The NorthFace 100

Yeah, done that one. At walking pace, though. Me and a mate walked down, then all around the old Kedumba farm, and cooled our feet in the creek and had some lunch. Along comes an Aussie soldier who has just come back from Afghanistan, who got sick of hanging out at home, and threw his massive backpack on and went for the walk from the other direction (over Mt Solitary). We had a good chat and he stayed the night on the old farm after we walked home. Anyway, it's a great walk that one. Steeeeeeep!

It's funny someone brought this up, as I was thinking about this event just the other day. I just got back from a week's hiking up in the Alps (I live in Munich). I remember at one point at the end of a fairly hard walk thinking about the North Face 100 and other ultra marathons and how much they must hurt.
I did the Three Peaks a few years back, and it happened to be the same weekend the North Face 100 was on. As I was walking along narrow neck back to the car I saw people go running past. Absolute nutters, most of them looked fresh as daisies and were going at a fair pace. Having done bits of the course, as well as having done a fair bit of walking in the Blue Mountains, I can only say that it must be very, very tough. Make sure you do plenty of long runs on trails so you get used to it, and also to condition your body to the amount of punishment it will take. It would definitely be worthwhile heading up to the actual course for some training. If nothing else it is absolutely beautiful up there.

Tough session in the mountains on Saturday. Givetts Leap and the track was closed which was worrying. I ended up just doing it anyway. Windy as hell but the track was surprisingly clear. I went from Govetts to Pulpit Rock, to Perry's Lookdown, then along the valley and back up to Govetts leap. about 17km's. im going to try and do two laps of this course in a few weeks. I cant believe that's not even half way! Wow, lots of training to come.

Scarfman, thanks for the advice on the coffee place. Much better coffee than the one I usually go to, but o you find the staff pretty rude? The lady who served me obviously hates tourists coming in.

Thanks Moses. Im based in Mosman but I work in Pymont and dont get out of work before 6-7pm ever really.

A mate did it around the 14 hour mark i believe. Also did a run from Palm Beach to Cronulla. Works out being about 118 kms for the childrens hospital and raised almost 10k. www.everydayhero.com.au/ruffdiamond

Thats impressive, thanks for the info mate.

100 kms in less than 24 hours!! That's crazyy!! The other day I tried running a 5k and I didn't even last. Props to those guys-

Thanks Moses,

I have pushed my entry back until 2013, preparation has been slower than i anticipated. Otherwise I would have been keen.

Would love to mate but I am doing the Port Stephens Olympic Triathlon that weekend already.

Just to throw a comment into the works, what is the appeal of doing these gruelling long distance events? Fun? Just something to achieve?

I ask this, because I'm a believer that marathons, epic triathlons, these kind of events aren't particularly good for you health wise. It's pretty unnatural to be running 20, 40, 100kms at a time. Not to mention the massive time investment that goes into training for such an event. And also by the sounds of it people come out of it feeling pretty damn sore and injured, albeit with a sense of accomplishment.

Hiking is another thing, it is consistent low-level activity that doesn't deplete the bodies energy stores or over oxidise the internal body. And is fun! And doesn't kill you!

I dunno, I just think exercise is more fun in short explosive bursts, and in a "playing" type context - playing rugby, soccer, sprinting, hiking, surfing. You only have to look at track sprinters (like Bolt) who is smiling and healthy looking and having fun and compare them to the guys running 10km (or marathon) track events at the olympics who look sick and in a world of pain.

Just my philosophy on exercise, take it or leave it I just don't understand the current marathon craze over the past 10 years - who knows there might be a link there somewhere with running marathons and a chronic injury epidemic.

Same with cycling, I much prefer hitting some nice downhill and fire road trails in the bush on my mountain bike, where there is a sense of discovery, nature and adventure, than clocking kilometre after kilometre on a road bike, confined by the same parameters as a car.

I do both, but prefer road bikes. As nice as it is riding on a fire trail in the middle of nowhere, a mountain bike just feels clunky and heavy. A road bike on the other hand is light and responsive. The social aspect is also great.

Reddy, cycling ticks two boxes for me: it gets me to work three days a week without being in peak hour traffic and gets me fit at the same time. The feel of a good road bike is fantastic when everything is running smoothly.

For me it's also the mental health benefits of being out there on the bike by myself. If I've had a shit day at work or something else like it, a ride on the bike almost always clears my mind. I also get to ride along the Swan river most of the time and get a view like this (such as the one I had early on Saturday morning).

Yeah that's pretty great Hornet, I think riding for commuting is great and I don't really consider it as part of any exercise regimen, it is how we SHOULD be commuting and living our life.

I spent 4 months living in Sweden last year and cycling isn't really considered exercise, it's definitely a mode of transport that everyone participates in. I guess above I was more referring to the droves of cyclists on weekends who have no other motive to their cycle, apart from riding as long as they can and having a coffee at the end of it. It's not hurting any body and it's sure better than sitting on a coach, just not my idea of fun exercise (unless this cycle was in a truly beautiful place).

What's Perth like terrain-wise? I find Brisbane is a sonuvabitch riding around sometimes with lots of hills, especially riding across town.

If you get the chance you should read Chris McDougall's book on ultramarathon running, 'Born to Run'. A great read about this sort of thing. Tries to get across the idea that it should be fun and natural for people to run long distances.

Riding in Perth is a dream compared to a lot of other places. Nowhere near as hilly as Brisbane and the cycle paths are mostly a joy to ride on. I tend to try and ride as quick as I can to get the maximum fitness benefit out of it. It's clearly working, as I've dropped about 9kg's in the couple of years I've been doing it. The ride I do on the weekend, whilst not hundreds of km's, is pure pleasure for me. I turn the bike computer off and ride for the sheer fun of it.