54 Nut Jobs Run In Circles For Pleasure
+ a look at upcoming Western States - “I’m most excited about 160km. I’ve never run that far before, and curious to experience it.” - Nancy Jiang
Your weekly fix of NZ trail running news
We’re here for you like that rock jutting out of the river saving you from wet feet😂
Here's what’s in the drop bag this week:
Straya🦘 Back Yard Masters - Dead Cow Gully
The Unofficial World Champs, aka Western States
My Worst Run Ever
Things You May Have Missed
Mountain Skag Pic of the Month/Week
Straya🦘 Backyard Masters - Dead Cow Gully
Who?
54 nutjobs🥜 from Straya🦘, NZ🥝, ‘Murica🌭 & Canaduh🍁, migrated to the middle of f🤬🤬king nowhere - Straya🦘, to run in circles until someone wins or dies.
What?
It’s called the Australian Backyard Masters (it sounds like a bad landscaping TV show), hosted at Dead Cow Gully - 10 points if you can guess how they named the area.
If you’ve been under a rock, a Backyard Ultra involves running a 6.7km loop within the hour, every hour, until there is only one nutter left.
Dead Cow Gully is a flat course, so there are some high hopes of big numbers. Before the event, there were rumblings of the world record being under threat - 101 loops, AKA 676.7 km.
Where?
Dead Cow Gully is located on a 1600-acre cattle property 11 km north of Nanango (QLD). It’s been occupied by the Walsh family for over 150 years.
When?
It started Saturday morning, and as this newsletter hits your inbox, it is still going. In that time, the average Trail Running NZ reader has:
☕ Drunk 6 coffees.
👹 Monstered 1 pack of Snackachangi’s, minimum.
🏞️ Completed park run in the middle of their Saturday long run.
🚶♂️🚶♀️ Went on a big hike and labeled it a run.
🥾 Bought a new pair of trail shoes to help shift the Sunday night blues.
😴 Hit snooze on their alarm and changed their Monday morning run to an evening run.
Why?
I still haven’t quite figured that out yet … something to do with finding the limits of your sanity🤪, I guess.
There can only be one winner in these events, but there is a secondary goal in this situation. If runners can reach 60 loops, they can qualify for the World Champs in Tenessseeessee.
How?
One step and loop at a time. It doesn’t matter how you get it done.
NZ Team Results
All 7 Kiwis made it through the first night to the 100-mile mark (24 loops). Although, to be expected - you can never take for granted running 100 miles!
Angus Ward & Helen Waterworth were the first 2 to drop out after 26* loops.
Shaun Collins just missed completing loop 28 & Adam Keen (Aerobic Edge💪) started loop 29 before turning back.
Flying Fi had a sprint finish at the end of loop 30* and set out on loop 31 before turning back.
As I write this its 5:45AM. Sam Harvey and John Bayne are still on the battlefield⚔️ on their 45th loop. Sam will be equaling his PB and NZ record and John is well clear of his previous 34(when he came 2nd to Sam at Krayzie K’s).
NZ🥝 Team Loops*:
🏃♂️Sam Harvey _ TBD💪
🏃♂️John Bayne - TBD💪
🏃♀️Fiona Hayvice - 31
🏃♂️Adam Keen - 28
🏃♂️Shaun Collins - 27
🏃♀️Helen Waterworth - 26
🏃♂️Angus Ward - 26
***Actual loop numbers may be slightly wrong; piecing it together through various social media posts***
The big dance is here🕺💃. The Western States 100 Mile race kicks off at 5 AM next Saturday local time (midnight Sunday NZ, I think).
We’ve been spoilt in recent years, with Ruth Croft taking 2nd in 2021 and taking home the crown👑 last year. Fiona Hayvice and Cecilia Flori have also had strong top-10 performances in 2017 & 2018
This year is no different. Dan Jones and Nancy Jiang both punched their golden tickets by winning the Tarawera 102KM earlier in the year. Let’s take a look at how they stack up.
Nancy Jiang
Nancy’s been in Flagstaff, Arizona, since early May. Lots of vert⛰️, lots of heat🔥, and even some snow⛄. It sounds like a great spot to get ready for Western States.
Now, she has never run 100 miles before, so it is hard to gauge what to expect. However, we can use history as a guide.
Ruth Croft ran 9:21 at Tarawera in 2021 before finishing 2nd🥈 at Western States in 17:33:48 in her first 100-mile race too.
Nancy won Tarawera this year in 9:26:08. Now I know it was a B course, but the course wasn’t an hour quicker.
Now I’m not saying Nancy is a lock to win this thing. But, she is coming off the back of the race of her life and, by all accounts, has had a great training block.
She is an absolute killer, and going into it relatively unknown in a stacked field means she can just go about her business.
She has the talent and mindset to finish top 10, and if things go her way, anything could happen…
Nancy was kind enough to answer a couple of annoying questions from yours truly.
What excites you most about running Western States?
“I’m most excited about 160km. I’ve never run that far before, and curious to experience it.”
Have you kept the training similar to Tarawera since you had such a good race, or have you changed things up?
“Yes, I’ve kept it similar. I have not increased my weekly mileage because I’ve been so paranoid about getting injured and not being able to do the race. I would rather be under-trained and finish the race than be overtrained and not able to run.”
How many ice blocks do you plan to get through race day 😀?
“A lot! I’ve discovered you can get a 5-gallon tub of sherbet ice cream here in the US. It’s not all for me, I’m sure my crew will enjoy it, too in the heat. And it’s easier to keep cold than a small tub.”
Daniel Jones
Like Nancy, this is Dan’s first crack at 100 miles. Why not make your debut on the biggest stage💪?
Dan has been training with Hayden Hawks in Boulder, who has taken him under his wing (badumcich😜). This is a smart play. Hayden took 2nd last year and was leading deep into the race. He has a lot of experience on the course, and hopefully, Dan can absorb as much 100-mile knowledge from him before race day.
I had a bit of a Strava stalk of Dan’s training … at first, I thought I had it on month mode. Just check this out.
In the 3rd week of April, he ran:
230.4 km, 18h 46m, 7,276 m
He backed it up with the following:
241.6 km 20h 14m 7,648 m
From the outside looking in, he has left nothing to chance and has had the dream training block. The field is as competitive as it comes, but he is as talented and, more importantly, has worked as hard as anyone else on that start line.
Watch this space.
Dan was also kind enough to take some time to answer a couple of questions.
What excites you the most about running Western States?
“The question is, what doesn't excite me, this race has it all, snow, heat, altitude, hills, flat, and I will be out there to run the longest distance I've ever competed in against the best in the world.
It's a massive step up, but I know I can do well if I can manage my race and execute well.”
What has been the biggest difference in your Tarawera and Western States training block?
“They are two completely different races: For WS I've heat trained, had altitude acclimation, included a lot more hill's into my training, and I've gone to Boulder and the Grand Canyon training with my good mate and competitor Hayden Hawks.”
“I feel I've done the most I could have done to prepare, and that has been achieved through the support of friends and family and my partner Michelle.”
I’m looking forward to tuning in on a chilly Sunday morning with a coffee in hand to see how it’s all going.
iRunFar is usually the best place for coverage. They have regular Twitter updates and link to a live stream with an overly caffeinated😵 Dylan Bowman commentating.
Also, a quick shout-out to Thomas Watson from Auckland. I’m unsure if you’re running, but you’re on the starters list. Good luck, and have fun!
Worst Run Ever
This week’s Worst Run Ever is a shorty but a goody.
" You never regret going for a run.”
Yeah … Nah. I think Karen probably regretted this one.
I put my shoes on👟, and my ear buds in. Out the door and I’m ready to roll🧻.
100m or so down the street, I go to change the song🎶 on spotify.
My phone☎️ slips out of my hands, and it goes straight into a big storm water drain.🤬🤬🤬🤬
Worst Run Ever😢
-Karen James
Things You May Have Missed
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We will be back next week with, hopefully, some fantastic news from Western States.
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It looks like Andrew McDowall has this one in the bag at this stage!