Closing thoughts on the Riverina Endurance Trail Running series 2015 from Brendan John Murray.
RACE 3 RESULTS | SERIES RESULTS
Race 3 was the ‘Dessert’ according to Clive Vogel. Clive likened the series to a 3 course meal when addressing the crowd at our presentations. Mcfarlanes being one of Clive’s favourite runs of all time was rightful as the main course but there was room for dessert ‘A very good one at that’.
The Race 3 destination was across Albury Ranges (Nail can). From the outset – (Planning and all) 30km was always going to be epic. A 30km race open to the public was unheard of in Albury so it was to stretch the boundaries to start with. Add 1000m of elevation across the bush with 1000m and you have Race 3
My determination to bring this race to Albury came from a few sources. Firstly the destination in Albury Ranges was the first place I learned of the purity of trail running. I was guided by Clive to find many places I had never seen and was injected with my first real spat of endurance running . I hit my second and third wind which lead to a 2hr 20 Saturday morning……Endorphins. So a part of me wanted to give back a worthy experience to Clive and his Vixens on their home ground.
The next big question I pondered was ‘Has Albury gone soft’?
What happen to big productions like the Festival of Sport? And why does every regional town seem to have a marathon but us? We have the population and the environment to hold spectacular experiences.
So the number had to be 30km to hold weight to bragging rights and to justify a talented field to make the trip.
Who would aim up? I always knew there would be a small bunch of ‘suffer artists’ that would pull the boots on without thinking twice. Would it appeal to new crowd looking for a bigger bite (ignorance is bliss)? Or perhaps bring some old dogs out of the woodwork – proving that Albury once was and still is made up of working class mentality.
48 adventurers took the start line in perfect running conditions – An overcast sky sparred them the unconditioned nightmare of a beaming sun on the turn of the season.
John Winsbury from Canberra made his pedigree known from the start – breezing to the 9km mark all smiles. On pursuit was Matt Robbie. Regarless of John’s form, Matt was racing to win – An attitude that had served Matt 2 2nd places on the 6 Foot Track Marathon- The heat was on.
Running 3rd was our series leader Aaron Knight. After a week of antibiotics Aaron was running on no gas but still held his own -winning his own battle.
Winsbury had pulled away from Robbie by 14 km as his legs ‘warmed up’. The boys continued to bite down in to the trails as the kilometres still had serious pinches to face on the back half of the race.
The women’s race saw series leader Kim Van Kalken charge the lead from the outset Notably the strongest in the field. A short way back saw parkrun’s girl Sarah Pearce shocking the endurance bank account with her longest ever run- She proved some potential in the sport by holding off Clare Healy, Zoe O’meara and fellow full series competitor tough nut in in Christine Rogers.
The men streamed in broken and better for it. Apparently the last hill at 28.5km was soul destorying. Many of the strong arms from race 2 backed up. Cameron Wood again showed he has the stay and professional preparation with creditable 4th place. The poduim was trailed by strong local efforts from John Baker, Jeremy Rae, Sandy Hector, Pete Norris and Peter Collier. Peter who also rolled the dice on a challenged immune system was rewarded with an overall series Podium 3rd place. Survival of the fittest.
All the ‘hardcores’ rolled in to complete and all had had their feed of ‘dessert’ – cherries on top, double icing and cream + a second helping.
I couldn’t help but feel gratified by seeing some smiles under the suffering.
Race 3 Mens results – Full results
1 John Winsbury 2.22.35
2 Matt Robbie 2.32.51
3 Aaron Knight 2.35.46
Race 3 Womens results – Full results
1 Kim Van Kalken 3.08.15
2 Sarah Pearce 3.24.53
3 Clare Healy 3.27.04
Series Results – Full Points Score
Athletes Foot Podium
Mens
1 Aaron Knight – Clive Vogel Champion
2 Cameron Wood
3 Peter Collier
Womens
1 Kim Van Kalken Clive Vogel Champion
2 Sarah Pearce
3 Christine Rogers
A massive thanks to all that have supported our 2015 Series.
Volunteers and competitors. Thank you.
Our Partners – The Athletes Foot, Parklands Albury Wodonga, The Full Cycle Of Albury, The Olive Health Foods, Healthy Together Wodonga, Timmy G’s, Riverina Podiatry, Genesis Fitness, Adrenaline Earth, Osteohealth & Wodonga TAFE Fitness.
