The Great North Walk 100s – What a way to spend a weekend!

by Cindy King

While many of us were enjoying (or not enjoying, as the case may be…) the weekend of 13/14 November, a group of runners spent most of their weekend running through the bush of the ‘Great North Walk’.  For those of us who consider the marathon a long distance, and the logistics of getting to a big-city marathon start irritating, spare a thought for those who choose to run over rugged terrain all day – and into the night – and into the next day….  Here are the stories of a few who consider this a well-spent weekend.

But First, What are the Great North Walk 100s?

The Great North Walk is a 250km walking track in the Central Coast of NSW, between Sydney and Newcastle.  The Great North Walk 100s (GNW100s) are two simultaneous trail races - you get to pick between 100 kilometers and 100 miles (160km).  The number of entrants is limited to 100 people in both races, with the entrants having to achieve certain cut-off times at Checkpoints, and finish within the overall time limits of 22 hours for the 100 kilometre race and 36 hours for the 100 mile race.  All entrants had to be over age 18, and have pre-qualified by running a 4:30 or faster marathon in the previous three years, or an equivalent performance over a greater distance.  There is support offered during the race – runners can have their ‘drop bags’ with personal supplies delivered to their nominated checkpoints, and they are allowed to have support runners.

 This is not a race for the wary, as the blunt warning on the race website testifies.  “Entrants need to cope with precipitous ascents and descents, muddy trails and creek crossings, slippery rocks and roots, and hard-to-follow trail…. there are a number of sections where running is impossible….  It is easy to get lost or injured on this course….”

 How did the races pan out this year?

 Temperatures in the mid-thirties made for tough conditions.  Race director Dave Byrnes commented that “…fortunately, runners adhered to the warnings to hydrate and I believe that there were only two who required IV drips to aid recovery.  There were, however, more withdrawals than would have been expected in cooler conditions.”

In the 100 mile event, second-time competitor Andrew Vize prevailed over Philip ‘Spud’ Murphy and Darrel Robbins.

 Female competitors made up only 15% of entrants for both races, but those who did compete proved once again that women fare well against men over the untramarathon distance. Peggy Macqueen of Queensland set a new course record in the 100 mile race, finishing 4^th overall in a time of 27:18, and there were 3 other women in the top 10 – Robin Cameron, Meredith Quinlan, and Allison Lilley.

In the 100 km event (which is actually 103.7, but who’s counting once you have raced that far; spare a thought for the 100 mile racers who actually race 14 km more than 100 miles….) Clarke McClymont prevailed over Matt Cooper and third placegetter Dave Coombs.  Matt had been a clear leader on record pace through the first three legs (81.7km) but then missed a turn in the last leg, losing as much as an hour, resulting in his being second by 28 minutes.  Marie Doke, Kelly Books and Kirrily Dear also achieved podium finishes in the 100 km.

 All of the 50 finishers have a story to tell.  One has to admire 66-year old Bill Thompson, who finished the 100 Mile event for the 4^th year in succession.  Each time he has finished within the last 15 minutes before the 36 hour cut-off. Runners now know that if they get passed by Bill they are in trouble. To give you more insight into what it takes to complete this event, we have interviewed four participants – one of the winners, a first-timer, and a married couple who completed the course together.  Here are there stories.

The Winner

Andrew Vize is a 28-year old Sydneysider who works for Macquarie Bank.  His meticulous preparation for the 100 mile event paid off for him a with over a 1-hour victory.

Was this your first GNW race?  What has been your running background so far?  

The 2009 race was my second year at the Great North 100 miles.  In 2008 I placed 6th in a time of 29:05.  In 2009 I managed to win the event and knock almost 4 hours of last year’s time.   

I’ve been running since the middle of 2007 when I met the Ultramarathonman, Dean Karnazes.  He signed a copy of his book “Confessions of an all night runner” and 3 days later I ran a marathon.  I’ve done a lot of training since then and I truly enjoy all aspects of this sport. 

I’ve also completed two 6 foot tracks, two North Face 100km races and ran 250km from Newcastle to Sydney along the Great North Walk in 66 hours and 36 minutes – normally it takes two weeks to hike.  

I’m only just beginning in this sport and I really appreciate the camaraderie and advice from the more experienced runners.  I have a lot of ideas for future runs which I cannot wait to start planning and completing with my mates. 

Unlike some competitors, I don’t use other races in the year as training runs.  I keep them separate.  I really need to put a lot into each race including making sure I am both physically and mentally 100% ready to stand on the start line and give it everything I have for the next 50km ,100km, 100 miles or 250km.  You cannot have any doubts. 

What made you choose to do the event? 

I really respect the course because it’s totally brutal.  If you have any weaknesses at all this course will find them very quickly and then absolutely hammer you for them over the next 175km or until you DNF.   

My preferred events are long, tough trail races where you are totally smashed by the end of it.  I want the course to take me right to the edge, show me what’s there and then if I’m good enough on the day I will be able to come back from the abyss and run strongly all the way to the finish.  It has to challenge me both physically and mentally.  The course is scenic and brutal in equal measures and they don’t come much tougher than the Great North 100 miles.   

I like a race where competitors are forced to deal with the consequences of actions taken earlier in the race.  Some people go out hard, and try to hold on.  Others go out slowly and speed up as the race goes on.  For every action you take on the first day you will be forced to deal with the consequences over and over again during the night or into the second day and there is nowhere to hide out there and some people don’t like the answers they are presented with on the day. 

Also the Terrigal Trotters and the race Director Dave Byrnes are perfect hosts and every single volunteer makes the event a huge success. 

How did you train for the event? 

My training for the event started on 1 September, which gave me roughly 10 weeks until race day.  During the 10 weeks I logged 1,100 kilometres and half of this was done on the actual GNW course.  My weekly long runs ranged from 45km-72km and were done mostly on Saturday’s with the occasional night run with pelting hail and overhead lightning storms to keep us company. 

During the week I train around Balmoral doing hill sessions, faster trail running and a flat long distance run on Wednesday.  I try to run twice per day and run back to back days to give me two full recovery days per week. 

I have a great group of friends that I train with for the long runs and I always look forward to spending time with them on the trail outside of race conditions.  It’s my way of unwinding from a busy week and it is always terrific fun to see who will get lost, fall over, run out of food or cop most of the sledging on any particular day. 

Were you confident that you could win it? 

No, never.  I was still looking over my shoulder in the last 100 metres as I ran onto the beach at Patonga.   

I never even considered that I could, should or would win the Great North 100 miles, I’m still buzzing from the win and it feels great. 

I was the first to leave Checkpoint 4 at 103km but with 72km and over 12 hours of racing through the night still ahead of me I never allowed my thoughts to drift from the few metres of trail directly in front of me and where my body was at in terms of heat, hydration, food intake and any signs of muscle fatigue. I was very lucky to have an experienced trail runner, Marcus Warner, as my pacer and together we ran well through the night and kept a good distance between us and the 2nd and 3rd placed runners – Phillip Murphy and my great mate Darrel Robins. 

My crew which comprised my sister, Rebecca Vize, and my fiancé, Laura Petherbridge.  They were responsible for making sure I was in and out of the 6 checkpoints quickly and brought me up to speed on splits to other runners behind.  As a runner you really have very little idea about how the race is unfolding in front of or behind you and you need this information in order to adjust your race plan over the next stage. 

What was the biggest challenge? 

Without a doubt the heat was the major threat to a successful race for each and every person standing on the start line.  You can prepare for the massive hills, you can prepare for the distance and you can prepare for the non-stop running through the night, but for me the heat was the great unknown.   

Just about every other foreseeable issue can be mitigated by targeted training and a well thought out race plan.   

You can try to train for the heat, but sitting in a sauna or a steam room for 30 minutes is nothing like running hundreds of kilometres under a blazing sun with temperatures in the mid to high 30’s. 

How do you stay awake for that long????? 

I make sure I have plenty of sleep in the three nights leading up to the race.  The night before the race I don’t sleep much at all, but I am relaxed and this doesn’t worry me as I usually eat my race breakfast during the night when I can’t sleep.   

We also had a chat with his ‘pacer’, Marcus Warner, who provided insight into Andrew’s strengths:

“There was no better prepared athlete for this course. He had trained on every section of the course in all conditions including the heat, and the night sections he ran at night with full gear. He had his nutrition and his race strategy very well documented and he had an excellent crew. I witnessed him spend no more than 90 seconds at anyone checkpoint with his crew knowing exactly what he needed to eat and take with him for the next 30km section. His briefing of my role as pacer was excellent. By training together I knew exactly the shape he would be in at the 100km point and knew exactly what I had to do to push him hard through the night if he was likely to podium and over the 78kms we ran together we executed this perfectly. When Tim Cochrane came in ahead of him at 100km point with a 10 minute lead and looking very unwell. I knew I had to push Andrew to get out ahead of Tim and post a significant lead for the first two night sections. Andrew lifted perfectly and made my job so easy.  By the second night section we had a 1hr lead over our nearest rival and knew that for the final 25kms we just had to hold our course, maintain strategy and make no silly mistakes. Andrew Vize doesn't make mistakes ! so I knew we had it. I couldn’t think of a better person to pace and he was very genuine in his thanks for all involved in his success. I think he has a big future.

This is part 1 of a 2 part article. Stay tuned for the second installment...