The Year That Was

*WARNING* Long and serious post alert - I don't really expect bloggers to read this, but for reasons articulated below I want a permanent record of this ramble.

I am not usually given to being serious but I have been printing off my blog archives every month and keeping a hard copy with a view that it may be of some interest to my daughter and grand kids when I eventually pass on to the happy training grounds.

And then again maybe not!

I try to keep my blog a light hearted and positive affair designed primarily to amuse myself and anyone who cares to peruse it. I tend not to delve too far into my personal, work, or other training activities accept where there is a direct connection to my running. Being an old fashion bloke I rarely if ever blog about my feelings or what motivates me. And I'm not about to start now in any big way - the only person who is ever likely to know the real me is Mrs 2P.

Contemplating how little I really know about my parents and grand parents lives I thought it might be worth it to chronicle what led to me recommencing running this year - well actually it was last year - the 20th of December 2004 to be precise. But to fully understand this story we need to go back into the 1990's.

It is well recorded in my blogs that I have an ongoing battle with my calves (the evil Gastroc twins) - I first encountered this problem in 1995 when I split the sheath so badly on the left twin I had to walk with a cane for a couple of weeks and it was some months before I was pain free.

Fast forward to 1997 I started to incorporate more running into my training regime and I completed the Six Foot Track for the first time. I was hooked and for the next couple of years I continued to run, all the while pushing the twins to the limit and often over. The proverbial straw was the 1999 Sydney Morning Herald Half Marathon - with just a bit over 2k to go I blew both calves apart in quick succession. My greatest strength (and weakness) as an athlete has been my capacity to drive my body long past the point where common sense would suggest it prudent to stop (I also have an over-active self-belief gland). In short I am one stubborn, pig headed bastard and I refused to throw in the towel in the SMH. Result - my calves were so shattered I walked with a cane for nearly a month, I hung the runners up and I never got back in the saddle.

We pick up the story in September 2003 - attempting my Masters in kung fu after 21 years of continuous training - I had 6 hours to go in a 28 hour grading (over 3 days) when I ruptured the bursa on the attachment point of my right hammie - again I pushed it to the end (I rationalised that the pain of the final 6 hours couldn't be any worse than having to do the previous 22 hours again). I passed, but in the process did quite a bit of damage - it was to be 9 months before I could train properly again. During this time I put on a shed load of weight maxing out the scales at a more than chunky 105kg (I'm only 5'7"/178cm) by August 2004.

Time for a change - I went the Atkins route and had my weight down to 88kg by December '04 and this brings us to this last year of running and the reasons behind it.

I went for a run on the 20/12/04, my first for quite a while and what happened next shocked me to my core - I had to stop running after 400 meters my legs hurt so much. I'm not talking about fatigue, I'm talking about an excruciating ache that my mind couldn't beat. The shock was twofold - first a pain my mind couldn't beat? There being no actual damage just pain - this just wasn't part of the 2P self image. And second I had always found I could just go out and run 4 or 5k no matter how long between runs and now I couldn't! What the?

I continued to shuffle and walk my way around a 4k loop of Concord Golf Course, I did this every day for the next 3 days and on the 5th day I was determined to run 5k without stopping - I did. I also determined that I would never let this sorry state of affairs EVER occur again. Being on the wrong side of forty and knowing how quickly I can now put on weight I needed an aerobic component to my training if I was to wean off Atkins and get back to what I consider to be a healthier more sustainable diet. I adore running and as it is my aerobic workout of choice it really wasn't a hard decision on how to achieve this.

Digression - why do I adore running? I honestly can't answer that - I really don't know. I'm crap at it and it is kind of funny because I am, without being too immodest, a very accomplished martial artist and a pretty handy sprinter. The combination of my sprinting ability and being blessed with good eye to hand coordination I can usually hold my own in most team sports - so why I love to do something I'm not that flash at is a bit of a mystery even to me.

So as to my actual motivation it is pretty much a lifestyle choice - I don't want to be an over forty who can't see his own shoe laces and whilst I have no intention to live for ever I want to be as healthy as I can be, for as long as I can be - I want this for me and Mrs 2P, I want it for my daughter and my grand kids. I also want this so I can be a positive role model for the young people whose lives I touch at kung fu - that being over forty doesn't mean your sporting life is over. So I will continue to train in kung fu and I will continue to run.

My other motivation is that since I was a teenager I have always believed that when I got older I would run ultra's. The seed was planted by following the Sydney to Melbourne ultra's and some of the exploits of ultra runners like Grant, Rafferty and later Farmer. Well I aint getting any younger and if I am to realise this ambition I better get cracking. Besides, having achieved my major goal in martial arts I need something new to challenge me.

So - on to the year that was.

When Mrs 2P asked me what I wanted for my birthday on the 10th of January 2005 I replied that my wish was to run from Catherine Hill Bay to our holiday home in Gwandalan (11.5k) on my birthday and if I could do that then with her support I would train for, enter and complete the 2005 Six Foot Track on March 12.

Well I made that run from Catherine Hill Bay and some 8 weeks later I made it across the finish line of the Six Foot Track, well under the cut off in 6 hours 21 mins. I was very satisfied but after such an intense time both mentally and physically I switched off towards the end of March and all through April. I had better months in May and June but July, August and September were all less than 45k months. I finally got my ducks in a row and have managed to run well for October, November and December. Of course the constant battle of wills with the twins continues, but it is much easier when I remain consistent.

Not being one for crowds I generally avoid running events but the lure of meeting up with some fellow Cool Runners and other environmental factors also saw me do the Woodford to Glenbrook, the Lake Macquarie Half and the Central Coast Half.

The W2G was a wonderful event and I really surprised myself with my performance - I had a patchy preparation due to the twins and in the first couple of k's the left one played up significantly. But it came good and I had a fantastic last 12k.

The Lake Mac Half was a disaster but oddly I rate it as my most satisfying (not best performance) run for the year. I had only run twice in the 8 weeks leading up to this event and came down with a tummy bug the night before. I am really proud of my finish that day - I've never been more shattered after a run - I know in my heart of hearts I could not gone even one tenth of a second faster than my pedestrian 2.08 performance - I left it all on the track that day.

The CC Half was where I placed myself under most pressure, but with the help of some of the coolest of Cool Runners I achieved my goal - again a very satisfying day and my best running performance for the year.

This all might sound a bit rosy but fact is, there were a number of starts I didn't manage to make that rankle a bit - particularly Twelve Foot, Willy to Billy and the Sydney Marathon - but they just weren't meant to be this year.

Another mild disappointment was that the Coast to Kosciuszko didn't manage to get up as an official event. I have been playing a very minor role in assisting the organisers and it would have been great to see it happen. Following the successful fat ass running of the event was however a highlight and it was incredibly inspirational - I will continue to do what little I can to see this great event get "officially" off the ground in '06.

The other highlight for the year has been the friendships I have made through CR and particularly through blogging. The support and above all else the understanding (not being a member of a running group or club) is something I really, really value.

So what's on the cards for next year - well I'm not going to say much here - you will have to read about it as it happens, but one thing for sure though - I'm not going to die wondering if I could make it as an ultra runner or not. One way or the other I am going to answer the question in 2006.