Me vs The Taupō Ultra

The Taupō Ultra 50km was going to be a bit of a training run for me, as part of the bigger picture toward the 50 miler at The WILD. I thought it’d be a really good test of where I’m at, and how much I’ve got to do to be ready for The WILD.

Then, you know what happened, my motivation collapsed, and I did not a lot of running, bordering on none.

Then, all of a sudden, it’s Taupō time. Undertrained? Nah. Tapered. Super-extra tapered.

I really rate the Taupō Ultra course, especially if you’re a first-time ultra go-er. The beautifully manicured trails and the (relatively speaking) low elevation gain. I was training for close to 5,000m of vert over 50 miles, so surely less than 1,000m over 50k was going to be a walk in the park. Ha.

A super luxurious 10am start meant a lie-in, two breakfasts, and time to get everything cleared for the day forward (you know what I mean, right…? 🚽). Note to self: search for more events with a 10 am start.

In an ultra, it’s always handy to have a plan, because at least then you have something to throw away as soon as you start. My plan was not to go crazy on the first 10km, for this is a fairly decent downhill all the way to the lake. A trail you could probably get a bit overexcited on and regret in the quads later in the day. I stuck to that plan and slotted nicely into my groove. Go me.

Up until Kawakawa Bay, I’d been happily cruising along with a mate, gasbagging away. At the first climb out of the bay, he told me to shut up as it was time to breathe instead of chat. Annnd… away he pulled. We kinda knew this would happen, and figured I’d just catch him up on the descents.

A combo package of a pee in the bush, losing my flask over a bridge, and, well, the downhill not being technical enough for me go to my happy place (technical and fast), I didn’t see him until I got into Kinloch aid station (and he was leaving, looking super strong).

Proud moment: I stopped at Kinloch and had a proper feed. I knew my normal go-to of carrying a sandwich with me and pretending to eat it as I ran was doomed for failure. It did mean he’d be gapping me even more, but hey, I was fed.

I later proved my theory, by carrying my second sandwich in my hand the whole way up the headland, thinking I was eating it along the way only to realise at the top that I’d not had a single bite.

The other theory I proved right was that strength and conditioning works. Or, to put it another way, lack of strength and conditioning doesn’t work. I should have gone to the gym. I should have done leg day.

I started to feel my lack of leg strength before Kinloch (20km in, sore, heavy legs, 30km to go… ru-roh…). Getting myself up and around the headland out of Kinloch wasn’t my finest moment. But, the grey matter kicked in and I managed to enjoy the pain and suffering. This is why we do these things, right?

If, at this stage you’re thinking “I bet his mate has finished by now” (like I was), but wooah, come around the corner maybe one km from the final aid station and there he is, hands on knees, head hanging low talking some gibberish. Turns out he ran out of water 40 minutes ago, so after a massive swig of mine and a health check, I was happy he was going to make it to the aid station. I carried on trucking to Whakaipo Bay.

I spent that last 10km constantly looking at the distance on my watch, doing maths in my head, and realising I wasn’t going to sneak under the 5-hour mark. Crossing the line in 5:01, to see my watch read just a touch over 48km, I cursed myself for making that stupid mistake. Of course, the watch would run short, it’s been 50km of windy bush. Had I known that I only had 5 km to go instead of 7, could I have gone under 5 hours? Dunno. 

And to be honest, I don’t really care. I thought I would, but I don’t. 

I’m just stoked to have ticked off my first ultra in over three years. For, somewhere, shuffling around the headland loop, I realised I remembered the date. It was two years this week that I had my third and final heart operation. 

It’s not about the times or the positions. It’s about you vs the trails.