down and reflect on The North Face 100 2011.  Just beginning to type this stirs emotion .. there are so many thoughts and memories waiting to spill out here, where to start?

Well .. looking at my little pile of bits from that weekend, the one thing that stands out is my race bib.  Seems funny, I know, but it was at that moment .. when I was at registration and they handed me the kit with the number that the reality hit me .. I had made it!  I had in my hand MY race bib for TNF2011, and I had earned it! In that moment it really hit home to me that I had reached a pinnacle in one of the greatest challenges in my life.  Now all I had to do was what I had trained to do as best as I possibly could given so many unknowns ... what is it really like to cover 100km in one go, how will my body respond to this .. mentally and physically, what challenges will the course present, can my mind override the extreme physical punishment I am about to inflict on myself??????

RACE MORNING:  We were up early following a great night's sleep, had a big breakfast and headed to the lobby for the pre-race briefing and then met up with Bec and Osbert .. and of course, the unsung heros of the day .. support crew.  Nic and Steve came over from Perth to support us which was just fantastic.  They would also be joined later by Desiree, Scott and Brendan ... can't say thank you enough to the efforts put in by these guys for being there more than 24 hours for us =D

In the lobby with Nic .. ready to roll!

We started in wave three .. for those expecting to finish in around 20 hours.  Bec, Dean and I had decided to stick together and see how things panned out.  The temp was around 2-3 degrees .. freezing cold, and we were glad to get started almost immediately following the briefing.

The first 18km to CP1 was really pleasant .. a few kms of road and then onto the single track that winds from Leura, through the valley below the 3 Sisters, past the bottom of the Scenic Railway and on up the Golden Stairs to Narrow Neck Trail.  CP 1 saw us grab a handful of lollies, some water and a couple of gels, and then head off along the 10km stretch of trail along this beautiful ridge.  At about this time I commented to Bec that 25km had never felt so good, and I was feeling very happy and comfortable.  At the end of the ridge is a set of ladders set up specifically for the race.  The front runners had to wait in a cold wind for the bottleneck to subside, but by the time we got there we didn't have to wait and went straight down.  Then a nice section of single trail to CP2-38km.  Here there was a mandatory check of torches .. luck for us because a couple of ours were on and would have been dead flat by the time we needed them ...

Lesson 1 .. turn one of your torch batteries the wrong way up to avoid accidental turning on.

Shortly after leaving CP2 I began to feel a hot spot developing under my left foot .. I have never had blisters there, so just ignored it and thought it would eventually settle.  This was one of my biggest mistakes of the day ... I had decided to wear my warmer shoes and socks thinking it was going to be really cold and my feet would not get hot.  I had hardly used these socks in training and should have known better .. but by this point, with my 'better' shoes at 67km, I pushed on .. I could have changed my socks but stupidly thought it would be fine :S

Just out of CP2 is Ironpot Ridge, a steep climb to the top and then a lovely single track for about 1km to a turnaround point.  The run along the top of this magnificent ridge was made all the more magical as a couple of the traditional owners were playing the rhythm sticks there.

Top of Ironpot Ridge, about to descend.

This pic was taken just as we headed on the downhill section of Ironpot .. the beginning of my knee problems!  My left knee began to hurt at this point as I tried to favour my blistered feet and not jam my toes into the end of my shoes .. all downhill from here (no pun intended!!).  We got to the bottom and my knees were both really sore.  Enjoyed some flatter sections after that and then a long uphill before getting to CP3-54km where our support crew were waiting for us.

More water, hot milo and a couple of sandwiches, and Bec and I had our feet seen to by her partner Rob .. a saviour with blister treatment!  Unfortunately, this is where the wheels really began to fall off for me.  I was freezing cold, my feet were in a bad way, and when I went to stand up after about half an hour, my left knee was ceased up.  With a belly full of food, and feeling a bit more energised, I hobbled out of that CP in the hope that my knee would warm up and come good.

The following 11km to Katoomba Aquatic Centre includes a major challenge .. Nellies Glen, about 750 metres of uneven muddy stairs that seem to go on absolutely forever out of the valley.  Many have their spirit broken by these stairs, luckily we had visited this section a few weeks earlier and had some idea of what we were in for.  Once at the top it is a few relatively easy kms to CP4-65km, but by this time we were going quite slow .. walking, tired and sore.  I can honestly say that I was very seriously contemplating pulling out at this point .. in fact I think I even asked Dean and Bec to give me one good reason not to!!  Their answer .. "cos if you pull out you will have to come back next year and finish this" .. was good enough to begin to sway me to stay in the game at that point, I would never come back and do this crazy event a second time!

We entered the seductive warmth of the basketball hall at the aquatic centre at around 8:30pm.  I had a full change of clothes (and finally, my comfy shoes) ready here as we knew that to tackle the next 24km leg in sweaty clothes in freezing conditions would be risking hypothermia.  I changed into these .. almost didn't leave the change rooms, heaters everywhere, hot showers waiting .. and a wooden bench that looked like the most comfortable thing ever!  All our support crew were at the hall, including a couple of friends Guy and Charly who had driven down from Nelson Bay to cheer us on and see the event first hand .. Guy will be a participant next year.  It is so easy to get distracted and drawn into conversation with everyone, and before we knew it we had spent over half an hour in there.  Another moment that really resonated with me .. I mentioned to Guy that I was ready to pull out .. his words "Don't you dare" .. really hit home for some reason, and I was determined to get back out there.

That moment .. stepping out of the warm hall, into the freezing night air was the beginning of a new level of mental boundary pushing for me.  A couple of things .. 1. I was ready for this .. the toughest section, 24km through the night, absolutely determined to do it, and 2. I knew that once I got to CP5 at 89km there was no way known that I would not finish .. even if it meant doing the last 11km on my hands and knees!!

As we stepped out of the hall .. the track went off down a grassy path and across an oval.  The grass was covered in frost and the air was freezing after the warmth of the hall.  A few mouthfulls of food, milo and ibuprofen had lifted my energy and spirit and we were off!  I had been absolutely dreading the Giant Staircase at the 3 Sisters due to my agonising knee .. I could go uphill relatively pain free, but not down.  I found that having handrails on both sides for the majority of this section meant that I hardly touched the stairs and used my arms to get me to the bottom ... phew, got thru that one pretty well!  From there we continued to go down into the valley on some nice winding trails for about 10km, carefully rock-hopping across a couple of streams to keep our feet dry.  It was bitterly cold, but our spirits were fairly high .. until Kedumba.  This section has about 10km of fire trail, winding up Kedumba Pass and we had no idea where the top was .. it really did seem to go on eternally.

I think any food and caffeine had well and truly worn off by now (about 80km mark), and I was not expecting to 'hit the wall' as hard as I did here.  I didn't feel like eating, but was completely depleted of energy .. to the point that in a couple of sections up that hill, I was holding onto Dean's arm and nodding off.  I had thought the timber bench in the change room looked good .. well, those gravelly gutters looked like heaven and I would have very happily curled up there and gone to sleep if Dean didn't pull me away from the 'sleep monsters'!!  At the top of the hill, about 2km from the CP we were instructed (by a sign next to the road) to put on ALL our gear including wet weather gear as the breeze was making temps around sub-zero ... it must have been around 4am by this time.  This section had cost us dearly time-wise, expecting to take around 4 hours, we took over 7 hours .....

We finally staggered into CP5-89km .. into a tiny tent (too warm and stuffy for me, I felt nauseated in there), and again our ever-ready support crew were there to get us warm food, drinks, change head-torch batteries, and offer words of encouragement.  They must have been freezing waiting around there for us .. absolute angels!  Again, we took too long getting out of there .. but 30mins later, we were on the home stretch .. surely 11km can't be all that bad!!  At that point it seemed that no amount of panadol and ibuprofen were going to take away my knee pain, and I was just going to have to put up with it :)

The first 2-3km are slight uphill sealed road to the beginning of the trails, a nice change and easy to just put one foot in front of the other without having to worry about where you're stepping.  The best part ... the sun was rising on our left and the moon was setting on the right, with clear skies it was just stunning .. even though I was thinking that we should have been finished and tucked up in bed by now!  Then we got onto the trail again, which winds around the cliffs toward Leura.  This section is really tricky, wet .. narrow .. muddy .. and when your legs no longer work properly, a very slow walk.  When we got to around 5km to go the trail was a lovely wide leafy trail, and we actually picked up the pace a bit.  A friendly voice behind us .. there was Osbert, he had caught up with us and we decided to all finish together, crossing the line holding hands.

Just when we thought we were over the worst of it, almost home .. Lillian's Glen ... I had no idea that this section was right at the end ... another (what felt like) 1000 steps down into a valley .. knowing full well that what goes down, must go up again.  Every step down .. away from our goal which we could see just at the top of the hill, was soul-destroying, not to mention excruciating!  It was at this point that we all wholeheartedly agreed that there was no way we would EVER do this crazy thing again, and this last cruel section absolutely sealed that sentiment.  After what seemed like forever, we were back at the top and passing the '99km' sign .. the tears were welling.  Onto the bottom of the golf course and up the hill to the finish line .. we broke into a run with about 100m to go, but the boys had to drag me, my knee was buckling and refusing to take any running weight.   25 hours and 55minutes .. 100km .. DONE!

FINISHED!!!!

Thank you ... Nic, Steve, Des, Scotty, & Brendon for your amazing and unwavering support throughout the event.  Hot, salty buttered spuds were perfect, as was the Milo!  Scotty .. your scarf was a godsend after I got mine wet!  Also, thanks to Bec's mum Sue for warm hugs & pizza, to Rob for being such an awesome 'blister nurse' and magically seeing that my torch was always fully powered :)
Huge thanks to Ange and Des .. the training build-up, circuit sessions and constant discussions were invaluable, you guys are truly inspirational, great friends, and amazing athletes.
Bec .. it was fantastic to do this event with you and I am very grateful for your encouragement throughout.  I'm in awe of your efforts, despite the challenges .. and very proud to have trained and competed together.
Dean .. what can I say.  My love, my life and my friend .. the whole North Face journey has been fantastic, .. a small yet significant part of our life journey.  You really were my rock during this event and I am so very proud of your enormous strength .. physically and mentally.

To all our wonderful 'new' friends .. Regan and Jackie, Tylana and Scott, Andy, .. and everyone who contributed words of advice, wisdom, encouragement and friendly banter on the 'Unofficial' NF facebook page .. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.  You guys made this event into more than a running race .. the support, camaraderie, and genuine human spirit is wonderful, and something that I am very proud and humbled to be a part of .. =D

Jac