Oh look, another hill

For those of you who don't know Brisbane well, our western suburbs are very hilly. It was over those hills that we had to run and cycle as part of the urban adventure race that marked the end of the Introduction to Adventure Racing, run by Phoenix Adventure.

In teams of three, we completed course legs of kayaking, trail running and mountain biking, interspersed with team challenges.

I kicked things off well for my team by taking a dip in the Brisbane River on my way into the kayak. I'm sure my soggy shoes were what slowed me down on the run leg (hehe).

I thought things would improve with the mountain biking leg because I had mostly dried out by then and I'd had such a successful session on the bike the previous day. But, no. The gears on my bike did I-don't-know-what so that I couldn't get into the lowest gear for the hills, of which there are a lot in Brisbane's western suburbs, as I may have mentioned.

Even so, we finished without injury and placed third - podium position, as they say. It's just unfortunate that there were only three teams in the race.

It goes without saying that I absolutely loved every second of it!!

I got through the five hours with a smile on my face and am still keen for the Teva Adventure Series in two weeks.

All of the advice we were given during the course made sense on the day. For instance, on the return kayak leg I found myself getting really irritable and had resorted to swearing at the wind or the current when I couldn't keep my kayak straight. It was at that point that I realised I probably needed to eat and my shirtiness could be in part explained by low sugar. Eating at regular intervals, especially if you're not hungry, is so important. If you wait until you're hungry, it's too late.

Another thing I learned during the race is how much your mental attitude can affect your performance. The swim I took in the river at the start of the race took some of my confidence and enthusiasm, and later, when I didn't live up to my own expectactions of being able to keep up with my team, I had to take time to refocus by reminding myself of what I had achieved in a short space of time and how I had tackled the challenges.

You know, I'm so bloody proud of myself. I woke up early this morning and my first thought was 'I can't believe I've done it'. During the race there were times when I grimaced at the sight of another hill, but once I reached the top I recovered quickly and could tackle the next one. I would make every downhill ride count, coasting it at top speed to get momentum for the inevitable uphill, but also for the sheer thrill of the speed. To be fair, the hills of Brisbane's western suburbs are good for that.

Now, I must congratulate Mel and her team, who came first and nailed every control along the way. It was a sterling effort! I'm sure she'll share her story soon.

In the meantime, I'm going to start prepping for the mini-rogaine we are doing this weekend - another chance to improve my map reading and navigation skills.

t

Tips and tricks

I'm loving this course. The strength and agility session on Tuesday night was a useful reminder that the terrain won't be what I'm used to. We did an exercise that involved leaping in a zigzag between markers - a useful skill, we were told, for rock hopping.

Judging by my performance, I will spend a lot of the race in soggy shoes.

Trail running this morning, drove home a few things for me. The first is teamwork. Andy reminded us to keep an eye on our team mates' position and call out trail conditions to give them warning. My problem will be deciding quickly how to describe a thing so everyone else will understand it perfectly - is it a stick or a branch? A branch or a root?

The other lesson I took away from it was remembering to use my core - it becomes really important for balance on the downhill.

Tonight's session was one I had been looking forward to the most. We went abseiling at Kangaroo Point. It was fantastic!! I was a little fearful at the beginning of each descent, because as the cliff drops away out of sight your natural instinct is get back to level ground. But, deep breathing and not looking down got me over that initial feeling - and the edge.

The rest of the trip down the cliff was cruisy. It's amazing how much control you have of your speed just by tightening and loosening the grip of one hand. The session was run by Susan from Adventure Seekers. She made us feel safe and at ease very quickly. To my thinking, that's exactly what you need when you're about to fall backward off a cliff.

Navigation, kayaking, team building and mountain biking are all to come, then the race on Sunday.

t

Fears and doubts

I've had a reality check this morning. My brother-in-law has just had to withdraw from a long-distance trek because of exhaustion. If a fit guy has that experience, then I may well be punching above my weight.

Hearing the news has triggered more questions. How do you manage exhaustion when you're on the trail? Is food or water the key? Both? Is it something else? Clothing? Shoes? What makes the difference? What training is going to be best to prepare?

What do you do with wastes - I doubt they have conveniently placed port-a-loos along the way (all the really big questions, as you can see).

This has also come after realising yesterday that I have a long way to go to get my fitness up to peak. I did weights and boxing classes yesterday, back to back. I enjoyed them and got through them fine (incredibly sore today, mind), but what was most concerning was how shattered I was for the rest of the day. It completely wiped me out. And that was just an hour and a half. For the GeoQuest race, I will be working at that intensity in continuous intervals for two days!

Even so, I'm still stupidly keen on doing this. It's just that now I realise I have to work harder to get into condition. That's cool - fun even.

t