June saw a marathon PB, July saw a 5km PB, 10km and half marathon PBs achieved in August topped off a very successful winter. The 5km in particular was a time I thought I would never get close to again, having set my best time back in 2017! Things were looking good, I had also managed to stay injury free all year and my training had been very consistent.
I decided to use the same Hanny Allston training plan as I did last year, I found it easy to follow and the long runs were spaced out every 3 weeks as missions. I don't think I could have managed 4 to 8 hour runs every weekend! I supplemented the training plan with sessions with Trailblazers Run Coaching, an amazing community of runners whom I had joined in November last year. I really believe that running with Trailblazers has improved my running tremendously and a contributor to my PBs throughout the year.
The training block went really well, the longest mission was 8 hours, around 6 weeks before the race. I felt like I ran it really well. I managed 60km in just under 8 hours with around 2000 metres of elevation gain at and average pace of 7:48min/km. My nutrition worked well for me, I drank 4 litres worth of Tailwind along with eating 150 grams of dried mango and 4 boiled potatoes.
However, things weren't as rosy as I thought they had been. In the month or so previous to the 60km run, I hadn't been sleeping particularly well, some of my Crohn's symptoms had been flaring up, so much so that I decided to address the concerns with my Gastroenterologist on my next visit. This happened to be on the day after the 60km run.
The appointment went well, all my blood tests and inflammation markers were normal, there was nothing to be concerned about. But to be on the safe side, I was prescribed a drug called Endep (Amitriptyline Hydrochloride). This drug is an anti-depressant, although in small doses it doesn't affect the brain, but it does have the side effect of calming the bowel and drowsiness. It was also a drug that I had been on for many years up until May 2020, so I didn't have any concerns at the time of going back on it.
Endep had an immediate effect, the Crohn's symptoms settled down after a couple of days and I began to sleep better. I was feeling a bit better, but still somewhat fatigued. I was beginning to think that the big year of running had caught up with me. Still, I thought I would be perfectly fine for Blackall.
The next two weeks were pretty uneventful training-wise, it was all about consolidation and not pushing too hard. There were still a number of tough intervals sessions to do, but the total mileage was dropping. 3 weeks out from Blackall, I ran a technically difficult 4 hour run around Mt Cootha, It was made easier though with great company from the some of the Trailblazers crew.
It was now time to taper. Weekly mileage was dropping and I was feeling fresh. I even managed to get a run in on part of the back half of the Blackall course, this gave me some confidence for the race as this section was the part I had run on least.
I had been planning to take my family with me as we did last year. My wife and kids, along with my sister in law and niece spent the weekend with me and were my crew, which was awesome and led to some great memories. Unfortunately, my kids school camps overlapped the weekend so I ended up having to go without them. However, there were loads of the Trailblazers gang going up, so I definitely would not be alone and even shared a room with a couple of them.
I decided to stick to a very similar nutrition plan as last year considering it had worked so well. The weather forecast was similar, as in warm! So, I felt that I had things pretty well dialled in for the big day. I would try and drink approximately 500ml of water mixed with Tailwind every hour, supplementing with solid food (potatoes and dried mango mainly) if I felt hungry. I really felt well prepared and managed to sleep pretty well in the week before the race.
I drove up to Mapleton on the Friday afternoon with Martin, a fellow Trailblazer who was running the 50km. We spent two hours in the car and talked about nothing but running, just how I liked it!
The evening at the Mapleton QCCC was as awesome as ever. The Trailblazers crew were all together eating and chatting before the welcome to country and race briefing commenced.
Uncle Al welcomed us to country, Brett and Gavin from Run Queensland took us through the race briefing and I was soon off to bed.
Even though I had my ear plugs in, there was a freight train in our room or at least he sounded like one! I usually don't sleep very well before races, but this night seemed ridiculous. I tried to at least concentrate on my breathing to maximise any rest I could get, I think I managed a few fitful hours but nothing more than that.
Just before 4am I gave up and got up. Mr. locomotive opposite me was also up.
"Good Luck with your race" he said. "Good Luck with yours" I replied.
To my utter surprise he tells me "I'm going home, my head's not in the game" and proceeds to pack his bags, running gear and sleeping bag and promptly leaves!
I wasn't entirely sure what to think, I just hope he was ok. Oh well, you have to be prepared for anything, absolutely anything.
Back to my pre-race routine, which consisted of: getting dressed, toilet, breakfast, toilet, get gear ready, toilet, imodium and just in case...... toilet again. By 5:45am I was outside and near the start line with a few other Trailblazers who were running the 100km. There was Mark, Sam, Trent, Trina and Col as well as me running the 100km. There were countless others in support, either running the 50km or crew. It was simply amazing to be part of this group.
At 6am, we were off. Only 100km to go.
I set off at a what I thought was an easy pace, although it was probably a touch quicker than I should have been going. It felt good though and soon got into a very comfortable running pace. The plan was to run the first 10km section slightly quicker than last year, I found that there was a bit of congestion in a few places and didn't want to get caught up in it.
We left the Mapleton QCCC, turning right onto Obi Obi Road and right again onto Wandoo Ct and then Wilga Ct before hitting the Montville Mapleton Road heading south towards Flaxton and Kondallila Falls.
Lots of people passed me in the first 5km, but I kept my head and moved easy. I was moving at around a 5:30 to 5:45min/km pace which wasn't particularly slow, I tried to slow down a bit but it seemed harder to run slower so I just tried to stay relaxed.
Although this section was road, the views across to the Sunshine Coast were amazing. The temperature was still quite cool so it was easy to run.
After 7km we reached Flaxton and turned right heading down towards Kondallila Falls. This was one of the parts that was really congested last year, I had managed to avoid that having run slightly quicker. I was able to move freely and keep at my own pace. However, unlike last year I didn't get to talk to too many people. I had enjoyed that last year, but I was too busy concentrating on what was ahead so I didn't mind too much.
The Kondallila loop didn't disappoint. The falls were full of water and the views over the valleys below spectacular. I stopped for a few seconds to take it all in, breathtaking.
The climb back up to the main road was uneventful, I took it easy and made sure I took on some fluids. It was still cool but knew it would warm up later in the day. I still felt very comfortable and was moving at a very conservative pace making sure I did plenty of walking.
After another 1km of running along the coast road retracing my early steps through Flaxton, we turned left down Flaxton Mill Road towards Baxter Creek Falls. This next 5km section is one of my favourite parts of the Blackall race. The trails gently drop towards the Falls, there are a number of switchbacks to negotiate but it is very pleasant and easy on the legs.
I reached the bottom of the descent and unlike last year there was no one waiting to cross the suspension bridge over Baxter Creek. I didn't hang around, I walked across and smiled for the camera. The next section would be long and slow, so I took my time.
Half way up the climb from Baxter Creek to Obi Obi Road I was passed by the three front runners of the 21km race. They were flying! I could not comprehend how they could move so quickly over the such steep technical trail, it was impressive and they were soon out of sight.
Soon enough I was back on the Obi Obi Road after a lengthy climb and I headed down the road back to the QCCC and CP2. I checked my times and realised I was more than 20 minutes ahead of my time from last year, so far the race had felt really easy and I felt I was well on track to beat last year's time. I saw Mark and Sam on their way out of CP2 looking very strong and quite a way ahead of me.
Nutrition wise this year I had decided to carry enough water and Tailwind mix to last all the way to CP3, this meant I could cut around 5 to 10 mins from time just from CP2 alone. I was feeling great and had no reason to stop, I had plenty of fluids to last that long.
I reached the QCCC turned left into the lane and was greeted with lots of cheers from the crowd along with a few Traliblazers who were crewing for other runners. As my family weren't here I had no crew but still had plenty of support.
I passed through CP2 without stopping, saw Mat from Trailblazers on the way out and kept moving at a good pace. Soon enough I was back out on Obi Obi Road heading back the way I came towards Mapleton Falls National Park. I saw Trina and Col as they were heading into CP2, so good to see friendly faces!
I turned right down towards Mapleton Falls National Park and finally started to hit some more trail after a good few kms of road. This section was pretty uneventful, I took it easy, making sure I only ran when I needed to. I was enjoying the sounds and views in the rainforest, it was incredibly peaceful as there were very few runners near me.
I had run 30km by now and feeling pretty good. I decided to call my family on Facetime to give them an update and to show them the wonderful country I was passing through. It gave me a real lift!
I was heading towards the water station near the Ubajee Walker's camp. I thought that progress was going well, I was hydrating according to plan and generally feeling great, but it was warming up.
I had a nasty little incline to deal with before the water station around 500 metres head of me. About half-way up the climb I very suddenly started to feel that something was wrong. This was really weird, I had felt superb up to now and had already negotiated a number of challenging hills. I started feeling a little lightheaded and nauseous. It became a struggle to climb the hill and each step felt worse than the last. I took on a good gulp of Tailwind and pushed on.
I reached the water station and stopped. I needed to regroup. I soaked my legionnaire's hat in water, took in a good few cups and decided to walk on. I felt rough. The odd thing was, there were a number of other runner's sat down in chairs looking ill as well, at least it wasn't just me!
I walked for another few hundred metres before breaking into a very easy run. It was time for the descent down into the Gherulla Valley. About halfway down, I started to feel better. The dizziness was gone and the nauseousness had calmed a lot, I took on more and more fluid as I knew that would help. By the time I reached the valley floor I was feeling normal again. Unfortunately, my pace had dropped significantly and I lost all the time I gained in the first 22km of the race. Never mind, I thought, better to just keep moving comfortably and leave any PB aspirations alone, so much for my great expectations!!
CP3 was ahead, I knew that I could rest and replenish my fluid supplies. I needed a good break to just try and relax and take stock of the situation. It was also very warm and humid, even though there was a breeze, on the bottom of the valley floor it was quite still. The river was full though which made parts of the course really pretty.
After another few slow kms I finally reached CP3 10 minutes slower than last year, I grabbed my drop bag and tried to find somewhere to sit down.
"James!!!" Someone shouted, it was Mat and Doug motioning me to get to them. They had a chair, so I headed over and sat down. I felt awful. I just wanted to lie down, I actually tried to but the grass I laid on was horrendous, I soon got back up and tried to calm down.
I cannot express how thankful I was to have Mat and Doug help me during the checkpoint. They just took over, filled my bladder and soft flasks full of my Tailwind. They gave me water, and dried mango and potatoes from my bag to eat. After about 5 minutes I started feeling a bit better, much to Mat's amusement and amazement I let off a massive fart which helped in my recovery! I don't think Doug even noticed, he was too busy filling my Bluff and Cap with large amounts of ice. Mat then shovelled half a dozen salt tablets into my mouth and gave me another 10 or so for the journey.
The thing I noticed was how much sweat I had lost. There were salt streaks on my shorts which had hardened, I had actually wondered earlier on what on earth it was. I thought I had some bark on my shorts or something. My hydration vest was also white at the front with so much dried salt, this had never happened before and I was really worried. For some reason I was sweating way more than normal and needed to take on more fluids. It must have been related to the earlier dizziness.
In their words, they resurrected me!!! By now I was feeling great again, just in time to see Trina roll in to the CP looking so fresh as though she had just come along for a stroll. We gave each other a good old chest bump and I was on my way.
Doug's words on the way out were ringing in my ears; "just walk from now until the top of the Bluff, you'll be ok, it's very hot so just take your time" I planned to listen!!
The next 2km before the Bluff were slow, I knew that my aspirations for the day were gone. I was already in survival mode and only 42km in. I would be happy to just finish the race today.
Trina came past me at this point, we had a very brief chat. I tried to stay with her, which I managed for about 50 metres before she sped off looking incredibly comfortable and strong. I walked on heeding Doug's words.
Soon enough it was time for the Bluff. Although this climb is tough, in previous years I had managed to get up to the top without any major problems. This year though was a disaster, I had to stop and catch my breath on almost every switchback. I was feeling dizzy again and had to sit down every now and again. Mat's salt tablets helped a great deal, I'm sure they kept me going during this part of the race. Each step was a struggle and after what seemed like an eternity I reahed the photographer overlooking the valley.
At this point I started having serious doubts that I would be able to finish Blackall this year. I was really struggling on every hill, even though I was feeling ok on the flats and downhills. Each time I had hit an incline my heart would race and I would get dizzy and lightheaded, almost to the point of passing out. I could not work out what was going on. My friend Ben was going to crew for me at CP4, I seriously considered calling to tell him to go home! I thought I would have to drop.
I sat down for a couple of minutes, got up and kept moving eventually reaching flat ground at the top.
Once I had walked a bit at the top of the Bluff I started feeling ok again, I kept my fluids up and kept moving. There was another tough little climb to deal with before reaching the water station at Delicia Road, the 50km mark. I slowly made it up the climb feeling dizzy again during the climb. When I got to the water station I sat down to try and rest a little before the next long section towards CP4.
A volunteer game me a hand full of zooper doopers. These really helped just to cool me down a bit. I was feeling a bit better, I think the salt tablets from Mat and the ice from Doug had helped get me up the Bluff. One of the hardest parts of the race had been completed, so I was feeling a little more optimistic. There were a number of other runners who had pulled out at this water station, some of the looked grey and very ill!
I managed to get myself to my feet and just as I was about to leave Col arrived at the water station, that was a welcome surprise to see a fellow Trailblazer. It gave me a lift as I headed off. Someone mentioned that Col wasn't doing too well, although he looked fine to me. I later found out he had fallen just before Baxter Creek and had a nasty cut on his elbow that probably needed stitches!
I managed to move pretty well for the next 10km, I ran and walked where I needed to but didn't suffer any dizziness along this stretch. I was about to hit the descent back down to the valley floor again to complete the Gherulla loop.
Once I hit the climb heading back up to the Ubajee Walker's camp the dizziness returned with a vengeance. It was a long climb and I really suffered. I kept stopping and sitting on the side of the trail to try and get my heart rate down, I just could not move uphill! Half way up the climb Col caught me again. I explained to him what was going on, although he already knew I had a problem, Mat and Doug gave him a heads up back at CP2. Col waited with me a few minutes and gave me a few of his salt tablets. Col moved on and I said I'd see him at CP4, I managed to keep moving and slowly get to the top of the climb, albeit needing another few sit downs along the way.
The pattern continued though, once I had got to the top and walked a little, my heart rate settled and dizziness disappeared and I was able to run again. I was now over 60km into the race and had been struggling since the 34km mark, nightmare!
I passed the water station at the Ubajee Walker's camp, where my original troubles began. I knew I only had another 3 or 4km to get to to CP4. I was able to move quite well again and managed to run for long stretches.
I eventually reached CP4 a good hour later than I had last year. It was around 4:30pm, I was tired and frustrated but at least I had kept going. I saw my mate Ben at the checkpoint, grabbed my drop bag and made a bee line towards him. He took over, making sure I was fed and watered. He massaged my legs with Fisiocrem, it usually hurts due to the Arnica component but I didn't even feel it. I stayed with Ben in CP4 for quite a while, probably 10 to 15 minutes. I was in good spirits, but it had really taken a lot of effort to get to this point, 64km in and still 36km to go. The next stretch should be easy enough, only 10 to 11km to CP5.
I saw Col at the checkpoint, he was looking good and getting ready for the night. Changing shirts and getting his head lamp and hi-vis shirt ready. I was about to leave CP4 when I realised I would probably need to do that too. Last year I only needed that gear once I reached CP5, but I was so far behind last year it would be going dark well before then.
Once I was decked out in fluorescent yellow, I started to make my way out of CP4. At the exit I filled a zip lock bag full of potato chips, I felt I needed salt and this was a good enough way to get it. So off I trotted clutching the bag of chips in my right hand, waving back at Ben as I went. I felt good considering, and was able to run pretty well. In fact the first 4km were mostly down hill, I was able to move pretty well considering I had 65kms in my legs at this point. I walked and ate chips while going uphill, but was able to run downhill for the most part.
The only issue with 4km downhill, is that there would be some uphills as well. I would soon find out if I could cope with them or not. From memory, there were 3 nasty hills on this particular trail, the last one was particularly bad. I hit the first hill, and yes as soon as I started climbing I ground to a halt. The dizziness and light-headedness was back.
I struggled up the first hill but managed to get to the top. I was so exhausted I had to keep walking down the next descent to the bottom of Kureelpa Falls. There was another sharp climb but shorter than the last one, I managed to just get to the top and descended again to cross a river. The largest hill of this section was looming, it was the trail that would ultimately get me back up to Baronga Road with only 2km to CP5. I felt encouraged by this but I would first have to manage the climb. It was also getting dark.
I started to head up the hill, but almost immediately I was lightheaded and my heart rate spiked. I must have looked like a mountaineer who could only manage 1 or 2 steps every few mins. That's all I could manage. A few other runners passed me at this point, they checked in on me but quickly moved on.
About half way up the climb, I felt as though I was going to pass out! I could not lift my feet off the floor and desperately needed to sit down.
Just at that point Col appeared behind me. "You ok mate?" he said? I responded that I couldn't move as I was going to pass out. I had sat down and was breathing heavily. After a couple of mins Col tried to get me to my feet to see if I could use his running poles for support. I got up and again and tried to move forward just one step, almost everything gave way.
"I can't Col, I just can't move" I sat down again on the side of the trail still feeling incredibly unwell. I would have to lie down to try and get blood moving into my head. It was cooling down though, my clothes were saturated with sweat and I began to feel very chilly as well as lightheaded, my heart was pounding and I started to panic. My blood pressure had dropped so any movement resulted in a racing heart beat and dizziness, I was not in a good place. I broke down and started sobbing at one point, a bit embarrassing looking back on it!
Col stuck by me. He realised pretty quickly that something was really wrong, although he probably figured that out hours ago as he'd seen me struggling long before now. He calmed me down and plied me water, salt and sweets. As I had cooled down so much and was shivering, we decided to use our space blankets for warmth. They worked a treat! So good in fact, that we recorded a space blanket review on video for later use, or much mocking from the Trailblazers. It was the latter!
We even managed to grab a couple more from some passing runners who were concerned at my appearance. Col wrapped me up and instantly made me into a meme! I looked like garlic bread, or possibly a Cadbury's Roses chocolate lying on the trail wrapped in gold and silver tin foil! The main thing was I was warm.
He also kept my spirits up. We figured out that my race was over for the day, he called the race directors and medics, as well as Ben who was waiting for me at CP5. He took over and wouldn't leave me until it was clear that I was going to be ok, or I had someone with me who could escort me back to CP5.
In my delirium, I decided to call my wife and let her know what was going on. In hindsight, I probably wouldn't do that again, as it possibly caused some unnecessary worry!
Once Col had figured out with the race directors what was going to be done, it was a case of sit tight and wait. I was in better spirits by this time and was quite talkative. Col was very patient telling every passing runner the same story over and over again, although the concern every runner showed was very humbling. I managed to rest my head on a large branch that lay across the trail, the only problem was that Col kept standing on it. "Will you get off my pillow?" I asked incredulously, how insensitive of him!!
After what seemed like an eternity, which turned out to only be about an hour, a medic and helper managed to get down the trail to me. It became clear that the trail was remote and not driveable, we were approximately 1.5km from Baronga Road. My watch said that we were around 74km into the race, but it was probably a bit less than that. We were still 3 or 4km from CP5.
Col was amazing, I couldn't believe that he stayed with me and refused to leave me until the medics arrived. He was saying that he would get to CP5 himself and probably call it a day. As he was about to leave I called out him; "Col, finish the race for me!" he looked very unimpressed, but off he went!!
The medic sat me up and gave me a packet of pure glucose to give me a bit of energy. She also took my blood pressure to make sure I was ok. Unfortunately, I was going to have to walk it out, the very thing I couldn't do! The driver who got her there would help me though, he was going to support me as we walked out. After a few more minutes, allowing the glucose to take effect I managed to get back up on my feet without the feeling of passing out. I was still dizzy but not anywhere near as much. I managed to take a few steps forward with the driver's support. Every few metres I stopped to catch my breath as my heart would start pounding.
After 10 minutes or so we reached the top of the climb, I no longer needed support. In fact, I was feeling ok again and I thought I could have probably run! The medic threatened me with whacking my head with a very large torch if I did!!! I had already been removed from the race, so there wasn't much point. This was now my first official DNF.
We managed to get to the end of the trail walking quite normally, I got in the back of their car and we drove the remaining 2km to CP5, where I was reunited with Ben. I was asked to wait in the medical tent for 30 minutes so they could monitor my vital signs, including blood pressure, so wait I did. Although, it was quite pleasant sitting there watching the runners arrive into CP5 under starlight, I wish I had ran in myself.
I honestly didn't know how I felt. I was mainly relieved that I was ok, I didn't feel like there was any major damage. I guess my body just gave up after enduring such punishment for so long. I had been on course for just over 12 hours and managed to run around 74km. I had to be proud of myself for that, but I was bitterly disappointed I had to retire from my favourite race. I felt like that not only had I let myself down but also Ben for driving so far to be crew, my family, the Trailblazers crew, right at that time I felt like I had failed. So much for great expectations.
Ben drove me back to Mapleton arriving around 8:30pm. We walked up the driveway and headed towards my dorm room. I thought that the Trailblazers guys were going to laugh at me for not finishing, but nothing could be further from the truth. I dumped my gear in my dorm and knocked on theirs next door. Steve opened it and one by one, they all gave me a huge hug. I almost broke down again. They couldn't have been more welcoming, it was just what I needed.
Ben and I disappeared to get a bite to eat and try and digest what had happened during the day. I had no real answers despite speculating on what it could have been. I guess it just wasn't my day, and I just had to accept it. It would take time to get over it, but I knew I would.
Trina managed to finish really well as did Mark and Sam in incredible times, Trent had a tough day out there but he still managed to finish. Last but not least by any stretch was Col, who managed to finish in around 18 and a half hours even after spending an hour looking after me!!!
It was great to hang out with the guys for breakfast the following morning, hearing about their races and having a good laugh over things. I was beginning to see the funny side of my day too, which was really helping. Col turned up for breakfast too, I gave him a big hug and couldn't thank him enough for what he did for me the previous evening! I just hope that if I'm ever in the same situation, I would do the same for another runner if they were in trouble.
Over the next few days I pondered on what could have affected me on the day. I recovered really well in the day or two after Blackall and felt as though I could have run without any issues. However, I waited a few more days just to make sure.
I had a good debrief with Ben about the race, as I had been thinking and thinking about what went wrong on the day. It seems that on a muscular level I was ok, it was my aerobic system and sweating capacity that were overworked on the day. I just couldn't work out why considering training had gone so well.
Ben asked me when I felt as though I peaked in training. I thought about it and realised it was probably at the time when I ran the 60km mission, I had felt fantastic that day and ran really well. It was after that point where I thought that my body was maybe getting fatigued from the year I had, and then it hit me.
That was about the same time that I saw my Crohn's specialist about some symptoms and sleeping issues, where I started taking Endep again. I wondered if that was a coincidence or if there might be more to it. I looked up the side effects for Endep.....
Increased sweat rate, fast or irregular heart beats, dizziness and light-headedness (https://www.nps.org.au/medicine-finder/endep-tablets#side-effects).
I could not believe what I was reading! I felt like a fool. Why on earth had I not read this information before back going on it? Probably because I had been on it previously without any issue, unless there had been but I hadn't liked the two.
Needless to say it was too late now to think that Endep was the cause of my day going downhill at Blackall. It could have been other factors at play as well. Maybe I went out too fast, maybe I didn't hydrate enough in the early stages, maybe I didn't appreciate how hot it was during the middle of the day. One thing is clear, it was not my day and I needed to accept that regardless of what happened or why. These things can happen on long distance races, to be honest that is the appeal of why I do them. There are so many unknowns and anything can happen. I cannot be hard on myself for giving it a try and not quite reaching my goal.
The best thing I learned coming out of Blackall this year is that being part of a team with friends and others as support to help each other through tough times is worth more than ringing the bell at the end of the race. I can look back now at Blackall and be thankful of the experience and call it a glorious failure, not looking back and regretting taking part or not finishing it!
No doubt, I will be back again to give it another crack.
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