( MIS ) ADVENTURES trail ( mis ) adventures by CARLA LEA FARINA
TRAIL
( MIS ) ADVENTURES trail ( mis ) adventures by CARLA LEA FARINA
Beating the Backyard Brrrr
The recent Backyard Ultra at Van Gaalens in the North-West made for another wonderful trail running memory , even if it was so freezing cold at times that we had to de-ice everything !
Images : Courtesy Carla Farina |
Albert Einstein famously said , “ Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results .” So , here is my million dollar question : Who is the crazier person , the one who organises a Backyard Ultra – in this case my friend , and race director extraordinaire , Sean Sandiford – or the lunatics ( like me ) who pay out the cash moola to run a Backyard Ultra ? I ’ m still not sure . Perhaps all of us …
For the newbies out there , here ’ s a quick Backyard Ultra crash-course . It ’ s a 6.7km loop that you do over and over again , every hour on the hour , until you either quit , get disqualified ( take longer than an hour to finish a loop ), or you die . ( OK , that was a joke … to my knowledge , no-one has died at a Backyard Ultra yet .) The last runner standing ( running ) an completing a loop within the hour is the winner . Which , to cut a long story short , proves to you all that I am , in fact , insane …
So , off I head to Van Gaalens Cheese Farm for this year ’ s edition of Wannadoo Event ’ s Backyard Ultra , a beautiful setting for a crazy race and where I did my first ever trail . There I met my friends Nicky , Don and Taryn ( best seconder ever ), as well as a few friendly faces from my club , Pirates . We started at 9am and immediately I felt awful . The dust was insane , and nothing I did helped relieve my tight chest , and having initially hoped for at least 12 laps , I managed just eight and then called it a day . That said , it was nice and warm for all of my laps , and I was happy … especially when you hear what came next .
Carla and her Pirates clubmates before the start
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The cold drinks gave way to warmer drinks at night
Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr !
After my last lap , the temperature started dropping and it got really cold . Around 10pm , I took myself off to bed – I slept in my car , in a sleeping bag with a duvet on top , so I was super cosy . Oh , I need to mention that once I had finished running my 53.6km – not bad for a Saturday out - I transitioned from runner to seconder , and my new job became making sure that Nicky didn ’ t freeze to death , by making her coffee and warming up her blanket at the fire .
I woke up at about 4:30am , just before Nicky arrived back from her 4am loop , and it was a struggle to open my car door , as it was frozen . My camp chair was frozen , all my race food was frozen , and I was wearing a full tracksuit with a onesie on top of that , and I was still frozen . And when Nicky arrived back , she had ice on her eye lashes ! Somebody had a temperature gauge , which at one point read -9 and everything that wasn ’ t directly in front of the amazing fire they had going was frozen , even the bean bags .
I had the best time sitting in front of that fire , because I was so warm and toasty , and I think the final two runners still going , my good friend Nicky and my Pirates partner in crime Don , were quite bleak when they had to head out again to run and we all resumed our positions at the campfire , sharing stories , and as the sun came up , some lovely Prosecco . That hit my Italian roots perfectly !
What a Great Event
In the end , Nicky won the event , closely followed by , Don . It was an incredibly well organised and attended race , it had the vibe , it had the gees , it had the crazy race director ! It had it all . The best part about a Backyard Ultra is that the distance is all up to you , which means it ’ s fun for everyone , and if you are as prone to misadventures as I am , this format is a pretty safe bet . It ’ s the same 6.7km loop giving you minimal chance to get lost ! That said , I still managed to find some mud on my face – as usual – but this time it was from all that dust mixed with the sweat . Sorry if that a “ bit too much info ,” but I figured that we know each other pretty well by now …
Also , because you come back to the same point after each lap , it means spectators can support their runners , so many participants drag their families out for a running weekend . And when you finish running , there ’ s plenty of time for hanging out with old friends , and making new friends , which is exactly what trail running is all about !
PS : If you need any tips on keeping things from freezing and blankets warm , I am available for lessons !
About the Author
While Carla ’ s ‘ day job ’ is Head Tennis Coach and Director of Tennis at Game Set Match Tennis in Johannesburg , her second love is trail running , which she tackles with an unquenchable thirst for adventure , a never-saydie attitude , and a healthy sense of humour about all the misadventures that befall her on the trails !
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