January 20th and it was time to test out just how hard the hardest 20k trail run actually is. I had entered when I was training for the Kepler Challenge(60k) and 20k seemed like a small training run to me. My plan was to dominate the Kepler and then do a couple of trots after Christmas and be ready for a great showing at this ‘fun-run.’ Oh how wrong could I be.
Firstly, I did not dominate the Kepler. I had my arse handed to me on an unrelenting course and underestimated the recovery that was needed after such an effort. I would go for a run and at any sign of a hill it was almost like a PTSD reaction and my mind would give it the big nah. Straight after Christmas I was able to put my big boys’ pants on and had a couple of good 15-25k sessions at Wenderholm and on the bush reserves of Auckland’s North Shore. There
