Training in the bush for NYC MARATHON

Sunday morning and the alarm went off at 0530. We left for the airstrip at 0600 and after checking the perimeter for animals, I started running at 0630. Sim was driving and in charge of the iPod stereo to keep me motivated. The target was 16km (10 miles). There were a few Zebra’s grazing on the side of the airstrip when we started and they looked a bit perplexed by this white lady running by the side of the car, but they soon got bored and moved off to other pastures, leaving us alone with the crowned plovers – that would buzz me whenever I ran past them.

We considered running around the perimeter but decided that the western side was too close to thick vegetation and something could ambush us and so we carried on with the up and down. At the 10km mark I grabbed an energy bar and as I concentrated on eating that I ended up going flying head over heels having tripped on a half buried stick. I lay there for a while wondering what the hell had happened before I picked myself up, blew the sand off my energy bar and carried on. At about the 12km mark my hip and knee started hurting and I kept having to stop to stretch it. I wondered if the fall had down it or it was my old knee injury returning. Hopefully the former and I will be OK for the weeks training ahead.

Running up and down was very boring indeed, and save for the plovers and an eagle of some description that dropped in to say hello the scenery did not change much. Thankfully General Jones (great band featuring my friend Matthew Shartsis www.thegeneraljonesband.com), Johnny Cash and in the final 1km when I was in need of more motivation, Dolly Parton – kept me going and I completed the 16km in 1hr48. We returned to camp and I enjoyed a guilt free fried egg breakfast before cracking on with report writing.