The Gazuntite

Event review
Best to say that the Gazuntite Trail Runs has turned me from a skeptic to a believer.
When the race shirt was revealed, I quipped maybe I should take up road cycling! It looked more like a cycling shirt that a race shirt; but hey, I’m a believer now, it is the coolest race shirt I’ve ever got.
You camp overnight before the event at Atiu Park. I was sceptical of this, but having camped, I’m a believer in this too. It’s a great setting. Next year, I’d bring my family and make it a weekend. It’d be really cool if there was a kids' event too, the last 4k of the 80km course would be perfect for this.
This is a tough course. It’s largely paddock, so it’s hard to keep a consistent pace. If you haven’t run paddocks before  then, like for me, there’ll be a steep learning curve.
It’s a 25.5km loop, run 3 times, plus a 4km extra mini-loop at the end.
Each 25km is about 5km of 4WD road, 3km pine forest trail, 2km grass trail, 15km paddock. There’s little bits of bog swamp and other stuff in there, but nothing major. To my count, there are 12 cattle stops, 14 gates to jump, and 7 fences to clamber over.
There is about 2km of pine canopy cover over a 25km loop so it’s also very exposed.

Race report
A week before the race I headed out to Aitu Regional Park. I asked Shaun (Collins, Race Director) for directions, he said there’s no real route, I’d have to download it to my watch and follow it. Who knew you could do that? Turns out it’s a piece of cake! Who would have thought! That first experience though was crushing. It took me 5 hours and 13 minutes to do one 25km loop. I was doubtful if I would even finish within the cutoff time. It was so hard. Fences and gates to jump, bog, swamp, creeks and paddocks to traverse. Oh the paddocks! They hide potentially ankle turning holes and stuff, and make running hard. The week leading up to my race was one of the gloomiest ever for me. I looked at the course, it’s not high, it looked idyllic and fast. My hopes on this recce run were dashed. I really doubted myself and my silly decision to do this. I had now decided to start at 6am, rather than the original plan of 8am. This meant I’d have to camp overnight, not ideal (I like my home comforts the night before), but I’m a big-boy now. 

I packed my gear up and headed up to Aitu Park on Friday night. I arrived at race HQ, quickly setup my kids' play tent which I was sleeping in, got the gazebo over the top of it, said hi to everyone, got my race pack and hit the sack. After half a block of dark chocolate and 3/4 bag of red liquorice and a little bit of reading Percy Jackson I turned the light out at 9:20pm.
At 3:28am my alarm went off. I woke up and put my oats on.

This time I was experimenting and doing oats & cream. I thought I’d up my fat intake, ready for the race. It took forever to cook. The night sky was amazing. I was the only one awake and watching shooting stars to the gentle hiss of my cooker. I then boiled the kettle for my Japanese Lime green tea. I then lazed around till 5:30. About now, my tummy felt funny, I thought it was hunger, so I ate a fried egg and peice of bacon. 15 minutes later, I realised it was nerves not hunger. I started to feel really crook! I ambled up to the start line with my support box and listened to Shaun’s race briefing. Popped my box down and lined up for the pre-race photo.

The hooter went and we were off. It was a fast start, so come the first hill 300 metres on, I walked and let everyone else run past. I nattered on to Reesh beside me as we walked up the hill, we then trotted when it went downhill, and walked the next bit. We were less than a km into it, and could already see the lights on the horizon. We were, I’m assuming, right at the back! Down some paddocks, across a little bog, and up more paddocks. Some of us were walking up this hill. I couldn’t see anyone in front of me, they were gone-burgers. Still, it’s a long race, maybe I might catch some of them.

As we go through aid station two, we’re heading into the sun. Shaun’s put some tape across the ground, and a nice car has stopped there, so we carefully run past the car into the rising sun. It’s the access road and a fast downhill. I look for the next sign, I know we turn left here somewhere, but I can’t see the sign. We jog on for a few more minutes, and I yell out to the two in front: “Are you sure we’re going the right way?” The guy in front yells back, “I haven’t see any markers.” Which is code for, "we’re lost". So I turn around and run up the road, no jogging this time. Right where that car had stopped as we were running into the sunrise, where Shaun had put the tape, was where we should have turned left. That was my first Homer Simpson, doh!, moment of the day.

We now go down through pine forrest, which is a pretty rough patch and hard. My mood is low, with the stomach issues and the difficulty of the course, I’m having my own little internal pity party. Everyone now and again you pop back onto gravel road and go for it, it feels so good to be able to run fast, especially in a race full of cattle stops, gates, fences and paddocks. My game plan was to run the downhills and flats, and walk the uphills; but I’m struggling to run anything, I’ve never (except for last week) run paddocks. I’m learning quick! We finish loop one and coming into the start aid station I weave my way in, literally staggering up the hill. 

Shaun quips I shouldn’t be weaving yet. I quip back he should have put compass on the compulsory equipment list! I know Shaun is a rogaine and orienteering guy, but it’s a struggle for this park runner. I check that it’s OK to dump my jacket, and it is, so I leave it, my third water bottle (overkill!) and my headlight at the start. Some more banana, watermelon and the ultimate endurance food (peach) and I’m off. 

Pic by Photos4Sale

I’ve been going 3:30 and still feel crook. My stomach is just terrible. Lap two begins. On the big steep climb up the paddock there’s a photographer, I start to run, there’s no way I’m walking past a photographer! Then I decide the pity party is over. It’s time to put all my ideas behind me, ignore my watch and just enjoy the day. I look back over the harbour, soak in the view, eat my peach and decide it’s going to be fun. I won't stress, I won't push, I’ll just jog this out. I carry on slowly. Somewhere about a third of a way through this lap, all the 34k field overtake me. First place man comes tearing by, then second, then first female, then person after person... as I walk up hill. Oh I wish I could run!

I make my way around the course. I realise about six hours in that I’m feeling okay! My stomach has settled. (It turns out your body is slow to process protein, and I had too much, once that was gone, I was ok). I jog up the hill to the start. Shaun says I’m looking good, I respond "I’m feeling good". He challenges me, "what about negative splits?" I look at my watch and realise I’ve just done the first two laps in roughly the same time, maybe I could? I jog out for Lap 3, watermelon, bananas, and peach in hand. On the first hill I jog past some 34k'ers I recognise. And this is the pattern, hill after hill. Turns out they had all gone out a bit hard by the looks. I try for beast mode as I run up not the steepest, but the longest hill, it’s grass and easily runnable as I run by the 34k guy who was second. It’s always nice getting the mutters as you pass. Then it’s downhill for the third crossing of the swamp from Lord of the Rings, before heading up Mount Doom! Mount Doom is steep and not runnable for anyone except mountain goats! When you finally get to the top, many of the downs are just as steep, and very hard to jog; it’s easier to walk them. There’s some 16k women slugging it out up the hill, one with a twisted ankle, I stop and we natter, and then they soldier on.

This lap goes reasonably well. I’m tired, but feel strong. I’m coming back from the out and back to the point when a marshal cheers me on, telling me that the lead group is just in front of me by about 20 minutes, and I’m doing well. I really had hoped to see someone else, anyone would be good. But I’ve seen no one on the horizon in front of me, or behind me, it’s like I’m on my own desert island, it’s pretty lonely. But fortunately 97% of my training km are done on my own, I’m used to it.

Shortly I hear Alan announce the inaugural winner coming through. I reckon I have about an hour to go. I slug it out to the start line and the aid station. My wife Angela is there this time, she says there’s just one person in front of me, but I’ve seen no one for ages, who knows where they are. I didn’t realise at the time that she was saying I was in second place. I grab some watermelon, banana and a peach and I’m off. This is the final loop, of who knows how long. I reckon it’ll be about 5k. As I start up the hill, I’m mercifully diverted left and my hopes rise, maybe it’s only 2k? But then I’m back on the blasted lower track, and heading back down to the bog swamp, and Mount Doom. I can’t believe Shaun’s going to send us up Mount Doom again on our last loop! I’m doing the mental calculations of how long it’ll be back to the start, this will be massive. Maybe 8k? I just can’t figure out how I’ll make it. Then, I’m diverted sideways up a bank, mercifully away from Mount Doom! Shaun’s a friend again! There’s a little hill to crest, then it’s a bomb downhill through the roughest paddock of the race, it’s heaps of fun, I loose my footing and tuck and roll. There’s no one around though to laugh with me. Wish there was someone to film that.

I struggle through some reeds and come to a creek edge. It’s hard to see the ribbons marking the trail, and I hope I’m following the right route. The flattened reeds tell me that some mugs have been here before me. This is when it gets a little “Barkley Marathon-ish” - there is no way over the creek except to jump. The bank is too high to go down or up. I stop for a minute, wonder what to do? My legs have done 75km+, they’re tired, I take a bit of a run up and go for it. And you know what? I almost made it, but with no one to watch again! Where’s Alan Ure when you need him?! I can’t find markers, so crest a little hill and then recognise a familiar paddock and know where I am. It’s up a fence line to get back into the paddock and then down to the finish.

I cross the line ecstatic I’ve done it. Angela says I’m second, I can’t believe it, second overall! But while I’m sitting down, Yoann Mornet who started at 8am rather than 6 comes in quicker than first place Jack Page. So Jack is now second and me third. And let’s be honest, I’m not a second place kind of guy; tenth is more me. Hopefully this race goes ahead next year too. It’d be a great warm up to the 2019 Hillary!

With Race Director Shaun Collins. Pic by Angela Blundell.