The North Face 100 - 14th & 15th May 2011

Pre Race
I last ran TNF100 back in 2009 and this year I decided that I was time to head over to the Blue Mountains and have another crack at the course. My main goal for this years race was to hopefully better my 2009 time of 19:01:28.

My training for this years race had gone quite well, and even seemed to be a bit more relaxed compared to previous years, but then again I think that my body has definitely adapted well to a few years of consistent ultra running.

Weather
With a maximum temperature of 8 degrees C for the day, there was no question that it was going to be cold. Luckily though the winds were quite low which made the conditions a lot more manageable. However, the skies were clear and this meant that we were definitely in for a cold night once the sun went down.

Race Start
This year the race organisers decided to have wave starts to prevent the bottle necks which has occurred at the start of the single track sections close to the start over that last couple of years. My goal was to run sub 19 hours so I put myself in wave 3, which started at 7:01am. Wave 1 started at 6:56am and wave 2 started at 6:58am.

Start to CP1 (0km - 18km)

I've done enough ultras by now to know that a slow start is the key to getting to the end in good condition so I positioned myself about mid pack and ran at a steady pace. Compared to 2009 the road section was longer (to allow the field to spread out) so it was to take a few km until we actually felt like we were in a trail race. When I got to the first single track section it was evident that the wave starts had not completely eliminated the congestion. I only had to wait a few minutes but even after we made our way onto the trail the going was very slow. There were several section were all runners came to a complete stop. This didn't bother me at all because I knew that I had a long day ahead of me and the time that I was losing at the start was not going to be an issue at all.

 When you get onto the first trail section of the race runners are greeted with some spectacular views. A runner whom I passed said to me "Are you wondering why you are doing this". My answer to this was "no I know exactly why I am doing this". After being greeted by the fantastic views, I was actually thinking to myself that to be able to experience the bush like this was the exact reason why I chose to do it. It didn't take too long for me to remember just how many steps there are in this race. There are lots! Come the end of the race and I knew that I'd be cursing just how many steps there are.

Probably the toughest section on this first leg is the climb up the Golden Stairs, it's a long tough clamber up a very steep section of trail. It is steep enough that not even the elite runners are able to run along this section. I took my time here but still managed to make up a few places on the climb and eventually made my way into the first checkpoint. I filled up my bladder and I was on my way to checkpoint 2.

CP1 to CP2 (18km - 38km)
The run to CP2 is probably one of the most runnable sections of the whole race so it was a good opportunity to get in good consistent running. I was only a couple k's out of CP1 when I met up with Nick, whom I have run with at quite of few of the ultras that I have participated in. As we were busy talking the next 12km up to the Tarros ladders seemed to pass quite quickly. Back in 2009 I had a 45 minute wait at the ladders so I was eager to see how the race organisers had improved this part of the race. When we finally got down to the start of the ladders we were told that there would only be a 3 minute wait; this was definitely a major improvement from 45 minutes!

The ladders didn't take long to negotiate and then we were into a reasonably technical descent for a couple of kilometres, taking us back down to the fire trail. Once onto the fire trail we had a nice easy run into CP2. Thanks to the fast descent down the Tarros ladders, compared to my 2009 race I was 44 minutes faster to CP2 with a race total time of 5:45:53. I filled up the bladder, presented my two head torches to the race officials as part of the mandatory gear check, grabbed a fruit bun and then I was on my way to CP3.

CP2 to CP3 (38km - 54km)

This section of the race incorporates the out and back section on Iron Pot Ridge. The climb up to the top of the ridge is a bloody tough climb, it really is a hard slog up to the top of the ridge. The out and back section has a couple of tricky bits but otherwise is quite a nice piece of trail. It is the descent from Iron Pot Ridge that is an absolute killer. The trail is exceptionally steep to the point of making it quite hard to control your pace. My quads were burning more than they had in a long time. This part of the course is proof that running down hill is definitely not all beer and skittles!

The next significant part of this section was a long and steady climb up a gravel road on the way to CP3. I wouldn't say that I was feeling energetic, but I actually found that my legs had recovered from the tricky descent down Iron Pot Ridge and I was climbing quite well. I made up about 7 or so positions on the climb.

Not too long after I reached the top of the climb, 50 kms is passed signalling the halfway point. The legs always seem to feel pretty ordinary with 50km in them and as nice as it is to pass the halfway point, it doesn't really feel like the challenge is 50% completed.

After a few more kilometres of gravel road we were directed over a stile, through a paddock, and we were then at CP3. As this was the first checkpoint where support crew were allowed there was quite a crowd of people and it was an awesome experience getting enthusiastic cheers from complete strangers. It makes even middle of the pack runners like me feel a bit special for short moment.

A quick check of the stopwatch showed that I arrived at CP3 in a time of 8:21:12 compared to my 2009 time of 9:16:12; thus I was 55 minutes faster.

I re-stocked my food and drink supplies, had a sausage and sauce on bread (magic!), and was the off to CP4. My splits showed that I only spent about 5 minutes at this checkpoint.


CP3 to CP4 (54km - 65km)

CP3 to CP4 may be only 11km but it's definitely not a part of the race to be taken lightly. Most of this leg is easy apart from one section that strikes fear into every single runner who tackles TNF100, and that is Nellies Glen. There are steps, steps, steps, steps and more steps! The climb up Iron Pot Ridge was tough, but Nellies Glen is without a doubt the toughest part of the race up until this point. I did however manage to make up a few places on my way up to the top. And what a relief it was to make it up to the top of the climb. After a kilometre or so of trail there was a couple of kilometers of bitumen and I was then at CP4, the Katoomba Aquatics Centre.

I arrived at CP4 in a total time of 10:17:21 compared to my 2009 time of 11:40:27. Taking into consideration that this leg of the race was 2km shorter than in 2009, I could still see that I was slowly shaving time away.

I had another sausage on bread (again magic!), replenished my supplies, put on my head lamp and safety vest and had a quick chat with my wife. All up I spent around 10 minutes at CP4 which wasn't too bad considering all of the things that had to be done.


CP4 to CP5 (65km - 89km)
It wasn't too long after I had left CP4 and it was time to switch on the headlamp. The first few kilometres out of Katoomba are pretty easy but I knew that one of the toughest descents of the course was about to come my way, and that was the Giant Stairway. This involves descending down more than 800 steps for a total elevation change of around 300m. By the time I got to the bottom my quads were burning to the point that I actually had a sit down for about 30 seconds just to let them recover a bit. After I started running again it probably took me around 15 minutes for the legs to feel ok again. I took it pretty easy because I knew that I still had the descent down to the bottom of the Kedumba Valley and I really struggled on that descent in 2009.

I actually found that I was running the descent really well and the k's were ticking over very nicely. Sure the legs were tired and sore by this stage but I was making very good progress. Eventually I arrived at the bottom of the vallley; this was signaled by the second creek crossing. It was now all pretty much uphill for the next 6 kms or so, climbing a total of around 700m in elevation change.

On the way up the Kedumba pass climb I actually started to feel a bit hot even though the temperature was around 0 degC, so I stopped briefly and took my jacket off.  There is no denying that the climb up Kedumba pass is really a tough and slow grind, but I managed to keep a nice consistent pace going and even managed to make up a few places on my way up the climb.

As I got closer to the top of the climb and out of the protection of the valley I started to get quite cold so I stopped to put on my jacket. At the top of the climb you get a bit of a reprieve by having a nice flat run for a couple of k's into CP5.

This leg of the race is definitely a tough part of the race, but I actually felt like I ran it quite well this year and that was reflected by total race time of 14:28:29 compared to my 2009 time of 16:23:49. I really couldn't believe that I had made up so much time and I had been waiting for the wheels to fall off but they didn't. I was now getting really excited that I was going to smash my PB, but I still knew that I couldn't get too far ahead of myself and needed to put in a good effort for the final leg of the race.

CP5 to Finish (89km - 100km)
I didn't really spend much time at CP5. All I did was fill my bladder, grab a coke from my drop bag, have something to eat, a quick chat to my wife and then I headed off towards the finish. I knew that something major would have to go wrong from here to not get home in under 17 hours, and it was nice to know that there were "only" 11km to go.

After stopping at CP5 I was actually starting to get really cold again. I had plenty of gear that I could have stopped to put on but instead I decided that I should run at  a good pace to get the body to warm up a bit. I knew that once I got through the bitumen section and back into the single track sections that it would be a touch warmer. I was really please with how I ran the first few km out of the final checkpoint but I knew that there was still some tough running ahead.

Even though the final section is quite short there are some tricky trails to negotiate, including the dreaded Lillians Glen. Having over 90km in the legs and the knowledge that I was going to break 17 hours, I felt that mind mind had somewhat shut down now. All I was interested in was doing just enough to make sure that I would meet that sub 17 hour time. To be honest, even if I was feeling fresh there were quite a few sections in the final leg that I wouldn't run anyway. There are lots of steep steps that really need to be taken with care. Eventually I made it to Lillians Glen and by that stage I really just wanted to be a the finish line. It was through Lillians Glen that I managed to clock up my slowest kilometre of the race; it took me 20min!  All of a sudden I wasn't so confident of the sub 17 hour time, and it really made me kick into my next gear and get moving a bit faster.

Slowly but surely I could almost see the light at the end of the tunnel, I could hear faint cheers from the finish line so this also spurred me on to keep moving at a good pace. When I eventually made it to the grassed section I entered that phase of a race where the pain seems to disappear and running becomes a lot more effortless. I was greeted with generous cheers from the crowd as I approached the finish, and finally crossed the finish line a total race time of 16:49:38, which was some 2hrs 11min faster than my race in 2009. I was absolutely ecstatic with my time.

All in all I was very happy with my race and thoroughly enjoyed running of the course again. TNF100 is a fantastically organised race, the trail marking is perfect and it's just a tough challenge. I have no doubt that I'll be lining up at the start line again at sometime in the future. It will be really interesting to how this race grows over the next few years. For anyone thinking about having a go at this race, I can highly recommend it.


Race Splits

Split Race Time Leg Time Pos Cat Pos Gen Pos 17k Narrow Neck 38k Dunphys 05:47:53 05:47:53 353 259 291 54k Old Ford Reserve-In 08:21:12 08:21:12 317 240 267 54k Old Ford Reserve-Out 08:26:38 08:26:38 289 214 241 67k Katoomba Aquaticl-In 10:17:21 10:17:21 286 213 239 67k Katoomba Aquatic-out 10:27:11 10:27:11 264 194 217 89k Queen Vic Hospital -In 14:28:29 14:28:29 261 198 220 89k Queen Vic Hospital-Out 14:35:08 14:35:08 248 190 209 100k Fairmont 16:49:38 16:49:38 252 191 211

The North Face 100 - 16th & 17th May 2009

I probably got interested in this race not long after I had decided to have a go at The Cradle Mountain Run. I followed the Coolrunning forum and there were only good things said about the race, and it just sounded like such a great experience in some great trail running country.

I actually put my entry in for this race before I had even completed The Cradle Mountain Run and for quite some time I wasn't really sure if it was such a wise decision to make. Even though I was somewhat unsure, I knew that I wanted to have a crack at a 100km ultra as it is such a significant milestone, just as it is for a cricketer to score 100 runs.

I used Cradle Mountain for a base and just continued my training once I had fully recovered.

Leading up to The North Face 100 I was quite nervous, unsure, and I didn't really seem to have all of my "ducks in a row", so to speak. Even the night before the race, after I had registered, packed my drop bags and all my other gear I still felt like I wasn't ready. I had an early night to bed and set the alarm for 4:15am to give myself plenty of time to get the body going and prep for the race.

Throughout the night it was blowing an absolute gale and I was hoping that it wouldn't be like that in the morning. However, when I awoke the wind was still quite strong. I did all of my usual pre-race stuff, crossing of my checklist and before I knew it, it was time to head over to the start of the race at the York Farimont Resort.

I dropped off my drop bags containing all of my supplies that I could access at checkpoints 3, 4 and 5, then headed off to the nice warm lobby in the hotel, soaked up the fantastic sunrise and waited for the call to head to the start line.

We were called to the start line. It was not until we lined up at the start that I actually felt ready. Speeches were made and then we were off.

The start was quite civilised, with the fast guys disappearing into the distance and everyone else trying to fit in to where they think they should be for a 100km run.

It wasn't long until we were into the bush and were greeted with some fantastic views over the Blue Mountains. The trail headed down, and quite quickly headed down very sharply, down steps that at times were almost like ladders. I had heard people talk about steps and stairs in this race, but I don't think you can appreciate just how many there are and how steep they are until you see them. Being only some 6 or so kilometres into the race I must admit I was bit concerned regarding just how many more stairs there would be.


The next few kilometres were quite frustrating at times, with faster runners wanting to pass me and slower runners in front of me that I wanted to pass, all on narrow single track. It wasn't until the Golden Stairs that it started to get tough; and real quickly too. To give and idea of how steep the stairs are, at times you are using the steps in front of you to pull yourself up. It definitely sorted a few runners out, and upon reaching the top we were at Checkpoint 1, Narrow Neck - 17km.

After leaving Narrow Neck, we had a tough climb which then levelled out to provide some nice consistent running. It was along this section that finally I wasn't being passed by faster runners and I wasn't passing other runner myself. It was nice to finally feel like had a nice rhythm and I also enjoyed finally being on my own.

The next major hurdle was the Tarros Ladders; two ladders that took us vertically down a shear cliff. The hurdle was due to a long line of runners waiting, and it wasn't until I got some way down the line that I could see it was going to be a long wait. It was blowing a gale here and in no time I had my gloves and gortex jacket on, but it was still cold. Probably the only positive aspect of the wait was getting to chat to other runners.

By the time it was my turn to descend the ladders, which was some 30 or so minutes later, I was starting to shiver so I was happy to be on the way down. The first ladder was simple but the second ladder was a pain because my pack kept on catching on the rope cage, and I had to almost put my chest on the ladder to stop it from catching.

Once down at the bottom it wasn't long at all until I had to take my cold weather gear off because I was getting too hot. The rest of this stage was rather uneventful with some nice running into Checkpoint 2, Dunphy's Camp - 38km.


Not long after leaving Dunphy's Camp there was a rather nasty sharp climb up onto Ironpot Ridge, where we would run the out and back leg on the same piece of single track. Once up the top we were greeted with some brilliant views and relatively easy running. However, as we descended Ironpot Ridge the trail turned into a very steep and loose surface that was exceptionally tough to keep traction on. My trail shoes had just enough grip to get me down without sliding too much, but other runners were practically skiing down the trail as their shoes didn't provide much grip.


I passed the 45km mark and soon I was thinking about the halfway point. A couple of creek crossings, a tough climb and I had passed 50km; the halfway point. Even running on the flat was starting to feel like hard work and I was trying to understand how exactly I was going to complete another 50km. I wasn't at all having thoughts of not making it, but it just seemed like such a massive effort and I was trying to comprehend how exactly I would survive another 9 or so hours. It interesting that as ultra runners, even for us the task ahead seems so difficult.

After passing through the 50km mark, the track went down and I actually wasn't enjoying it at all. It seemed that my downhill legs were getting a bit tired and I preferred it when the track went up. Soon I arrived at Checkpoint 3, Old Ford Reserve - 54km.

At Checkpoint 3 the marshals were doing mandatory gear spot checks. It's quite a pain having to open up your pack and show that you had thermals, maps, and phone, but I understand why they do it and completely agree that it should be done. I finally got around to removing some of my ankle strapping that had been annoying me for the last 30km, why I didn't do it earlier I don't know. I refilled my hydration bladder, restocked my food supplies from my drop bag and also had a sausage on bread. The sausage would turn out to be the nicest and most satisfying food that I ate all day!


As I checked out I heard a couple of locals saying how the next 8km was very runnable, however at the end of the runnable section was the dreaded climb up through Nellies Glen. It didn't take long for the last of the usable sunlight to disappear and I was finding it tough to pick my foot placings; so it was time to get the light out.

Never having run at night time before, other than in training on trails I know like the back of my hand, I was unsure how easy the markers would be to follow in the dark. It didn't take long to find out that the reflective tape used to mark the trail stood out from at least a couple hundred metres away, and it was going to be a piece of cake to keep on track.

I was now at the bottom of Nellies Glen and for a while it climbed gently, but quickly turned into some exceptionally steep climbing up steps. I did resort to using my hands to press on my knees and take some strain off my quads, but I was making reasonable progress and eventually came across some other runners. I think I must have passed around 4 runners on the climb so I was very happy with that given it was such a tough climb.

Next came the road section into Katoomba and I knew that the next checkpoint wasn't too far away. I must have mucked up my Checkpoint 4 distance, because I was sure it was at 64km and finding out that it was at 67km messed with my mind for a while, but I managed to stay calm about it and not get too uptight. In the few ultras that I've done I've learnt that losing your temper just ends up making you go into a downward spiral. You need to stay positive and calm. An extra few kilometres than I was expecting later, and I was at Checkpoint 4, Katoomba Oval - 67km. I didn't waste any time at checkpoint 4 as it was bitterly cold.

I was now on the way to the final checkpoint. I headed off towards the 3 Sisters not really knowing what to expect. As I started to negotiate the near vertical Giant Stairway, I was right next to the 3 Sisters and the light from my headlamp disappeared into nothing. It was absolutely spectacular to be looking at the 3 Sisters at night time and descending into at first glance what seemed to be a black hole. As spectacular as this section was, it was horrible on the body. I really had had enough of descending by now and the Giant Stairway wasn't any fun at all.

Finally I reached the bottom and was able to return to some run/ walk intervals. I knew that at the 80km there was the dreaded climb up to checkpoint 5. However, during my preparation for this race I didn't really give much consideration to the downhill sections. And running down into the valley turned out to be quite unpleasant. It just seemed to go on forever and the constant pounding from either walking or running downhill was just not fun at all. I was actually eagerly waiting for the trail to go up. I never thought I would say that towards the end of a 100km event.

I asked a local runner how far we were from the main climb and she told me that it started after the second creek. As I arrived at the second creek there were runners that passed me quite sometime ago putting shoes on after having taken them off to cross the creek. I couldn't be bothered taking my shoes off at that stage so I ploughed through the creek and actually found the cold water to be refreshing on the feet. I had also made up a few minutes on other runners.

I was happy that the trail was now climbing. Don't get me wrong though, it was still a bloody hard slog up the climb over the next 10km. I had a mix of running on my own and also with others. Not much was ever really said apart from the usual "How are you holding up" questions. On the way up I passed a runner who was wrapped up in a space blanket and another runner was helping him. The SES were on their way to pick him up. It was quite reassuring to see the SES so often up this climb and their camp fire half way up provided a nice spot for a moments rest and a bottle of water. Without the bottle of water I probably would have run a bit short on this stage. It was amazing that in such cold conditions I was drinking so much water.

Things were really starting to get tough now and I was not really feeling like eating much but I was forcing down what I could, and every time I did eat I always felt like I instantly got stronger and could press on. Sure enough though, a bad spell was never far around the corner, well that's how it seemed anyway. Soon I could hear generators and not long after I was at Checkpoint 5, The Queen Victoria Hospital - 89km. Once again it was bitterly cold here and I filled my hydration bladder as quick as I could, replenished some of my food supplies and I was off on the final 11km of the race.

The body, although not feeling overly flash, seemed to keep on plugging away and slowly covering the k's. I had been on my feet for 16 hours 23 min and I knew that I would sneak in under my 20 hour goal unless I did something stupid.

I passed a girl bringing up her dinner on the side of the road and when I asked if she was OK, she said that she'll be fine so I pressed on. Next I saw a guy running towards me and I jokingly said that he was going the wrong way (I thought he was a spectator) but he was actually in the race. He didn't believe us when we told him we were going the right way until we got to the next section of arrows. I was amazed that he wasn't able to follow the markers, but then again his light was quite ordinary and probably didn't pick up the reflective strips.

The final 11km really was quite horrible. There were lots of steps and at this stage my mind had switched off. I knew I was going to make it but I really wasn't interested in more than a brisk walk and I was still hating anything that went down. People seemed to be passing me regularly and progress was just so slow, but I was still moving forward and covering ground. Soon though, I could hear people cheering so I knew the finish was close and I picked the pace up a bit. All of a sudden I popped out onto the gold course; the finish was just around the corner. I picked the pace up even more as I could see the finish line and eventually crossed the line in 19hrs 01min 28sec. I had finished!

This race is by far the most rewarding run that I have ever done and I think the fact that it is the big milestone of 100km is one of the reasons why. It really is an amazing experience to complete something that (a) you never ever thought you would do; and (b) something that even for yourself seems like such a difficult task. The highlight for me would definitely be the night stages and probably from the 50km mark to the finish where it required a bunch of physical and mental toughness to keep pressing on.

I reckon that I'll be back next year!

Split	Race Time	Overall Pos
17k Narrow Neck	02:43:48	198
38k Dunphys	06:31:48	197
54k Old Ford Reserve-In	09:16:12	181
54k Old Ford Reserve-Out	09:30:05	175
67k Katoomba falls Oval	11:40:27	171
89k Queen Vic Hospital	16:23:49	163
100k Fairmount	19:01:28	164

Course Elevation Profile
Course Map