RACE REPORT: RMB UTCT 100 miler – It takes a Village by Andrew Rushworth

After entering, I pieced a training plan together from various sources, working it around races, and then adjusting as I went along. The training was long, and lonely, but I enjoyed ticking off the weeks (ups and downs), building the runs and then before I knew it race week was here.

I had never been this nervous for a race, but I also knew from experience, to trust the training, even though this was uncharted territory for me. It was wonderful to have my family at the start, to see me off on this mixed bag journey, and it made me a little more relaxed.

After the build-up and the count down at the start line, we were off.  Slowly out the grounds then downhill weaving through the streets of Cape Town. You really can’t help but go out a little fast as gravity takes over, but there were a few up hills to keep us in check. We were soon on the trails, looping around Lions Head twice, with beautiful views as the sun set across the ocean. I was feeling good at this stage and keeping a steady consistent pace.

Kloof Corner is always well supported, and as it starts to get dark you climb those stairs and get pulled along by the crowd. The cow bells did trigger slight nausea, and this would stick with me for the entire race.

At the top, I took out my headlamp and continued along the contour. I then had my first setback. Stepping awkwardly on the path, my entire left leg decided to cramp, from my foot to quad, and into the bushes I went. As I tried to get up to stretch it out, my other leg did the same. So back into the bush I went. This was at about 21km into the race, I could not stand, and I was contemplating my options. Was my race over? I then saw some other headlamps coming along, which motivated me to try a little harder as I was not going to let them see me like this. I somehow manged to get upright and started to stretch it out. I took some cramp tablets, and then worked it out on my way to Platteklip. Luckily, that was the end of that problem.

Platteklip is what it is; long and slow. It was cold with the mist coming down, so I put on my thermal which took longer than expected and then soldiered on to the top. Maclears to Llandudno was long and slow in the dark and I managed to lose one my gloves. Tried to find it but then decided to rather continue – the weather was warm and I had backup liners in my bag.

The next section was beautiful; running along the beach at night with a full(ish) moon glowing in the sky; dodging the tides along the way. I felt good along this section, working my way up the ascent to Rocket Road and then up Suther Peak.
At the top I had my third setback; my right knee had a sharp pain when I tried to run flat or downhill. I could bear it for short stints, but it was uncomfortable and sore. From this point on it was a run/walk on the runnable sections, for the rest of the race.

I made my way along Hout Bay beach, through the knee-high river, and to the aid station. It was getting light now, so was starting to feel a little more energised. The contour section heading towards Blackburn Ravine was beautiful and cool in the early morning; I washed my face in the stream and then headed up the Black Burn burn and into Silvermine.

Saw Moira and Grant at Silvermine timing point and Moira tried to alleviate my knee issues, but it was short lived, and the pain continued.

It was such a good feeling to get to Kalk Bay, to see my family and get some supplies. The support was just overwhelming; from Bay Primary to the Sup/Morning running group. It really lifted my spirits. It also meant André was going to run with me for what would end up being the entire day; +-50km to Noordhoek.

It was a hot day but luckily there was a breeze every so often that made it a little more bearable.  From Kalk Bay it was over to Simons Town, still not moving as fluidly as I’d like with my knee and nausea. Getting to Simon’s Town and 98km completed it was new territory for me but more importantly over halfway. I could only manage to get a marmite sandwich down, but at least it was something.

We left the aid station; up the Signal School steps (where there was a dodgy guy to keep us motivated) and along the flattish runnable section to Kommetjie –it was more walking than running.  We had also heard about the muggings, so were more aware of our surroundings and cautious.

At Kommetjie I received more wonderful support; Wendy, Vi and the rest of the gang were there. Marcy was really concerned about me at this stage. My nutrition plan was blown, and I only took some electrolyte sachets of everything I had given Grant to bring. I at least needed to get those in.  I then tried some soup which went down so well and filled up one bottle with Coke to sip on to try to get rid of the nausea. This would be my staple at aid stations from this point on.

The beach section from Kom to Noordhoek was lekker, except for the detour at the end; the route markers took us around, up and over the rocks, as the lagoon was full, waist high and broad, blocking direct access to the boardwalk.

Noordhoek would be the last aid station that I would have support and see my family. This was also André’s final stop after an epic run to support me the whole day.  I had a good rest; feet washed, change of socks and shirt; more broth; lamp out; last goodbyes and then I was off.

It quickly got dark going up Chapmans Peak and this next section was  about 20km to the next water station at Constantia Glen. It’s single track and just never seemed to end. The wind had also picked up and was gusting.  There were one or two landslides to navigate along the path. I was also feeling very sleepy for this whole section; debating with myself whether to push on or to just have a quick kip on a rock. I decided to continue moving over Vlakkenberg and to the next water station where I sat and regrouped for a little while.
I had misjudged this section by about 3 hours…another story for another time.

The green belts from Constantia Glen to Alphen were easy going and with another pause and re-group at Alphen. Then off to UCT with several obstacles, trees to crawl under and over; fences to step through; the never-ending contour, and the 400 stairs. It was at least starting to get light now as I made my way down towards UCT which meant the last push to the finish. I sat down many times on my journey, not because my legs were tired, but my eyes and mind.

I got to UCT at about 07:00 Sunday morning, had my morning noodles and then tried a 20min nap. It had been 48hrs since I last slept, and it was getting hot out there, and I knew I would fall asleep and struggle on the next section if I didn’t take the edge off. I couldn’t’ really sleep as there was too much noise though, but it was good to lie down and rest and I felt better at least closing my eyes for a while. I then needed to be off as I wanted to get out of there before the 35km runners come through to avoid any bottlenecks.

The sun was now baking down, so I took the blockhouse climb easy, 50 steps at a time; rested at the top and then made my way along the single track and to Deadman’s Tree and into Deer Park. It was a run/walk down the uneven jeep track.

I could then start to hear the excitement at the finish, and it was a good feeling getting onto the grass and knowing the end was in sight. Crossing that finish line is something else, I made my peace and gave thanks, and seeing my family there to welcome me was just amazing,
Finally, after months of preparation and sacrifice, a tough 100 miler was done.

I learnt many lessons along my journey.

This quote goes around quite a bit, but relevant:

“Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth” – Mike Tyson

• Some things just don’t go to plan, but you must at least have a plan and ADAPT: Accept, Diagnose, Analyse, Plan, Take Action (Jason Koop).
• Listen to your body. Don’t push yourself to the point of breaking – I’m not going to win. So might as well enjoy the time out there, reflect, and get to the finish.
• Trust the training – if you’ve put in the hours and miles, trust it. There will be areas you neglected, and they will show, but then you just need to ADAPT.
• Learn from others but find what works for you.
• We all have bad hours, sections, days.
• Others believe in you, so believe in yourself.

Thank you to everyone who supported me – too many names to mention; Warren, André, Etienne and Grant for your encouragement, advice, time and support; the event organisers and especially Stuart and Sierd; and then especially to my family who were there for me through all the training, the event, and the aftermath.”

Distance	Vert	Time	Temp	Sleep Deprived
171.5km	7600m	41h11	11⁰ – 33⁰C	51hrs