Four days to the 2009 Kepler Challenge

Well, here I am….just 4 days from the Kepler after close to 6 months preparation and my very first ultra trail run. I wish that the past week had been a good one, but after warning off nasties and injuries for all of these months I’ve been sick in bed for 4 days with a virus that made my body feel like it had been beaten with a baseball bat. It hurt alot. Thankfully I’m back on my feet now and I’ll be heading down tomorrow with my Wife, Amy. Last night I had my last massage with Dorothy which was really nice and relaxing. It also helped flush out the crap that has clearly been accumulating in my poor little body after the days in bed with my hot water botty :(

Amy & I are hiring a car and taking an easy drive down to Te Anau which was a decision we made some months ago- as the stress of flying to Queenstown and then hiring a car from there just seemed a bit silly. This way we can also see some of the magnificent sites on offer via Mount Cook  and Lake Tekapo and also stop at leisure on route, and need I say I can even catch some ZZZZ’s if I’m still feeling a bit blaahhh. On arrival we are checking into the Hotel Distinction and by all accounts we have made another good decision as it boasts 2 Queen beds in the room with a bath, a hotel spa, sauna and pool. All of which I’ll be taking full advantage of…..’room service!!” :)

Gearing up!

Meanwhile, I’m packing my gear for the day, listening to electronica and celebrating that I’ve made it this far and already managed an ultra already on the way. While listening to music and packing stuff I’m now starting to feel super PUMPED for the utter suffer fest on the weekend and the rush of goose bumps while visualizing running on those mountain peaks is a great sign! Talking of kit….this is what this crazy bastard will be carrying.

• TWO Thermal (or equivalent) long-sleeved tops
• ONE Thermal (or equivalent) long johns
• Thermal (or equivalent) Hat and gloves
• Windproof and waterproof (seam-sealed) jacket and windproof and waterproof (seam-sealed) overpants
• Survival Blanket
• 5 Em’s Power Cookies
• 8 serves of Leppin Gel
• A can of Coke
• 250ml Leppin energy drink
• A few cramp eze tablets
• Camera
• iPod full of electronica (mainly Underworld) and some chilled tunes too
• Sun Glasses
• Backup sports insoles (incase my ankles start to give up on me on the downs)
• 3 litre bladder that I’ll fill up 2 litres
• Some anti-chafe cream (a dollop)

As you can see- this pack will be super weighty on the first half of the run….but once I start chomping and slurpin’ things will lighten up. I’d prefer to not have to carry all of this kit, but I’ll be up 2500m where shit can change quickly, and I’d rather be prepared than hypothermic. And of course, what I wear can also count towards the items that I have to carry- which will be checked at registration as well as the first fuel station. I’m sure that there are a few more items- and if I can stop procrastinating enough o get the job done I’ll be sure to find out :D

Race plan

People talk of a “race plan” and I’ve not run an ultra before so I have limited experience of this. I suppose my “plan” is to keep my cadence at 90 steps/ minute as much as possible on the flats and climbs, eat and drink regularly, stretch when needed and save some juice for the last 10KM…aside from these obvious thoughts…that’s about it. I’ve also decided to not muck about to much at the 10 feed stations and have a good stretch “here and there” as required-  as I’ve worked out that just 5 minutes of “fwaffing” at stations equates to 50 odd minutes (yikes!).  Of course there are a few items that I’ll have with me that are not really seen as standard, such as that infamous can of coke, a decent dollop of ant friction/ chafe “stuff” just in case and a few sports insoles to keep me happy- but I like my comfort blankets :) Another thing that I’m going to do it tape up my nipples :/ yep….that’s right…it will be cold and I’ll be sweaty so I’d rather be safe than sorry! And finally…….I’ll make a point to enjoy the views and the mountains!

I best get stuff sorted this end and I’ll be taking my laptop with me so hope to blog as the craziness unfolds. Wish me luck and I hope that I’m  close to 100% come race day! And to my beautiful wife Amy- THANK YOU for your support…..as I would not have made it this far with out you xx

Meanwhile here are some facts and figures:

Total distance: 60KM

Total KM running uphill: 8.2 + 4.1 + 3.4 = 15.7km ascent

Total elevation running uphill: 1197m + 150m = 1350metres

Total KM running downhill: 1.5 + 16.2 + 4.5 = 22km descent (holy shit!)

Total descent: (same as above)

Other info:

The highest point is called the ‘Luxmore Saddle’

There are 10 drink stations – (see map image)

Race records:

Phil Costley
4:37:41 (2005) Phil broke the 12 year old record by almost 4 minutes

Zelah Morrall
5:23:34 (2003) a new race record twice in a row!

See you out there!!!

Update: I did it!

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Related posts:

1. 2009 Kepler Challenge Photographs
2. Kepler Challenge…I did it!
3. Kepler Challenge – some ultra marathon training tips
4. First week of Kepler training DONE :)
5. My first ultra marathon distance of 49KM

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009 at 12:36 pm and is filed under Running and tagged with kepler challenge, trail running, ultra trail. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.