Narrowneck "Marathon"...
MONDAY 5/6/06, 10.30AM, 42.5K, 6 HOURS SLEEP
Woke to rain, thick fog and cold, and procrastinated about heading out for my long run. Original route was about 55K- into katoomba, out to the end of the Narrowneck plateau, drop off the end via Tarros Ladder, around to Packsaddlers via Medlow Gap, then down Megalong Valley Rd to the Six Foot Track crossing, which would take me back up to Katoomba and home.
I finally rugged up in three layers (including a waterproof jacket) plus beanie and gloves and headed out the door with Camelbak loaded up with 3 litres of water, extra clothes and food. It was a bloody weight on the back- got to work out a better way of doing these things.
Trotted down to Echo Point first to see if anyone was around- and there were about three dozen tourists taking photos of the fog. Continued along Cliff Drive and turned onto Glenraphael Drive, which is the firetrail that runs the length of Narrowneck.
Never saw another person on Narrowneck- it was cold, with steady rain and wind, and visibility was usually 30 metres or less. So the usual spectacular views from the plateau were utterly non existent- it was like running down a grey tunnel, and not surprisingly I started to get quite cold after a while.
The trail here rises and falls quite a bit- a rollercoaster with some long climbs and a few short, sharp ones, but I wasn't breaking any records along here. Footing was a bit rough in patches- the trail has a lot of gravel and loose rocks. As I got further out the wind picked up more and my hands started to go numb. I was spooked out a bit by this, and decided not to drop down the ladder and continue on my usual route, but just do an out and back to Clear Hill, the far end of Narrowneck. I was conscious that there would be no one down there at Medlow Gap, Packsaddlers, 6FT etc and this had a bit to do with my change of route. CLear Hill was 19.5K from home.
Slowed down on the way back and started walking uphills. Eventually came off the trail onto Cliff Drive again and ambled back to Echo Point, then rather than returning home via Lurline St and Lovel St as I had done on the way out, I continued along Cliff Drive and Olympian Parade to Gordon Falls Park, then back home via Lone Pine Drive, the Mall and Megalong Rd to bump the distance up past the marathon, which I could get a bit of satisfaction from.
Did 42.5K in 4.49. Slow, slow, but I can assume some high moral ground from running for so long in shitty weather and I have run three road marathons in slower times...
Woke to rain, thick fog and cold, and procrastinated about heading out for my long run. Original route was about 55K- into katoomba, out to the end of the Narrowneck plateau, drop off the end via Tarros Ladder, around to Packsaddlers via Medlow Gap, then down Megalong Valley Rd to the Six Foot Track crossing, which would take me back up to Katoomba and home.
I finally rugged up in three layers (including a waterproof jacket) plus beanie and gloves and headed out the door with Camelbak loaded up with 3 litres of water, extra clothes and food. It was a bloody weight on the back- got to work out a better way of doing these things.
Trotted down to Echo Point first to see if anyone was around- and there were about three dozen tourists taking photos of the fog. Continued along Cliff Drive and turned onto Glenraphael Drive, which is the firetrail that runs the length of Narrowneck.
Never saw another person on Narrowneck- it was cold, with steady rain and wind, and visibility was usually 30 metres or less. So the usual spectacular views from the plateau were utterly non existent- it was like running down a grey tunnel, and not surprisingly I started to get quite cold after a while.
The trail here rises and falls quite a bit- a rollercoaster with some long climbs and a few short, sharp ones, but I wasn't breaking any records along here. Footing was a bit rough in patches- the trail has a lot of gravel and loose rocks. As I got further out the wind picked up more and my hands started to go numb. I was spooked out a bit by this, and decided not to drop down the ladder and continue on my usual route, but just do an out and back to Clear Hill, the far end of Narrowneck. I was conscious that there would be no one down there at Medlow Gap, Packsaddlers, 6FT etc and this had a bit to do with my change of route. CLear Hill was 19.5K from home.
Slowed down on the way back and started walking uphills. Eventually came off the trail onto Cliff Drive again and ambled back to Echo Point, then rather than returning home via Lurline St and Lovel St as I had done on the way out, I continued along Cliff Drive and Olympian Parade to Gordon Falls Park, then back home via Lone Pine Drive, the Mall and Megalong Rd to bump the distance up past the marathon, which I could get a bit of satisfaction from.
Did 42.5K in 4.49. Slow, slow, but I can assume some high moral ground from running for so long in shitty weather and I have run three road marathons in slower times...
posted by Mister G at 5:31 pm
1 Comments:
I should charge you a toll for using my street.
Cheers from Rocket
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