TRUE GRIT 2015
Well True Grit Adelaide 2015 has been run and won in perfect
weather this past weekend! This event continues to go from strength to strength
with innovation, course changes and have been very fortunate that the weather
gods have been on their side for the past 3 editions.
Hosted at the spectacular Caudo Vineyards right on Hogwash
Bend on the banks of the mighty Murray River close to 3000 people took on the
12.5, 36 obstacle course through trails, sand hills and compacted tracks.
This is the 3rd year that I have run the event in
Adelaide and was stoked to achieve my bronze medal in a new initiative that the
True Grit organisers have launched. 3 events you get bronze, 5 events you get a
silver medal and 7 events you get a gold AND free entry in to ANY True Grit
event in Australia!
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| 3 time Gritter |
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| All about the constant Search 4 Hurt baby! |
This looks to be a great idea on the surface so let’s hope
that the event continues but to ensure this Adelaide needs to get behind it!
Taking on the 3 hour drive from home the fam and I headed
off at 4:30am in rain and win south of Adelaide! As we drove further north the
weather didn’t improve! I was starting to get a little anxious as I was really
looking forward to a dry course and fun times camping! Thankfully about an hour
from Caudo the weather was brilliant as the sun rose and the temperature increased
beautifully.
As we drove into the area I was a buzz with excitement,
nerves and anticipation!
We quickly set up the tent and I wandered off to find my
Obstacle Course Racing League SA brothers at the OCRA tent! handshakes, high 5’s
and bro hugs were exchanged. For those competing in the race wave the nerves
were palpable especially considering the wave looked to be considerably smaller
than last year.
Despite being in reasonable form I elected early on when I registered
that I would not be competing in the race wave. Having a bigger goal being the endure
event in 5 weeks I was mindful about my lack of self control when it comes to
competitive events and despite me promising to take it easy I didn’t want a
case of white line fever to take hold once the gun went!
I watched the race wave head off, shouted words of
encouragement, heckled a little then went back to my tent to start my prep with
about 60mins to go until my start time of 10am
Down the hatch with a new pre-workout (mmm all the face
tingles!) a couple of ibuprofen and on with my innov-8 X-talon 212’s. My wife
was also running in this wave but was with 4 other girls which was great as it
allowed me to do my own thing. I absolutely loved sharing the experience of
running with her last year and she has made amazing strides in her running,
fitness and OCR technique. I pushed her pretty hard last year so this time it
was about making sure she had the opportunity to enjoy the event but without
me!
As we started I found myself at the front of the field
before the 1st obstacle which was the fallen logs. No trouble there
so I set off for the trail run sector. In previous years this has been
approximately a 1km awesome trail run with 1-3 obstacles along the way. This
year however they shortened this extensively which was not ideal as when we
reached obstacle 4-5 the field was bunched! We had caught the preceding 2-4
waves within 5 minutes of us leaving! I was ropable! I had to wait 4 mins to
begin the twin towers. Once over that I took off way faster than I wanted to
but I was convinced I had to make up that time, although who was I racing?
New this year was a “swim leg” which turned out to be a hand
over hand around a pontoon. The water was a little on the chilly side but that
early on to be getting wet certainly threw up something different! Wet feet with
still 9kms to go!
Out of the water then on to the cargo A frame and the wall
climb. a 2.8m ish wall which typically would offer little resistance but 30sec
removed from the water this was tough! Many of the race wave failed and copped
their 30 burpee penalty. I managed to get over this, but it wasn’t pretty. I scraped
my left knee up a little but thankfully it didn’t hurt until afterwards!
After this it was up the hill, a small rope climb to the
vineyard area and a nice 800m trail run. This is where I hit my 2nd
bottleneck which was crawling under a heavy cargo net on a sand mound. Another
4mins lost here! GRRRRRRR
Off on another run leg. This was great for me as it allowed
me to pull a gap on the field and some of the teams running together. The next
20mins or so were not eventful.
Crossing the road and into the desert side was another
story! just after hitting this section we had to complete a 200m ammo box
carry. 2 boxes, 10kg each which is fine but trudging through the heavy sand is
a leg killer! I managed to jog this section more so to overtake some people and
get a bit more of a gap.
Back on to the semi compacted trails before a solid 40mins
in the sand hills! This hurt! up and down and walking through freshly graded
sand! My legs were heavy and my HR was about the 184 mark for most of this
section (my MHR is 188) but surprisingly I still felt like I could give a bit,
even if it was just a shuffle!
The overs & unders walls were on a slight incline hill
which was suckful but being 188cm has it’s definite advantages!
Crossing back over the road to the hard trails was good as I
could get my cadence back. A quick scale of the vertical rope climb and I was
on my way back to the arena area!
The pontoons that they have set up are great! it is
sprinting across 4 floating pontoons
from one side to the other without slipping or diving in to the water! I am yet
to fail this one!
Monkey bars completed with little trouble or protest from my
injured shoulder.
Last but not least is the mud mile! 600m of SLUDGE and mud
moguls before taking the final water slide in to the Murray! under the finish
arch and DONE! my adjusted time, taking out holds ups was 1hr 21mins. A PB for
me on that course. I felt that I ran at about 85% which is what I was aiming
for. Overall I was happy with my run, I got through it injury free and didn’t aggravate
any pre existing injuries! Winning!
That is a quick overview of the course. The obstacles are tough yet manageable and definitely caters to everyone.I elected to not
take my gopro as I didn’t want the distraction. A good friend of mine did have
2 garmin cameras going so if you would like a link to that footage just let me
know!
Now for my overall thoughts
Honestly I think this is one of the best events on the calendar however I feel this year they pandered a little to the vocal minority that may have thought last year was too difficult. Yes TG did promote it as a 12km event last year but was found to be 15km. Big deal!
Honestly I think this is one of the best events on the calendar however I feel this year they pandered a little to the vocal minority that may have thought last year was too difficult. Yes TG did promote it as a 12km event last year but was found to be 15km. Big deal!
I didn't agree with shortening the running, just promote it
as 15km or give a short and long course! The great wall was removed. I liked
this as, again, it offered a chance for a field split.
The biggest issue I had was the fact that I was held up at 2
events where early on in the event this shouldn't happen. They either had to
lengthen the times between the waves or limit the wave numbers.
True Grit and Caudo host a fantastic weekend and they are
certainly are not as strict as some of the other promotions so I guess you have
to take the negatives for the positives.
The festival area is fantastic and the whole event
atmosphere is family friendly and inviting.
At the end of the day this is a challenge! People need to be prepared for this!
This event really is for everyone. The serious racer has the chance to smash themselves on a shortish course, the PT and fitness groups can put those goals on the line for that one 12.5km lap and, the crazies can get dressed up in every conceivable outfit and the people just beginning their fitness journey can put a stake in the ground. One thing's for sure it will never be a "oh i'll just do this one event". No. just no. it is something that hooks you, it draws you in by the raw nature of the event but also the people that make it such a great community and sport.
At the end of the day this is a challenge! People need to be prepared for this!
This event really is for everyone. The serious racer has the chance to smash themselves on a shortish course, the PT and fitness groups can put those goals on the line for that one 12.5km lap and, the crazies can get dressed up in every conceivable outfit and the people just beginning their fitness journey can put a stake in the ground. One thing's for sure it will never be a "oh i'll just do this one event". No. just no. it is something that hooks you, it draws you in by the raw nature of the event but also the people that make it such a great community and sport.
Massive shout out to the OCRA SA State Managers Brad and Jeff
along with the league members both SA and interstate who were at this event.
Big props to the whole True Grit organisers and most of all
the vollies without whom these events would not be possible!
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| Camping fun |
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| Weirdos |
I was feeling pretty crappy coming in to this event. Not
from a physical perspective but a mental one. A definite crisis of conscious
and ability. Seeing the amazing amount of training and gains that some of my
guys were putting in is/was definitely inspiring but at the same time made me,
and continues to make me, doubt myself. I’m going to be dedicating an entire
blog to that issue for me and other athletes so stay tuned suffice to say a bro
hug from my boy Robbie W and some encouraging and reassuring words from Scumbag
Jeff and Luke went a long way. Thanks bros.
The support from the OCR community is 2nd to none.
The support from the OCR community is 2nd to none.
Finally big ups to my wife! She absolutely smashed the
course and completed EVERY obstacle on the 1st attempt! With limited
study time due to a pretty much FT job, massive study requirements and a family
you constantly amaze me!
So proud of you babe! Keep pushing yourself and stop the
doubts and 2nd thoughts! yeah that’s a bit rich coming from me but
you are a superstar and my motivation.
Check out True Grit for a list of upcoming events and details on the 24h Enduro in June!
Keen to know more about the Obstacle Racing League? Well just click here!
Check out True Grit for a list of upcoming events and details on the 24h Enduro in June!
Keen to know more about the Obstacle Racing League? Well just click here!
Till next time peeps! Drop me a line if you have any questions!
In the words of Hunter McIntyre “Stay Macho”!
“Victory is reserved for those willing to pay the price”
