How do you eat an elephant?

Post date: Oct 07, 2014 6:2:48 AM

April saw Val Muskett running around the Adelaide University Oval determined to break the 12-hour World Age group record for women over 60. The weather gods conspired against her and the once dry, firm, red gravel path became a sticky porridge that drained her legs but she still managed to increase the world record(s).

The IAU has decided, in its wisdom, to have only one record per distance/time so no more track, road or indoor records – just one overarching record.

Val’s determination took the track record of 96km to a general record of 109.378km. She was pleased, but wanted more.

In September Sri Chinmoy was hosting the New Zealand 24-hour Championships at Mount Smart, Auckland. Val put her name down for the 12 hours and started training in earnest. Trips to the Caledonian Track in Dunedin were interspaced with beach runs and miles of gravel roads around Hampden. All was going well until, three weeks out from event when Val was ready to taper her training, her ankle started to “play up”.

A few days rest and all seemed well, until a steep climb again brought on the ankle pain.

Val has always listened to her body (if not her husband) and so she brought training to an end.

What to do – flights, motel hire car all booked – nothing for it but to go and see what could be salvaged.

Come 9am and Val lined up on the John Walker track with athletes who were competing in the 6, 12 and 24 hour events. After a moment’s silence the race was on and Val was running OK. She was lapping at the pace she wanted and felt fine.

Two hours in to the race the niggling ankle came back and a reassessment had to be undertaken. No point running on an injury and crippling yourself so it was decided to slow down.

Val realised her ankle hurt when she was pushing herself, trying hard. So don’t try as hard. A change of top took place while plans were made lap 49: Val was going to slow her pace. This she did gradually but the pain was still there. Desperate measures were required, for the first time in her running career Val was going to have a painkiller. She did on lap 82, and on she went.

For the next 70 laps Val’s paced hardly changed and her ankle was not getting worse.

Val’s next stop was only a wee affair on lap 133 for a call of nature lasting 1min 20sec. 

The plan appeared to be working physically, but mentally it was taking its toll, at the marathon she was 10 minutes slower than she wanted (4hr 10min) and at 6 hours she was 3km behind what she wanted and 1.5k behind Adelaide (59km  not 60.5Km).

As darkness descended down came the rain and it was beginning to blow so a stop on lap 209 was required to give Val a drink of hot Milo and put her a jacket on. This took valuable seconds, seconds which had been gained through dogged determination, but sometimes  a few seconds spent preparing are worth it.

This proved to be the case. Val managed to hold her lap times below the level required by her crew and the record was in sight. It was now a case of how much could she break her own record by and for this she once again called on a cup of Milo, this time drunk while walking on lap 226, slowing her down only slightly.

The race was now on and Val was beginning to risk her ankle and push through her foot bringing her lap times down, a couple of laps to compose then she had to go for it. She was now lapping as fast and sometimes faster than when she had run at the 5-hour mark – the old record went – the crowd cheered Val got faster. The countdown began would Val complete another full lap, it was going to be close but … not close enough. Simahin blew the final hooter and Val was stopped 5 metres short of completing her 276th lap.

With 110.795km completed she was ready for a rest.

What had she achieved, a  better world age group record,  overall winner of the race by almost 20km front of  the first man but more than this, the understanding that sometimes if you just keep going you get there. She would have liked to run 115km and that was the goal, but sometimes goals have to be changed and strategies reformed. The old chestnut of “how do you eat an elephant?”  Comes to mind, the answer “One bite at a time, one bite at a time.”