Achievements

Running in 2010 was more about others. My friends Francois Jacobs and Ben Phillips had dreams and goals, and they needed some help to fulfil them. At the beginning of the year, I started training and running with the Achilles Running Club in Sydney, and I learned how to guide visually impaired people. It was a change from listening to my iPod when running, to constantly talking to someone and explaining to them the route.

 

Ben and I finished his first half-marathon ever in just over two hours, and on 30 May, Francois and I completed the greatest ultramarathon on Earth, The Comrades, in little less than 12 hours. Both of the guys enjoyed their running very much. So at the end of September 2010, Ben and I were again on the starting line of the Sydney half-marathon, and Francois is already training for the 2012 Comrades.

 

The previous year, 2009, was also an intense one, not only for charities such as The Fred Hollows Foundation, which were hit hard by the global financial crisis, but also for myself. I competed in seven major races covering a total of over 260 kilometres and running for over 30 hours in total. Highlights were finishing the The The North Face 100 in the Blue Mountains and meeting (and competing against) Dean 'Karno' Karnazes, the ultimate Ultramarathon Man, and participating in the Sydney 2009 World Masters Games, where I finished both the 10-km race and the half-marathon in excellent times. My results were of course nowhere close enough to win a medal against all these fit 'oldies'. But it was great fun, and I am certain that if I keep running for another 35 years, I may get a chance to win a gold medal one day!

 

Major races

18/09/2011		Sydney Marathon (guiding blind runner Ben Phillips)		4h 56m		42km
19/09/2010		Sydney Half Marathon (guiding blind runner Ben Phillips)		2h 08m		21km
11–12/09/2010		Glasshouse 100		27h 48m		100miles (165km)
30/05/2010		The Comrades (guiding blind runner Francois Jacobs)		11h 46m		89km
16/05/2010		Sydney Morning Herald Half Marathon (guiding blind runner Ben Philips)		2h 15m		21km
02/05/2010		National Capital Marathon		4h 30m		50km
13/03/2010		6-foot Track		5h 34m		45km
18/10/2009		2009 World Masters Games Sydney		1h 43m		21.5km
11/10/2009		2009 World Masters Games Sydney		44m		10km
20/09/2009		Sydney Bridge Run		1h 41m		21.5km
23/08/2009		Mudgee Half Marathon		1h 38m		21.5km
05/07/2009		Goldcoast Marathon		3h 37m		42km
17/05/2009		The North Face 100		16h 31m		100km
14/03/ 2009		6-foot Track		6h 07m		45km
27/09/2008		Fitzroy Falls Marathon		4h 33m		42km
30/03 – 05/04 2008		Marathon des Sables		37h 41m		245.3km
13/10/2007		Fitzroy Falls Marathon		4h 02m		42km
08/09/2007		Glasshouse Mountain Trail		14h 08m		100km
29/07/2007		Westlink M7 Cities Marathon		3h 48m		42km
18/05/2007		Great Ocean Road Marathon		4h 36m		45km
16/06/2003		The Comrades		9h 46m		89km

Have a look at my blog for race reports and my training experiences, or send me an email if you are interested in details about my personal training plan.

There are also many interesting forums about future and past races worldwide on the Cool Running website.