ABC journalist Joe O’Brien runs gruelling 25km in Back Roads’ episode on Wynyard, Tasmania – ABC News
Table Cape is this magic spot in north-west Tassie with rich, red volcanic soil sweeping up to a 170m cliff and the mesmerising cobalt blue of Bass Strait stretching out into the beyond.
It was against this glorious backdrop that my body was giving in and I was thinking about giving up, half way through a 25km run.
But this was an occasion where the humble vox pop saved me.
And I will never again underestimate the power of the much-maligned vox pop — when a journalist seeks input for a story from random members of the public.
And thank God for having the excuse to stop to do them, when you are a journo in a long-distance run.
We’d arrived in Tassie the day before.
This was to be a Back Roads episode with a bit of a difference.
Wynyard was the focus.
A few years ago, keen locals had organised an “adventure” run to showcase this coast that hosts a weird and wonderful collection of residents, from a British doctor who works in Gaza, to a tulip farmer who will passionately run through the national failures in vocational education and training, to an ABC true believer who lives in a home that looks like a plane wing about to take off from the cliff.
So I was encouraged to come down and take part in the “adventure run” to establish a good connection with the locals.
TEN kilometres! I clearly remember signing up for just 10km.
But a couple of weeks before the event, it became clear that it was going to be a little longer than that: two and a half times longer.
I usually do three 8-10km runs a week, so I optimistically thought that with a little bit of extra training around 16km I could handle 25km.
I took a look at the elevation plan for the race and concluded that with a few climbs of 100m, it would be no problem.
NB: If you ever see an elevation run route like this, make sure you have climbed Everest without oxygen at least seven times.
Race day came and we gathered on the beach and it still looked quite doable.
Adrenalin kicked in with hundreds of fellow runners and walkers milling around on the white sand of Boat Harbour and the crystal clear water of Bass Strait lapping at the shore.
The typically casual Tasmanian whose job it was to start the event gave a quick countdown and we were off.
300m in and we were jumping around on rocks: definitely not the flat, forgiving type.
These were the round type that with one wrong move, you could break an ankle.
“Geez it’s pretty rough, straight up” I thought.
I could handle that though — I grew up clambering up rocky freshwater rainforest creeks in North Queensland.
But these runners were going like madmen and women.
My crew had wanted to me to be easily seen at the start of the race so they told me to be up with the lead runners for the first 400m, and then I could pull back a bit to a reasonable pace and I wouldn’t end up a crumpled, screaming heap on the rocks within view of the crowd gathered at the start line.
Around the 1km mark we were climbing up a near-vertical bloody goat track up the side of a mountain (hill).
A heap of people in front of me started walking.
I decided to keep up the jogging because I do a few stairs in my regular runs.
That decision turned out to be a bit of a mistake.
After getting to the top it wasn’t too bad for a bit but then we were flying down near-vertical (possibly 20-degree) grassy slopes.
I realised at that stage that I probably should have opted for actual trail-running shoes with claw-like grip rather than a regular running shoe that would slip on a piece of sandpaper.
Miraculously, I didn’t end up on my butt.
But my knees were feeling it.
And then we were confronted with 9km of sometimes steady, and sometimes tear-inducing, steep climbs.
Just to add another element to the challenge, it was a Tassie “heatwave” that day too.
28 deg or so – nuthin! So I thought.
I was determined to keep running for as long as possible but the climbs up bare hills in the baking sun were taking their toll.
I ended up walking through portions knowing I still had many km ahead.
I got to the first spot of the crew rendezvous where I was to shoot a stand-up and was over the moon because it meant I could stop jogging.
This is only 5km in!
I pulled myself together for the stand-up, reapplied the sunscreen and then headed off into the fields of pain amid the stunning backdrop.
The next rendezvous point with the crew was 16km in, after all the climbing had been been done.
200m before that point, at the top of a huge climb, my calves started seizing up.
I had put too much crazy effort in going up the hills and not been sucking up enough sustenance in the days before through electrolytes (someone later told me).
I had nine days of this shoot left to go and I didn’t want to be hobbling around in pain so I was thinking of leaving it at that.
I tripped at the key point where the crew was getting a shot of me and nearly died of embarrassment.
I stopped there to get some vox pops — a few event participants talked about the heat and the hills, and were soldiering on … and then came Anita.
She was striding on with a huge smile on her face but obviously dealing with some physical pain.
It turned out her calves were cramping up and her groins were going too.
She stopped for a quick chat, laughed about it and marched off through the fields of Table Cape.
That was the point at which I decided: “Bugger the cramps — if Anita can do it, so can I.”
I ran off after 10 minutes of vox pops … and came to an abrupt stop 500m later with cramps.
It was like my calves were turning to stone and the tendons were about to snap clean apart.
I thought of Anita, stopped and stretched … and then hobbled and jogged and walked and stretched and ran and marched and ached through the next 9km.
At least it was downhill and relatively flat.
I crossed the finish line with a little air-kick of thanks to Anita, collapsed and then went for a complimentary massage, which I would have elbowed my grandmother out of the way to get to.
Going in that “adventure run” was key through that following week though, to have something in common with locals and get the best out of them in interviews.
And despite the physical struggles, I felt a connection with that spellbinding countryside, some of which is only accessible through this “Gone Nuts” run each year.
And I’ll be forever thankful to Anita for unwittingly pulling me through at the critical point up at the top of Table Cape … and will always love a good vox pop.
I may never do a 25km run again but I was keen to find out how I might have been a bit smarter with my prep so I could enjoy it a bit more.
I got in touch with a physio who specialises in running injury management in Melbourne, and a researcher from LaTrobe University.
Dr Christian Barton is a member of the Australian Physiotherapy Association.
He looked at my circumstances and gave me these tips:
1. Preparation. Should have really tried to do at least 2-3 runs around 20-25km and similar elevation variations beforehand. And done the final one at least two weeks before the event.
2. Temperature. Should have done those prep runs in similar temperatures to what was going to happen on race day (this one was just unlucky for me because I wandered into a Tassie “scorcher”).
3. If you are running on a day above 25 degrees, your body could struggle. Some “pre-cooling” will help performance and might help prevent cramps. This can be done with drinking an ice slurry (without the sugar-heavy, disturbing colouring).
4. Hydration is a big one. Drink plenty of water. It’s important to try this during training beforehand so your body will get used to it. Some people find electrolytes help, using fluids or gels. But this is not always necessary with simple water being your greatest friend.
5. Strength training for your legs beforehand could help avoid cramps. Exercises could include heel raises, squats and lunges, and can also help improve performance.
6. Modify your technique during a run if you feel a cramp coming on. Change where the loads go. Stand taller so you’re not letting the hips and knees bend as much. Even side-stepping up the goat track would have been worth a try. Increasing the step rate can also help manage cramps.
With that expert advice, I might even consider doing a long-distance run again.
The Gone Nuts run in 2020 will be held on February 29, if you are game.
Watch Joe O’Brien’s story about Wynyard on Back Roads on ABC TV at 8:00pm.