Official Stats:
Distance: 5.4 km (I measured 5.83 km)Time: 1:14:20
Elevation: 250m
Pre-Race
I was dreading this one all week. It was listed as a tough, technical course with a 4/5 toughness factor.It was forcasted for heavy rain over the weekend too and I didn't fancy another mud bath like the Riverhead race, so I had already planned my excuses to bow out of this one.
We still went through our night before rituals of having a pasta dinner and Kane made an excellent wine, cream and mushroom sauce with spaghetti.
In the morning we woke to the sound of rain and I was ready to spend the morning wrapped in a nice warm quilt, however the rain promptly stopped and the sunny skies evaporated my excuses.
I made us some porridge and coffee for breakfast and then we set off .
We arrived with a few minutes to spare and we grabbed our series numbers from the box - there were heaps of numbers left and I think most people decided to give this one a miss. I checked the elevation profile again and wished I had too.
On the Course
We pinned on our numbers and attached our timing chips and before we knew it we were off.0 - 1 km We started running and it was long low incline and perfectly manageable but too quickly it got a bit steep and most of us just started walking at this point.
1 - 3 km We got a little bit of a downhill that we too advantage of and ran a little but then it got very steep very quickly and then it was just straight up. I had a great idea, Kane thought I was delirious, but I still think donkey first aid transport (Donk-bulance) could be the next big thing.
I cannot express how hard I found this horrible hill and every time I thought I had reached the top, there was a turn and it carried on up some more. I thought I was in an Escher painting or something.
3 - 5 km My calves got a reprieve from climbing, but the downhill was just as steep and it was time for my quads to suffer. On two downhill sections it was a little muddy and a bit slippy but not too much trouble. We then got onto a nice narrow trail and we were able to run through the trees for a short while before having to go down stairs.
5 - Finish I was conserving energy for a hill that I was expecting towards the end, but the loop came out after the hill and we had a nice downhill run to the finish line. I had plenty left in the tank so managed a sprint finish to the end!
Post Race
The finish area was a complete mud bath! I nearly lost a shoe while removing my chip and race number! We got our Speight's and watched some children diving into the mud and throwing mud at each other. I was going to get a massage but the wait was going to be too long so picked up our bag from the gear tent, which had gotten muddy in there (Kane was not impressed) and headed for the car. I learned my lesson after Riverhead and had towels, jandals and a change of clothes in a bag, just in case I needed them!At the time I wasn't sure if I was glad to have done this race because the uphill was quite torturous! But now I am glad that I did it, because in comparing my time to others that we've finished close with in other races I can see that I was quite a bit slower and I think its because I psyched myself out and built it up to be a scarier beast than it really was. I finished the race with plenty left in tank which means that I could have given more on the way back instead of conserving energy for a hill that never came!
Other races in the series:
Race Report: Blackmores XTERRA Race 2 - Riverhead Forest
Race Report: Blackmores XTERRA Race 3 - Totara Park
Race Report: Blackmores XTERRA Race 4 - Waiuku Forest
Race Report: Blackmores XTERRA Race 3 - Totara Park
Race Report: Blackmores XTERRA Race 4 - Waiuku Forest
Congrats on finishing! That sounds like a really tough race! I can see how it would have been easy to talk yourself out of going since it had rained that morning. That sucks that it was so muddy and messy at the end! I just hate getting all muddy!
The pasta dish that Kane made the night before sounds delicious, though!!
Yay trail running!! That does look like a brutal hill though. It's always so worth it when you get to the view at the top though isn't it?!
Wow this sounds so tough! I do not love running in the rain ever since my marathon last year where I spent 5 hours running in the rain. I would have gone through the same thing, talking myself out of doing it and looking for excuses...but you did it! Well done :)