Procrastinated about doing this race and finally decided that I needed to know if my fitness is up to the challenge of the hills under race conditions. Today was the last day of summer so I had to get out. Over a 120 runners turned out this morning to run the Equalizer in Garigal National Park. Conditions were dry but very humid. My race plan was simple, go hard and then hang on for as long as I could. The plan went well till about 5km where I fell in step with another runner with whom I started a conversation. We ran and chatted happily, no one was overtaking us, we were enjoying the morning – just like a regular Sunday training run - until 11km into the run where we started being overtaken. Suddenly we both realised that we were supposed to be racing - that was the end of the chat, I put the foot down and regained my position. I finished in reasonable shape in 1:24 and enjoyed the run, enjoyed the chat and pleased as punch with the effort. However, the nailpolish took a battering but the toes are still feeling fine.
The mist covering the valley was a magical sight and worth the effort to get here at this time of the day. I felt great throughout the run and the tightness in the left hamstring/glute seems to work itself out or else I got good at blocking the message getting through. 
I finished 30km in 3hrs 14min, feeling strong and like I could have gone further. This is just what I needed, a confidence booster. Now I can turn my thoughts to seriously attempting to run the 6 Foot Track in two weeks time.
The landscape of this trail has an incredibly wild and unspoilt look yet in sections is only metres away from houses. I felt strong on the hills and ran an even pace for each lap.
Finished the morning with a swim at another hidden Sydney gem – Malabar Beach - watching the start of the Malabar to Little Bay 2.7km ocean swim. This mornings run was a great confidence booster - maybe I will be fit in time for the Six Foot Track Marathon in three weeks time?
I never noticed the number of tracks which seem to go off in all direction. Ignorance is the price you pay for just blindly following others without paying too much attention to the surroundings. Lesson learnt – I enjoyed the short run in perfect weather this morning, beautiful cool morning and no hint of humidity. Legs recovered well from yesterday’s long trail run.
It must be a bit of nostalgia for the feeling of fitness I experienced during the Trailwaker training that led me to run the last two sections of the Trailwaker course this morning. It could also be the thought that this section of the trail was not likely to have bloodsucking leeches which seem to be a feature of the northern sections of the Great North walk trail. I started at Georges Heights and ran to Roseville Bridge at Davidson and back. This section has a mix of everything bush, harbour, road and traffic. It was a great morale booster to find that I was moving quicker that the peak hour traffic on the Spit Bridge. I felt great heading out reliving the memory of the Trailwaker event which was on almost 5 months ago. On the return leg I had to walk up every hill and run all the flats and down hill section. I got to the end in an event split of 1hr 52min each way. Looking forward to a coffee at the lovely café in the old barracks with views out to the heads. Disappointed to see that the cafe has closed down – maybe the gem is too well hidden. 
Overall I was slower than I wanted to be at this stage of the program but pleased to get out and complete the full circuit of 30 km in 4hrs 20min. Thrashed for a few hours after getting home and feeling nauseas. Decided it would be wise to rest on Sunday.
Several runners lost their footing and got swept downstream. It all turned out well but so easily it could have gone pear shaped. We emerged from the trail like survivors of some horrific event, a bit bruised and battered and loosing blood rapidly to the freeloaders attached to our ankles. From here the group seemed to disperse in all directions and I ran the next 18km on my own through what is my favourite bush trail - the descent to Apple Tree Bay. I really enjoyed this section of the run till the last 6km when my hamstrings started to feel tight and I ran out of water so I alternated walking/running, finishing the run in 5 hours. Lucky that only seven leeches managed to hitch a ride to the finish, curiously mainly on my right foot.
In truth the hills are few on this circuit and are not very steep but it felt like a huge effort. The legs are slowly remembering what to do and it felt great to push through mentally. Very happy to run a steady 14 km in 81 minutes. I read an 
Finished the morning with coffee from Blue Moon Bakery, watching a rainstorm approach over the sea.
So unlike these georgeous hush puppies.
which The Hammer swam, along with Judy, Al, Michele and 700 others, 
followed by the now traditional post swim brunch which was at Paul and Judy’s house at Collaroy Plateau. It is funny but this swim always signals to me the winding down of the long, lazy days of summer and time to return to work.
The Hammer and I had the most incredible two days driving through the beautiful landscape of the mid-west of NSW with mallee scrub giving way to the flat, open, treeless plain around Hay then the appearance of greenery around the Weddin Mountains National Park and then the Great Dividing Range into Bathurst - and all in drought and 43 degree heat. 
As it turned out we were running on the Yurebilla Track which is the location of a 56km 
Before reaching Eagle on the Hill the trail passed through private property with grazing cattle stopping to have a look at us. Reaching Eagle on the Hill was a bit disappointing as the trail here is along the Old Princes Highway which used to be the main road into the Adelaide hills before the motorway was built. But even more disappointing was the fact that the Eagle on the Hill Hotel which had stunning views over Adelaide is now a private residence. 
We turned around here and retraced our steps to Brownhill Creek. I had a great run on the return leg, no hamstring pain and it was cool with intermittent rain. 
Great weather for running – most unusual for Adelaide in January. I have a lot of work to do if I am to have any hope of lining up for Six Foot Track Marathon in eight weeks time.
I knew I would be in for a tough day. It was 35 degrees when we arrived and the temperatures were predicted to be even higher tomorrow. To avoid running in the heat the race start was moved to 5.20 for everyone. After an awful dinner at Bogong Hotel and a restless night sleep we were up at 4.00 am to get ready. 
We arrived at the Mountain Creek campground at about 4:45 to find runners milling about in the dark, chatting in very hushed tones. Not sure if the hushed chatter was because we were not fully awake or just being careful not to wake up any unfortunate campers who were not running. After picking up our timing tags, few stretches - it was light enough to start. The first two kilometres of the run are on a narrow flat dirt road with several creek crossings. The track was wide enough to accommodate the runners without crowding, but I found the early morning grey light difficult as my contacts don't work so well in the poor light. Being careful not to trip early I was slow getting to the start of the climb up The Staircase, a 7km trail to the top of Mt Bogong.
The elevation gradient on this section ranged from 16% to 20%. I very quickly found out that indeed my heart can fit through my throat and sit thumping between my ears for quite some time. Thankfully the temperature was lovely and cool while the trail was in tree cover for at least four and a half kilometres. I was breathless most of the time partly though the exertion of clambering up the steep gradient and partly through the stunning views of the sunrise hitting the valley below glimpsed through the trees as I continued to climb. By 6km into the run the group had pretty much sorted itself out, I had stopped a few times to take pictures and let quicker climbers get past. 
Once above the tree cover the mountain top can be seen sitting proudly in a lovely blanket of alpine flowers and short tufting grasses carpeting the ground amongst the granite boulders. 
I was elated to be so close to the top and feeling great I wandered off daydreaming when I noticed that the trail was dropping down and I still had not reached the summit. Also the runners that were in front of me and behind me had disappeared. I could hear some distant shouting; I turned around to see the summit behind me. Doh... I missed the deviation to the timing tag at the top of Mt Bogong so I turned around and ran back to the top with a steady stream of runners passing me. I made it to the summit, quick picture and register with the marshals and I was off in almost last place down the 4km section to Cleve Cole Hut where I was going to turn around. Again I started daydreaming about how beautiful this must look in winter when you could cross country ski across this open saddle. I found it difficult to run this section as the track was only about 10 inches wide and lots of sharp rocks protruding. I was carefully picking my way through being mindful of how I got injured previously. So a slow descent through the trees to reach the hut in 3 hours. I was a bit disappointed with the time but I kept reminding myself of what my goals were - test the body, not get hurt and enjoy the scenery. 
So far these goals where ticked. The track back to Bogong from the hut seemed to go forever and knowing I was alone made me wander if I was on the right track. But before too long I could see the marshals waiting for me to pass before they could leave the mountain. They ticked me off and informed that there was one more runner behind me. Yippee I was not going to be the caboose. The breeze on top of the mountain was lovely but the sun was out and I could feel it burning the back of my legs, so I was keen to get down to the tree cover as quick as possible. I fell over almost as soon as I started the descent. Skin off the left knee and left hand but not a big fall so I was good to get going quickly. The descent down the mountain was even trickier that the climb, the steepness was almost nauseating for someone who does not like heights. I focused on small section of the trail in front rather then looking down. But for the most part I was going down sideways to stop myself from sliding down. It amazed me how quickly the caterpillars were back out on the trail, dangling in my face, getting caught on my cap and shirt. I let go of any time goals and just focused on running the section I could safely run, which were not many, and controlled sliding down the rest. Five hours twenty and I was off the mountain and back on the road leading to the campground. I thought if I run this hard I can probably finish in less than five hours thirty minutes. The road was in full sun and I felt great to stretch out and run without fear of tripping or falling over. I ran through all the creeks on the way and got to the finish in 5:32. Very happy with my effort - no pain a little skin missing but nothing serious, I survived the climb up and the slide down. Temperature was 32 degrees when I finished at 11 am and the March flies, whilst slow moving, were fierce biters. Almost as soon as I was in the car I thought how great it would be to come back, fully fit and give the whole course a go, but not on a day like today. The Victorian alpine country is stunning. The Hammer like many others suffered in the heat and did not make the cut at 35km where he was very relieved to stop and wait to be picked up. The winning male finished in 7:20 and the winning female in 9 hours. A truly impressive effort by both winners.