KNOWLEDGE, INSIGHT KEY TO LINNEY’S 100K WIN

The realisation of what I had accomplished and the fact I had gained a wealth of knowledge, experience and gained a personal insight in to what ultra running was really about, was all relevant to the Track Championship. It changed the way I looked at and felt about my running, and I feel it has made me a much stronger runner.

Training in the lead up to the event mainly consisted of running a good bit of distance over a period of a few weeks, mainly on road. I normally like to train on trail these days, as it makes for a great workout and is also very scenic. I also have the Adelaide hills on my doorstep, so I’d be silly not to take advantage of that.

I knew there would be a chance it would be hot at the event, even during the night. It was around this time Adelaide was experiencing its normal summer bout of very hot days and nights. Everyone thought I was nuts as I ran a lot in the midday sun to prepare my body and mind for the heat should it be like that. Getting in a run when I could, shuffling between work and family life.

Unlike the GSER100 where I ran solo and relied on no one, I was very fortunate to have a support crew at the Track Championships, and excited about the prospect as I have never had one before. My wife Jen and our two friends Stacey and Stephen Holt made up the team, and with our children taken care of by friends, this meant we could all focus on the event.

We arrived at the SA Athletics Stadium at roughly 6pm, with the race due to start at 7pm. The day had been scorching, around 42 degrees and looked like we were all in for a hot overnighter as the next day was forecast for another big heat.

Years back, I used to run for my local athletics club in England, and having run many times around a track, the surrounds for the Track Championships all felt familiar. I never would have thought that 30 years later, I’d running 250 laps around another track, but I felt very at home and calm.

Having been used to running on bitumen, pavements and trail terrain the track surface felt amazing, and I had a spring in my step.

We set up roughly 50m up from the start/finish line, and we had a gazebo and table for all our gear. Before I knew it, race organiser Ben Hockings gave the 10-minute call for the briefing. Feeling very excited, I had no idea who I was up against, and at the briefing there were not many of us – perhaps 8 runners. All seemed friendly and I felt very much like the new kid on the block amongst experienced ultra runners.

Two runners had travelled from interstate John and Greg, and I knew fellow SA runners from previous runs. There were no women in the 100kms, only men.

My Garmin was set, the countdown began, and then we were off. We were told that every three hours we would turn and run in the opposite direction, which broke up the monotony, which I thought was great. I started off conservatively, and from early on I realised I was probably not going to have any major competition unless it all went wrong for me. If I was to be challenged I would have reacted and upped my pace, but I didn’t want to push too hard if not necessary with a possible chance of burning myself out in the early stages.

The stadium was getting busy as the 50kms runners were preparing to start their run at 8pm. As I continued along while they all started, everyone participating was such a great sportsperson, and although not necessary, they tended to move aside for me as I overtook on the inside lane. At this point I was averaging well under 2-minutes per lap at least for the first 100 laps, and was looking at finishing in good time.

Night had set in, but it was still fairly hot, but the volunteers and Yumigo had it all covered with ice water and sponges. Mentally the heat didn’t affect me too much, but I knew I had to keep my body cool so I took advantage when I felt the need.

At lap 114 I needed the toilet desperately, and I tried not lose too much time, but noticed I was dehydrated so more fluid was needed. I felt much better after my stop.

Lap after lap; 80% of my run was listening to music; friends came to visit for support; I was on a mission.

It was me against the clock.

Three-quarters through and I was still moving at a reasonable pace, although my laps had slowed, probably from the halfway point at around 2-minutes per lap or just over. I had a couple of low moments (not sure why, maybe the heat was getting to me a little), but the end was nearing.

With 10 laps to go I increased my pace a little, knowing the finish was in sight, but getting a bit confused towards the end with my timing as I ran past my predicted 8.05, and still had 6 or 7 laps to go. I later realised I had actually run 102.5kms! As much as I had tried to stick to the inside of the track, I must have run that extra 2.5kms wandering from that inside line due to overtaking, toilet breaks and water stops.

With only a few laps to go I could see my crew getting excited. Maybe they thought, Yes we can finally go home! Just kidding, I’m sure they were loving the whole experience as much as me.

Two or three laps to go I increased my pace yet again, and finally I got to my last lap.

Running down the final straight to the finish line was a memory that will stay with me for the rest of my life, with Ben on the microphone congratulating me on my finish, and a few cheers and claps from my crew, supporters and the volunteers. I saw participants Greg and David, two 100kms runners coming down the straight together still competing, and they stopped to form an arch for me to run under just before I ran over the finish line. It was such a sporting thing to do. For them to stop their own race, and see me over the line and shake my hands, was truly great. It showed such amazing great sportsmanship. Much respect.

I was extremely happy with my finish time of 8:16:19. It gave me so much confidence knowing I could shave a lot more off that given better weather conditions. Unfortunately, I had my presentation on the podium on my own as second placer (Greg) and third placer (Will) finished roughly 2.5hrs and 4.5hrs behind me. They were doing it tough out there, potentially running for 14hrs. Later I found out that Stephen and Colin were to finish with minutes to spare under the cut off time, and in the hot morning sun that’s real commitment. Much respect to those guys too.

Four weeks have now passed, and I look back to that night with great memories, and feel so very proud to hold the title of the 100kms SA Track Championship for 2018.

Images: Photography – Tracie Hanson, Michelle Hanlin and Stacey Holt.