Go Figure
Ohhhh yeah! Race report time! It has been a minute…well over six months since I have run an official race! Super stoked to be here again doing a write up about one! So, here we go!
Sunday saw the running of the inaugural Go Figure event put on by AAA Racing. I was lining up for the 50miler and after not getting to race Hares and Hounds I was pretty darn excited to pin a number on again! I decided to surprise Tegan with an entry to the 26k race for Valentines Day (Gold!) so with mum and dad watching the kids an Tegan racing her first event since injuring her back over two years ago it was set to be a rad weekend!
We stayed at an Air BnB at Mooloolah Valley which was amazing but thought it best to head out to Jimna (middle of nowhere or about 50k north of Kilcoy) the night before the race as I had a 4:30am start. After a bit of a restless nights sleep, I was up, organised and ready to roll. Given my training has been a little erratic since the 50marathons (see previous blogs) I was unsure how I was going to go at the event. I did know that I was un-injured and excited to get into it though so time would tell!
The race was a figure eight course which we more or less did twice. Things started casual and I just worked into the morning easy as usual. I had some good chats with some rad folk and enjoyed the sunrise and morning kicking off. The course started as expected with climbing. It was gonna be a doozy. All good. The first loop went by pretty chill and before long I was back at the start corral to say g’day to Tegs and be off again. The second loop was tough and with a few missed turns I was ticking off the k’s. Before long I realised the loop was long….like a fair bit long so that started to play on my mind before returning to base for the second time.
I shouldn’t have let it frustrate me but knowing I would be running 5-10k longer than the scheduled race distance got to me. From 52 odd k to about 60k I hit a low spot. It was hot, I started cooking up (which I normally don’t) and that part of the course was pretty exposed. I knew however that a really rad, single track, rainforesty section was coming and that it would lift my spirits. Which it did. That, and seeing THREE deer running full gass toward me, hit the skids and then run straight up a super steep embankment was incredible.
The positive through this tough patch was that I was running strong. I came around mentally and was ready to keep charging. I was still in second position and with first (Noelis you are a beast) a long way off, I did NOT want to give up to third. I got back to base again after a hot climb out of loop three, congratulated Tegs on a great run and then head out on my last climb. I have to admit, I was happy to only have 14-15k to go! I kept moving ok but the loop seemed to NEVER end and be much harder in the reverse direction to the AM. All that aside, before long I was back on the road and heading down hill to the finish.
The finish was sweet and I was happy to stop moving. I didn’t sit or really stop for long during the 11hr 17min 52sec it took me to finish the race, and with 3072m of climbing, I think its fair my legs were pretty toast! All in all, I am super happy with how the race went for me. I finished second place overall and I am so very proud of Tegan to have finished 10th overall and 2nd female in the 26 (ended up 29k) event. Well done babe!
As always, thanks to Alun, Susanna and the AAA Racing team for a great event. Thanks to Altra Shoes, Willpower Running and Fractal for your continued support. Lastly, another brick has been laid and I am a step closer to my X-Country adventure come September. Thank you all for your love and kind words during and after the event, it means the world! Much love team, I will now enjoy a week off before hitting training again in the short build to Noosa Ultra Trail 100k. Consistency + Commitment.
