Our marathon debutantes were Duncan Price , Michael Stark, Abi Griffin, Paul Dack and Emma Chandler. Also competing were Mary Jackson, Jenny Cawood and John Brown.

The debutantes had prepared since January and most had to negotiate the usual hurdles of injury, illness and the normal interruptions of life (life often gets in the way of running doesn’t it?). Paul Dack had a faultless preparation that included a sizzling 1:29 at Noosa Half. Paul ran perfect 5km’s splits at 22min until the 35min mark and then cramps hit him hard and he struggled home after an otherwise magnificent run. He crossed the line in 1:29 for an impressive (if not painful) debut.

Next across the line was Michael Stark who missed out on the run last year due to injury. A bike fall two weeks out caused some concern but he shook that off for an excellent debut at 3:35. Starkie is our tallest runner and the marathon is typically a huge ask for big guys but he’s pulled it off. Since the start of the season when Duncan Price crossed the finish line of the Twilight Half there’s been a lot of jabber heading Starkie’s way about being beaten by the light-footed copper who then reprised his act at Noosa. Duncan got the flu during his taper and his preparations were thrown into disarray before the race. He toughed it out and crossed in 3:53, giving the ascendancy back to Starkie who must be complimented on his lack of sledging.

Starkie said “I didn’t worry too much about the Half marathons because I’ve always thought the true test of a man is the marathon.” Jerrod made another excellent debut at 3:41 and has shown that apart from being a much fitter and better-prepared runner he has nailed the headspace dimension and was able to stay in the hurt locker for as long as he needed to.

Abi Griffin had numerous injuries during her marathon training and ran with Emma until the 35km and stormed home for a brilliant debut of 3:49. Jenny Cawood clocked up yet another marathon with an excellent time of 3:55. Emma Chandler had a tough day at the office feeling a bit sick but also toughed it out and made a great debut at 3:59. Emma combines being a working mother of four children along with lots of gym, cycling and run training. Mary Jackson yet again chaperoned another runner to their first ever marathon and finished in 4:26. John Brown ran what I think is his first marathon in 5:22.

Lessons Learned

I think all the debutantes learned that the marathon is a different beast from shorter races, especially the Half. Runners who posted very fast times at the Half were unable to match that equivalent time in the marathon due to the X-factors of cramp, dehydration and fatigue. The marathon is a respecter of nobody, and it must be approached with the knowledge that it can throw up some challenging physiological and mental challenges that you otherwise don’t experience in training or racing at shorter distances.

Mary suggested that runners do at least one of their long training runs at the same time as the marathon (instead of at 5am when it is cooler) and this proved to be very wise advice. Runners suffered from the higher temperatures.

The golden rule of nutrition is that you don’t consume anything on race morning that you haven’t done in training. This leads to unforeseen issues and this proved to be the case.

Coping with cramp is a complex issue, and there is no easy answer. The more marathons you do the better your legs cope, with smarter training and perhaps better pacing and also a more thorough hydration and nutrition plan for the run.

Having said the above, every marathon finish is a major success, and puts you in the top percentile of the population. The many months of training required lots of difficult balancing and juggling with time and other important commitments and the training sessions themselves required dedications. The runners can rightly feel immensely proud of their achievements.

I missed out on Gold Coast due to injuries but I am hoping to give the Brissy marathon a good shake on August 1.

I headed up under an injury cloud and under orders from the physio not to race at full pace so I decided to pace Jerrod (Dawg). Jacko was a late entrant, picking up a place from a guy who blew his calf getting out the water in the swim on Saturday.

Sunday morning came and the weather was awesome. Wayne ran with the 1:30 pace group although their pace leader was all over the shop. Paul Dack (Wayne)  showed that all his training has paid off and decided to run his own race with more disciplined pacing. Duncan Price (Sherlock) took an early lead and kept within striking distance of Wayne, whilst Michael Stark (Mancoach) donned the headphones and ran his own pace as well, showing good discipline not trying to chase Sherlock. Behind Mancoach I was pacing Dawg. and doing a bad job! Between his Garmin and my experience we still couldn’t slow down and ended up a minute too fast over the first 10km. Dawg had it in him to run the 1:40 group pace so the plan was to stick with them all the way until the final 3km and then get out in front of them and get Dawg a 1:30something after his name. Jacko was holding it nice and steady just behind Dawg, and around him was also Jenny Cawood and Tommy Donnet, who turned up flustered 5 min before the start having run 4km to get there and not having picked up his race pack! Despite that bad start to the day Tommy looked strong and put in a big effort on the road.

Wayne took Striders line honours with a sizzling 1:29:43, average pace 4:15, 127th our of 1,195, 23rd in age group, lap 1- 44:16 – lap 2- 45:26) – congratulations Wayne!

Sherlock, the sly copper that he is smoked in well ahead of Mancoach with a 1:32:48! 187th out of 1,195, average pace 4:23 per/km, 27th in age group, lap 1- 45:2, lap 2: 1 47:26 [laps 10.55km] Well run Sherlock, as usual pacing himself very well with an economical style.

Mancoach continued the theme of the day: massive improvements, with a creditable 1:35:58, average pace 4:32, 39th in age group, lap 1 – 46:58, lap 2 – 48:59.

Dawg toughed it out home after passing the 1:40 marker with 3km to go. When we crossed the 21km mark I said “Dawg, 100m to go, you’re a hurdler, and the mongrel took off and left me for dead, streaking through. 1:38:51!!! average pace 4:41, 58th in age group, lap 1 – 49:58, lap 2- 48:53 NEGATIVE SPLIT!!!

Jenny Cawood was a 1:43:00 on the dot, and was smiling from ear to ear at the finish as she has been fighting an injury niggle.

Average pace 4:52, First lap 52:17, 2nd lap 50:42 ANOTHER GREAT NEGATIVE SPLIT!

Tommy Donnet ran an excellent 1:51:28,  Average pace 5:17, 1st lap 52:19, 2nd lap 50:09, 17th in age group.

More news to come of more Striders, stay tuned.

The 10km CLEM7 Tunnel Run is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to run, jog or speed-walk the entire length of the Clem Jones Tunnel in a competitive event, and is limited to 5000 participants only.  The event is set for early 2010, and will be held from 6.30am to 9.00am on a Sunday prior to the tunnel’s official opening to traffic. The date will be announced just weeks before the event, so lace up your shoes and get training now! The Tunnel Run will happen on the morning of the planned CLEM7 Open Day. Even if you can’t take part in the Tunnel Run, there will be an amazing opportunity to walk through the tunnel at your own leisure later in the day, and more information is coming soon. Everyone taking part in the historic CLEM7 Tunnel Run will help raise funds to support the Royal Children’s Hospital Foundation in working wonders for sick kids.

Make sure you click on this link to register your interest. check out the route map with elevations below:

To all those of you who participated as well and have been missed in this summary….my apologies. Please advise the club coordinator of this error and it will be rectified. It’s not about boasting. It’s about pride and celebration of a successful and enjoyable effort.

Full results can be found at the website link below Abi’s results.

Bribie Tri Series 09-10 Race 2
2XU Bribie Is Race 2
Provisional Results By Finish Order
Pos : 200
Name : Abigail Griffin
From : Strathpine
Time : 1:42:26
Categ : F30-34
C.Pos : 4
Swim : 0:15:10
Pos : 201
C.Pos : 4
Cycle : 0:53:36
Pos : 212
C.Pos : 3
Run : 0:33:38
Pos : 199
C.Pos : 5

http://www.bribietri.com/#

I met some interesting people. One 67 year old who ran 25km’s in 2hrs and is apparently a bit of a legend as far as running goes, Goes by the name of the ‘Sylva Fox’. Julie and Wendy, Margaret of Toowoomba Road Runners asked after you but was overjoyed that neither of you were present.

Margaret was adamant that the event was not a race and proceeded to run just over 2hrs! Another runner whose name I did not get who is aiming to nail his first sub 3 hr in Canberra this year. Anyway, many others as well. As for the ocean…it was so cool to run alongside the ocean with breaking waves some metres away for about 90% of the 25km. That’s it for now. Well done to Victory Sports for organising. See you next year with some club mates hopefully. I (Tony Banfield) did the 25km in my target time of sub 2 hr. Now the next time you’ll see me running will be 1 Feb 2010.

Abi & Karen - Mo Sista's

Tony Banfield took on the mighty Mt Coottha recently in the MousDash, here’s how it went:

It was a beautiful morning on Mt Coo’tha. I met up with Karen and Abi and a friend of mine from work. We had a chat and a catch up and got down to business. BTW, Karen and Abi were both sporting very respectable Mo’s as Mo Sistas, and they were’nt even fake! Kidding!

Started run at just past 7am and next thing found Karen up ahead some 200m up the hill. We asked her where Abi was and she said she had charged ahead. So off I went in search of Abi. Found her some 200m further ahead. Stayed and chatted for awhile and then I headed off. This was all on the initial hill of about 2.5 – 3 km long – depends who you ask. Run was up and down from there on in with a good descent lasting about 3 – 4 kms where I think we all took a crash course in racing downhill. I know I did. Some must do it naturally, hey Abi & Karen? Makes me sick!

Thanks to Photo Events for excellent pics.

I ran two races whilst in South Africa recently. The reason for running these two events was because I was allowed to and to get out and see a couple of ‘old’ running mates. Second object did not work out as well as planned as many ‘old’ mates simply did not show even after agreeing to. I did however meet up with some of the people that I trained with whilst preparing for my first Comrades in 1994. That was special and unexpected.

First one was The Voet (Foot) Of Afrika which took place on Saturday, 03 October 2009. This outing consists of a 10km, 21.1km and a 42.2km. There is also a 4km run on the Friday before which is known as the Toontjie (Toe). If you’re ever in the area at that time of year and want to test yourself on a tough route then this is one for you. I ran with a friend whom I’ve known since approximately age 6 and committed to finishing the run with him and we did. It was a fun outing and you can see more detail of the route and the events in the links below. Below are our results in the 21.1km. I did not purchase photos so they may not be published as a result, but check them out  here, and here.

The second run was the Gun Run on Sunday, 11 October 2009 and this outing consists of a 5km, 10km and a 21.1km. I did the 10km with my niece of 23 and we finished the run in 1hr 04 min. It’s a fun event with plenty of entrants and you can read a bit of the history of the race in the link below. No photos from this event so you’ll just have to take my word for it that the SPS kit made an appearance.

For the second year a Striders team headed up the range to Toowoomba to participate in the Toowoomba Road Runners 10km, Half and Marathon. Last year was a successful year with me taking out the marathon, and the pressure was on to retain the title. We also had a few contenders for the 10km and Half race amongst our women.

We split into two cars and headed up the range on Saturday afternoon, and stayed a caravan park close to the race start at the university. Last year Gabe handed out ear plugs to those sharing his cabin so I made sure I got up there in the first car and organised the cabin allocations so that Gabe would be placed with some other poor unsuspecting coots. We had one female cabin and two male cabins.
We gathered at La Porchetta’s Italian restaurant for a thoroughly enjoyable carbo loading feast late afternoon, and then gathered in one of the cabins to talk race tactics, dreams, hopes and fears. We agreed that what was said on the weekend stayed on the weekend but I would love to divulge some of what emerged from our discussions!

We all rose early on Sunday morning and got ready for the big day. I arranged my own water bottles for each drink station so that I could grab and go. Some of these bottles (although clearly marked) were stolen by the Half and 10km runners but it worked out OK for me.

The Marathon
The marathon started at 6am and I was the only Strider in the field. The pace was fast and a group of 5 runners formed early in the first lap and we were running about 2 minutes ahead of schedule for a 3:  marathon. I backed off the lead pack a little and brought my pace down to about a minute ahead of schedule.
Going through the halfway was a buzz with Striders in full voice led by Jerrod a.k.a. J-Dawg hollerin and hootin’ like he was on LSD!
The first three laps were run pretty much to the second on schedule for my pacing. By the time the third lap started the lead runner had moved well beyond reach. By the start of the 4th lap the 2 & 3rd place runners had moved away from me by a long way. The 4th lap was a hard one, but made  a lot better by the constant mobile support of J-Dawg and Ernie who were following me by car, playing a selection of classic 80′s rock and waking up the neighborhood. The strains of ‘Eye of the Tiger’ could be heard a long way off.

West street is a long 4km stretch and on the 4th lap you just don’t think it’s going to end until it hits the ocean at Perth! I came home to a warm welcome from fellow clubbies, taking 4 minutes off my 2008 time but this year only in 4th place for a 3:04, to pick up the age group award. There’s not much more you can ask of the body I guess, 2008 was just my year I guess!

10km
Pamela Murch took out 3rd in the women’s with 46:46 taking out Jerrod Smith (J-Dawg) 49:42, and Ernie Patterson 56:27.

Half Marathon
Our biggest number of entrants was in the Half. Greg Hall (Greg Dog) was our first Strider home in 1:34, followed by Michael Stark in 1:41, Gabe Petrie in 1:44 and Wendy Clark taking 4th position in the women’s with 1:45 (see below).

Sandy Scott ran in on 2:00 hours to take age group honours, although this was not acknowledged in the awards ceremony, so we’ll do it here: well done Sandy!

Post Marathon Feed
We moved on after a shower and the awards ceremony to Sizzler for the second year in a row for a satisfying feed. By the time dessert came around a competition developed between two Striders, on male one female. We will protect the identity of the female competitor, but here is her dessert followed by J-Dawg’s: (yes those are dinner plates by the way!)

J-Dawg ran out the winner (only just), by taking a no holds barred approach to finishing his plate:

The ride home was loads of fun as well (for those who stayed awake!)

Thanks

A big thank you to Andrea for her support through adminstration and on the day.  She made a big difference to our trip by making sure everything was well organised.  Thanks to Jonas as well for his support.  The Toowoomba Road Runners are an excellent club, and well served by the many people who helped make the day possible.  I certainly tried to thank every marshall at a water station or turn for helping to make the race possible.  Racing can’t happen without willing helpers and we appreciate you very much. Thanks to the runners who went up and congratulations to everyone, you performed so well on a tough course!

Next Year

We plan on going every year now and making this a carved in stone annual event.  It’s a great 24 hours away.  We fit in a lot, and it’s all a good time with lots of laughter. Remember to reserve this weekend in late October next year and don’t miss out on the fun!

by Stan.

Mary Jackson, Pamela Murch & Stan Fetting after the Gold Coast Marathon.

A large contingent of Striders travelled to the Gold Coast Marathon this weekend to contest 3 distances: 10km, Half and Marathon.  We had a number of people doing their first Half, including the incredible Tommy Donnet, who came in at 1hr43min taking out 5th place in his category, Male 60-65.  Congratulations Tommy, you continue to astound us all!  Another great debut was Pamela Murch in in the marathon.  Fresh from Wales and a recent newcomer to Striders morning and evening sessions, Pamela overcame injury and posted an amazing 3:46. Pamela’s beaming smile almost outdid the sunshine and she’s probably still smiling today.  It’s great to see someone do so well after so much hard work and enjoy the benefits so visibly!

Karen Brown nailed a 1:42 Half, must be that new 2XU outfit she was sporting!

Emily Glegg contested the 10km and took out 8th place in her category with a 49:01. Others to debut at the Half were Jess Flintoff with an awesome 1:51 and Jo Filmalter who came in under her goal of 2hrs at 1:57.  Well done girls!

Stan just missed out on a sub 3 marathon with 3:00:23 after struggling with a calf injury from 25km, and Jenny Cawood continued her remarkable run with a 3:44 marathon.  Mary paced Jo C through her first marathon with a 4:47.  Mary rarely races for herself and always helps others out, a true clubster and coach!

I have the results of those who I know, and will add more as I become aware of them.  Here’s the list so far, (all showing chip times and not gun times) and some more pics:

The Tent Crew on Saturday after setting up in the club area: Fabian Gonzalez, Stan Fetting, Brett Jackson, Jerrod Smith

Brett Jackson aka Jacko gets in some virtual running on race eve

Some of the Striders crew: Fabian, Emily, Jerrod, Mary, Pamela, Jonas, Stan, Jacko

SANDRA SCOTT

Half 01:53:10

Cat place F45-49 49

FABIAN GONZALEZ

Half 2:26:21

Cat place 40-44 506th

PAMELA MURCH

Marathon 3:46:11

Cat place  F30-34 49^th

JONAS MARTENSSON

10km 00:52:05

Cat place M35-39 161

EMILY GLEGG

10km 49.01

Cat place F18-20 8^th

JERROD SMITH

10km 46:54

Cat place M35-39 75

STAN FETTING

Marathon 3:00:23

Cat place M40-44 21^st

GAVIN HENDRY

Half 01:34:51

Cat place M45-49 49

BRETT JACKSON

Half 01:38:20

Cat place M45-49 88

JO-ANN FILMALTER

Half 01:57:42

Cat place F35-39 289

MARY JACKSON

Marathon  04:47:17

Cat place F40-44 112

KAREN BROWN

Half  1:42:28

Cat place F40-44 64

JO FIELD

21KM  02:30:25

Cat place F25-29 511

LISA MAY

Half 01:43:36 1

Cat place F30-34 78

THOMAS DONNET

Half 1:43.17

Cat place 60-65 5^th

JENNY CAWOOD

Marathon 3:44:36

Cat place  F40-44 28th

JESS FLINTOFF

Half 01:51:12

Cat place F30-34 202

Dear family, friends & members of the running community,

I hereby extend an invitation to yourself, family & friends to participate in ‘Ian’s Run for Cancer’ on Saturday 04 April 2009 from the Chalk Hotel. The 10km / 5km event are participation run / walks to raise funds & create awareness about prostate cancer. I have attached a flyer for your information.

The events will start at 7:00am from the Chalk Hotel. Cost to participate is $10.00 with ALL funds raised going to The Cancer Council Queensland.

My father Ian Gale died of prostate cancer on the 11 April 2007, I established this event last year in rememberance of all that he did for me during my life – something which I will never forget.
To remember Ian, I have a very special announcement, which will be reveiled on the morning. This is will a very special occasion & I would love for you to be present.

Registrations will open at 6:00am, with a couple of speeches at 6:50am before the run / walks commence at 7:00am. Afterwards, please book a table & have breakfast at the Chalk Hotel. www.chalkhotel.com.au

Last year, over $6500.00 was raised for the Cancer Council Queensland. If you live out of town or cannot make the event, but would still like to make a donation, then please contact myself & I can send you out a donation form.

Many thanks to our corporate sponsors: Chalk Hotel, Sportsco (Toombul), Active Stride, Brooks, adidas, Nike, The Run Inn, McWilliams Wines, GaleForce Running Squad.

Many thanks, I look forward to your continued support of this event.

Yours in running

Chris Gale

Click here for the PDF flyer: gfrs-ians-run-for-cancer-2009