Possibly the Worst Value Race ever?

Adelaide parkrun

Having rested up with no running for what seemed like forever, I did a parkrun when staying with a friend down in Adelaide (her husband had registered for his first parkrun in my honour and so it seemed churlish not to run too). After that I decided to step up to a 10k, but I thought a low key trail run would be softer underfoot and give me no pressure to "run" a certain pace/time.

Manly Dam start line

I headed out to Manly Dam in North Sydney and manfully ignored the 12 and 21k options (though I was probably too unfit to get round them anyway) and entered the 10k. It seemed rather expensive for such a small event once I got there, but then again, I was on holiday and why not?

Lining up for the start

Low key was definitely the order of the day......the 10k and 12k runners lined up behind the gantry (after just leaving your bag/bottle/clothes lying around in the bushes) and everyone in front of an arbitrary rope they moved through the field started to run. They then started another ropeload a couple of minutes later, and then another lot after that again and so you didn't know what distance those people you were running near were doing, or if there were faster people who had been caught behind different sections of rope. 

Starting out along the road

Back past the start again...

We ran cross the scrubby grass and onto the road, up a hill and then down to a mini roundabout. After skirting the roundabout we headed back up the way we'd come, past the start line (and runners coming the other way, but they seemed to be in a continuous stream so the "waves" weren't exactly obvious) unto, we took a very sharp right hand turn back on ourselves off the road onto single track.

This track climbed steeply upwards and gave me my first clue that a "trail race" in Australia doesn't exactly mean the same thing as a trail race in the UK. It was impossible to keep running as there were huge steps and boulders to climb both up and down, and on occasion it was impossible not to use your hands. There were runnable sections, but also stretches of boardwalk/duckboards, the aforementioned boulders and steps, roots to avoid underfoot and tree branches to duck underneath. I did only slip and fall once on some wet rocks by a creek crossing and the guys near me did check to see that I was ok.

Some steps and a bridge..

The routes

There were occasional bits of tape tied to branches to mark the way and at one point a marshal was standing at a route junction waving 12k runners ahead and 10k runners to turn to the right. Everyone ahead of me went ahead but I turned round to my right onto a wide rough forest road which climbed steadily uphill. I hoped the marshal had directed me the right way as I couldn't see anyone else in front but as the trail steepened I spotted some flashes of a blue singlet ahead. 

I passed the owner of that singlet just before a few runners appeared from a trail to my left. They were doing the half marathon and so had started much earlier but we're going at such a lick as to suggest they were high up the field. I shouted at the girl I saw  that she should ignore me running behind her, as I was in a different race (as it turned out, she won the half marathon in a new CR).

I didn't feel much like stopping at the only water station I came across as I reckoned that I couldn't be far from the finish (though the jelly sweets were tempting), but it was hard to tell as the other runners had vanished again as the track narrowed, twisted and and turned and developed many more steps. I tried my hardest to always descend the steps landing on my left leg, but it wasn't always possible due to their spacing. 

The finish

A rather low-key finish funnel

I suddenly found myself out of the bush and running along a stretch of beach consisting of both soft sand and rough rocks designed to catch your feet, but then a piece of tape directed me up another climb back into the undergrowth. This twisted and turned again before I emerged onto a "bridge" across the bottom of the dam. It was rather springy underfoot and had some concrete steps at the end of it. The man in the blue singlet caught me up and passed me as I left the dam to head across a final bit of rough ground to the finish, but we had a really good chat afterwards (he said that he always saved a bit for the final run it, and just pipped me over the line, but I had the marginal victory on chip time).

Someone wanted to steal my breakfast roll!

A peaceful post-run swim spot!

The finish line was also low key with tables so you could help yourself to water, coke, dates and some fresh fruit.....and then you could queue up for a couple of slices of bread with a fried egg and bacon. I opted to wander off a short way for a quiet swim in the reservoir before returning for a very welcome second breakfast sandwich, and then hung around for prizegiving as it turned out that I'd been 1st lady and 5th or 6th overall in the 10k. Due to the cost of entry I figured it was probably worth hanging around as if you weren't there at the presentation, you didn't get a prize!

The prize giving was amazing as the race director obviously had his favourites. I can understand prizes being given in order as there were three races but as all had steep entry fees and the 10k had by far the most entrants, you wouldn't really expect to be an afterthought. 

My prize (with added contribution)

It started of with the top 3 men from the half marathon, then the ladies (I'd actually finished before the third lady in the half), then the 12k men and women, then some age group winners, then the men from the 10k....and then finally the woman. People won wireless headphones, Suunto watches, shoes, huge bags of sports nutrition, clothing such as running shorts etc......and I won......a sock. Well actually a voucher for a sock so the incentive was to make me give the race sponsors more money so I could actually have a pair......ridiculous but I did it as it did seem rather churlish not to.....but what a farce!

Anyway....1 sock or 2, I was glad that I'd had the chance to get out and run, especially as it was in a place I didn't know, that was recommended as a place to go bush walking in Sydney!