WE MADE IT !!!

The Finish - yes the clock says 28:23:28 but we started 1:30:00 after the first group

Well Oxfam Trailwalker is all over for another year and WE MADE IT!!!

The Last Big Walk Before The Event

We were recently allocated our event start time of 0830 on Friday 27 August so with under two weeks to go we headed off for our last big walk before the event.    In order to be as realistic as possible we decided to make our start time close to our actual event start time so it was a bit of a sleep in for us and a Brooklyn start around 0800 - that's our excuse and we are sticking to it!!

11 July - Backing Up with 30km More

With the 50km from last weekend under our belts it was time to see if we could back it up with 30km more.  After week in which we all seemed to be hobbling to varying degrees we decided that we we had recovered enough and should hit the trail again.  As usual it was an early meeting at Berowra Station to travel to Brooklyn in one vehicle.  We arrived at Parsley Bay and got underway at 0551.

Our First 50km Walk & Welcome Back TP

  

Sunrise - Sunset

After a couple of wet weekends and false starts we finally got back out on the trail, and not ones to take it easy on ourselves we planned our first 50km walk for 2010.  It was also a significant event as we welcomed back Tony P after getting the "all-clear" from the Doc to resume training on his dodgy knee.  Given it was TP's first trail walk in some time we decided to plan things so that he could stop at the 30km mark while the rest of us carried on to 50km.  So it was a nice early start again with all of us meeting at Berowra Station at 0540 to leave TP's car and all head off in one car to Brooklyn.  Special thanks to Fred's wife Lynda for coming with us so early in the morning to drive the car back from Brooklyn.

Saturday 12 June 2010 - First Time in the Dark - well for 2010 at least!

"The Crack" - between Brooklyn and Cowan

Seeing as we got through last week so well it was time to up the ante again - this week was a double leg and a significant part of the first leg was done in the pre-dawn darkness. It was an opportunity for AJ to experience an extended walk on the trail in the dark, and an opportunity for the rest of us to refresh their memory. Just to make sure it wasn't too easy we decided to combine the darkness with the first two legs.

Back on the Trail - Cowan to Berowra

 
One of the trail’s many water features and a “fork in the road”


Time to see if the independent training has paid off. After the absolute soaking Sydney has received over the past 3-4 weeks it was with great pleasure we awoke at 0500 this morning to find dry ground and clear skies. So into the cars and off to the trail we went. In a bid to test ourselves on the section that caused us so much grief last time out we decided on the Cowan to Berowra leg again - we also figured this might be one the drier underfoot legs due to the more hilly terrain. 

Independent Training

Well it is hard to believe that it has been over six weeks since our last post. This period has been a bit fractured from a team training perspective with various members distributed around the country and the globe. What it has given us though is the opportunity for some independent training to work on our fitness and getting over those troublesome "niggling" injuries.

With the outside temperatures regularly getting over 45 deg during AJ's trip to Oman it meant lots of indoors training. While the treadmills and cross-trainers around the world got a good workout, the team has also returned to the office stairwell with a vengeance. With 15 floors in the building it is amazing how many stairs there are between the top and bottom. There is nothing like a few snappy circuits to get the blood pounding during a lunch break. While the first few days can be murder on your calves (just ask AJ) there is huge satisfaction in building up your stamina. With some of the team already up to 10 circuits at least every second day we have high hopes for our ability to survive those "bush staircases" on the trail.

Assuming the trail hasn't washed away with all of the rain in Sydney over the past few weeks, we will be back out there again this coming weekend - hope to see you there!

While the gym and stairs help, nothing beats the "great outdoors". These photos shows what the terrain would be like if Oxfam Trailwalk was to be held in Oman!

Saturday 17 April 2010 - Starting to Get Serious

Start (Brooklyn) to Checkpoint 2 (Berowra)

We all recovered from the 30km of Easter Monday quite well so after a week off we decided it was time to revisit some of the tougher legs and start our training in earnest.
As always it was an early start and we were very grateful that "Top of the Ridge" pies open at 0600 to provide a good pyschological start to the morning. It was then back in the car to Brooklyn and we got under way just before 0630.

Easter Monday - working off Chocolate Eggs

Checkpoint 6 (Kambora) to the Finish

Well after the slightly flatter legs in the last two walks we decided it was time to up the ante. The last two walks have been 20km so we thought 30km was a good step. It also allowed AJ to experience the last 3 legs.

After some heavy rain over Easter, the weather gods were kinder today. This coupled with the fact that daylight savings finished yesterday meant we headed off from Kambora (CP6) at just before 6:00am in the light. The 10km to Davidson Park (CP7) seemed to fly past, although still have the challenges of tree roots and slippery rocks.

Sunday, 28th March – Sphinx to Kambora

This walk took us on the next two legs south from the Sphinx Memorial to Kambora Public School, almost via St Ives Showgrounds. We didn’t quite make it there due to a locked gate that stopped us about 1km from the showground chopping a 21km trip down to an 18km one.
Overall the pace was good and the humidity on the day had us drenched in sweat, a good workout.

Training Catch-up

I haven’t posted any training stats for a long while now so this post comprises the stats from the walks done since November 2009.