TransEspana

TransEspana

Tomorrow at 9am local (GMT+2), I set off with 23 other runners on a 1080km, 18 day journey, across Spain. Each day we’ll be covering between 45-76km, predominantly on the road, and lodging overnight in hostels and sports halls. There’s 10 more runners joining us for the first seven days, and a small army of volunteers and organisers taking care of us. I’ve been following this event since 2022, and in December ’23 expressed an interest to participate in the 2024 event only to learn that it wasn’t being held that year. As soon as entries opened for 2025 though, my application was in. Anxious. Scared. Terrified. Imposter. These are some of the many feelings I’ve had over the last days, weeks and months. I’m going into an event that has some of Europe’s best multi-day runners, and my experience is limited to a couple of back to back ultras. I know everyone has to start somewhere, but choosing an 18 day event, as the only native-English speaker, in a totally unfamiliar situation and knowing nobody, has seen me filled with doubt and worry. But, yeh, it’s just a run. Another ultra. I’ve trained for this, and all I have to do is get to the start line each morning, and to the next aid station, and then the next, all under cutoff (which is all based on a most generous 5.6kph minimum pace). I’ll try to do a daily post after each leg. With lots of photos (otherwise I’ll forget all of the details). There’ll also be updates on the event’s website & facebook page. Here goes nothing!

Mole 2 Mole

Mole 2 Mole

Glen & I wrapped up 2023 on the eve of NYE with one slightly wacky run: 100km between North & South Mole lighthouses in Fremantle. Separated by less than 500m at the entrance to Fremantle harbour, we chose to run a slightly longer route! Running through the night, we followed the waterways inland, crossing Canning River in Shelly and the Swan River at Garret Rd. Starting just after 4pm on Saturday afternoon, with views of the open water, and the North Mole lighthouse "just across the river". There was no real plan in terms of time or pace, and we were both carrying fairly minimal food and water - the idea was to take advantage of whatever shops or servos we came across during the night to keep us going. The route required following rivers and estuaries of Perth, staying on the South until crossing for the return from Garret Rd. It was pretty darn warm when we started, and the heat through the night was oppressive. There wasn't really any relief until about 3am. Many highlights, including random fireworks, marriage proposals and the world’s best cinnamon scrolls for breakfast (I'll never forget those scrolls ... we could smell them from about 500m away, our stomachs churned and we were blown away at just how good they were!) This one liner from Glen really summed up the whole adventure - less than 1km from the end he said “bloody lighthouse still isn’t any closer than when we started!” Definitely capped of a great year of running adventures with friends new and old. Excited for what 2024 may bring , and looking forward to being fast asleep when the clock strikes midnight.

Rain Jackets

Rain Jackets

This was originally written as a post on the A Run for the Ages Australia Facebook group immediately following the run on the weekend of June 3-5, 2023 Monday was a great opportunity to properly test out some rain gear (it rained, a lot!). I took three newish jackets with me for the weekend, all of which claim to be "waterproof and breathable". Thanks to the four storm-fronts experienced during Monday, I was able to compare them side by side in some pretty damp conditions: Jacket CostThe North Face Men's Anotora Jacket $150Macpac Men's Lightweight Prophet Rain Jacket $440Salomon Men's Bonatti Trail WP Jacket $198The Salomon Bonatti is your typical "mandatory" race rain jacket choice - seam sealed, lightweight, packs down to nothing. Super comfortable, feels very light on the body. Has "Pertex Shield" branding on it, Elastic at the waist and wrist, with a hood perfectly shaped to go over your cap, and an 'expandable back' section that lets you wear it over a running pack. I'd say this is a great jacket to carry when there's only a low to moderate chance of rain, and when you expect you'll be moving quickly all the time (and thus stay warm). However, it's not ideal for the multi-day adventures or heavy coniditions as it didn't really feel like it would hold the rain out forever. Being a super-light jacket, it doesn't do too much to stop the wind. The TNF Men's Anotora Jacket was magnificent in Monday's conditions. Waterproof, breathable, seam-sealed with a DryVent (TNF branding) shell, it provide substantial protection from the weather conditions. The hood was large enough to go over my cap, and I was able to close the head opening so that only my eyes, nose and mouth were uncovered. The wrists are elasticated, and there's a drawstring around the waist. Front zipper has a strip covering it. It's not the smallest of jackets to pack away, but it sure as heck kept me dry and warm, and was super-comfortable to wear -- you can push the sleeves up and pull 'em down to control body temp between storms, and it also ties neatly around your waist if you can't be bothered putting it away in a pack. When I was getting changed at the end of the event, I was completely dry under this jacket. Macpac Men's Lightweight Prophet. I had really high expectations for this jacket, it cost a small fortune, was lightweight, with claims of 20,000 hoo-hars of water proofing and breathability. And, tbh, it did a good job of keeping the rain out and keeping me cool. However, the hood felt like I was wearing an elephant on my head, and no matter what I did, I couldn't get it to fit comfortably while running through the heavy wind and rain. The lightweight nature of the jacket meant it didn't really keep me warm like the TNF Antora. It used a velcro strip at the wrists, and had a drawstring at the waist, but neither were all that comfie to adjust. I'd say this is an excellent hiking jacket, and it'll replace my 25 year old Mountain Designs Goretex jacket for future multi-day hikes, but I won't be taking it running again.