I plan to run this city (and its surrounds)

I am not a fan of winter, however if it continues like this I might just change my mind.  It was 30 degrees in PE on Monday.  In fact I think I am going to change my mind anyway, regardless of the weather.  My reason –trail running!  I love trail running.  I have done a few over the past couple of years, but really go into it last year.  This year it is becoming a bit of an obsession!  So much so that my sister and I have entered a multi stage event in November – I am really excited.

It is the Fairview Dryland Traverse and is over 4 days, the first day being a 8km prologue with parts of it through the Cango Caves!  How awesome. The next three days are each about 27km.  VERY EXCITED!  However after last week’s little 23km run I have realise I need a lot more training, on trails, it is very different to the roads.  So I have tried to set up a schedule of events to keep myself going and excited. I won’t be able to do all of these, and some are more for fun that training but here goes.

JUNE 2013

1^st June – 11km or a 5km in Baakens Valley – http://www.trailadventures.co.za to enter and for more details

2^nd June – Muck Run – for fun 8km of mud and muck (Entries for this event are SOLD OUT and yes, I do have an entry) http://www.zports.co.za/

8 June – Royalston for Rhinos – This is to be held at the Royalston Reserve, which borders on the Lake that Firefly mentioned in a couple of his blog posts - HERE.  Entries are open there is a 15km and a family 5km –  http://www.trailadventures.co.za

15 June – 18km or a 5km – http://www.trailadventures.co.za to enter and for more details

17 June – 10km or a 5km SOS Horsing Around Trail Run Series –Schoenmakerskop, More details on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/SosHorsingAroundTrailRunSeries

22 June – Katberg Eco Trail Run;  18 km, 10km, or a 5 km Details on below

29 June – Heartbreak Hill 21.1km.  Not a Trail Run but fun nonetheless.  I do plan on doing this.

JULY 2013

28 June to 7 July – KNYSNA OYSTER FESTIVAL.  There are a whole LOAD of events to choose from (not all sporting, it is the Oyster Festival after all.

6 July 2013 – Knysna Forest Marathon 21.1km and 42.2km- Charity Entries still open.  (I am not doing either of these – long story)

7 July – HoutKapper Trail – 27km (Entered) there is also a 16km and a 8 km .  This is the first time this event is being held and is part of the Knysna Oyster Festival Details HERE  (Yikes – it says the 27 is for “experienced trail runners – not sure if I consider myself that yet)

20 July - 10km or a 5km SOS Horsing Around Trail Run Series – Bushpig Adventure Cape More; details on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/SosHorsingAroundTrailRunSeries

AUGUST 2013

4 August – Woodridge Trail Runs – not a series this year, this is the only date  (I have done a couple of these races before – read HERE)

9 August – PROVISIONAL _ Details to be announced.  There are talks about a 25km out at Cockscombe.  Should be awesome, can’t wait to hear more.

10 August – 10km or a 5km SOS Horsing Around Trail Run Series – Walker Drive Shopping Centre – More details on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/SosHorsingAroundTrailRunSeries

9 – 11 August – Southern Cross Multi Day Trail Run – Details here http://www.southerncrossadventure.co.za/calendar.html  (I won’t be doing this, but have heard it is fantastic)

SEPTEMEBER 2013

8 September – Sunshine Coast Trail Run – Details to Follow (I did this last year, was awesome, read about it HERE)

14/15 September – Urban Run – entries open on 1^st June.  www.zports.co.za  ENTER , ENTER, ENTER!!!! Although not a trail run it is one of my favourite events of the year!  LOVE IT.  HERE (2012) and HERE (2011) are blog posts about the previous 2 runs held.

14 September – Baviaanskloof Trail Run – Entries are very limited and open soon.  I will not be doing it, but would like to one year.

22 September – Rhino Run – There are numerous runs held around the country with the PE event being held at at Crossways Village it has a 6km, a 12km and a 20km  Details on Facebook HERE

21/22 or 23/24 September – Otter Run SOLD OUT.  I would like to do this one year, but have heard it is very tough and entries are limited.  I have walked the Otter Trail a couple of times and it is an awesome part of the country.

NOVEMBER 2013

7 – 10 November – The BIG ONE – at least for me!  The FAIRVIEW DRYLAND TRAVERSE! Can’t wait.

If I have left any out that you think I would like or that you would like to include in this list please just put it in the comments and I will add it.

I also believe that there are training runs most Thursday nights, one held at Dodds Farm and one held at Hopewell Estate (run by the Charlo Running Club).  I unfortunately have art classes on a Thursday night and so have never done these.

So, PE people you can have no excuses not to get out there and see the surround areas.  Some of these runs are actually right in the centre of the city.  You will be amazed at the beauty we have here – we are very fortunate!

I had fun! Honest.

Today I am not drinking any water!  None!

I know it is supposed to be good for me blah, blah blah…. But the toilets are on a different floor to my office and I am not going up and down them unnecessarily.  My legs are in pain, actual physical pain!  I am so stiff I am surprised I managed to drive myself into work this morning.

On Saturday I did a little trail run and today I can barely move.  Truth be told I could barely move at the 19 km mark on Saturday but still had 2 km to go, or so I thought.  The 21km ended up being 23.5km but hey what is an extra 2.5km among friends….  Quite a bit it turns out, when your legs don’t want to move.

There has only been one time in my life when my legs have been more sore whilst running, and that was on the last 3 kms of a 32km training run where I started out too fast.  The ache felt so deep in my legs it felt like my bones where aching.  My calves were sore, my thighs were (are still) sore, my hips were sore.

On Saturday I could not decide which was worse – running or walking!  Both were equally as painful but after a while I figured that at least if I ran I would get to the end quicker and could sit down, so I ran.  That and the fact that there were 3 girls right behind me who told me they were going to catch me… Hell no!  Pain or not that was not going to happen (and who says I am not competitive).  Also fortunately the last 2.5km were downhill.

All in all though it was a great race and the route was fantastic.  I absoloutely loved the first 19km.  It was organised by Zports and held at Elephants of Eden near Woody Cape and at one point you could see Bird Island and the sand dunes.  It was stunning.  I love getting out of town and doing trail runs.  I did this one last year (link here), but they changed the route slightly, made it longer and reversed it.  The scenery was amazing and for quite a bit of it I ran with friends – until my legs decided to pack up on me.

I am very glad I did it, and by tomorrow my legs will be back to normal an I will only remember how awesome it was to get out there.

So, Ironman South Africa???

The big question everybody asks me, even before I completed the 70.3 is whether or not I am going to be doing the full Ironman again this year.

I must admit that it is tempting….  Both my brother and sister are going to do it again – it will be my sister’s 6^th full Ironman. WOW.  And it is on my birthday.  I can just imagine how emotional it will be standing on the start, on my birthday with both of them waiting for the canon to blast.

That is until I think of all that is involved and the commitment it takes with regards to the training.  I am not in the right space to do it.  It is not a priority in my life.  Mr and Little OL are.  I don’t want be on my bike for more than 3 hours on a Saturday morning.  I don’t want to then have to run the next day for more than an hour. I want to be at home.  I work full time and the weekends are the only time I get to spend with them.

That is also one of the reasons why I don’t like training in the evenings.  For the 70.3 I was able to train in the mornings before Little OL woke, if I wanted to do the full Ironman I would need to train in the evenings as well.  I am not prepared to do that.  I already go to art classes one night a week, so miss her that night.

And I would need to be asleep by 8:30 – 9:00pm.  I just don’t have the time at the moment to do that.  I am enjoying baking and crafting and the only time I get to do that is in the evenings after Little OL goes to sleep.  I would not be able to do these things.

Don’t get me wrong – I absolutely LOVED training for Ironman last time, but I was in a totally different space.  I was able to make it a priority and put my all into it.  Now I just don’t want to.  Maybe in a few years’ time when Little OL is older I might want to do it again.  That is not to say that this year I am not going to set myself challenges or give myself goals.  I am useless with training without a goal.

This year I would like to run a marathon.  I have never run a stand-alone marathon and would like to.  I would also like to do the Dry Land Traverse in November.  It is a 4 day stage trail run.  It looks awesome.  I think those are big enough goals for the year. Then of course there is Ironman 70.3 next year again……

Ironman 70.3 South Africa 2013

 

I am not very good at writing race reports but here goes – I finished in 7:33:45 and I am very, very happy.   At least this year I actually got to the start line and finished.  A big step up from last year.

I have realised that I am very lucky when it comes to Ironman races.  I have yet to have a puncture or a serious technical malfunction, both of which could end my race.  I did however have a few minor issues, but none of them were race threatening, more of an annoyance.  My bike computer gave up on me at about the 10km mark – it kept telling me I was doing 14 km/hour, which was fine, except I was going down a hill and it fell more like 41km/hour.  When I got to the turn-around point I actually turned if off; it was more of an annoyance than a help.  I then tried to calculate my time to transition based on my watch time.  My Garmin also stopped reading distance after the swim, giving me only the time. Thankfully that was enough on the day.

Then the actual race:

The swim was ok, I am not good at going straight and try to avoid the crowds so swim wide – this meant that according to my Garmin I actually swam 2.3km. The final bouy also moved and ended up on the beach.  I was a little surprised when a wave crashed on my head as I rounded it and my first though was oh crap this is going to be a long 100m if I need to swim it with waves crashing on me all the time, and then I saw the girl next to me stand up. It was waist deep.  My thoughts then were off relief.  I did not have any further to swim.  My swim time – 44:36

I heard later that two men died on the swim.  It is very sad, imagine your son, father or husband (or wife, mother, daughter) goes off to race a triathlon and does not come back.  Chances are you are also going to be there watching.  It must be devastating and my thoughts are with those families.

The Bike – besides my bike computer not working I had fun.  It was not nearly as bad as I expected, and although I could have done without the headwind we faced heading back I enjoyed it.  I was so happy to reach the turn-around in a decent time that I burst into tears.  I knew that that bar any issues it was do able.  My only other problem in the bike was my sunscreen got into my eyes and they started to burn (probably because of the tears earlier).  I could not see a thing and it looked like I was bawling my eyes out.  Luckily it happened near the end and just before the horrid hill everyone was telling me about.  I think it distracted me as I did not notice the hill.  I guess not being able to see can do that to you.

Then the run… The whole time I had been thinking – as long as I can get to the run I’ll be fine. Well I got to the run and it SUCKED!  I just could not run.  My legs just did not want to run – they wanted to walk.  It was hot and I was tired.  I think I must have pretty much walked the whole 1^st 10km.  Luckily as I passed the 11km mark everything seemed to click into place and I started to run again.  Besides Bunkers Hill (which is not nice) I pretty much ran the whole of the last 10km and I loved it.  I finished on such a high, and was smiling and happy, although if I look at the finish photos my sister-in-law took I don’t look that smiley.  I look like “where the hell is the line”, but at least my hair looked good (not).  And few seconds after I crossed the line the tears started again.

So as I a round up – I loved it.  I will do it again!  Can I say that I will train more, nope, probably not?  I am very happy with how this race went considering my serious lack of cycle and swim training, who knew that muscle memory is there.  I do think that the trail running has helped a lot though.

So to everyone that supported me and cheered – at the side-lines or from afar, thank you very much.  I really appreciate it!  It means a lot to me.

Ironman 70.3 South Africa

2012- A year’s Race Review

I am not going to review every race I took part in – that would take far too long.  I love racing!  Ok, I don’t like racing as such – I like races.  I like the spirit, the social aspect and the friends I have that race.  I don’t go out to clubs, pubs or bars.  I don’t even go out much to restaurants or coffee shops – I go to races.  This is where I get my social fill.  I meet up with good friends and acquaintances.  I see my brother and sister and mom.  I chat, I race and I go home.  I love it! (I also feel less guilty leaving Mr OL to watch Little OL if I am “racing”)

I am not saying I am not competitive, I am although it might not seem that way.  I don’t win, I usually don’t even place.  In fact I have been known to be dead cold stone last!  Yip, prize giving has been held and I have walked run across the line.  But I do check my results, I watch my time and I have been trying to get faster this year (it’s worked).  But that is not my main reason.  I just like to take part.

However 2012 did not start well.  My first big race was Ironman South Africa 70.3 in East London.  I got sick 2 days before the race and decided not to do it. A DNS. It was disappointing, but not as much as most people (myself included) believed it would be.  My goal for that race was to get back into training, and I did that. So whether I did the race or not I achieved my goal.

My poor bike – checked in and nowhere to go

However, after the following 6 months I was feeling more than a little bit down hearted.  I pulled out of the PE Herald cycle tour after 75 km with very bad cramps.  It was my first cycle race.   A DNF.  Also, what was to be my first stand-alone marathon, Knysna Forest Marathon, was cancelled due to weather. (photo thanks to Mike Brewis)

Gouna Crossing 14 July 2012

I decided to withdraw a month before the Baviaans Trail run as I did not feel I would be ready.

Thankfully the smaller races went well, and I have enjoyed training. One of my favourites is definitly the Urban Run.

Urban Run – me on the right

I have also rekindled my love for trail running.  I did quite a few of the local trail runs, with quite a few of them being longer than 20km.  I have also enjoyed the 10km road races I have entered and have seen my speed improve.  Also my 21.1km time is almost on par with what it was before I had Little OL and I am happy with that.

I have entered a few triathlons which have been fun.  The first one of the year was the Corporate Triathlon the day before Ironman South Africa.  We had stunning weather – unfortunately for the Ironman competitors it had changed by the following morning.

Corporate Triathlon – Me on the right

Although I have not done as much open water swimming as I would have liked to have done I am happy with how it is going. The last event of 2012 was on 31^st of December being the inaugural Mandiba Bay Mile swim from Humewood Beach to Kings Beach.  The distance according to my Garmin was actually 1.94km and I completed it in 39 minutes – which came as a total surprise to me.

Me hitting the beach (photo thanks to Zports)

I just hope I can repeat that on the 20^th January when I attempt to do Ironman South Africa 70.3 again.  I could not have hoped to end 2012 of on a better note.

I would like to thank all the people that make such an effort to bring all these events to PE and surrounds, I for one greatly appreciate it.

Let’s hope that 2013 starts a lot better for me.  I am positive it will and very excited for the 70.3 (although I probably should have been on my bike a bit more)

No excuses!

Sporty or active residents of Port Elizabeth and surrounds (and those visiting over the holidays) have NO reason to complain that there is “nothing to do”.  In fact the list is so extensive you actually now have to pick and choose.

I have decided to compile a little list here just to highlight exactly how much is going on in PE over the next month or so.  And these are only the ones that I know about.  If you have an event in the area over the holidays you can let me know and I will add it to the list.

Triathlon

Summer Series   

16th December 2012 – PORT ELIZABETH (Competed)

23th December 2012 – POLLOK BEACH  (Competed)

26th December 2012 – PORT ST FRANCIS

The races are sprint distance – so 750m swim, 20km cycle and a 5km run.  It can be done as an individual or as a team.  There is also a run, swim run event which will be held at Port Elizabeth and Pollok Beach events.

Website for more info:  Zports Summer Tri Series

Trail Running

15 December  Van Der Kemp’s Kloof Trail Run

Organised by the Malabar Athletics Club – Starts at 8:00 am, at Van Der Kemp’s Kloof, Water Road, Bethelsdorp

Distances 16km, 5km, 3km

Website for more info:  Van Der Kemp’s Kloof Trail Run  and Malabar AC Facebook Page 

15 December        Discovery Beach Marathon

18 km St Francis to Jeffrey’s bay (3km on tar road followed by 15 km along beach (including a river crossing)

Website for more info: Sunflower Discovery Beach Run

17 December        Cape Recife Trail Run  (Competed)

5km, 10 km and 20km options

Website for more info: Cape Recife Trail Run

Every Thursday – Sixty Minutes of Mayhem

Held every Thursday night at 6pm, run as many loops of 2.6km as you can in 60 minutes.

Website for more info:  Sixty Minutes of Mayhem

Every (or most) Wednesday nights

An informal training run in Baakens Valley starting at Bridge Street, meeting at 5:15 – 10km.

Website for more info:  Free Spirit Adventures – Facebook page

Open Water Swimming

Ocean Racing Series (ongoing – and competed in a few)

Every alternate Sunday at Hobie Beach –starting again on 13 January 2013.

Website for more info: Ocean Racing Series

22 & 23 December – Marina Mile

Held in Marina Martinque with various distances from 25km (ouch) to 500m.  There is more information on their website with regards to the different distances.

Website for more info: Marina Mile

31 December – Nelson Mandela Bay Mile  (Competed)

A one mile (1.6km) swim from Humewood Beach to Kings Beach (one way)

Website for more info:  Nelson Mandela Bay Mile

Mountain Biking

Every Thursday – Sixty Minutes of Mayhem

Held every Thursday night, ride as many loops of 3.1km as you can in 60 minutes.

Website for more info:  Sixty Minutes of Mayhem

17 December – Hopewell Open Day Ride

Starting at 8:00 am and held in conjunction with Masters and Ladies Cycle club, there are various distances from 12km to 30 km.

Website for more info:  Masters and Ladies Facebook page

 So now you have absolutely NO excuse not to put on your running shoes, dust of your bike or put on a swim cap and goggles.  Get out there and do something this festive season.  (then no guilt for that extra Christmas Mince Pie)

Facebook pages to like if you want to keep informed of events in this area.

Trail Busters

Mountain Events

Nelson Mandela Bay Events

Trail Running EC

Swimming Plus

Go Trail Editor

Zports

This weekend – Some lows but also some highs!

This weekend had highs and lows.  I guess they all do, some just more than most.  I think I will start with the lows.

The first and most obvious low is that fact that my sister left for Australia on Friday.  I am going to (am already) miss her terribly.  Thankfully she is still on BBM etc so staying in touch is not as difficult as it used to be.  When I moved overseas in 1994 we did not even have email, never mind mobile phones…. (yes I am that old).  She had just better come back.  At least I know she will be back in April to do Ironman.

Then the second low was that Little OL ended up on casualty on Saturday afternoon.  Thankfully nothing serious, but she gave me one hell of a fright.  We were at a birthday party in the afternoon, and she just started crying.  I picked her up and she was boiling, then she started shaking.  Holy crap – I rushed out of there straight to the hospital.

The highs – I have decided to accept social invitations.  I realised how much I have been saying no to stuff lately (last 5 years) and I need to stop it.  So on Friday night Little OL and I went out.  On the first Friday of the month The Food Shed is held at the Sherwood Garden Centre.  It was loads of fun; I met new people, chatted to friends and ate some food.  Little OL had her best friend there so she was happy too.  I need to do more stuff like that.

On Sunday morning Granny OL (my mom) watched Little OL and I went and did the Sunshine Coast Trail Run.  It was just 8km, but I loved it.  I have decided that I need to try and improve my speed, so for now am going to do shorter races.  It worked for the first 4km – which were all either flat or down hill. The last 4 km were nearly all up hill – I walked!  Also as Mr OL is away and I am relying on baby sisters, I figured it is probably best if I do the shorter races for a bit.  It was so good just to get out there.  At one stage (at the top of the hill) I stopped and looked around.  You could see the sea, the dunes and the farm lands.  So beautiful and so good to be alive and out in the open.

Other highs: I took Friday off as I wanted to spend the morning with my sister before she left.  In the afternoon, I went around some of the charity shops. I  finally found something I have been looking for, for ages – a spice rack, I will do a separate post on the finished product, but I started spray painting it over the weekend.  I want to make bookshelf out of it for Little OL.   I also went to one of the malls and went people watching – sketching.  I sat in one of the coffee shops and sketched people as the walked past – just brief little sketches.  I have not done that in years!!!!!!!!  In fact not since 1998 when I lived in New Zealand.

So, there you have it.  Some lows, but also a lot of highs this weekend.   I am making changes.

It was not always so!

When I was at school I did a lot of sport but none of it conventional school sports. That might have had something to do with the fact that I have ZERO eye hand co-ordination and cannot hit, catch or throw a ball.  As we had to do at least one winter and one summer school sport I did swimming and cross country but I was not very good.  I did not like to practice and as most of my other sports did not involve endurance I could not run very far without stopping.  Swimming was bit better (natural talent) but running…. Oh I hated it!  The races were 4 km every second Wednesday afternoon at a different course.  I would show up, run/walk/wheeze then go home muttering and moaning that I was not a runner.

After school I did nothing for many years.  I loved walking and rollerblading and did that a lot while overseas. When I returned to SA I figured I really needed to do something again.  I took up paddling (canoe and surf ski) I was unfit and always last but it was fun.  The people there were all very fit though and spoke of running and races and things.  It was infectious and I decided I was going to enter the Spar Ladies 10km race.  My first run was not good.  I managed less than 1 km before I turned around and walked back home.  Thankfully the race was over 9 months away.  I remember a conversation with 2 girls at the canoe club, both multiple time Comrades finishers.  I was seriously impressed and mentioned that I had just started running, that I was hoping to run the Spar ladies, but it seemed sooooo far and I doubted I could do it. They just laughed (thankfully not unkindly) and told me that that was how it started.  First a 10km, then a 15 and so on.  My words were “I will NEVER EVER go further than 10km”.  At that stage I seriously doubted I would even make that.  Their parting words were “we will see”.

Well, they were right.  I did a 10km, and signed up for the Knysna half marathon in 2005.  In the end I did not do it that year due to injuries, but I did Two Oceans Half 2006.  Then in 2007 I completed my first Ironman.  Yes, I had only done 1 half marathon, and a lot of people did not think I would manage. In fact a couple of them have come to me since and said they would have bet their house that I would not have finished.  Well, finish I did.  I managed to squeeze in a few minutes before the midnight cut-off.

Me – Sunshine Coast Triathlon 2009

Since then I have run quite a bit more.  I have done Ironman again, taking over 3 hours off my previous time.  I have competed in a quite a few triathlons and open water swims and have recently gotten into trail running. I love it!

Ironman South Africa 2009

I am always enthusiastic and positive when somebody wants to try something new like running or triathlon. I am a firm believe that if I could finish an Ironman then just about anybody could.  I was not athletic, I was not a runner, I was not a triathlete. I did not even own a bike.  I  would probably be last, but I knew that I would finish it and that is what counts.

Me – keeping it fun at the Urban Run 2011

For people that are just starting out with running, my main bit of advice. Take it slowly.  Walk when you need to.  Look around.  Keep it fun.  Do races or something for the social aspect and so what if you come last – somebody needs to.  More often that not it has been me.  Mr OL likes to joke that I get full value out of my race entry fee.

But most importantly just get out there and do it!

And for the girls – get a good sports bra. When I started the one I used was too tight, and I could not breath. Except I did not know it was the bra, I thought it was just because I was that unfit.  Tight is not always better –support is what counts.

Sunshine Coast Triathlon 2009 – 3rd lady out the water and 6th lady at the finish.

Runner’s High

Last week I went to a talk by Tim Noakes.  It was pretty interesting but I don’t think he covered the topic that he was supposed to.  He was supposed to talk about the importance of instilling good habits with regards to nutrition and exercise in children.

He spoke more the high protein, high fat diet he is advocating at present and briefly touched on sports and its benefits.  I have just recently read his book “Challenging Beliefs” and most of what he said was covered in it.  There were quite a few things of interest though and the Q&A session at the end provided a lot of clarity into what he was advocating.  If you just listened to the speech you would have walked away with the wrong impression.

However, one thing he said in his speech was that some people like pain.  Not the “Owww I am injured” pain.  But more then let me go for a run pain.  Some people just like a bit of adversity, whether it be distance or hills or whatever.  I am one of those people.  I realised this again this weekend.

There was another trail run through Baaken’s Valley in Sunday. It was supposed to be 18km but because of the rain in the previous week they had to cut it short for safety reasons.  We were warned that it would be wet and muddy, that the river would be up to our knees and that they would have Coastal Rescue Services on standby to assist at some of the river crossings.  When they said muddy though, I was not quite prepared…. At one stage I lost my leg right up to my knee in squelching mud and when I tried to get my foot out I could feel my shoe coming off.  At this stage I started to laugh.  That kind of mildly hysterical laughter where you can just picture running the next 7km in only one shoe.  Thankfully I managed to get my foot and shoe out, and then had a repeat performance with the other foot.  As I ran along wishing the next river crossing would come soon so I could wash the mud boots of my feet and I continued laughing, no longer the hysterical type, now just the “I am happy” type.

And its true – I feel happy when I run.  If it is a longer run I feel happier… Yes, I know – odd.  By the time I have finished 20km I am smiling quite broadly. (Although it might be because I think I then deserve an extra large chocolate….)

So – with that in mind there is a half marathon this weekend called Heartbreak Hill.  How is that for a name with adversity.  I will let you know whether by the end I am smiling happily or crying with a broken heart.

Heartbreak Hill Route Map 21.1km

Running in the family

I think I might have a genetic problem or abnormality.  That is the only thing that can explain the insanity that has over taken my life.  And seeing as my sister has the same problem I am blaming genetics – more specifically my mom.

Earlier this week my sister sent me information on a trail run coming up this year. She actually sent it to a few people and asked how fit were we feeling… Nobody responded besides me!  I just said “I’m in!”

Well entries were limited to 100, so we set our alarm clocks to be sure we were 2 of those 100..  We made it.  I am skipping around and all happy for most of the morning– and then realised that I now actually have to run 40km on a trail!!! Yikes.

I might have mentioned before that I have never actually run a marathon before (Ironman marathons don’t count as you walk a lot of that).  It was my goal for this year to run the Knysna marathon, which I was pretty scared about doing – and now I am going to do the same distance on dirt tracks – I think insanity is the only thing that can explain this – and my excitement at doing this.

The race I have entered is the Baviaans Trail Run.  40km through the Baviaanskloof Reserve.  It should be AWESOME!  And to do it with my equally insane sister FUN!

When I told my mom about it, she did not help her cause.. Her reaction… “wow that sounds awesome!  Maybe I could do that?”  Yip, definitely a genetic problem.  But one I would not trade for the world! Thanks mom.