Kowen Moonlighter September 2019

A 12-hour race held overnight on a 7.5km lap course... what could go wrong?

UTA50 2019 – more images

Before the race, after Dad's passingThat's my name (and the names of about 2000 other runners)Before: taking some time to take it in. It is important to take at least a little time to appreciate it during the race too.Before: What a beautiful placeThe rock where I retired in 2018. It was good to acknowledge …

UTA50 – Part 5 – #DoItForDad

The UTA50 is quite possibly the most difficult thing I have ever done, made more so by my father's passing just a few days before.

UTA50 – Part 4 – But first…

Really not prepared for this Dear old dad The day before I took leave my dad had a fall at his home. We visited him in hospital in Newcastle on the Saturday - an 860 km, 9 hour round trip - and had a long conversation. On Sunday his numbers worsened so he was moved …

UTA 50 – Part 3 – Gearing up!

(To paraphrase Eddy Merckx, "Don't buy upgrades; run up grades." I followed that advice... to some extent.) Sponsorship offers welcome (but highly unlikely) Gear change There was nothing wrong with my gear in 2018. Everything fitted in the 12 litre Kathmandu vest pack, everything worked. But over time and through experience and stuff wearing out …

UTA50 Part 2 Training… somewhat underdone

(Part 1 was https://templeblot.wordpress.com/2018/09/26/uta50-entered-achievement-unlocked/) Apart from the odd high-volume weekend, this was the program I followed Best of intentions I had plenty of time to prepare for UTA50 since entering September 2018. Among bouts of running I finished Fitz's Classic 165 km with relative ease and l'etape 170 km (story to come). Then this thing …

UTA50 entered – achievement unlocked!

My wife took annual leave to be ready to enter the UTA50 as soon as entries opened at 10:00 AEST today. I thought that she was overly keen as it took a few days to sell out last year. At about 15:00 today UTA announced that UTA50 was sold out. Thank you! As Chikako was …

Hang on… I started a 50km off-road run in May!

NASA says that missions fall into one of two categories: Missions that are successful, and missions that are rich in learning opportunities. What a lovely event! As a location it's hard to beat the Blue Mountains. Clean air, established trails, enough altitude to affect performance and brutal but beautiful conditions. Everything was well-signposted, the collection …

Hang on… I’m doing a 50km off road run in May!

It's all dawning on me now. Last September my wife entered both of us into the Ultra-Trail Australia 50km (UTA50) in the Blue Mountains. Why?My wife wanted to do a 50km event in her 50th year. Fair enough, however she was convinced that an on road ultra marathon would be boring. So let's try one …

Qantas entertainment making the hours fly by

My rare trips to the cinema are now limited to flights! So, what's on for February 2018 flying to Japan? On the CBR-MEL leg I got into the mood with a documentary about Japanese sword, kimono and pottery made by traditional methods. Fun Fact: Mud is involved in the manufacture of all three! Painted on …