Bonkers Backyard Ultra - Reflections one week on
Going into the event I was excited but super nervous - I had no idea how to play it tactically running just over 6km every hour on the hour for ten hours ( there was a mini smaller three hour option too )
Could I actually run the whole thing?
Would I seize up between laps?
Could I even maintain a pace to get back out on the hour every hour?!
We arrived a little before 8am to meet the other runners, have a briefing from Kerry and peruse the table of snacks and cakes. One last nervous wee and we were off on the dot of 8am .
The first lap was familiarising ourselves with the route and trying to find a pace we could sustain all day!!!!
Lap one complete and now what….. do I sit down, stand, eat ( yes) , drink coffee ( too early!) , toilet ( always try) and then we were off again 😫
Laps two to five were tough mentally knowing you still had so many more to go, but a looped event like this is such a mental game as you get into your stride and a routine after each lap and just keep ticking them off. Six to eight were hard too, but nine and ten were when the adrenaline kicked in ( if not any more pace - but that isn’t the point of these events)
The camaraderie is amazing - everyone wants you to do brilliantly no matter how many loops you do or at what pace. I ran some loops with others, some chatting, some in silence. I ran some loops alone just ticking off each field and gate and style as I went.
Fuelling wise I nibbled on salty new potatoes and voom bars between each lap and sipped on tailwind for some extra oomph, hydration and electrolytes. Others I ate sandwiches, dates, cake, noodles - fuelling is such personal thing.
If you’re not sure whether this is for you I’d say go for it. Take each lap at a time. It’s just 6km ish. If you think you’ve got another one in you go for it . You have a whole hour to get round so always try one more 😉
Thanks Kerry and all the runners
When’s the next one ? 😉