Innehållsförteckning för October - November 2016 n8 från Trail Run

MUST WATCH Rich with historic race footage and lively interviews, this fantastic documentary traces the running movement over the past 50 years. The film fearlessly tackles such contentious issues as women’s right to run and the long fight against antiquated authorities to professionalise the sport. Meet Kathrine Switzer, Bobbi Gibb, Fred Lebow, Steve Prefontaine and Noel Tamini in a fabulous offering by Swiss documentarian, Pierre Morath. A must-see for all runners. SUUNTO HEATS UP Suunto’s latest product release includes Suunto Movescounts Heatmaps. These maps allow the user to identify sport-specific training locations and determine the amount of traffic over these routes. Whether choosing a route for its popularity (possibly for safety reasons) or avoiding the crowds, the online interactive tool allows users to download the selected route to their GPS…

HITTING THE THIRD UPHILL WEIGHT CARRY, I WAS BROKEN… A GUY WITH A SPARTAN TATTOO ACROSS HIS CHEST GAVE ME A HIGH-FIVE AND I WAS LEFT ALONE. WITH NO ONE TO HOLD UP APPEARANCES FOR, I STARTED CRYING. THE TYRE AROUND MY SHOULDERS WAS DAMN HEAVY AND MY LEGS HURT. THEN A RUNNER IN FRONT OF ME CROSSING MONKEY BARS BURPED OUT – A PENALTY OF 30 BURPEES WAS ENFORCED FOR OBSTACLE FAILURE, COSTING TIME AND OFTEN A PLACE.Max Bell, 2nd place, 2016 Wairua Warrior. Imagine this… you are running up a backcountry hill in the middle of nowhere. You hurtle around a corner and come face-to-face with a wall. A literal wall – made from wooden planks extending over head-height and completely covered in dirt from the shoes of…

I HAVE BECOME EVEN MORE AWARE THAT NATURE IS A MARVELLOUS STRESS RELIEVER: QUITE SIMPLY IT FORCES US TO BE PRESENT, AND WHEN OUR MINDS ARE FULLY ENGAGED IN THE PRESENT, WE FIND LESS ANXIETY AND GREATER JOY.Nigel Muir You don’t get to do life twice – it’s kind of a one-shot-for-glory gig. Volunteering for an extreme mission when you’re not quite sure you have what it takes makes you nervous: there’s a gremlin inside that’s not too encouraging. I wanted to look my gremlin in the eye and silence it. I wanted to replace it with an inner champion. Well at least that’s the pep talk I was giving myself as I pushed ‘send’ on my entry for the Old Ghost Road 85km Ultramarathon. It was nearly Christmas and…

EDITOR’S CHOICE Kawerau King of the Mountain Location: Putauaki, Kawerau, Bay of Plenty Date: Saturday October 29 Distance: 8km, King/Queen, 4km Prince/Princess Terrain: Single steep climb, equally steep descent Difficulty: Extreme Note: Trans-Tasman International Mountain Race Challenge partner. Description: There is no more perfectly sublime way to beat yourself up than in a mountain sprint race – and the sight of the ‘locals’ standing on the start line wearing gardening gloves should offer a clue of what is to come. These guys and girls have quads of steel and a passionate love-affair with eye-watering, heart-stopping, utterly fearless descents. Come and wreck yourself on the maunga: whether running for fun or attempting to crack the prestigious Sub-60 Club, you will be hooked, I promise. EASING IN The Salmon Run Location: Rakaia…

Looking for dinner inspiration? Meatballs are a delicious and easy weeknight meal that will give you the fuel you need. Combine your mince mix and roll into balls ahead of time, then simply store in the fridge to make this recipe even speedier on the night. Adding grated carrot and courgette into the mix is a great way to increase the recipe’s vegetable content. The addition of fresh thyme leaves to traditional potato mash makes a tasty change. If you’re lucky enough to have any leftovers, these meatballs would be delicious for lunch the next day. Enjoy! CHEESY MEATBALLS WITH THYME POTATO MASH AND CHERRY TOMATO SPINACH SALAD READY IN: 30 MIN PREP TIME: 20 MIN COOK TIME: 25 MIN THYME POTATO MASH 600g potatoes, peeled and diced 2cm 1…

SKYLINE TRAIL, WANAKA, NZ Distance: 23km Photographer: Image supplied by Red Bull Defiance Runner: Braden Currie and Dougal Allen The good dirt: Currie and Allen catch the sun as they reconnoitre Skyline Track for the Red Bull Defiance multi-sport event. 1600m of climb takes runners over Roy’s Peak and Mt Alpha with a ridge section so deliciously enthralling, the organisers plan to include a run-only category in the January 2017 event. ULTRA TRAIL AUSTRALIA, KATOOMBA, NSW AUSTRALIA Distance: 100km, 50km, 22km, stair climb, kids run Photographer: Simon Carter / Onsight Photography Runners: NZ’s Anthony Hancy (137) chases Australian Ian Wheatley (139) at the 2016 Ultra-Trail Australia The good dirt: With a wide range of distant options, Ultra-Trail Australia is fast becoming an iconic bucket-list item, wending its way through the…

FINALLY – HEAVEN FORBID – THERE ARE INJURIES. INJURIES HAPPEN AND WE EXPECT THEM: THAT IS WHY THE COURSE TEAM HAVE FIRST-AID TRAINING AND INVEST HEAVILY IN COMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT. If we met in the street, you wouldn’t recognise me because you have never seen my face. But I have seen you at your best, and also at your worst. I’ve seen you dig deep and sometimes come up with the goods, and sometimes not. I know how you tackle obstacles; what you shy away from and what you embrace out on the trail. I’ve watched you struggle with the heat and the rain, the hills and the mud. I’ve seen you cry when you thought no one was watching and I can tell by your weave and the slump…

“I had heard about it the way minor-leaguers hear of Babe Ruth or teenage climbers learn of Everest, which is to say I don’t remember the moment someone said ‘Western States 100’,”muses Scott Jurek in ‘Eat and Run’. Jurek, of course, became a stalwart of the California event known as the world’s oldest 100 miler, winning seven consecutive times through 1999 and 2005. Man versus horse – unusual beginnings The Western States story is well known: Gordy Ainsleigh’s horse pulled up lame ahead of the Tevis Cup Ride in 1974, so he attempted the ‘100 Miles – One Day’ trek on foot and proved it was possible, finishing in 23 hours 42 minutes. Ainsleigh famously said afterwards: “I wanted to quit. But no one was coming – the horses…

I DO 90 PER CENT OF MY TRAINING FIRST THING IN THE MORNING, SO I’M UP JUST AFTER 4.30AM,Mel Aitken Mel Aitken Age: 39 Family: Married to Steve with two furry cats No. kilometres run per week: 120-140km No. pairs of running shoes owned: 4 currently on the go A reluctant runner When Mel Aitken decided to enter the police force, her first training for the 2.4km timed run was a painful affair, involving breaks between each lamppost. As she says of that time: “Running was my enemy. When I think back to when I wasn’t a runner - if someone had suggested I enter a race, I would have told them where to go.” That could hardly be any different now. Since completing more than 30 marathons in the…

It has been said that to understand a person you must walk a mile in their shoes. That sentiment ensures that mountain running remains largely an enigma – heralded as both superhuman and stupid in equal measure and with little glory. Except for the glory of the road end – a hinterland that separates us from a different world. For trail runners, lacing up and leaving it becomes a ritual and an addiction. For the intrepid soul stood nervously at Putara road end hours before dawn, with a traverse the entire length of the Tararua Mountain Range ahead, that doorway is like none that has come before and no lacing up of muddy footwear will feel the same after. An entire mountain range, in one full pivot of the…

Invariably runners are aware of the bigger off-road races in Australia, particularly Ultra-Trail Australia in the Blue Mountains and perhaps some of the others around Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Unsurprisingly, given the vast country that it is, Australia has a lot more to offer and it is not all flat. It was my good fortune to spend time recently exploring parts of the Red Centre (the colloquial name given to the southern desert region of Australia’s Northern Territory). I have spent most of the last six months getting ready for the 2016 World Rogaine Championships held at the Ross River Resort, 80km east of Alice Springs. Ever since the championships were announced three years ago, I knew I was going. Why else would you go to Ross River – it…

As my deadline draws nearer (or if I’m honest, further away) I’m stuck with the good problem of which of the awesome races I’ve done recently to focus on; the learning gained from the XTERRA Riverhead super long or the learning applied in the WUU2K Marathon (Wellington Urban Ultra: the 2K relates to the amount of vertical gain). XTERRA Riverhead: Pay back The desire to RUIN myself on this particular event comes from the fact that Riverhead is my home. I live in the village and I’ve spent more time in the forest than I remember. I work shifts and run at odd hours so am often alone (either literally or perceptually) in a forest the size of Rangitoto Island. No matter how much I challenge myself, how taxed…

It is Saturday, 7.55am and I am wringing my hands with nervousness. I have had a terrible sleep: my skort feels too short and shirt too thin: my calves are clumps of knotted rubber bands. I am standing on a 5km start line and it is my worst nightmare. Give me a marathon. Give me an ultramarathon. Give me almost any trail run, anywhere in the world right now – just not this. I have no idea how to run five flat, fast kilometres. Key to this story is: for the life of me, I have no idea why anyone would want to. Judging by the sea of happy faces around me, I am clearly missing something. What is Parkrun? And that is why I am here. I have…

THE BEAUTY OF DWR IS WE CAN USE IT TO RECOVER FROM RUNNING IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO RUN AGAIN.Kiri Price DEEP WATER RUNNING • Whole body supported – no impact loading on joints* • Hydrostatic pressure increases blood flow to the heart by 30 per cent • Heart rate stays 10-15 per cent lower in the pool • 12 times harder than running through air • Increases range of movement as non-weight bearing • Closest cross-training simulation to running • Accommodates form adjustments as compensation is reduced * Can be done in shallow water but carries 50 per cent loading on joints Travelling a paltry 300 metres in 30 minutes is not something I would normally like to announce to the world – especially if I also shared…

WE HAD NO IDEA THAT IT COULDN’T BE DONE… AND WE NEEDED TO FIND A LIKE-MINDED SOMEONE… WHO HAD NO IDEA THAT IT COULDN’T BE DONE.Tim Finn, ‘Couldn’t Be Done’ from the album Imaginary Kingdom This is a ghost story and like all good ghost stories, it starts with a stranger, an old map and a knock at the door late one night. Well, not exactly a stranger – and it wasn’t late at night: rather it was midmorning early 2007 and the man knocking on the door of the Rough and Tumble Bush Lodge, Seddonville, New Zealand, was Ron Humpfreys. Humpfreys had in his possession an original 1886 reconnaissance survey for a backcountry road linking lucrative Lyell goldfields with promising Mokihinui territory. He was looking for a…

It is winter, a time when the common cold is indeed common. It is a time when viruses fill our respiratory tract with rivers of catarrh (snot) and our psyche with dread. The best laid plans for running glory are put on the couch to rest and recover. What do we need to know about running through the cold and flu season? Of all the illnesses that may inflict us, respiratory tract infections are by far the most common. The majority of these are viral upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) with mild to moderate symptoms for usually less than one week. The average adult may expect two to three respiratory tract infections in one year; children and adolescents about six. The widely accepted categorisation of symptoms into above and below…

NOT ONLY DO YOU NEED TO BE INCREMENTAL WITH YOUR PROGRESSION, YOU NEED TO BE CONSISTENT. IF TRAINING IS NOT REGULAR ENOUGH, YOUR BODY WILL NOT BE STIMULATED TO MAKE CHANGES AND WILL REGRESS TO A PREVIOUS LEVEL OF FITNESS (OR UNFITNESS). In the early days, running can feel challenging and, at times, demotivating. What seemed like a simple concept of getting out there and putting one foot in front of the other can become disheartening when it feels ‘hard’ most of the time and you don’t know what you should be doing to see any improvement. In the first part of this series we looked at getting training intensity right: learning to read body cues to run within your aerobic zone. We also identified that the body has a…

EAGLE POSE (Garudasana) Practice: Find a flat spot on a rock to balance in eagle pose. Alignment • Start with a nice stable base in mountain pose (tadasana). Bend knees, keeping them soft, then take left foot across the front to the outside of the right foot (legs are crossed at the thighs). • Soften the right knee a little more and press right foot into the floor. When balanced, hook the top of the left foot behind the lower right calf, balancing on right foot. • Take the right arm up in front, elbow bent and fingers pointing skyward. Bring the left arm up underneath the right arm. Snuggle the right elbow into the crook of the left elbow and cross the forearms so that palms press together. •…