So I guess certifiable madness would be returning for more punishment a year later. then again, one man's pleasure is another man's pain.
Twelve months down the track, and with considerably more miles in the legs, I headed to Te Anau determined not to be second lady home. Such was my 'enjoyment' from the previous year, I'd managed to convince half a dozen simple minded Northerners to come down for the trip. Returning from the 2003 event armed with postcard pictures and a sensational video, I tampered with their better judgment convincing them it was no harder than running a marathon and that the vista was to die for. What better way to spend a Saturday morning than to bask in some of Fiordland's best scenery and challenge the body to the fullest.
Four hundred other Keplerites agreed with me. However, the weather gods threatened to spoil our party with heavy rain and snow during the previous three weeks. It rains a lot in Fiordland, believe it or not, even more than in Auckland . All this heavy rain had turned sections of the track into a quagmire, especially the most stunning section of the loop, the 20km's along the alpine ridge. This spelt bad news and an alternative route was announced at race briefing the night before. DOC officers commented that it was the worst state the track had been in during the 17 years of the Kepler.
The route they gave us would still be a full 60km. Starting at the Control Gates we'd take in the 900m climb to Luxmore Hut and then blast straight back down to the Control Gates. This is the same course as the Luxmore Grunt. For the second half we'd run down beside the Waiau River to Rainbow Reach and on to Motorau Hut, where the turn around was located, then retrace our steps back to the finish line.
Commonwealth Games marathon representative Phil Costley was on the start line this year. With a marathon PB of 2:13 and holder of well over 20 national titles he was naturally a standout favorite. Challenging him would be Martin Lukes of Christchurch , twice 2nd behind Keith Murray and posting a PB of 4:50. 1999 and 2001 winner Colin Rolfe was back again as was 2nd place from 2002 Mark Bright of Waiheke Island . The sharp end of the field was looking more competitive than ever so repeating my third place from last year looked like a tough ask.
In the women's event the race was left open with the absence of Zelah Morrell, race record holder and winner in 2002 and 2003. Sally Anderson was returning to have another crack and would be challenged by her sister, and Cheryl Young of Christchurch .
6am and we were off. The dim light at this hour and the thick native bush make the opening stanza to Brod Bay a surreal and eerie experience as the enormity of the task at hand suddenly dawns on you. Costley was out of sight within a matter of minutes and if it wasn't for the out and back nature of the course I wouldn't have seen him again until prize giving the next day. Martin Lukes was in no mood to be sociable either and did his best to keep the flying Costley in check. A small group eyeing the minor placings formed behind them. Wellington 's Andrew Young, 2nd to Costley at this year's Abel Tasman Classic, and Chritschurch's Chris Forne joined Rolfe and Bright to round out the top six.
Once you arrive at Brod Bay on the shores of Lake Te Anau and begin the ascent to Luxmore Hut there is no respite. The climb is about 8km's long and the muddy track made the going even tougher. I was ruing the decision to leave my IceBugs at home and was fortunate not to be in 100th, 200th or 300th spot. It would have been like a hydro slide by then.
Costley and Lukes didn't seem to notice the Luxmore hill though and were off on a record setting flying start. Costley making the turn at Luxmore in 1:07. Behind Lukes came Young running fantastically in his first Kepler and the front three stormed along the snow capped ridge line. Mark Bright was keeping the leaders in check and was holding off Chris Forne and Rolfe behind him.
By Luxmore, Sally Anderson had established a solid lead in the women's race which she would not relinquish. She was well inside the top 30 overall and was looking strong as I saw a familiar look in the eyes of the male competitors left in her wake.
The descent was treacherous and I decided caution would have to be exercised. Aside from negotiating the snow covered sections of board walk and skating rink of a track there was also the matter of 400 oncoming runners to contend with. Runners going up would give way to runners coming down and everyone was extremely courteous. A couple of near head-on collisions kept it interesting but I was thankful to see the bottom and get back in to some flat running again. Chris Forne seemed to develop wings on the descent and ran himself from 6th up to 3rd bringing his orienteering skills to the fore. At the base of the climb I'd slipped to 8th spot as Chris Pfahlert of Christchurch ran past me like an express train.
Such was the infernal pace Phil Costley was setting, his time when he returned to the Control Gates for the opening 27km would have placed him first in the Luxmore Grunt and been within seconds of the Grunt record! He'd established a lead of 6 minutes over Lukes and Andrew Young had regained his third spot.
The next 30 odd kilometers of running were predominantly flat with small undulations to remind the quads of just how hard you'd pushed it on the down hill. The track winds itself along beside the Waiau River and gradually drops to the edge of Lake Manapouri where we would turn at Motorau Hut. I knew from last year that the trip home from Motorau could seem eternal and a lot of time could be made up or lost there. At the turn the places had remained unchanged and Costley had taken an unwavering grip of the race. Similarly Lukes had almost a 15 minute lead on third place and was running superbly.
Having run conservatively for the first 45km it was time to start the hurt. At Motorau I was in 6th place and my 2nd place in the women's race last year was starting to look good. Because the track is so windy and the bush is so thick it's heard to tell how far ahead - or behind - a runner might be. I knew though from a split I'd taken at the turn that 5th place was about 2 minutes ahead and as we came to the Rainbow Reach drink station I spied Chris taking some refreshments. I didn't stop for pleasantries and just grabbed the coke my valued supporter had brought for me. I could feel the caffeine and sugar filter through to the engine room as I asked it to find another gear.
Next runner ahead was Colin Rolfe and a break in the track as we cut through one of the snakes in the Waiau allowed me a glimpse. He was looking tired and his style was labored which gave me the incentive to dig a little deeper. As I passed him he said Andrew was just over a minute ahead. I was now in 4th place and running as fast as I could. Passing the drink station with 2.4km to go there was still no sight of Andrew and a certain sense of foreboding came over me. I pressed on nevertheless and with about 1500m to go I saw Andrew's white shirt ahead. I cruelly passed him nearly within sight of the finish line after he'd been in third for nearly all of the 60km.
By the time I'd finished Costley had been chatting to officials and supporters for 28 minutes. His time of 4:10 was truly stellar and Russell Hurring's record of 4:41 for the correct course would have to have been in threat. In his winners speech he said he'd be back next year to have another attempt at the mighty Kepler. If the conditions are favorable we might just see the 11 year old record broken.
Martin Lukes finished 2nd for the third time coming in only 9 minutes back. He should take some solace from being beaten by such running luminaries as Keith Murray and Phil Costley. Double winner Colin Rolfe came in 5th and won the vets section from Mark Bright who finished 8th overall but who's final preparation was hampered by a dislocated rib.
Sally Anderson was a clear winner in the women's race, improving on her 4th place from last year and moving up from 45th overall to 23rd overall. Cheryl Young finished second, 23 minutes back, and Sarah McKinney of Dunedin just nudged out Anderson 's twin sister, Helen, for third.
The Kepler is not just a race for the elite runner. For most it's the challenge of reaching the finish line and enjoying the big day out. One chap I'm coaching came through in just under 7 hours and 159th place - a very creditable performance. I quickly thought to myself that's nearly half as long again as it took me and then pondered the idea of me running 90km's. I quickly suppressed that as insanity and all of a sudden had further respect for people finishing long after I'd had an afternoon nap.
The Kepler Challenge - you're mad if you don't!
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