Saturday morning 16th May, 4am the alarm goes off....
Straight away the house is full of energy while we are getting ready to hit the
start line of TNF100. Garry, Nicole and I are packing our last mandatory
items into our backpack while we are "enjoying" a big breakfast. We
pack all our gear into the car and Nathan "The WaterBoy" takes us to
the start line at Scenic World. We are a little early as I need to be there
at 6am for a "warmup" and a last minute pep talk with the 100km
UpCoaching crew. With some last minute advice from my coach Brendan Davies, I
get ready for the wave 3 start. Garry & Nicole are running the TNF 50km together this year. We wished each other luck and promise to have a few drinks at the finish line.
 |
| Nicole, Gaz & me at start line. Aido you look worried!! |
6.30am the start of wave 3, super pumped it's going to be an epic day!!! It was a lot warmer than it has been in the last couple of days and I am happy that I decided to run just in a t-shirt with arm warmers and gloves. Before I know it I am on my way down Furber Steps to Federal Pass and climb my way over the rocks of the Landslide and back up the 'Golden Stairs' to Check Point 1. I cruise through CP1 as it has only been 10.5km.
Leg 2 has amazing scenery with a run over Narrow Neck which will lead us to the Tarros Ladders
 |
| Narrow Neck |
There is a line up waiting to go down Tarros Ladders, which I expected as there are only three people allowed at a time on each ladder. There is way around the ladder but I decided to take the time and recover, have a gel and take in the stunning scenery.
 |
| line up at Tarros Ladders |
 |
| Tarros Ladders |
It doesn't take long to go down and I continue on the trail to CP2 Dunphy's Camp. I fill up my water bottles, grab a blueberry muffin and a banana and prepare myself for leg 3.
Leg 3 - Last year I struggles in this leg and I am trying not to think about the Iron Pot Ridge climb and descent. The trail continues through someones property and a horse seems entertained by all the runners coming through his paddock. Ok here we go... Iron Pot Ridge, a nice climb up to the ridge and a quick out and back over the Ridge. Then the downhill "Tinpot Hill", narrow, slippery sandy and super steep, I slide down grabbing tree after tree, little quick steps. It was easier than last year but still is not my favourite part of the race. I try to get back into the zone and follow the trail to CP 3.
 |
| Nearly at Six Foot Track CP3 |
CP3 is at 46km, this is the first time crew support is allowed and it was great to see Nath who had been sitting there for a while listening to the band playing some tunes. Nathan filled my bottles, refueled my backpack with some more gels and hammer bars and gave me a few slices of raisin bread to eat on my way out of CP3.
Leg 4 - In the course description the highlight of this legs is the stair ascent up to the Six Foot Track "a hard but classic Blue Mountain trail". We gain 480m in elevation between here and Katoomba. All I can say is stairs, stairs and more stairs. 57km in the race I get to the Katoomba Aquatic Centre still feeling pretty good. Nath checks all my gear, food and water and within a few minutes I am back out the door for leg 5.
 |
| Stunning views at Elysian Rock |
Leg 5 - Last year I spend most of this leg already in the dark and this year I was so excited to be able to enjoy the amazing scenery that the Blue Mountains has to offer.
 |
| Fern City Leura |
The list of highlights in this leg includes Echo Point Lookout at the Three Sisters, numerous waterfalls, Leura Cascades, cliff top walks, bridges, pool of Siloam and plenty of lookouts. Definitely my most favourite leg of the race.
 |
| Bonnie Doon |
 |
| Jamison View |
The trail continues and it is now time to pull the headlight out of my backpack. I still have a long way to go. Although it is now dark, I am still feeling ok and am still enjoying the challenge of navigating my way to the next CP.
I get to CP5 in 12 hours and 31 min (Last year 15h37min) a massive 3 hours and 6min faster than last year. This is the point where I pulled out last year, my first DNF, but I am not pulling out this year even if I have to crawl to the finish line!!! Nath hands me some nice dry warm clothes and a change of socks. A cup of warm chicken noodles will be dinner for tonight. I am slightly tired but still feeling confident that I can finish this last leg and beat this beast of a race. Nath told me that Garry & Nicole finished the TNF50 earlier in an amazing time, I'm super proud of their team effort!!
Leg 6 – The last and most difficult leg for me. I am hoping
to get to the finish line in about 4 hours from here. Not far after I have left
the Checkpoint I SMASH my head into a narrow gateway... how did I not see that!!! I take a few more pills for the pain and I continue on. I love downhill
running but the downhill at Kudumba test my toughness. Quads are starting to
burn and I trip over something invisible. The first fall for the day, not bad
compare to last year! My back a little out of whack but lucky Nath packed my trekking poles for the last leg. The last Aid station is at 91km and I take
my backpack of for a little relief and stretch out. All I know is that I have to keep
moving, one foot in front of the other and I will get there. I called Nath to let him know that I will be out here for a little bit longer than expected.
The next few hours
are a bit of a blur, my body would not let me take any gels, food, electrolytes or water so I keep taking tiny sips of water to stay hydrated. I continue climbing towards the cliff line of the
Three Sisters. After this it levels out for a bit but it doesn't get any easier
with creek crossing and slippery rocks in the dark. Another fall on the slippery
rocks, fatigue has definitely set in and it takes me a little
while to figure out how to get up. I follow the Federal Pass till I get to the
bottom of Furber Steps, the final climb which will take me back to the top of
the cliffs. 860 stairs with 200m elevation, I have to dig deep for every step. I can already hear the crowd and
music at the finish, still a few more stairs to go. When I got to the top I
manage to run the last couple hundred meters.
 |
| YES the finish line!!!!!! Best thing I have seen all day :-) |
Nath, Garry & Nicole standing at the last corner before the finish line cheering me home.... Yes I did it!!!! Nath hands me a beer... Cheers to that!!!
There are many people I have to thank. Without their help I would not have been able to do this Ultra Running. A very special thanks to Nath "The WaterBoy" as always he is the best support crew every, getting all my gear, fluids and fuel sorted. Garry & Nicole, training partners and support, congratulations on the massive achievement you did together!!! A weekend we will never forget!!!!
A very special thanks to my coach Brendan Davies for preparing me for this epic race. With his coaching I was able to conquer the Blue Mountains this year. The journey continues and the next challenge has already been set :-)
 |
| http://www.upcoaching.com.au |
Everyone of the UpCoaching crew for the motivation, tips and support. Congratulations to all runners no matter how long you were out there for, we all had to push ourselves to even get to the start line. Stuart, Kathryn, Nicole & Jerrod, Aido you are all amazing runners!!
Thanks again to Aroc Sport and The North Face Australia for an amazing event. Bring on 2016!! #TNF100RaceReport or #TNF50RaceReport https://thenorthface.com.au/product/women-s-adele-triclimate-jacket#C650Q9X
