Circuit running is not for sissies !!

Self-truth is always a bitter pill to swallow but after the longest night circuit it is a pill that needs to be swallowed.

I have been taken aback with stories from Stuart and Yvette (Two Ultra circuit runners 5 day circuit races) with regards to ultra circuit races and I convinced myself that I could do such a thing. Now with that in mind I have been trying to make myself an ultra runner.

Setbacks dime a dozen, the latest came in the form of an injured hamstring from a yet another failed attempt at a marathon. I received two months physio prior to this event, but I guess it hasn’t healed as much as I thought it had.

Arriving at the event was the start to a spiraling day (night) of smaller events, first no race instructions ever came for the race so when I arrived there I found that instead of starting at 18h00 it was starting at 17h00. Nice not a place to setup the gazebo and at this point it made me wonder why I actually try and help people. There was this selfish SOB from Gauteng parked where the gazebos are supposed to be, I politely asked him to move his car so we could put gazebo up, he refused and closed his car window in my face.

There were three NT registration cars also parked where the gazebo were supposed to be and once again a flat refusal to move their cars. This made me wonder why did I go the trouble to get sponsored energy gels for this race to help my fellow athletes. Fellow athletes indeed.

So all I could do was carry all the stuff to the other side of the field away from everyone, which later that night would result in not one sale of the said energy gels, as we were setup too far from the activities around the club tents. Anyway a frantic scramble to setup and pre race instruction.

So the night would go like this 5 km walk followed by 1 or 2 km run and 1 km walk, it went off well and by 5 km I was really into it as such. I started my run and man I was having a good time putting the events prior to bed, concentrating on the run.

38 km severe pain from the hamstring, which brings me to a slow walk, ice man and off I go again. The ice man does its job and back to running, 42 km it becomes hell again. I decide to do the clever thing and race walk as this does not hurt that much, 54 km and two and half hours to go, easy 16 km no sweat.

My second informs me ummm you are at 50.8 km, no friggin ways, impossible, this came from the posted results and were 20 mins old. I passed over the mat and stopped, said to the oraginsor I need to know exactly where I am, she checks and tells me I am 50.9 km okay so in 20 mins I have done 100 meters.

Now you don’t need to be a rocket scientist here they want 20 km to be done in less then 2 ½ hours, never I am suffering from a hamstring problem, can’t run and my race walk will allow for 2 ¾ hours for 20 kays. No point in putting myself through any more pain so I withdraw from the race, one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. I must say that while packing up I did pass the results board and all of a sudden I was 52 kay but still not in that condition and time frame. This makes me wonder how did this organisor tell me my latest was 50.9 and then post a 52 kay ?

I am disappointed beyond belief and time to do some serious realizations. In my running over the last year I have had much criticism and the occasional laugh at me. It is not easy trying to better yourself as a overweight runner with many who enjoy the thought of failing. Maybe Derrick and Reg are correct and I am not a runner. Just the other day one was having a good laugh at a 10 km run at 1:30, these types of things all sit there and scar away.

So yes time to face facts I am not an ultra circuit runner and I was stupid to think I could do it. So no more ultra’s for me, enough is enough, a person can only takes so much embarrassment and failure.

The question left is, is there any point in continuing this farce as a runner, I really don’t think so, what’s left, race walk been there done it, what I do know is this money wasting must come to an end and therefore I must stop as an agent for Whasp cause there is really no support from the running community.

There is a plus that did come from the evening and that was my former RP who entered this race to see what she could do, I should have had that outlook as well. Anyway the most she had ever done was a 25 kay, she pulled off a 42.2 kay before she was forced to retire due to blisters on both feet, I am very proud of her.