18/1/20 – I Run in a Land Down Under

G’Day Cobbers! We’ve been here for 10 days and already we are talking like the locals, adding an ‘O’ on the end of everything.

It’s fair to say it’s been a pretty full on time in the land of plenty. Inbetween the wine, touristing and birthday cele’s, there has even been time for some running.

First up, a parkrun in Sydney. Having been very hot on the previous day, I was concerned about how I’d go in the heat. Thankfully, we awoke to a cloudy day with a touch of rain in the air which seemed perfect. Also the air quality seemed ok. It had been an issue recently as the Australia Bush fires wreaked havoc and the drifting smoke had seen many City parkrun’s cancelled, often at short notice. A particular worry for both of us for reasons that will become clear.

We had chosen to do Greenway parkrun which is our Aussie rellies local course although they were unavoidably engaged elsewhere that morning, so we ran it alone. It is a fairly flat out and back course which seemed ideal, especially for Neil, still adhering to his physio’s advice to run on the flat. Once I started, however, I found myself coughing and catching my breath a fair bit which made it difficult to get into my stride. Although not enough to cancel the event, the smoke was definitely present and it seemed to really affect me. I adopted a run/walk strategy, similar to Neil’s physio plan and this got me ‘round.

Neither of us achieved a great time, Neil being more affected by his sore glute, than the smoke. On the walk back, it dawned on me this would be the last run of my forties! Nothing for it but to mark this inauspicious occasion with a hearty breakfast.

We spent my birthday night staying in a lovely hotel on the waterfront in Sydney with the most stunning Harbour views, we woke to a beautiful morning so it seemed only right when we woke up to head out for a run along the water past the Opera House. Thankfully, there was no trace of the smoke that has blighted the weekend’s run. An iconic place to have the first run of my fifties, albeit a gentle 30 minutes. If only all marathon training could be done with views like this.

Later that day we headed to the airport to fly to Tasmania for a 10 day road trip. The planned birthday shenanigans and the smoke haze meant I wasn’t able to fit in a longer run. Also with Neil under orders not to exceed 5k, we had to get creative.

Whilst training for York last summer, we had swopped out a distance run for a walk and it seemed to work really well. After a night in Hobart we headed off the next day for a couple of days in Freycinet National Park. We decided to walk up and over the Mountain pass, to the beautiful Wineglass Bay and Hazards Beach.

Although it was only just over 7 miles, it was very tough on the legs with plenty of steep ups and downs. Whilst it was a really enjoyable walk, both of us really felt it in our legs. Neil managed to shake his leg soreness off quickly, but his glute wasn’t that happy about the previous day’s endeavour. And after a full day spent driving, the very thing that caused his problems in the first place, he was also in poor shape come Friday evening.

So dawned the morning of the Launceston parkrun. On waking, my calves were still so sore I wasn’t sure I would be able to walk, let alone run, however this really wasn’t an option. Today’s parkrun marked a complete year of parkrunning – we racked up 55 over the course of the year including Christmas Day, a New Years Day double and an extra weekday parkrun in Germany for Unity day. Hence why we had both been anxious not to have one cancelled at short notice. All 55 runs were at different venues, too! Never mind physio, anyone got the number of a good psychiatrist?

The course itself was a lovely out and back – running from the local stadium out along the levee into a forested park, before returning back along the river to the finish. I really do prefer this type of course to a multi-lapper… two is fine, but for some reason I mentally struggle with anything more. Many of our recent English runs have been three laps plus, so these Aussie parkrun courses have been a welcome change for me.

With stiff legs, I found it tough to begin with but as the run went on and the adrenaline started pumping I got steadily faster. Neil struggled with his glute again, which was disappointing as he’d noticed there was less pain on his daily miles prior to the drive. With another couple of long road trips in and another distance day hike in Cradle Mountain on the immediate cards, his check-in call to his physio is, I suspect, going to be ‘interesting’. With my calves still fearfully protesting, the chances of being happy with our next parkrun in Melbourne look slim.

Ah well, there’s always Perth the week after. I’m determined to get one good run in down under.
Onyas!