Ultra Marathon Story

I really love running. I always have been. When my Mum needed some milk, bread, or anything from the shops when I was young, she would give me the money and point me towards the shops. Off I would set, slowing down only when I got to kerbs and to the shop, and then I’d pay for the groceries, zip away the change and set back off in the opposite direction, sometimes only slowing down to put the milk on the kitchen table.

My friends noticed this early, and whenever they would see me appear in the distance moving at speed, they would break into a chorus of that Bruce Springsteen song – you know, “Baby we were born to run”. Was I bothered? Of course not. It was true. I have always loved running. It just feels like what I am meant to do. I represented my school at state meets and did OK, but when it comes down to it some kids are just faster. And I have a good job, am making money that an athlete needs to be representing their country to earn, so I can’t really be too put out that the faster kids are the ones who are winning state meets, going on to represent their state and Australia. When it comes to big competitions, I am cheering along with everyone else.

I still run for pure enjoyment though. A few friends that I made from meets when I was younger and I tend to go for a run every weekend, and we never go to the same location two weeks in succession. We have our favourites all right, and we do go back to them – we’d have run out of places to run by now if we didn’t. The constant change is important though, getting different terrain under our feet, mastering different surfaces and getting the hang of how to run the course quicker next time. It’s bags of fun,.

Last year we entered a regional ultra marathon. The looks I got from my wife and work colleagues were – admiring would maybe be the wrong word – pitying, that’s it. Everyone knows I run, everyone knows how much I enjoy it, but running fifty miles in a day? They thought I had gone mad. I practised week in, week out, three times a week. I practised every day in the week leading up to it, with a single day off to recoup a bit of energy. Moreover, I drank so much water that everyone stopped calling me “Bruce” (Springsteen, remember?) and started calling me the Camel.

I asked for that one. I had bought a hydration pack from www.liquidpacks.com , and I was constantly refilling it before practices. When the big day came, I was in better shape than I was when I was 18. I placed about 17th out of a field of 40, but I beat both my friends and I felt surprisingly good. Because I listened to my body and could give it what it needed, I know how to do this now. I am going again this year, and so are my friends. They have revenge in mind.