Sometimes pictures are all you need..!

Since my last post I have been working on exploring as much new trails as possible as I am unfortunately moving on from New Zealand in a couple of weeks due to visa reasons... I have enjoyed running over all the mountains and trails here in New Zealand, below is a few of my best pics from the peaks/trails! I figure I'd let the pictures do the talking in this blog post, hope you enjoy! 

On a plus side! As I move on from here I am very excited to explore many new trails and mountains around the world. Mainly I will have the time to go and play in Himalayan Mountains of Nepal for 5 weeks followed by some trail running around China, Thailand and Singapore before flying over to Brazil to see what their trails have to offer. I also have an ultra booked in Singapore followed by a marathon in Thailand too, hopefully find some more along the way too. If any one knows any trails or races worth looking at in these places please shout out!! I'd be happy to go on recommendations for sure. 

Thanks again for everyone who takes the time to read and follow my blog posts. And a huge thank you to Nathan Sports NZ who have supported me over this last year and keeping me hydrated with some of the worlds best race packs and belts along the way.. 

Paul x 

Peak To Peak Winter Adventure Race

What it was all about!

Several months ago myself, Gemma and Rachael was sat in our house one night looking for running events we could all participate in over the winter months. On searching the net we found a Multi Sport Adventure Race 'Peak To Peak' The race consisted of a 2km downhill ski onto a 16km downhill mountain bike, jump in a kayak for 7km across Lake Wakatipu before running 9km out of Queenstown, finishing with a 9km uphill bike ride to Cornet Peak Ski Resort. We instantly all took a shine to the event as something to do as a house (Little did Chris know he was going to be apart of all this, as he was working late that evening) after a little discussion on how we would sort each persons relay leg we left it at that.

The Night Before..

A couple of months later it was the week before the event and in a last minute dash to get all the equipment together we entered our team 'The Hungry Hippos' Kind of fitting as we all exercise to ultimately eat! Any one looking from the outside looking at us would just laugh at how we was going about the event. Pretty much everything we had to get for the event we didn't have as we were all travelling. The ski's, MTN bike and road bike were all rented and not used untill the day. Our Kayak we had from a friend.. so basically the only leg we had covered was the running section! The night before the event we popped down into town to collect our race bib and information from registration. First thing we noticed as people pulled up in cars etc.. that everyone had the best gear on the market! Some of these athletes were in it to win it, ultimately multi sport racing was there number one sport. And here's us renting and borrowing everything. 

Rachael heading to the start! 

Race morning come and after a brilliant home made pancake team breakfast from Rachael we were off! Rachael and Chris left to drive up the mountain as Rachael was racing our Ski section followed by Chris taking on the downhill MTN section. I was up for the 7km Kayak and passing on the bib to Gem for the 9km run with myself finishing off on the uphill bike to the Ski Resort of Cornet Peak. Me and Gem went down to Frankton beach to sort the kayak out and get ready to collect the bib from Chris on his bike. As soon as we got to the beach I instantly realised that me in my little casual weekend kayak was going to struggle big time! Every other team had a nice slim racing sea kayak.. Nothing like going against the odds. Our kayak choice soon was the talking point of the beach with people coming up to us saying that we wouldn't make it in our 'joke' kayak and we may well not start. A little demoralising but people who know me knows that I will just find that extra 10% effort some where just to prove everyone wrong and yes I was going to finish wether it took me 40 minutes or 3 hours, I like a good challenge! 

Chris ready to take on the downhill.

12:00 came and the race was off, Rachael set us going with a good downhill ski to finish her leg within the middle of the pack. Chris then took over the bib to ride it down from the Ski Resort to the Frankton beach where I was waiting to Kayak. Chris also had a storming ride and kept our overall place high by passing a few more competitors along the way. Next up was me on the Kayak, now kayaking 7km alone is an effort! Kayaking 7km in a small weekend toy against seasoned kayakers in racing kayaks just seamed impossible.. after 400 meters away from the beach I instantly knew it was going to be a big effort to finish this leg of the relay but I certainly wasn't going to give up and let the team down. Looking around I taking 5 strokes to everyone else's 1 and I still wasn't getting any where to be honest.. 

Just splashing around..

Minute by minute I lost more ground on all the other competitors and was quickly loosing everything what Rachael and Chris had given us so far. Just over the hour mark I finally came into the final stretch into Queenstown beach, unfortunately at this time I was one from last!! That leg of our relay just killed any chance we had of doing well but not to give up Gem took the bib off me and shot up the road like a dog after a rabbit to see what we could actually claw back from this race. 

Have a guess what Kayak I had?!

Gem storming the run leg! 

After locking our kayak up to a tree myself,Chris and Rachael headed to the car to drive up to the final transition area to wait for Gem to arrive and pass on the bib back to me to take us up to the finish line. As we drove the run course to get to the finish we passed Gem half way into her run flying! She had already taken 4 runners and was easily going to catch a few more up the road as they had nothing on the climbs where Gem was making some serious ground on them. On crossing the finish line we found that she had over taken 9 runners along the way. The team was in good spirit and the thought of coming last was slowly going away from our minds.. With Rachael, Chris and now Gem all having awesome legs I was out for revenge on the bike after my disappointing kayak leg. 

Transition, Run - Bike

I took the bib off Gem, popped it over my head and set off all calm and relaxed with the idea off hit the bottom of the climb hard but still at a sustainable speed to carry on with it to the summit. First mistake I nearly missed the left turn to go up to Cornet Peak, breaks went on and I turned the bike around to take the left turn. By this time I was now on a mission to get up this hill at the quickest possible speed I could. I soon missed my carbon road bike from back home as I started to climb the hill with this old aluminium bike we had managed to get for the event. The support from Chris,Rach and Gem was awesome! They kept driving up a little, stopping and getting out to show their support what always helps you when everything is hurting. 

On the up..! 

Reaching snow line.

Half way up the climb I had managed to catch 7 riders and still was feeling ok, at the 5km mark I decided to try and push on and up the pace once again. As they say everything comes in 3's so I still had one thing what could go wrong and just as the team had passed me for the final time before the summit my chain jammed and come off.. I quickly jumped off to try and sort not wanting to loose too much time in the process. I continued to push on and climb to the summit and managed to catch a few more riders in the final km's taking the tally to 16 riders caught. 100 meters from the finish line Chris took my bike whilst I ran up the stairs and along the snow to cross the line. Where Gem and Rachael was waiting and cheering for me. A fellow work college Katelyn was up the ski resort skiing at the time too and had gone to get the team some drinks and chocolate for the finish line! What went down a treat.. Just what I needed after turning myself inside out to get up the climb. Thanks Katelyn! I owe you :-) 

Every last bit of energy to the finish line.

Overall I think I can talk for everyone in the team here, we all loved it and something none of us had done in the past and all really enjoyed it. I would defiantly recommend to people just to give something out side your comfort zone a go and you might actually surprise your self. I'm defiantly not saying I'll take up Kayaking as a sport any time soon but was good to test myself physically and mentally for sure. The day was finished off with a good feast out in the American Diner in town and a laugh at some of the videos and pictures we got along the way. 

Finish Line picture! Team Hungry Hippos.

Thanks again to everyone who follows and take the time to read my posts! Also a thanks to Chris and Rachael for capturing the event on camera on the way round.. 

Chris has also put a little video together, showing some of the best parts of the event! http://youtu.be/8DXPXRBuldo

Also check out Rachael and Chris's take/blog on the days event here. Some more cool pictures to check out too!  http://sweetasmckinney.com/2014/07/30/peak-to-peak/

Paul x 

3rd Time Lucky!

I have been quieter on my blog over the last 2-3 weeks, this is down to just been enjoying some good miles. Not worrying about pace or speed just going out and enjoying the trails around Queenstown here in New Zealand. With the winter snow finally here on the tops of the mountains I have enjoyed getting up high and seeing what the area has to offer whilst coated in a blanket of snow! One of my favorite routes has to be from home into to Queenstown followed by the Tiki Trail behind the Skyline Gondola then round the back and over Ben Lomond Saddle before taking a hard left and climbing to the summit of Ben Lomond at 5735ft with 360 degree views from the peak. With less and less people taking this route in the winter it was great fun having to make my own tracks through the knee deep snow to the summit. 27km return route from home makes this a great one to tackle on my days off..   

Ben Lomond Summit

Being just outside the main town also offers me many of lower trails to play with around the Lake of Wakatipu where I have spend many hours over this last few months trying to find some winter fitness. I do actually feel a little stronger as the month has gone with finding climbing the inclines becoming a little easier on the legs! 

View over Lake Wakatipu from the trails.. 

Saturday the 19th of July saw me take on third race in the monthly series over in Jackspoint. The first time I ran the 5km being a week after my 100km ultra but since then I have raced the full 10km multi-terrain distance and again was set for the 10km this month. I was interested to see how this month would go as I hadn't done much speed over the last month but worked more on becoming a stronger runner and spending time in the mountains. The course actually is made up of 3 climbs and 3 descents in total so in theory it was a course to be racing for the type of training I was doing. 

10:00 am came by and we were off! A solo runner went off into the lead and I played chase with another runner from the start line. As we took on the first of 3 climbs I decided to push the pace a little as I was feeling good and see what happened with the other 2 runners. I caught up to the lead runner and pushed on into first, at the top of the climb I took a quick glance over my shoulder to see a fellow runner who I had ran with the first part of the race had come with me. We hit the first descent side by side and both keeping a good pace, on the second climb we ran up together before coming to the little out and back part of the course before heading out to the furthest part of the course and the final climb. 

Jackspoint Trails!

As we approached the final climb I decided to push up hard and put a little gap between myself and second overall. I had gained a little but not as much as I would of liked as I knew that the fellow runner I was racing was a very good strong runner and it would be touch and go to the finish if I didn't manage to make the break away now.... I kicked again on the descent and as we hit the flat before finally pulling away with 1.5km left of the race. I knew from the 9km mark it was all flat running or down hill and I used this to my advantage to hold on till the end to finish the day off with a win on my 3rd attempt of coming to this monthly series of races. And clocking the quickest time I have run over the course by over 70 seconds. Overall a good morning of racing followed by a great afternoon on the trails as me and Gem decided to run home after the race clocking another 17km over some breath taking trails with postcard views all around! 

Winter in the Southern Alps of NZ..

Back to some winter training now, even tho it hasn't felt like winter on some days! Still managing to get the shorts and vest out on some training runs. This weekend will see participate in a team relay over the 'Peak to Peak Adventure Race' with my house mates! Not haven done anything like this before I'm excited to see how it plays out, we all have our disciplines to race over. From Downhill Skiing - Downhill MTN Biking - Kayaking - Running - Uphill Road Biking. :-) 

Keeping hydrated by my Nathan Sports Race Pack!

Next month I'll have a go at a new race for 2014, a 13km up hill time trail race from the car park on the road side to the ski resort at the top or the Remarkables Mountain Range. Looking forward to this event as I have trained over this route before and it's a lung/leg buster within minutes..... 

Thanks again to everyone who follows me and supports me along the way! Much appreciated..

Paul x 

June - The month of racing!

Race Kit at the ready!

Since leaving the UK, racing for me has been very hit or miss! Therefore the month of June has actually been really nice for me getting to race a marathon, my first one mile race and this last weekend I finished off with a multi-terrain 10km over in Jacks Point here in Queenstown.

The Jacks Point races is a monthly series of 5km and 10km races what Active QT put on. Last month I did the 5km as it was the week in between my 100km in Australia and my Marathon in Christchurch, but this time I decided I would race the 10km course and see how I went. Around Jacks Point it's actually quite hilly and undulating the whole way round but for me I was looking forward to having a good tough race. We set of 10:10am from the start line and instantly there was a group of 3 of us hit the front and was pushing up the first major climb with the aim to break away from the rest of the field. The first couple of KM's went by and the pace was good, myself and another runner pulled away a little on 3rd place by this time I was enjoying a little of the down hill running apart from each stride out on my left leg caused my calf head to pull and get tight but Gem had strapped it up for me in the morning what helped a great deal. As we approached the 4km mark I started to feel a little tired and decided to  ease back off the pace to try an maintain a more consistent pace for the final 5km rather than just fade km by km.. At this time the 3rd place runner was really moving well, his plan from the start was to obvious work his way into the race and finish strong what worked very well for him.

Race Start Location

As we approached the 8km mark I had faded slightly and have gone into 3rd overall but was still moving at a happy pace for myself seeing that I don't particularly do any 10km specific training. After a few more ups and down in the course and some headwinds on our return 2km I crossed the line in 3rd over, exactly 60 seconds down on the race winner.

After race picture with Gem and Rachael..

Overall I was pleased with how the race went, time wasn't the quickest but good enough to climb a podium place. My calf has been a little stiff since but am slowly working the stiffness and soreness away with massages and some rock tape. Hopefully after a few days rest I can get into some good winter training over the month of July. As of this minute I don't have any races planned for the month of July what should give me some good time to actually just rack up some miles and find some fitness for some good racing in August!

Thanks again to Nathan Sports NZ who continue to sponsor/support me with all the latest hydrations bottles/packs/belt. For anyone who would like to check out some of their range : http://www.nathansports.com and to everyone who takes time to follow my blog posts and leaves supporting messages before and after my races on my FB and Twitter accounts. Much appreciated!

This week I also did a Radio Interview this week on 'Endurance Running' and how I have got into the longer distances over the years, if any one would like to listen please click the link here: https://onedrive.live.com/?cid=7589a39719d5832c&id=7589A39719D5832C%21200

Paul x

American Express Winter Festival Golden Mile

Saturday the 21st of June saw me have a go at a race distance I had never raced before! This race was apart of this years American Express Winter Festival here in Queenstown. 

The Golden Mile.. Consisted of two laps around the town centre of Queenstown. The atmosphere was really buzzing and the streets were filled with spectators. Not having done any speed work with months and only really racing longer distances I wasn't expecting much in the race but thought 'Why Not?!' I had nothing too loose but gain a 1 mile personal best. 

I had put up on my Twitter and Facebook page the couple of days before that I was racing and for poeple to predict my finishing time. I wasn't really sure what time I was capable of running and figured it would be a good laugh to see what others thought I could do. The predictions what come in had a huge range between the times.. The quickest at 4:35 - 6:20, I was hoping I could run around 5:10-5:15 to be honest but wasn't sure how the legs would cope. 

Otago Daily Times newspaper shot of the start..

Race morning soon came around and after heading into town and collecting our numbers. I wasn't feeling great but legs felt fresh! (For a change) Midday soon come and we were off, I had decided to go with the tactic of go off hard and hold on for as long as possible. How hard can it be to sprint a mile right? I couldn't of been more wrong!! Off went the gun and the front line shot off like we were racing a 100m.. I dropped into the second little group behind the 3 leaders. Our group was 4th,5th,6th,7th I figured it would be to try and hold onto this group for as long as possible and then try make a move towards the end if my legs had anything left. As we approached the final 200 meters on lap one it had a slight up hill section and our group had just slowed a fraction and the leading group was now 2 athletes. I decided that if I was going to go it was now! I just upped the pace for 15 seconds what gave me just enough to over take and put a little distance on the second group of runners and just managed to catch the leading 2 runners, but by doing this I now didn't actually have much left in the legs. Half way round the second lap the leading running decided to break and push on for the win neither myself or the second runner had enough to go with me. On the same incline as the first lap I tried to see if I had anything left to try for 2nd but the 2nd place runner had much more in his tank and held me off really well to finish 2nd and myself 3rd over the line. In a time of 4:51! I was very surprised to see when I looked down at my watch to see the time of 4:51. According to my gps the course measured out at 1.03 and my mile time was 4:46 but I am very happy with my official time at 4:51, and 3rd overall.

Top 3 overall results..

Would I race a one mile race again? In a strange way I think I would. I would like to maybe race the distance over a quicker course of just one lap and less tight corners. Overall I was glad I took the chance to race it and was pleased to see I still have some speed.. Well it's speed for me! 

Thanks to everyone for reading and following..

Paul x 

Understanding the importance of rest in training..

Since the Christchurch Marathon back on June the 1st I haven't really been doing much to be open and honest.. My 3 weeks back to back racing in May/June included a 100km mountain trail race and a marathon has taken it right out of my body.

Over the last few week I have just tried to keep doing something each week as always. Mainly so I don't get fat as I still eat like I'm training for ultras but also just to try and keep in some kind of shape.. It's actually pretty hard to keep some fitness when you are on a rest month. I had chosen June as a rest month from racing and long miles to allow my body just recover from what I did last month and hopefully I can come back stronger and fitter with a fresher body. If there is one thing I have learnt over the years of training/racing it's the body actually needs just as much rest as training! I have often been known to push myself to the limits in races but as I get a little more experienced I am learning when to stop and listen to the body..

The tally chart below is just a little in sight to how little I have been training each week. I have tried to keep one speed/gym session each with on a Sunday with Gem, Emily and Lauren as always, but other than that I have just been going out doing a few miles here and there:

It has actually been a good few weeks training with Emily,Lauren and Gem as it has given me a purpose to my running in a bid to help them get fitter, faster and stronger! Also pacing my flat mate Rachael last week to her first sub 2 hour Half Marathon is always nice to be apart of. People setting goals and you being apart of it to help them achieve it is just awesome. Basically I have been running for others this month but I have really enjoyed it, actually going out and running with good friends makes it always worth while getting out the house on a cold and wet winters night to go for a run. 

Looking forward I might actually just for the fun of it, compete in a event in this years American Express Winter Festival in Queenstown as a total one off and something what couldn't be further away from what I actually usually race. A straight out 1 mile race, 2 laps of town in a bid to run the fastest time for the mile. Now I actually have no speed left in the legs with all the longer distances I now run but I figure I have nothing to loose, why not just have a go at racing with some of the best in the country at a distance what is way out side of my comfort zone.. What time will I run, who knows!! Other than that I think I will just tick by with the miles and recover fully ready for some good winter training in July.

The Golden Mile 21st June 2014.. 

Thanks as always to everyone who supports me and follows my running jollies around the world

Paul x 

Christchurch Marathon

Another week gone by and another race completed for me! As mentioned in my previous posts I was going to be running in this years Christchurch Marathon 2 weeks after completing the TNF100, never had good feelings at all about it. One with having tired legs from all the climbing and stairs in the TNF100 and also I had been struggling to find a good feel from the body since the race. I knew it was just my body telling me it wanted to rest but it's amazing what your mind can do once your body has given up.. 

Friday before the event I flew up to Christchurch in time for the race. On arriving I popped down to briefly help some friends from the Shoe Clinic in Riccarton/Asics do some setting up in the marathon expo before heading off for some food and an early night at a friends of mine who had kindly offered to put me up for the weekend, Thanks Di! . Saturday was spent working in the store over there again before having a belly full of food and an early night. I hadn't slept great on the Friday night with it being in a new environment and new bed etc etc... But Saturday was much better after getting use to the new surroundings. Gem and some good friends Emily and Lar was doing they bit again this week helping me to get ready for the event mentally as I was feeling a little low about the race I didn't feel great in my self and body wasn't up to much. Again a big Thank You to them for being good friends and being by my side when needed :-) 

Race ready! 

6:15am on the Sunday the alarm rings out I look over at the weather and it's at a lovely fresh -2 degrees. For most people this would be freezing and wouldn't even dream of getting out of bed but I must say I really enjoy running in the colder climates and was happy it was a dry/fresh morning. Good bowl of porridge and a banana and I was ready to go. Kit was good to go, my Nathan Phantom Pak to carry some gels (This is an awesome sleek and classic bounce free design with a weather resistance pocket.) Hoka One One Stinston Tarmac with the usual shorts and vest! Di again was helping me out by getting me to the race on time, great not having to worry about public transport. 

Result from good old black ice.

After a good warm up and thoughts gathered it was time for race start!
8:30am the gun went and off and off we ran into the distance. I found it particularly hard to pace the run from the start as they had a 10km, Half Marathon and the Marathon all going off at the same time and as you can imagine so many different paces. If there is one thing I have learnt over the years of running its to run your own race and not worry too much about what others are doing around you, this defiantly helped me in the first 21km of the race. Once I had started moving I wasn't feeling too bad apart from being a big sluggish, I kept thinking that my legs would just stop going at some point with them being so tired from the last 2 weeks of racing and training. Around the 26km mark was the biggest hic up for me in the race as I put my left foot down on a stride it just slid right from underneath me on some black ice that I hadn't seen and I just hit the deck with a thud! A couple of seconds to gather myself and I was back up with both knees cut open and my left arm and elbow all bruised and split.. This wasn't going to stop me finishing the race for sure! Every one has heard of the quote "Go Hard or Go Home" I wasn't ready to go home. I continued to tick the KMs off and push towards the finish line back at the Airport where we had started the race. I was relative pleased at how I had managed to keep a steady pace over the distance (not a fast one by any means) and I crossed the finish line in 15th overall and 13th Male in a time of 2:53. Always lots of room for improvement for sure!
  

Km Splits

All in all job done and another marathon completed what takes my tally of races above the marathon distance to 20! Time for a little rest and some solid winter training here in New Zealand before deciding on my next challenge.. Thanks again to everyone who is always there supporting me and to Nathan Sports NZ for their constant support with the latest hydration packs/belts/bottles! Much appreciated
Paul x