Comrades 2011 Entries Open
For those of you wanting to enter the Comrades Marathon for next year, entries open today September 1st and close on November 30th, or until the maximum number of runners, which is 18 000, has been reached.
I would suggest entering just in case you decide you might want to do it – or just enter and then you have to do it because you have paid 
(Jo I’m speaking to you my friend!!)
7 Comments / 
September 1st, 2010 / 
Comrades Marathon, Reluctant runner, Running
Motivation in Endurance Activities
Last night I found myself discussing, once again, the topic of running motivation to a fellow runner. He was telling me about his first marathon experience in Knysna and asking how you then imagine yourself running not just another 14km in the Two Oceans, but double that and then some, for the Comrades…
I have said this before and I will say it again and again – when we run a half marathon or a marathon and then think about going further – your mind knows exactly how far you are going and so after 21km or 42km, to think about going any further once you are done, just feels impossible. Yet, when you know you are running 56km or 89km, you get to the 21km or 42km mark and feel perfectly fine (speaking in relative terms) and keep on going.
Lewis Pugh, an endurance swimmer illustrates this perfectly in the video below and with the statement “There is nothing more powerful than the made-up mind” – which is what I’m going to leave you with for now because it describes what I’m trying to say, perfectly.
Leave a Comment / August 11th, 2010 / Comrades Marathon, Motivation, Reluctant runner
Comrades News
It has just been confirmed that the guy who came third in the Comrades this year, Sergio Motsoeneng, has tested positive for a banned substance. The Comrades Association only hands out medals and prize money (in this case R90 000) after all doping tests have been complete. Sergio has been found guilty of cheating at the Comrades before when he had his brother run half the race for him in 1999.
If you want more information I’d suggest you read it at Hayibo.com – a South African news site which puts a funny (that’s haha and not weird) spin on breaking stories, helping us see the humour in the sometimes outrageous, sometimes scary and sometimes totally unbelievable events which can only come out of South Africa
One Comment / August 5th, 2010 / Comrades Marathon, Reluctant runner
Comrades 2010 – Race Dissection
3:45am Sunday
My alarm goes off and I stagger out of bed to put my running kit on, have breakfast and prepare myself for the long day ahead.
5:15am
I’m standing in a crowd 23,000 people strong, along with Craig (my running partner from last year) and his mom Linda listening to Chariots of Fire and feeding off the energy only this many people can give off at the start of a race which is said to ‘define you’.
5:30am
The cannon goes off and it takes 10 minutes to get over the start line, this could be a problem considering that the race is timed from gun to gun, not on your actual time from your chip.
6:30am
I join the sub-11 hour bus and hang on, looking for Craig who got lost in the mayhem at the start. I happen to find Julie and we catch up on the last few weeks.
7:30am
I find Craig and we try to keep up with the sub-11 hour bus and fall off when we stop at my dad for food. We decide to just take the race as it comes, enjoying the experience for what it is and not stressing about coming in at a certain time, other than just to finish within 12 hours – which we would have comfortably.
11:04am
We go through half-way. We are tired and still seem to be running UP on a DOWN run…
12:00am
I lose my sense of humour and then get it back once the Myprodol kicks in. Craig and Julie are going strong although also on the grumpy side. The supporters help us along, screaming and shouting for us by name.
14:20pm
We are 18km from the end and the downhills are testing our quads and already dead tired legs. We have picked up one of my team mates along the way who isn’t feeling great. The sub-11 hour bus is nowhere to be seen.
15:40pm
We are 10km from the end and decide that we would like a bronze and not a copper medal so we need to do the last 10km in an hour. All the literature says that you need 80min for the last 10km but we decide to push anyway.
16:00pm
We are running hard into Durban. We see the first sub-11 hour bus and pass it. We are going faster now than in any other time during the race.
16:20
We catch and pass the second sub-11 hour bus, the one we were meant to be on. Before they fill the road around a bend, we take them on the outside and zoom past - into the last 2km of the race. I’m feeling like my legs want to pop off, Julie wants to throw-up and Craig is just hell-bent on getting to the end before 11 hours.
16:40
We enter the stadium. I get goosebumps from everyone screaming our names. We cross the finish line at 10 hours and 52 minutes, hand-in-hand. We ran the last 10km in 42 minutes – that is after we had run 79km!! And again I am convinced that you can do ANYTHING you put your mind to.
I had an amazing time once again, thanks to Craig and Julie for sticking it out with me I hope all of you that ran had a great run and enjoyed it for what it is – The Ultimate Human Challenge!! Let me know how you did.
5 Comments / June 2nd, 2010 / Comrades Marathon, Reluctant runner
Comrades 2010 – Keeping Track
Just 3 days until 20 500 runners take to the streets of Pietermaritzburg, and make their way down to Durban. If you are an avid fan who will be watching SABC 2 from 5am on Sunday, keeping your eyes peeled for anyone you know who may be running, then good for you!! If you have some friends running but have better things to do on Sunday then you shall be forgiven, but let this go down in the annals of history – that you had other things to do while WE ran flor whatever cause (our own included
There are ways in which you can actually be updated with your runners progress throughout the day! If you SMS the race number of the runner concerned to 38132, you will get an update of the runners time and where on the course they are at that stage, sent right to your phone. These SMS’ cost R10 of which most of it goes to charity.
If you would like to keep track of me, my race number is 43099. For those of you who need more details you can call my dad (aka Worlds Best Second) or you can leave me a message on my phone and I’ll call you back when I’m done. I will hopefully have someone updating my Twitter account with my times if anyone prefers that medium of communication
I think that covers it…
3 Comments / May 27th, 2010 / Comrades Marathon, First-Timers, Reluctant runner
The Psychology of Running
With the Comrades less than a week away, I have had a fair share of people asking me how I manage to run for so long (around 10 – 12 hours) and so far (89km), so I thought I’d share what goes through, or more accurately what doesn’t go through my mind during this race…
The biggest thing about being able to do endurance events is how well you are able to get into the ‘zone’ or to the point where you body is doing what it needs to do automatically, and the mind is still. You need to stop all the doubt and frustration going through your mind because I believe this is the factor which determines whether you have a good race or not.
I have said this before and I’m going to say it again, this is just one day! One day of pain and fear and exhaustion, but just a day, not a week or a month or a lifetime.
Pre-Race
Before the race I try and stay as calm as possible. It is very easy to get caught up in the mayhem at the start and it is also very common to feed off the nervous excitement and anxiety of other runners. I try and block all of this out and focus on the fact that I am standing at the start of the oldest Ultra Marathon in the World and the fact that I am finally at the point where all my months of hard work are going to pay off. I try and stop negative thoughts before they have even had a chance to bloom and gain momentum. I would suggest basking in ‘Chariots of Fire’ and the fact that you have loved ones watching from all corners of the country. It is too late at this stage to stress about the training you didn’t do, focus on what you did and trust in your power of will.
During the Race
The way I see it is that to get through the day, you have to become pretty damn good at ignoring what is going on in your head. Your legs will be sore, your feet will be aching and there will be various other aches and pains which will occupy your mind – if you let it. It basically becomes a battle between you and that noise in your head (mind). My first line of defence is usually to find someone to speak to – this distracts your mind from focusing on what is sore and other negative thoughts by concentrating on someone else. If there is nobody in sight I will put my iPod in and crank it up depending on how much my mind is protesting.
If this doesn’t work, and there is usually a couple of points in the race where you will need to step it up a notch in running your mind into submission – this is where I will try and connect with my senses which shuts the discursive mind (that part of your mind which is making a noise) right up. A simple running through of your senses, from feeling your feet in your shoes and your clothes on your body, taste, smell and sight to hearing your heartbeat and the sound of the footfalls of runners around you. This does wonders in reconnecting you with that part within which is capable of anything.
As you run into the stadium
You need to remember to be totally focused as you run into the stadium at the end. You need to enjoy and remember what it is like to run into a stadium where thousands of people are shouting for you because YOU have just run 89km, you need to be with it enough to plant this memory into your brain, although I must warn you, it is usually due to this feeling at the end which makes people do this race again and again
I have a little energy exercise I also do when I’m REALLY feeling like I might lose the battle with the noise in my head, but that is for another post.
2 Comments / May 25th, 2010 / Comrades Marathon, First-Timers, Motivation, Reluctant runner
Running in Pink…
Boobs, breasts, numbies, jugs, tits, udders – we all have different names for those two mounds on every woman’s chest. They are regularly spoken about in the running world because for some women, restraining them can be a bit of a mission – luckily I don’t have that problem, my pre-pubescent boy’s body makes sure there is no movement on my chest area – ever! Sport’s bra, running bra and over-shoulder-boulder-holders are hotly contested subjects on forums and blogs and that is just in the running world!! I’m not even going to delve into the dark underworld of the mans mind when it comes to mammary glands.
Either way there is one thing which is guaranteed, you either have breasts of your own, have access to breasts and have almost certainly suckled on breasts in your lifetime – so just imagine finding out that these sometimes flattering, sometimes the object of your lust are effectively the cause of your sickness or even death… I know its a less than savory subject to talk about, but it is for just this reason that there are so many women out there that are uneducated on the seriousness of this disease, which can be checked for and any irregularity found early on and treated.
The Pink Drive aims to educate women and provide mobile mammogram units to those who either don’t have access to medical facilities or who have never thought to have lumps in their breasts checked. This campaign is vitally important if we are going to keep the women behind each set of breasts alive and well to keep caring and nurturing the generations to come.
So, if you would like to show your support then go to my Pink Drive tab and donate some money – then comment on my blog, my wall on Facebook or send me an email so that I know who to think about while I run the 89km from Pietermaritzburg to Durban on May 30th, clad in pink!!
One Comment / May 24th, 2010 / Comrades Marathon, Fund Raising, Reluctant runner
Comrades Marathon Course Route
For those of you who haven’t seen the course route, this video goes through it all along with the profile. Listen when he says that although this is a ‘down run’ there are still many uphills!! If you would rather ostrich this then that is fine with me, just skip this video
2 Comments / May 19th, 2010 / Comrades Marathon, Reluctant runner
This year’s cause
As most of you know, every year I raise money for a particular cause with running the Comrades Marathon – last year you guys helped pay for some children to be able to attend school, the year before you helped raise money for Reach For Recovery – an organisation dedicated to helping women suffering from breast cancer.
This year I will be running in pink socks with a pink wrist band and pink shoelaces for the Pink Drive. This organisation raises funds to finance mobile mammogram and breast cancer educational units which visit the rural areas, bringing these services to women who would otherwise not be able to afford it, or who haven’t realised the seriousness of this disease yet.
Breast cancer is the leading cause of death for many South African women even though the treatment is so incredibly effective. Mis-diagnosis, late diagnosis and lack of education are to blame for this which is why a mobile mammogram and educational unit is so important.
Reebok is donating money to the Pink Drive for every runner they see coming into the Kingsmead Stadium wearing pink gear. You can donate by SMS’ing ‘breast’ to 36560, this will send 50c to the Pink Drive. If you are feeling generous then head to the Pink Drive tab on my site for their banking details. If you would like to run for this cause please let me know and I’ll put you in touch with the organisers.
There are some fun things for spectators too, if you are going to be in the Newcastle, Pietermaritzburg or Durban areas supporting your runners then you can also play a part in this drive for awareness, details are here or you can just email me and I’ll put you in touch with the relevant people.
Early detection saves lives so lets band together and all play a part in helping save lives!!
Leave a Comment / May 13th, 2010 / Comrades Marathon, Fund Raising, Reluctant runner
Only 24 Days to go…
I came upon this realisation this morning while deciding whether or not to get out of my nice warm bed and head out into the cold and wet Cape Town morning for a run at the gym – unfortunately instead of spurring me into action, I just turned over and went back to sleep…
It’s not that I’m unmotivated because I have been training, more so I think than previous years. I did a 21km near Stellenbosh 2 weeks ago and then a 56km on Sunday, both of which went very well although I still don’t think I’m anywhere near 1000km, but I can live with that.
I think many people who are doing this years Comrades Marathon are reaching the same point, its getting harder and harder to motivate yourself to get out there and its not just because of the weather. This is normal, or at least I remember feeling like this before, where you are just sick and tired of running – or if you are not running you are thinking about running or stressing about how to fit it in. This all forms part of the pre-Comrades stress and I wish I could tell you that it gets better… it doesn’t, actually it peaks at round about 5am on Sunday May 30th
Anyway I hope you have all sorted out your flights, accommodation, pick-up points etc – if not and you still have questions then please give me a shout and I can see what I can do for you. Oh and Rescue Remedy really comes in handy these last few weeks, go and get yourself some!!
Leave a Comment / May 7th, 2010 / Comrades Marathon, First-Timers, Motivation, Reluctant runner