Race Report: Narrabeen Allnighter Midnight Marathon 2018

Now that I've had a nap I can write this race report! 

A marathon sandwiched between two 40+ degree days was never going be cool and pleasant, but what a top event it was - Narrabeen Allnighter had such a great laid back vibe and that special camaraderie amongst the marathoners and ultrarunners was there in droves. 

My alarm was set for 12.30am(!) to allow for the hour and 20 drive to the northern beaches for rego at 2am and then a 3am start. 

We'd come here as a family the week prior so I knew roughly where I was going but I always allow some 'getting lost' time just in case. Arriving alone, I wandered around a little, trying with my crappy night vision to spot anyone I knew, particularly any RMAs or Summit Sisters, but couldn't see anyone familiar in the dark apart from the Up Coaching team who were focussed on the job at hand. Another girl who'd arrived solo introduced herself as Ali (Martinez, who I later found out was very speedy!) and we hung out together a bit at the start. 

Surprisingly I didn't have any nerves; just some vague thoughts about whether I would trip over in the dark. 

I had my awesome new Christmas pressie from Richard with me, my (as yet untested) Ay-up light, and this made a real difference to visibility and also helped with pushing through sleepiness. I was concerned about the 'nothing new on race day' thing, but the light was awesome. I had to work out a new way to put my hair up to fit it on my noggin but it was very comfortable and bright as anything!

After collecting my bib and some fantastic race swag (a packaway backpack, a towel and a waist pack plus my event shirt), we kicked off with a very calm and low key countdown from Ron, all 17 of us (thanks Steven for the start line pic). 

The night time start was wonderful, so calm and serene, and I was lucky enough to see a lovely little diamond python slowly crossing the path.  

The 12hour runners had already been grinding for six and a half hours at this point, and in total darkness I could just see names on race bibs and reflective flashes of shoes floating towards me out of the dark. The course is a 5.275km out and back loop along one part of Narrabeen Lagoon, and the marathon is made up of 8 laps, so seeing the same people pass many times contributed to a real 'we're all in this together' feeling. This is the usual friendly vibe in ultras of course,  but it seemed to be amplified here  because of the out and back course. 

The dark hours passed quietly and everyone seemed to get a little fresher as the dawn light began to illuminate the lagoon, with lots of smiles and encouragement exchanged. Everyone was in the hurt locker but still had time to nod and smile. Even Luca Turrini, (world 24hr treadmill record holder!) was smiling and encouraging the back of the packers like myself - although being an out and back track there was no real back of the pack - another great thing about this race!

Some tough 12hr runners were counting and singing to themselves to get through the remaining kilometres. I found my beautiful friend Sam Post after a few laps and we ran/walked together for a bit and had a chat - Sam ended up finishing with an epic 79+ km on the clock and an age group trophy and hugs from the RDs. :)

Somewhere in the middle of the race I was concerned my morton's neuroma was flaring up as my foot started to go numb, but I took some time to focus on for, walked a fair bit, and it seemed to resolve itself.

As the cicadas got louder and the daylight got stronger, the early morning walkers and cyclists started to come out and the laps became more of a mental challenge. It was getting hot. I needed a bit of distraction so I listened to Sparta Chicks and 10 Junk Miles podcasts for a little while. My Garmin was tracking a little differently to the official course measurements so at the 40km mark, when it was already 30+ degrees and humid I needed a boost to get me to the end. I posted in my local RMA Facebook group for the girls to help me get those last couple of km knocked over!

However, I rounded the corner near the start area and realised another half lap wouldn't be needed, I'd done my 8 laps and the official distance had been recorded as 42.2. It was an odd finishing moment, I ran over the mats, not quite sure whether to continue in order to satisfy my OCD and get to 42.2 on Strava... had I actually finished or not? I wandered towards aid tables not sure where the medals were, then I spotted Sam who'd finished up around the same time; I decided I was happy with stopping there and saw the lovely smiling RD Belinda for my medal.

I'm super happy that I stayed relaxed the whole way and my HR sat around  150 the whole time, which is great for me - as a cold-loving runner it normally gets very high in the heat. My car was already reading 42 degrees as I headed home after a quick breakfast, and then it reached 47 that afternoon - thank goodness this was a night time race!

I finished 4th female (out of not very many 🙂) in my event and I my feet feel surprisingly great.... after Western Sydney Marathon I had black toenails and could hardly walk all day so my newish Saucony peregrines which are a men's 10.5 (ugh) are clearly a perfect fit for my rather large tootsies.

Thanks Ron and Glen and all the vollies and especially the other runners that made Narrabeen Allnighter special - I'll be back for the big one next year!