If you believe
everything you read then you’ll have no choice but agree that 2016 was without
doubt the worst year in the history of ever!!! A lot of well-known musicians
died last year – Prince, George Michael, Leonard Cohen, David Bowie and the
list goes on…….
The hysteria on
social media gathered momentum. 2016 was cursed and as we approached its end
people were wishing away the year away and praying that nothing else would go
wrong. As long as we could get through to 2017 everything would be ok right??
Everyone knows
that friend or colleague who, by Monday lunchtime, groans ‘Is it Friday yet?’
Wishing away a day, a week or a year because things aren’t quite right doesn’t
allow us to see the sunshine that exists on even the darkest days.
As a runner I
would never finish an event with the ‘wish away’ attitude. Three events in 2016
were more challenging in various ways than any others I’ve completed prior to
the cursed year.
Coburg 6 Hour –
My motivation for this event was Will Murray. Right at the start of the cursed
2016, Will went from being an elite junior sportsman to a wheelchair in the
blink of an eye. My goal was 64km. People pledged amounts of money for every km
I could do over 60km. If I got to 64 it would mean approx. $4000.00 to Will to aid
his new life.
I told no one
but 10 days out from the event I felt pain in my left knee. The same pain and
the same knee that had kept me out for months in 2015. I felt a pressure on the
start line like no other event. The fundraising campaign had been loud.
Everyone knew the aim…..what happens if I fail….could I blame 2016???
At the end of
the first hour I was on track, same at the end of the second but there was
absolutely no buffer. I had to keep this pace for another four hours and hope
nothing went wrong. Three hours in I felt cramp coming on. The knee was under
control but I could sense it and was wondering when it was going to end this
thing. Was it all going to fall apart?? Four hours in and still on track, my
crew was keeping my fed, hydrated, focussed and motivated. With an hour to go I
felt like I was going to get there but there was still work to be done. With 80
seconds remaining in the 6 hour event I went through the gantry one more time
and in so doing clocked up 64km. The event ended just 200m later for me
surrounded by crew and family.
If the pain or
the doubt won out at least I could have blamed 2016 right??
Second big
event was my first ever attempt at 100km. Ned Kelly Chase in Wangaratta. Again
with my amazing crew, Darren Mooney, Nikki Wynd and Kev Mannix I had no choice
but to get this thing done. Along the way we would chat non-stop, laugh
constantly and even sing Summer Lovin’ real loud as we ran in the middle of
nowhere at four in the morning.
This one wasn’t
a fundraiser, it was just for fun and really something I had to do otherwise
Nikki would never let up on how soft I am J.
Three moments
stood out in this event. Less than 15km in I remember thinking there is just no
way around this, it’s just going to take a really long time. May as well
saviour each moment. My goal was to be mentally strong at the end regardless of
how long it took. (10 hours 21 min
to be exact)
30km in and my
old friend the left knee started up again. I teach Maths so I can tell ya there
was still 70km to go, that’s pretty far. My realisation here was that no matter
how much I might want this, maybe it just wouldn’t be possible today. Will
Murray, crosses my mind often at times like this. So I keep pushing on because
I can. Will keeps fighting every day because he has to. He has to fight
mentally and physically to make even the slightest improvement. He inspires me
every day.
2km to go and
my whole crew joins in to run me to the finish. When I cross the line I hug
each of them long time. Tears in my eyes I know I haven’t done anything to
change the world, it’s just been a good day even though there was a lot of pain
involved.
Two weeks
later, my third major event for the year was the Upstream 50km challenge. This
time as a fundraiser and this time as a team or as pair with Jackie in her
first ever ultra.
Soooo about 2km
in I could feel the knee already. It must be 2016’s fault right? It actually
wasn’t. Can you believe? My knee problem today was all my fault. Way too early
to run 50 just two weeks after 100. Sometimes we bring it on ourselves and
sometimes shit just happens. The beauty part is you’re allowed to choose how
you respond.
I kept quiet
about the knee and sucked it up, it wasn’t about me today. We ran strong into
the forties and past marathon distance and that was when the party really
started. In a short space of time, Jackie was starting to look pretty much
hmmmm not so sunshine….her body was shutting down, the smile had faded and some
concerning chest pain was creeping in. So again here’s a moment where you get
to choose how to respond. We decided the next 8 minutes of running would be
made up of purely positive thoughts. It worked. Smiles returned and laughter
was heard as we latched on to gratitude and appreciation. It was still a slog
to the end but rather than focussing on just finishing and getting it over and
done with we brought it back to the moment and were able to enjoy it even
though it was 2016. I know right!!
We crossed the
line, had just about the best hamburger ever and a couple of days later found
out that we had been the first team across the line. Who’d a thunk it? We won.
Really though we had won many times before we finished. We just had to take the
time to think how and why.
On the first
day of 2017 a man I had never met took his last breath. Anton was surrounded by
loved ones. They drank champagne as they waited for the doctor to arrive. It
was his last ‘happy hour’. These people lived and loved in that moment as they
had lived and loved together forever. Probably able to do that ‘cause it wasn’t
2016, ya think?
