Rediscovering Greta (my Garmin Forerunner 405)

Years ago I got swept up in the runners' obsession that is Garmin. Almost everyone had one - they downloaded their cool looking graphs after every run and analysed this or that. They argued with race directors over the distance of races ("My Garmin says it was X, and my Garmin never lies). They set them to beep every kilometre during a marathon, causing me to endlessly ask: "Are we on pace? What pace are we doing? Are we too slow? Do we have time in the bank?" 

So I bit the bullet, forked over my hard earned cash and ordered one. A lovely little green Forerunner 405 which I nicknamed Greta. 

Greta and I weren't really friends from the start. She stressed me out. I didn't want to know what pace I was doing every single step of a training run - yet I couldn't stop looking. She was much bulkier than my usual Timex Ironman watch, which annoyed me. She didn't play nicely with my Mac either, and I had no end of trouble trying to get her to send her info across. 

In the end, I simply gave up using her. Put her back in her box and left her to her own devices at the back of the cupboard. 

Now, however, I have been forced to take Greta out of retirement and, I am pleased to say, her time in isolation seems to have done wonders for her. 

The only reason Greta was given a reprieve was because my watches died. For more than six years I had a Timex Ironman watch which was fabulous. It kept going and going and going, and the only reason I went in search of another one was because it was starting to look a bit old. 

I bought another Timex Ironman - a great looking one with flowers on the face. What a disaster! The first time I wore it in the rain the display stopped working. When it dried out it was fine, but from then any time it was raining or humid the display would fog up then disappear. This was certainly not appreciated during the Canberra Marathon, where I ended up running more than half the race without knowing what the time was. 

The faithful older model was returned to service - especially in the pool because who knew what would happen if the rain-sensitive model went for a swim. Then, disaster! Both watches stopped working completely within five days of one another. Apart from being inconvenient, this saddened me a bit - these watches had helped me through some spectacular races. The old faithful had been with me the very first time I broke three hours in a marathon, and the (crappy) new one had been my companion on the journey (isn't that a song from Catholic school?) to 2:54:54 in Melbourne last year after my heartbreaking disaster in Sydney.

What to do, what to do? There was no way I was going to buy another Timex because, judging from all the reviews online, the water problem was common. I needed to find a different brand - and fast, because I had the Summer Run just days away. 

To buy myself some time to research, I went to Target and bought a $16 digital watch. It did the job, but I wasn't sure how long it would last. (Turns out this cheapie is a machine. It's not sold as water resistant, but I decided to give it a bash and it handled 2.6k of swimming without a glitch!!).

I researched (yes I am a bit OC like that). Casio? Nike? Soleus? I couldn't find anything that was a/ the right size and b/ did what I wanted. I liked a Speedo watch, but I couldn't find  anywhere to buy it in Australia, and I wanted to be able to return it if it broke, so overseas online was a no-no. Hence, out came Greta. 

Maybe I have changed and I'm not so worried about my pace anymore. Maybe Greta has grown up and decided to become more Mac-friendly. Maybe I was sick of not knowing what distance I was running. 

Maybe I have become a running geek. Because I really like Greta now. 

Yes, she's still bulky and that annoys me. I definitely won't race with her, but it really is good to have some accurate statistics on my training runs. Part of me looks forward to plugging in the ANT stick and uploading the latest run. I've even worn the heart rate monitor a couple of times, just because I could. 

So I am still on the lookout for the ultimate running (and swimming) watch. But I'm pleased to say Greta and I are now firm friends, and as long as she continues to behave herself, she won't be going back in the cupboard again...

Until I upgrade, of course.

A win: Summer Run @ Port Stephens

First place, Summer Run.

The Summer Run, held on Saturday 11 February, was an excuse to get away to Shoal Bay - a place that's been a favourite of mine since I was young. My cousins lived there for years and we visited often enough for the place to feel comfortable and familiar - it's kind of like that worn old t-shirt that you've owned for years that you always pull out when you want to feel relaxed and at peace with yourself. 


We had a third traveller with us on this trip - Deek, our 18 month old rottweiler. We've never taken him anywhere with us before, and we're certainly not one of those couples who treat their dog like a child, but we know he likes to swim and because we were staying in a friend's holiday house we thought we may as well take him on a road trip. I have to admit, it was pretty funny. 

Road trip.

The run was just under 13k (it varied depending on who you spoke to), keeping with my new found commitment to running some shorter races this year. It wasn't an easy one. Sand, grass, gravel, concrete, dirt, stairs... it was all there. The sand was undoubtedly the worst part. I felt as though I may as well have been walking. It was a relief to leave the beach and start running on solid ground - I could almost hear the Astro Boy rocket noise as I began to pick up the pace! Apart from the sand it was a really enjoyable race, with beautiful views the whole way. It was run in conjunction with an adventure race, which incorporated a swim, mountain bike, kayak and run. If the bike had been on-road and not mountain I would have entered, but me on a mountain bike will only end in disaster. 


I finished first woman, and third person overall, so it was a good day. After the race hubby and I did a 40 minute run together so I could add on a few more kilometres and I felt pretty good, which made me think I should have pushed harder while racing.


Later in the day the sun was out in full force, so we kicked around at the beach for a while before going to the presentation at Shoal Bay Resort. The food looked good, so we decided to go back there for dinner - a great decision. Nice food at fabulous prices, and just 300m from where we were staying. It was a really great night. I love spending time with my man. 


Most of the next day was spent at the beach, where I tried to work out how we could afford to buy a holiday place up there. The sums haven't added up yet, but I'm still working on it!

Yeah! New Mizuno stuff!

Elixir 7

Nirvana (top) and Elixir (bottom) and CLOTHES!

Yeah baby! New stuff from Mizuno!

How cool is the new Elixir? I love shoes that look a bit different from everything else that's around.

Now I'm all set to try some of this out at the Summer Run in Port Stephens this weekend... just gotta decide what colour to wear. I'm thinking yellow, just because I've never had yellow stuff before.

Thanks to Mizuno for the support.

Knapsack three-hour race - First place

Race briefing.

Every year I use Australia Day to mark the start of my preparations for the Canberra Marathon.

Now in its second year, the Australia Day Knapsack three/six-hour race is perfect for this. It's hosted by Running Wild, a new trail running association that's doing a great job of staging off-road races in the Blue Mountains.

This particular race is based on a popular style of mountain bike race. Basically, we run around and around a five kilometre course for three (or six) hours, completing as many laps as we can in the given time. You could choose to enter solo or as a team (where you complete the race in a relay).

Poor old shoes!

The course was challenging, with one particular climbing bit that I dreaded every single lap and some downhills that I had to take with a bit of caution so I didn't fall on my face (I am un-co). Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong, with two toilet stops, one vomit, one fall and a wrong turn (or, to be exact, I missed a turn because I wasn't concentrating and began following some random runner that wasn't actually in the race!). It was also REALLY muddy thanks to the non-stop rain we've had recently. Loads of deep puddles and bogs that got worse as the morning wore on. My poor shoes are trashed.

The climbing section I dreaded.

For me, the day was less about running fast and more about getting some kilometres back in the legs. I ended up completing seven laps which put me in first place (out of both guys and girls) in the three hour race.  I was really lucky to finish before the rain started. It pelted down.

So very different from last year, when temperature hit 42 degrees C and everybody melted!

I was filthy afterwards, and no matter how hard I scrubbed my feet I couldn't get all the mud out from around my toenails. It's like it's engrained itself in there.

Thanks to Ben Berriman, the Race Director, and the Running Wild crew for a great morning (and for the Zooper Doopers and Coke!). It actually didn't feel like I was running for three hours, so I must have been enjoying it. My prizes included a great embroidered RW bag and towel, socks, a drink bottle, a buff and a few other bits and pieces.

Beautiful Byron Bay

We've just returned from a near perfect break at Byron Bay - it was exactly what we needed to wind down and relax before the working year (and all its pressures) kicks off.

We stayed at The Byron at Byron and we had high hopes, which can always be a bit dangerous. However, from the moment we arrived at the indoor/outdoor reception area and were greeted by staff that somehow managed to combine being laid back and friendly with being highly attentive and professional, we knew we were on to a good thing. 

The place was gorgeous. Set amidst a rainforest with boardwalks linking the different areas of the resort, it was so beautiful and relaxing.  It reminded me a lot of some of the resorts in Bali, except for the very authentic (and lovely) 'Aussie' vibe from the staff.  It was such a good place to chill out, and to be honest, we would have been happy if we'd not ventured beyond the resort for the entire time we were there. 

But venture we did and, despite lots of rain, we had a great time. Sea kayaking was a new experience, and one that my poor prone-to-motion-sickness husband wasn't too keen on! The swell was huge and he ended up throwing up a few times. 

Sea Kayaking.

We hit a lot of different beaches and spent a great (and sunny!) afternoon swimming at Wategos. If anyone living in that area needs a house sitter (or a housekeeper or a gardener or a pool cleaner...) I'd be happy to oblige! 


Had some beautiful runs - up to the lighthouse a few times, along beaches and just exploring Byron. The resort had a 25m pool, so one afternoon I was able to clock up a few laps while my husband took advantage of happy hour on the poolside deck. A free yoga class was held each morning overlooking the rainforest, so I went along to that one morning and, much to my surprise, I really enjoyed it. I tried yoga many years ago and I hated it - I couldn't concentrate, I didn't like the woman talking about "this massages this internal organ", and I couldn't relax. However after the experience at Byron,  I'd really like to learn more about it. I'm sure there are places I can practice locally and I'm going to have a look around and ask a few friends if they know somewhere good. 


In all, it was a brilliant week away. Loved it. 

Merry Christmas!

Mizuno Brand Ambassador for 2012

Yahoo!! An early Christmas present and a fabulous way to finish off the year.

Yesterday afternoon I was (very literally) dancing around the house after receiving an email from Mizuno offering me a place in the Mizuno Brand Ambassador Program for 2012.

I've been fortunate enough to have support from Mizuno since 2010, after winning the National Capital Marathon in Canberra. The timing back then was serendipitous - I was desperately looking for new shoes for both racing and training because the brand I had worn for many years completely changed the models I wore and they were causing me no end of trouble. I thought it may have just been me, especially after being told by a fitting specialist there wasn't a significant change in the shoes, but my husband and a couple of friends were also having problems with their arch support and archilles, so it was definitely more than my imagination.

I had never tried Mizuno before (simply because I was lazy and it was easy to stick with something else while it was working for me), and I was thrilled to find they were exactly what I was looking for. I was recommended the Nirvana for training and the Elixir for racing, and both proved to be spot on.

Not only did Mizuno support me by providing me with shoes, they also gave me a clothing allowance so, for the first time, I started to get outfits that not only fitted really well, but actually matched! So exciting!

I was invited on board again in 2011, and I was just so grateful (and surprised) that an international company like Mizuno would actually consider me worthy of representing its brand. Again, I got some fantastic kit, including the coolest looking shoes I've ever had to date - the Elixir 6 (pictured left). Love, love, love them. Everyone does.

A little while ago all the 2011 Brand Ambassadors received an email thanking us for the year and explaining the program was going to be consolidated for 2012 and only those selected for 2012 would be receiving another email. I very honestly thought that was the end of a very good (very lucky!) wicket for me. I was so sure that I actually went and purchased a new pair of Mizunos from the store because mine needed replacing!

Needless to say I am absolutely over the moon to have the opportunity to represent Mizuno again this year. It has been such a privilege, and I desperately hope I can have a few excellent performances over the next 12 months to prove their selection was warranted.

Now, I can't WAIT to see what the new range is like! Happy days!