Adventure Magazine

NZ Hunter Adventures Mountain Clothing Partner
“If you go through life afraid of failure you’ll
never attempt anything”
amongst drop bags in her
impressive victory of the 2019
Tarawera Miler!
9.15am: Not long after Buried
Village I entered the Tarawera
forest trail and encountered
my first major blunder.
Unfortunately I severely
underestimated the steepness
and technicality of this section
and quickly found both my pace
dropping back significantly.
12.28pm: I arrive at Lake
Rotomahana, the first of two
boat crossings and a welcoming
reprieve for my poor feet which
were starting to suffer the
effects of the 8.5 hours already
surpassed.
2.20pm: The heat is stifling and
I’m now a sweaty, blistery mess
as I stagger into Rerewhakaaitu
nearly 1.5 hours later than
planned but importantly, still
ahead of the 4pm cut off. It’s
a huge relief to see my crew
and an even greater relief to
plunge my feet into the ice cold
foot bath they had thoughtfully
prepared. My spare pair of
socks and shoes also get the
call up.
2.45pm: It’s a brief 7km to the
next station. Five minutes into
this leg however I am instantly
regretting the lack of cushioning
in the new shoes. My infarction
begins to rear its ugly head,
haunting me with each step...
4.00pm: I’m back into my
faithful Hoka’s and bid farewell
to my crew - the last time I
would see them until Outlet, the
third checkpoint on course and
a mere 43km away! Thankfully
my foot has calmed down and I
now have a new buddy to keep
me company. Introducing Paora
Raharara aka Gumboot man.
A former Black Power member
who turned his back on a life
of crime four years ago and
decided to run the entire race in
GUMBOOTS for a kids charity.
Wild!
After more than 12 hours on the
trails, the banter with this good
bugger was just the remedy I
needed. My body surges back
to life and we crack forward with
a newfound vengeance.
8.30pm: The sun is well and
truly on its way out. By my
calculations we are less than
2km away from Puhipuhi station
and what would ultimately
signal the halfway mark! The
wide forest trails bring with them
a steady gradient, reducing
my legs to jelly. I calculate how
many hours I probably have
left— and immediately wish I
hadn’t. I know that as bad as
things feel now, they will feel
worse later, especially after
dark.
9.00pm: After what felt like
a lifetime, we finally rounded
the corner and crawled in to
28//WHERE ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS/#225
Puhipuhi. I sunk into the nearest
chair whilst the volunteers
spring into action, refilling our
flasks, taping limbs and even
giving Paora and I a brief
shoulder massage!
9.15pm: We are back on the
trail with just 21km until we
reach the Outlet. It is pitch dark
by now but the heat from earlier
in the day has cooled and the
body is feeling good again.
11.30pm: Running a 100
miler race is like living all the
emotions of a lifetime in one
day. One minute you're on top
of the world. The next minute
you’re at rock bottom. Not long
after we passed Titoki - morale
high and just 6km from Outlet,
my foot once again started
to come apart. I hobbled on
hoping desperately the storm
would pass but at some point
around midnight, I realised that
things were most definitely
no longer alright. I was now
clocking 30 minute kilometres
and limping badly. Deep down
I knew that even if I kept going,
the clock would catch up to me,
and I would be cut from the
race anyway. I urged Paora to
go on. One of us had to make
it to that darn finish line and my
chances were looking slim.
1.15am: Sadly, after 21 hours
and 103km on the trail I was
forced to call it a day.
As gutted as I was to DNF, I
have learned over the years
that failure is just as much a
part of the game. If you go
through life afraid of failure
you’ll never attempt anything!
Paora crossed the finish line in
35:39:39, just inside the event
cut-off of 36 hours. It was an
emotional moment for both of
us and I will forever be grateful
of this legend’s company
throughout the last 10 hours of
my race.
This experience will be etched
in my mind forever. It taught
me the limits of my body and
reinforced the power of the
mind. The equation is relatively
simple: find something that
challenges you and go there!
It makes life a meaningful and
wild experience. For you it may
not be an ultramarathon - and
that’s ok. Whatever option you
choose, a life highlight awaits!
To donate to Lifeline visit:
https://lifeline-aotearoa.
grassrootz.com/fundraise-forlifeline/race-for-life
Race for Life proudly
supported by:
•Seaview (2018) Limited
•Kiwi Double Glazing Tauranga
•FuelMe.co.nz
•Peak Performance Massage
•Nothing Naughty
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