Northburn Results & A Race For Survival
In June 2009, I was diagnosed with head and neck cancer. It was in the base of my tongue, right jaw, and the lymph nodes in my neck.
Your weekly fix of NZ trail running news
We bring you the good stuff every Monday - Like your workplace BFF, who brings in the coffee ready to discuss anything & everything but work.
Here's what’s in the drop bag this week:
Northburn Results
Race For Survival
My Worst Run Ever
Upcoming Events: Three Peaks Mountain Race
Stuff You May Have Missed
Mountain Skag Pic Of The Week
Northburn Results
It's 9:20 PM on Sunday, the 19th of March. As I write this week's newsletter, 15 runners … zombies🧟 are still on the Northburn 100 course. The race cut-off is 48 hours. Let that sink in for a while.
I don't know what's more impressive. The grit and determination to be out there for so long? Or the commitment from Terry Davis and his team to support the runners and allow them a full 48 hours to grind themselves into a fine powder.
Northburn100: 📏161KM | ⛰️⛰️⛰️10,000M
Women's podium:
🥇Jean Beaumont - 28:38:56
🥈Sarah Healy - 33:23:30
🥉Sarah Fisher - 35:07:00
Jean Beaumont is no stranger to Northburn. This was her 6th time running the miler' and her 5th victory. So safe to say 'old👵 and slow🐢' (her words in last week's preview) is working out alright for her. It was a good day to be a Sarah. Sarah Healy and Sarah Fisher took out 2nd and 3rd.
Sunrise at leaning rock aid station Photo: Jean Beaumont
Men's podium:
🥇Mark Doohan - 24:59:07
🥈Andrew McDowall - 26:10:03
🥉Kieran Philip - 26:28:09
Mark Doohan and Lewis Latham were the early leaders in the men's race. Latham led Doohan by 28 seconds, heading into loop 2. Andrew McDowall was in 3rd, 20 minutes back, with Patrick Manulet and Kieran Philip only 5 minutes back.
Doohan & Latham ran into basecamp at the end of loop 2 stride for stride. Rarely do you see 2 runners together at the front after 15+ hours and 100K. McDowall was still running in 3rd, with Philip only 2 minutes back. Manulet slipped off the pace on the 2nd loop and found himself in 5th, 2H30 behind the leaders.
Unfortunately, Latham had an issue and dropped out during the 3rd loop. Doohan powered home to take first, with McDowall finishing strong but over an hour behind. Philip hung on to 3rd, a further 18 minutes back. Running legend and 10 x Northburner Glen Sutton came home strong and finished in 4th.
Here is Andrew McDowall’s take on the day.
That battle between Kieren and I was pretty choice. His climbing out onto loop 3 was epic. Dude had wheels. Only caught him with 5k to go. For me, the race was much harder than last time - every time I tried to push my body just said 'no, today we are not doing that' - maybe a hangover from TUM miler, maybe fitness, maybe I'm just getting old! Dunno. But still very stoked to sneak that 2nd place in again and 'enjoy' a weekend in those beautiful mountains.
Andrew McDowall
Matt Doohan takes the Northburn 100 Miler Crown Photo:Northburn FB
Northburn 100K: 📏100KM | ⛰️⛰️6350M
Men's podium:
🥇Ben Cullen - 12:03:38
🥈Joseph O'Hara - 14:17:03
🥉Ben Corkery - 15:36:15
Ben Cullen set a hot pace🔥 and took the lead early over Joseph Ohara and Ben Corkery. Heading into the 2nd loop, he had a 40-minute lead. Not unbeatable by any stretch, but something drastic would need to happen to see him not take the win. He kept the hammer🔨down and put a further 1H34 on O'Hara. I could have this wrong, but that is the 2nd fastest time ever in the 100K.
Ben Cullen on his way to victory at Northburn 100K Photo:Northburn FB
Women's podium:
🥇Veronika Palockova - 15:08:54
🥈Sabrina Ecoiffier - 19:21:21
🥉Jo Steven - 21:03:34
Veronika Palockova followed up her 1st & CR at Shotover Moonlight Ultra with a dominating performance in the 100K🙀. The race for 1st was over early, it became a question of whether or not she could break 15 hours.
Through the first loop, Palockova held a 1H30 lead over Sabrina Ecoiffier and was 3rd overall. Ultimately, she would finish just shy of 15 hours and make it a Shotover, Northburn double. This was her 2nd win at Northburn 100K, and she was over 1 hour faster than in 2019.
Veronika had some cool things to say about the race when it was all said and done.
Northburn is hard. It’s a tough one. Those massive climbs have you doubting yourself, swearing (sorry Terry), and praying for downhills. But it quickly turns out those are even worse - so long and grueling! You are swearing even more and thinking to yourself and to others that you would never put yourself through this again!
But the amazing talented runners you get to meet along the way, sharing the stories of pain, make it all worth it. Friendly and always smiling volunteers pull you back from the dark and quite often remind you that you chose to be here, suffering through every step.
No distance is a "short" distance! Northburn is an intense race that will test you in ways you never thought possible. But we all keep coming back for more. This was my second time completing the 100 km race, and I've done the 50 km a few times.
Veronika Palockova
Northburn 50K: 📏 | ⛰️2600M
Women's podium:
🥇Kovo MacDonald - 6:32:12
🥈Kristen Kelly - 8:33:19
🥉Annie Leques - 8:45:02
Kovo MacDonald had a day out to remember. It's not often you win a 50K race by over 2 hours! A strong time on a challenging course, also finishing 4th overall.
Men's podium:
🥇Scott Hawker - 5:14:04
🥈Adam Carlson - 5:54:09
🥉Aaron Shaskey - 6:20:06
Scotty Hawker's build towards Western States rolls on. 2 weeks ago, he placed 2nd in the Motatapu Marathon. On Saturday, he showed off his full range by torching the Northburn 50K. Adam Carlson took 2nd, 40 minutes back, with Aaron Shaskey rounding out the podium.
Here is what Scotty thought of his day out:
Yeah it was an awesome morning on the trails. We were treated to an epic sunrise. Conditions were pretty good throughout. Only a wee bit cold/ icy up top and didn’t get too hot until later in the day.
Things are well on track for Western States. Still 13 weeks away so building gradually but really happy with where I’m at.
Scotty Hawker
A Race For Survival
This week I was reminded that it's not all about the pointy end of the race. Inspiration runs right through the field. Nick White ran the Ring of Fire 73K🌋 last week. He finished 63rd overall in a time of 15:46:30 - an outstanding achievement to complete the race, but not exactly an award-winning🏆 performance, or was it?
Nick White receiving his award
Nick won the Memorial award🏆 for the spirit shown in his battle against cancer. He so far has raised $2280 through his 'give a little' campaign for the Gillies McIndoe Research Institute. GMRI is fundraising for its phase 2 clinical trial for glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.
His cause strikes close to home. I witnessed this disease ravage my previously fit and healthy Mum in the space of 9 months in 2021. More work needs to be done to battle this disease. As the head oncologist said to us:
I'm sorry, this is a horrible disease. This is the best we can do, and it's not that good. We're just not that great at understanding and treating brains.
I asked Nick a few questions to understand his battle better and the cause he is fundraising for.
What was your diagnosis?
In June 2009, I was diagnosed with head and neck cancer. It was in the base of my tongue, right jaw, and the lymph nodes in my neck.
In 2021 I was diagnosed with a recurrence of the same head & neck cancer. It was in my upper palate above my throat, left jaw, and left side of my neck.
What did your treatment involve?
To treat the cancer, I had surgeries, radiation treatment and chemotherapy in 2009 and multiple (4) surgeries in 2022. (I'm still a patient and may have further treatment later this year and beyond).
When did you start running again?
After my surgery, radiation and chemo treatment in 2009, I ran the Rimutaka Incline run in November 2009 with my stomach tube in, followed by the Goat in December 2009.
I kept running until my surgeries last year. I started training for the Ring Of Fire in late September, and ran The Goat in January this year, followed by the ROF ultra last weekend.
Sometimes you just have to take a leap of faith
How has running helped you deal with your circumstance?
It helps me stay fit so I can tolerate more intensive treatment (particularly the major surgeries and chemo/radiation if needed). Being fit helps speed my recovery in the hospital and at home. Longer time, being fit helps improve my survival chances. And, of course, I love being out in the mountains, enjoying life with my friends and the sense of freedom from the treatment it gives me.
One other important benefit is that I've been able to combine my enjoyment of mountain running with fundraising activities for cancer research; in particular for the Gillies McIndoe Research Institute.
How can people help?
Any help is greatly appreciated! People can help by sponsoring or sharing the story of my cancer research fundraiser this year. I wanted to run the ROF Ultra to raise awareness and funds for a cancer research trial of a treatment for glioblastoma (a type of brain cancer). There's a summary of my fundraiser here if people would like to donate: https://givealittle.co.nz/fundraiser/into-the-ring-of-fire. Every dollar will count for that trial; we greatly appreciate it. Thank you!
Beyond that, people can help by sharing the story or supporting the work of NZ's Gillies McIndoe Research Institute - it's developing innovative, world-class cancer treatment drugs that will make a difference to thousands of cancer patients in future, with the goal of eliminating the need for surgeries, radiation treatment and chemotherapy.
Nick White: Mission accomplished.
My Worst Run Ever
This week’s Worst Run Ever is a stark reminder to be grateful for when we can put one foot🦶 in front of each other.
Keep the stories coming in! Send them to [email protected]
They can be short or long. Funny😂 or sad😭. They can even have a happy ending.
This week I thought I would attempt a Van Gogh
❝
It started so well. First peak⛰️ of three (Mt Victoria/Matairangi) done and dusted. Now a bit of flat out to the airport✈️ before the next one. Then it went. My left knee collapsed underneath me🧎. No rhyme or reason. It locked up. A walk of shame back to the car and the start of nine months of frustration - don't get me started on ACC🤬 - before I could run again. You don't know what you have until you don't have it.
Sean Martin
Upcoming Events
Three Peaks - Dunedin
Sunday 26th of March
The 3 Peaks Mountain race🗻 began in 1984. Rumour has it, it started after a couch-burning ceremony in a Dunedin flat got out of control. The cops 🐷rolled up, and the culprits decided to gap it. In fear of leading them back to their flat, they took to the hills. It took 3 peaks before they were able to shake the cops and make their way back home*
*Some facts may be slightly twisted or completely made up for your entertainment purposes.
Three Peaks: 📏26KM | ⛰️1350M
CR:🏃♂️Dougal Thorburn 01:55:44 (2010 |🏃♀️ Sarah Chisnall 02:19:56(2010)
The 3 peaks mountain race is named after the three peaks of Flagstaff (668m), Swampy (739m) and Mt Cargill (676m). It's a challenging course, packing a grunty 1350M of sweet vert into just 26K🥵.
This year is the 40th year of the event. There have been a few tweaks to the course over the years. The current route was established in 2020. It runs entirely on public land, so the issues of land sales and permission should be in the past.
There’s a cash💰 prize up for grabs for the King and Queen of the Mountain👑. The first man and woman to reach Swampy summit and finish the race will take home some cold hard cash.
3 Peaks + 1: 📏55KM | ⛰️2700M
CR:🏃♂️ Gavin Dale 05:22:02 (2022)| 🏃♀️ Ruth Croft 05:33:30 (2022)
In 2023 the 55km 3 Peaks + 1 is the NZ Short Course Trail Running championship. Runners who want to take The NZ Athletics Trail Running title must be registered with an Athletics NZ affiliated club.
Non-registered runners are still able to race for places and prizes as usual.
The 55km course includes 22km of the original 3 peaks course but takes a big detour to include an epic climb up Pulpit Rock (760m). If you've never run in Dunedin, this is a great chance to see what's on offer. You even run up Mt Cargill to see what all the fuss is about.
Check out last year’s race below.
For race day coverage, check out their Instagram and Facebook.
Things you may have missed
The Wildthings Facebook group turned into the youtube comment section. It was WW3 discussing the South Island Ultras' decision to put up a 10K cash prize for the first runner to break 8 hours this year. It got so heated it caught the attention of elite US runner Camille Herron who waded into the argument.
Some old geezer lit a cigarette, and a whole bunch of loonies sped off into the bush to find his favourite books. That's right, everyone's favourite Barkley Marathons was on over the weekend. Our very own Katie Wright was back for her 2nd attempt at the infamous race. She completed one lap in just over 11 hours - keep an eye on her Insta for an update on how the race went.
NZ’s top-running podcast, Dirt Church Radio is changing to every 2nd week after years of being weekly.
Mountain Skag pic of the week
This week's Mountain Skag pic is from Joe Benbow from the Ring of Fire. The crazy eyes are a dead giveaway, that the mountain skag has taken over.
Tag @trailrunning.nz and use #mountainskag on Instagram or email [email protected] to enter.
Every entry goes into the monthly draw to win a Mountain Skag T-Shirt or hat.
We will be back next week with the Three Peak Mountain Race results & and more.
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PS- How exciting is it to see some prize money start flowing into trail running in NZ?