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Been a bit slack with the Trailwalker updates
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I’ve been a bit slack of late with my Trailwalker training updates and associated. To remedy this I’m combining three posts; the last two training walks and a walk around Wellington (NZ).
Training Walk #3 – Jells Park to CP1 (1 Feb 09)
We assembled at Jells Park, the starting point for the actual Trailwalk, at about 8am. As has been the pattern of late, we were short a few team members. We started with five and Brett (out with a hamstring injury from the week before) was meeting us at CP1 (Churchill National Park). It was a mild start after a week of three 43C days in a row, with the cloud cover keeping the heat of the sun down.
The walk there was somewhat uneventful. This first leg of the walk follows Dandenong Creek crossing under a few major roads and Eastlink heading in a SE direction before hooking up through Police Paddocks and into Churchill National Park. However closing on Police Paddocks we were told by another group of walkers that the park was closed due to fires. Sure enough when we reached there we had to skirt around one bit of charred bush and the main gate into Churchill was closed with firemen still putting out the remains. We setup a brief lunch spot on an unburnt patch of ground and had a break.
After lunch the sun came out and it got hot very quickly. Where it had been in the low 20’s before, it now quickly rose to 32+. We upped the pace heading out and I think we pushed it a bit too hard. With about 8klms to go, we were all feeling it. My left knee was in agony and the others were happy for frequent breaks. By the time we’d got back to Jells Park, two of us were in considerable pain with knee problems, and another was stuggling with incorrect footwear (this was his first training walk). It was a good opportunity to see how the team worked through these challenges and how we’ll go when we hit an injury on the actual walk.
On the equipment front, I was trying a new Denali activeware top that wicks away the sweat and keeps you cool. It worked brilliantly in the heat. And it didn’t bunch-up under the backpack as the cotton t-shirts do which is a real plus. So far I’m having a good run with the shoes, “magic” socks, shorts, backpack and top. No equipment malfunctions and all seems fit for purpose. Pity about the cost.
