successful 54kms!

completed :)

54kms, done and dusted!

REALLY pleased with how i went and how i felt doing it, and feeling ready... a little sore right now though :) (this too shall pass!!)

went past a friends after, was hoping to head out on their charter tomorrow and do some snorkelling on the barrier reef (awesome recovery!?! but also storm asked friday night if we could) jumped in their pool while there, her suggestion, and man that felt GREAT on the legs!! have stretched. done all i can :) now. its just a relaxing eve - me and the election coverage (ugh!) oh, and BED!! storm at a friends tonight so going to try and sleep early so i dont worry so much :)

got a LOT of chaffing, the only place i EVER get that is usually under my arms - the canteen ladies chicken wing arm part - never usually have a problem with chaffing at all. the worst of it is from my back pack - over my shoulders and across my back - (so will change back to an older back pack for the race) - thats good learning.
under my arms as normal chaffed badly though id lubed up!, a strip down my left boob! - no idea WTF caused that, down my sides and .......... my private part where the sun dont shine - eeeek!!!
a huge blister on my right middle toe as big as the toe, will lose yet another toenail, its half hanging (actually felt and knew that would happen when i banged hard against a huge rock heading down a hill right near the beginning)!
however, none of it affected me thankfully until i was home and took everything off and went - goshblamdarnit i AM scuffed about!! ouch, collapse :D

and thats only 54kms!!!!! imagine in three weeks with 160k? - XTRA OUCH :D yayay!!!!!

the worst while actually running was mostly in the heel, but it didnt affect me that negatively, one point when i ran onto a pointy rock which must have connected right with the sore spot ... a very slow kilometre after that simply trying to ease the pain down ... and it did. then a couple of shorter moments, it was merely a nagging pain trying to antagonise me! it almost won.

the run itself, gorgeous!!
after a couple of hot and muggy days, overnight, it rained. which is a good thing, as it would make the loose dirt on the trail a little more compact (hopefully) ... it was so slippery last week - but, a light rain when i took off. left home and walked up to the entrance at kara crescent, a little heavier pitter patter ... had the gps to mark every km for the ses and any other landmarks along the way - the first 15kms, it was so foggy, running through mist the whole time - i could hear the rain, heavier, on the canopy of rainforest above, but only sprinklings of wet got through, the cloud cover low in the trees too - it was SOOOOO muggy, but it was sooooooo divine - escapism - me, and nature at its most magical. who could not want for that!! well, nature that is - many do, without me :P!

as i started at the 'end' of it, i went from 27kms down to the 0 ... then at the brandy creek car park, turned, making my way back from 0 to 27 :)

one of my main goals was to check i got the food and water right ... never ate anything the whole way over though, and at no time felt like anything, however, that - does NOT matter, i should have thought to have made myself eat something :/ drank TONS though - but made myself eat something at the car park, banana and peanut butter sandwich (theres a newie!) ... while there andrew and sarah pulled up, what a coincidence! i had not filled my water bottles up at the creek, thinking i had enough until i went back through to there again, so it was a most forunate happening as they had spare water and i gulped it down like i hadn't seen water all morning!!
andrew checked things on the gps, they were heading into wompoo with their kids, so i walked to the entrance of that (2.3kms) with them, then left them to their fun! washed myself down and filled up water bottles at the creek as i went through, then when i got to the first camp site (8kms) a few hikers were there that i bump into from time to time so chatted to them for a bit. to be totally honest. the mugginess, had me beat. i was stuffed. still with 19kms to run, the hold up chatting, was heaven sent and welcomed! they had left about half hour after me from kara, and hiked cross, still making their way to the car park where they were finishing ... eventually i had to take off again and let them be on their way :) the guy said to me the heat had him wrecked also, and to take it easy, i had plenty of time - he was right of course ... anyways. i made it.

a wild pig made my hairs stand on end at one point, its grunting sounded like a dog as i came up around the bend, saw many snakes on the way over but none on the way back, which surprised me, as usually its the sun that brings them out, to sun themselves, and, we didnt have any ... a trillion bush turkeys, a couple of goannas and way too many spider webs broken by my face to count! throw in only one leech which i discovered immediately and was able to get off before it got sucking and, the wildebeests are beat

and the return trip, i made sure i kept the eating up ...

my biggest concern - i never wee'ed tho, not once, nor needed to - yeah, worries me a little and never gave it thought till my return home. i drank 6 litres of water! it was VERY muggy. i spent most of the day really drenched from sweat. so close on 10 hours out there with the chatters and all, and no wee requirement?! i need to work that out ... usually it would mean i was dehydrated, but no idea how i could have drunk anymore than i did ...

my phone got wrecked :( i sat it inside my skins, and shouldnt have, but because when i started it had been raining, i thought that better than anywhere in my backpack and, then i kept it there - SILLY girl! :) its either from the sweat, though could also be from the steady jolting on its mechanism - dont know at this stage, willl see if it dries out in a couple days and works again...

because of that, when i got home, then had to drive (darn) - had to go hunt out a phone box to contact michelle so she knew i was back and had completed it and didnt spend the night worrying i was lost in there somewhere! (one never knows, she may have!) - all my legs wanted to do was rest :)

but since i was already out, after that, i then went to see jill, owner of whitehaven express as she was just down the road - re the day on the reef tomorrow - some snorkeling in the cold water really would be a great recovery, but they hadn't had enough bookings so they werent heading out till monday, so, on monday, storm and i shall go :) she has sunday and monday off this week, that still works :D

jumped in the pool - nice on the muscles! then her hubby gathered me some eggs to take home from their chooks. double bonus, w00t! or with the boat would that be triple?

so, all in all. a WONDERFUL day - what started as a solitary run, turned into quite a social little expedition atop of ... a nice blend, i guess.