It’s a tad overdue but I wanted to share my review of the Northgate 10km road race with you.

It shouldn’t have been an official race for me. I gleefully jumped back into bed on the Saturday morning the day before when I saw that it was drizzling outside and promised myself that I’d run the following day. 

My training schedule read 12kms easy. Knowing that I had already skipped hills on Thursday due to work commitments meant there was no way I was getting out of this one.

I bargained with my Coach. I asked if I could run the Northgate 10km and simply add on the extra 2kms to make up 12kms. It would be easier. The race was packed with people (close to over 2000) with water stops. Sure, he said. Brilliant! 

But I was not in the right frame of mind when I started. I didn’t feel much like running and thought I’d take it easy. But when you’re in the middle of a road race, surrounded by hundreds of other runners panting and heaving & aiming to run faster than the dude next to you, you push yourself. 

The route promised to be flat and fast. But they lied. 

It didn’t matter, I kept reminding myself that I was out for an easy Sunday LSD 10km, right? Wrong! 

As much as you try slow down and not let it bother you that the walkers and prams have shot passed, it does! And so every now and then, I’d try push myself harder to keep up and do well. 

It was a flipping tough route. For me in any case. When I finished, I saw many a PB recorded on Strava. How? Did we run the same route? Well organized, packed! But hilly. 

Running the extra 2kms after completing 10kms was mentally tough! But I did it. 

I get it. It’s a race and that’s what people are there to do. As much as I thought I wouldn’t get caught up in the vibe, I couldn’t help it. It ended up being a really hard run because I didn’t know whether I was coming or going? 

Mmm, important to know before you start. If you’re not clear on what your run strategy is, it can be difficult to know if you had a good run or not. 

Lesson learnt. Oh and I’m never running the Northgate 10km race again! Just saying. 

Every runner needs to rest. And it’s exactly what KK and I did straight after Comrades. We flew out to Germany for two weeks of beer, pretzels and sun. For both of us it was a time of reflection.

KK analyzed his Comrades race, what went right, what went wrong and considered what steps he’d take for next year’s race. For me, the June break signified a pause in the year and an assessment of what was working in the areas of my life that I’d need to improve or release.

Munich proved to be the perfect place to view life from different eyes. This is what I saw and the lessons it taught me…

• Drink beer! Anytime is a good time to drink beer. Drinking beer is a normal part of life for the bavarians like tea is to me. It seemed to put people in such a jovial mood. It meant that people stopped to say “prost” (cheers) to one another & take time to relax and drink this huge glass of beer. 
• Eat carbs! My favourite was a pretzel filled with cream cheese and chives for breakfast. And forget about vegetables or salads. They don’t exist in Munich! Vegetarian options were the spatzle or dumpling. But then again, why would you choose anything other than the delicious pork roast or schnitzel?
• Mind your own business! My friend Lisa made the comment that Munich is the city for introverts and she was right. Everyone keeps to themselves & no one interferes with one another, even though the place is bustling. Sticking to yourself and your own business is quite refreshing and definitely less stressful than carrying everyone else’s issues. 
• Go big and make it count! Beer came in 500ml or 1 liter glasses. Nothing smaller! The pork roast was massive, the pretzels looked like they were on steroids! The bakeries were big, the bullet trains were fast and some of my favourite shops were x3 storey high buildings!
• Riding your bicycle to a rock concert is cool! Their lives are so laid back & so relaxed. They don’t seem to care what other people think. They go with what makes sense. 

The biggest lesson I learnt was this…

• Make time for me! Everything is closed on Sundays which means people make time to do other things. And I don’t mean be busy at the mall (because it’s also closed), but to lie around in the sun, to picnic in the park, to walk the dog and to relax.

Thank you Munich! You’re just what I needed…

The Comrades marathon was brutal. A mixture of heat and the relentless pulls of the infamous Up Run found many with unmet/reset goals or heartbreaking DNFs.

For KK, this years race was particularly tough. I caught him at x4 different spots along the route and each time I saw him, he seemed to struggle more and more. 

At one stage, he declared, “I’ve had enough. I’m walking to the finish.” 

I smiled. You see, KK is really strong mentally. He’s never been one to quit during a race. In those moments of darkness, he switches on to plan B. Walking to the finish. He knew he had to finish. Quitting was never an option. 

I was scanning through some old photos of previous Comrades races when I happened to notice something. 

The day before each race, we like to walk down to the beach and relax. KK always spends time dipping his feet in the water. But if you look closely at these pictures, there’s something else going on…

It’s as if he’s looking far away, into the ocean, deep in thought. I’m guessing this is where he has that final conversation with himself while staring at the waves building and crashing around him.

The nerves. The self-doubt. The fears. Taking on a race of this magnitude, only something as big and powerful as the ocean would understand and allow him to soak up as much energy as he needs. 

X4 medals later, the ritual must work. 

This is what I got up to…

Selfies on the beach. Notice the beach sand on my elbow. Fail. Yeah, I know. I’m working on it.