Training Log Archive: shanel

Event: Esperance Adventure Race
 

Nice day for a ride. Main competition seemed to be Joel and Robin and the Esperance Tri boys (Shannon and his mate).

Off to a quick start on the paddle and we were quickly near the front heading towards the causeway, then our boat started go all Dirk Dastardly and started veering off in random directions trying to take out every other boat heading our way. This let a few teams past, which turned out fortunate since they got to the rocks first, leaving us to go straight in to the causeway which we were quickly over a back on the water heading up the creek in front of everyone else.

Bit shallow in one spot so I waded a little, we got the control first then headed back down to the harbour. Boat went Dirk Dastardly again as we were heading out past the groyne, trying very hard to turn us into the rocks, so much that Mark had to put in a back stroke to turn us back out to sea.

Someone made sure the location of the jetty ruins was obvious from a mile away by standing there with a high viz top. Could see a couple of boats up there as well, those who hadn't gone up the creek for the 1 hr bonus. Quite a nice paddle keeping well clear of the rest of the teams who'd got the bonus. Although Mark was working very hard to keep the boat going straight, so we swapped at the ski area sign, but that wasn't going to work at all so we swapped back after about a minute.

Into transition with a fair gap, I think Dolf and Jacko were next in whilst we were getting ready for the town O stage. Mark took the nav for this and we headed south to get Cadel early since he was the only one we knew was still 'clean'. Mark had us briefly doing 4:00/k pace heading towards Cadel, so I tempered the pace a bit since that was a bit much.

Mark kindly sent me into the pool for the dolphin statue so my gaiters got soaked, next control was the other clean guy, so straight back to TA from there.

Onto the bikes, passed some of the presumably no bonus teams. Up the first of the big hills to X5, passed the Rangas and Titanium boys and probably ETB's on the way back out. Clean bike leg, Mark was dropping off the back a bit up the hills, ETB's were heading down to Observatory Point as we were climbing out of there and the seemed to be closing in on us so we worked hard to try to stay clear.

Up another big hill and quickly found the right wind turbine. Back down and spotted the gully for 9, quickly in and out hopeing not to give it away to the ETB's, but another slower team had doubled back for it so that plan didn't really work out.

Onto the big trek, along the beach into the wind, really hard work running, we weren't closing on another team and soon the ETB's were in sight catching up to us. My HR was getting unsustainable, so I got Mark ease up to walk a few times, ETB's went past us and they got a bit of a gap on us, but we caught them and another team whilst they were looking in the dunes for X10.

We spotted X10 first as we'd over shot slightly, but it was also in clear view but still unseen to the ETB's and another team we'd caught (the guys who finished 4th). So we tried to go a bit round the back of it, staying low to stay out of sight, but without being invisible we couldn't help but give it away.

We took a different line up to 11, up the wrong side of an impenetrable gully, but still ended up getting the control with the ETB's and 4th place guys. We couldn't shake ETB's leaving 11 and they ran past us on the track heading north (east of 11), never to be seen again (and we'd also dropped FPG's). They didn't seem to have taken the track to head west since there were no footprints and once onto the big dunes there were still no tracks.

We expected to see ETB's out to the east on the dunes, but never saw any sign of anyone else, except Dalto's track from him hanging the control a couple of days earlier. Great fun running down the steeper dunes and very nice conditions out on the dune fields with some light rain, still pushing hard hoping to avoid letting the ETB's catch us, although we'd now laid a nice trail for everyone else to follow, still looking back as we crossed the top of each dune to check for any teams following. No sign so it looked like we'd got a clear break.

Out into the farmland approaching TA3 with a long straight section following a fenceline, with a lot more looking back. Mark was starting to cramp, so we eased up a bit to fuel up. Very appreciative of a coke at TA and starting to feel pretty cold by the time we got back on the bikes.

We took turns struggling out towards TA4 with my calves starting to have minor cramps, so we were both trying to get as much electrolytes in as possible. We still managed to both take turns on the front so we kept the pace up.

Into TA4, more soft drink, chips, electrolytes. We decided I'd do the east side and Mark the west, after I'd stuffed around for a while trying to sketch the map on the back of the punch card Tooms suggested we rip the map in half, so we did and Mark said he's do 19 on my side if I wasn't back before him, so I headed NE first.

I wasted a heap of time on 21 as there were a lot more tracks on the ground than on the aerial photo, and I couldn't find my compass, but eventually found my control descriptions and worked out the aerial and found it. Luckily the maze was much easier than I thought it might be. Back to the TA without 19 since I'd wasted a heap of time already and Mark had been through already and headed for 19 (without that bit of the map). It took him a bit of extra time to find it but he came back eventually.

Onto the final leg, starting with the hike a bike. Both of us trying to avoid triggering cramps whilst being on and off the bikes a lot along the freshly plowed sandy firebreak. Luckily Mark was watching my nav through here, because I was a bit crap particularly when I thought we should turn left onto a track which I thought was going south, when in fact it was more an E-W track and we needed to go right.

Anyway back onto a more civilised dirt road and into the semi rural subdivision. Mark was mostly working to hold me wheel by now but he hung in tight and we kept the pace up. Finally coming out of 27 I got a huge cramp in my right calf, so Mark got to work for a while whilst I recovered from that.

We almost didn't take the nice track out to X28 and doubled back after a short way up a firebreak. Funny how the really nice limestone track doesn't quite make it out to the road. I didn't really pay enough attention as we headed along the main track towards 29 and since there were a lot of unmarked tracks I eventually guestimated what the bends were doing and headed us up a track, a very sandy track very boggy track, which I thought I'd run on at the start of last year.

Mark was very dubious of this track and I was also getting doubtful, when finally we got to the end and a road. Punched that and headed for the final control, right next the finish. I was pretty much toast by now and the pace was a bit slower for the last stretch into town, onto the boat ramp, couldn't see the control, playing charades with Dalto as he pointed us towards it.

Finally to the finish and a little lay day on the grass.

Great race, we were really under pressure early in the trek and we kept up the effort through to the end, just in case. A 'comfortable' win in the end but we worked hard all way. Will be interesting to which one of us can carry the form through to the rogaine next week, when we go head to head, should be fun.

Big thanks to everyone involved, Tooms, Dalto, Dalto's parents, all the volunteers and all the other teams. Hopefully this isn't the end of proper AR's in WA, cause that was fun.

C • Trace 4

C • Heart rate 2

C • Well done! 6

Oh dear, so much slower than last year. Nice to have a short play.

C • Track 2

After not fitting in a planned 20km run since Sat. I finally got a run in once we got to Esperance.

Out along the path, random roads, random tracks. I found myself at the Bandy Creek Harbour. Across a completely different structure to the one on googlemaps. Round the far side of the harbour, then back again and along the beach back to the caravan park.

Getting dark by the time I finished and not ideal running through the patches of seaweed in the low light.

Good to finally get out for a run with the legs ticking over nicely.

Another tranquil morning on my own personal millpond. The sun breaking through the clouds over the scarp. A few planes doing the big u-turn out of the airport before heading north, one with short contrails which quickly disappeared before the plane disappeared into the clouds.

Only disturbance was another paddler who came from Canning Bridge direction just after I turned, he soon crossed over my stern and headed more towards Dalkeith.

No killer dolphins today, phew. Even concentrated on my version of leg drive and rotation occasionally between day dreaming..

C • A good writer... 4

Event: [MTBO] Bussell Brook West
 

Long - Splits