well last saturday night we set out to do about 50km from pollys until the finish line, we started at pollys at 4pm and had a great walk to the hall, where is turned very very cold.
this was our first time out in the dark and cold for many hours and i wondered how i would cope with the lack of sleep (as normally i am someone who needs a minimum of 8 hours a night). but with food and some caffeine gu i felt wide awake, in fact i enjoyed hiking in the dark with the headlamp and felt more as a group hiking through the night.
we met up with some teams who finished at about 11pm and they were heading home to bed as we went up black shoot gully. this is truly the worst mountain of them all, as its not very steep but it goes for miles and miles and never seems to end, which drains the legs and the spirits.
half way up the trail, one of the team really started to feel unwell, pain, exhaustion and nausea started to take its toll. we got to the top of syd duncan and decided as a team to end the hike then at 3am. it was unbelievably cold and the wind just cuts through when your not moving, so we were glad to hop into a cab and get back to nerang.
a couple of new things i have learnt, that the support crew will be invaluable as when we got to SD park and it was cold and windy and tired, with no hot food or massage, it was so easy to decide to pack it in and go home. so the support crew will be vital to us completing this event and i am so grateful that 3 great people have volunteered to help us through this.
also with my feet (will it never end) i think taking out my orthotics every so often actually takes pressure off my archers, so plan is to see the specialist tomorrow for advice, drugs and cortisone (what ever it takes!!!).
this sunday it is the mini kokoda event (29km) so looking forward to completing this in a fast time than before and then we have a double weekend hike and then the event.
30 days to go, coming so fast, wont know what to do with myself afterwards BUT i have said to rodney that i would consider doing it next year if he is looking for team members (i know crazy!!!)
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