Hi guys, I’m Annabelle Carey a 19-year-old starting out in the endurance/multisport world. I was lucky enough to be put in contact with coach Rich at the beginning of this year to help me on my journey. Thanks to COVID it has been an interesting year competition wise. But I finally entered the Blackall 50 and set my eyes on training for my first ultramarathon in mid-October (now the race is this weekend!!)

At about 8 weeks out from racing I was sitting down with Tracey Tucker a good friend and founder of a Brisbane based charity, Pushing Barriers which help refugee youth be included in club sport. I have volunteered with the charity since the beginning of 2020 and have seen firsthand the impact that sports can have in the lives of these children. It was during this conversation that we spoke about the difficulties they have had raising funds due to COVID 19 and the impact it had on them being able to continue running the program. It was at this point I suggested that I could do Blackall as a charity run, it would be the perfect opportunity to raise awareness and funds.

Running 50k on your own, out on the trails is no easy feat it is both mentally and physically demanding, but it is the ultra-running community that surrounds you that makes you feel apart of something greater and pushes you to keep going. These youth have been through so much in their lives often all alone and have constantly continued to push on. It is for this reason that involving them in club sport is so much more than just being active. It provides them with a community where they are considered an equal, and an opportunity for them to be free and express their emotions.

A little more about Pushing Barriers (PB) and what exactly they provide…
Pushing Barriers is a Brisbane based non for profit organisation with the primary objective being to improve the lives and welfare of refugee youth by providing them with opportunities to be included and welcomed into Australian culture through club sport. These youth do not have families with the capacity to support them to play sport therefore PB assists with club registrations and fees as well transporting them to and from training and games.  These volunteer drivers become role models to these young people.
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For further information about Pushing Barriers watch this short video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rf7tHjlV5Ak or check out their website here http://www.pushingbarriers.org/about-us.html you can also find them on Facebook and Instagram @Pushing Barriers.

It would be devastating to think that as a result of COVID 19 many of these refugees would be unable to play sport next year considering the huge impact it is having on their lives, helping them to feel connected in their new country. So, if you can contribute a small amount towards a great cause it would be much appreciated. Let’s make a difference together and help assist refugee youth be included in Australian club sport for many years to come. And who knows we may just see them out on the trails, in the pool or on the road riding beside us in the future.
 
Thanks again, happy training and racing!
Annie

The T-Zero camp in Bright – as an outsider coming in, it was not just a camp but a awesome week of learning, training and making new friends.
 
Why did I sign up for a Triathlon camp as a complete outsider to a T-Zero camp?
 
The motto I have lived by for a while is -“just say yes”.   Complimentary to my nature of being a serial experimenter with training, this ethos has launched me into some quite amazing adventures and often had me receiving race and event confirmations seemingly minutes after just saying “yes”. 
 
So, when I became aware of a week long training camp in Bright, a beautiful town in Alpine Victoria, and a central location to amazing bike rides and training opportunities – well, it was a no brainer, and before I knew it I had signed up.
 
I have spent more than a few years on the triathlon scene and its fair to say I know quite a few people in the triathlon world and in Queensland particularly. I am pretty familiar with the major coaching groups and a lot of the coaches. 
 
But T-Zero?  This coaching group was an enigma to me.  When I signed up to camp, my sum knowledge of T-Zero was that they were based on the Sunny Coast, did individual, online coaching and had seriously cool kit.  That was pretty much it. 
 
Having attended quite a few training camps over the years, I psyched myself up for a challenging week of physical training in beautiful Bright.  More importantly, I mentally prepared myself to embrace the usual training camp scene of athletes jostling for attention, variable coaching levels and training turning into athletes racing each other…. all of the unknown plus the fact that I was a T-Zero outsider.  I expected it to be challenging.  
 
So what completely surprised me about the T-Zero camp was that it was unlike any camp I had ever been on.  On day one, our coaches, Rich and Scotty, set the scene for camp week and a request to leave our egos at the door.  And what followed was quite simply one of the most enjoyable weeks of training I have ever experienced  -with a group of seriously awesome individuals.  I met athletes from all over Australia who had varied goals including endurance bike rides, ocean swims, triathlons, ultraruns and swim runs – athletes training for their own goals and coaches who were just as excited about these goals with as the athletes themselves.
 
The camp base, T-Zero headquarters, was a brilliant concept. Athletes were welcome at the coaches’ residence at any reasonable hour to chat with coaches, other athletes and relax whilst using the Normatecs. In addition to team dinners, we chilled here during education sessions including nutrition, goal setting, teamwork and an invaluable sports psychology session by legendary Grant Giles.  We are all now familiar with the “I am the sky, that is just a cloud” theory thanks Grant.  Now to put it into action!
 
The cycling opportunities were the obvious lure to Bright.  Some serious km were covered with plenty of opportunity to enjoy the scenery and chat with other athletes. As far as the individual sessions went, my favourite was Mt Hotham - mainly because it felt kind of epic cycling up there above the tree line for as long as we did and having a few challenging, but achievable gradients, at the end. For a group ride, I loved Falls Creek rolling along with banter all the way.  And just to top it off, having the opportunity to have another crack at Mt Buffalo at the end of a long week and long ride was pretty cool too - a bit of freedom to test some limits outside of a normally structured training week.
 
There were run sessions both in Bright and at altitude, swim sessions in nearby Myrtleford and open water swims in alpine lakes. The strength session and yoga at the Bright Fitness centre were an added bonus too and we connected with our inner zen.
 
Falls Creek training day was super inspiring with our awesome guest coach Annabel Luxford leading a run and swim at altitude – I don’t think we noticed the lack of oxygen as we chatted with her, listened to her training tips and enjoyed the scenery.
 
The local coffee haunts, restaurants and ice cream shops took a bashing by the team and the calorie consumption would have astounded any member of the general public.   Myself?  Well, I left a fairly decent mark on the Lindt chocolate stocks in town!
 
A lot was achieved overall in one small week –  swim, bike, run, education, socialising and great conversation. 
 
But, more than anything on camp, the one thing that absolutely stood out was the T-Zero culture. Everyone was treated equally and that everyone’s goals were considered equally important. That leave your ego at the door comment coming to fruition. That success on a session was more about turning up and giving your best rather than being compared to anyone else on camp.  And that everyone was there supporting each other to get the sessions done. Lots of teamwork in such an individual sport. 
 
So did my “just say yes” ethos serve me well?  It is completely obvious that it did – not only do I now know a whole new bunch of amazing people but T-Zero is no longer the enigma it once was. Thanks for an amazing week!

Heidi Sowerby

Having competed in the sport of triathlon for well over a decade now, I like to think of myself as a relatively seasoned triathlete. Despite this, I regularly suffer from the most debilitating race day nerves, induced, I’m certain, by my tendency to over-analyse almost every aspect of my life.

According to the experts, pre-race anxiety is a completely normal occurrence and, if managed correctly, can help you race faster by getting that adrenaline flowing. But there’s a fine line between pre-race butterflies and being hunched over in transition, heaving with your head between your legs (aka me, Noosa Triathlon circa 2012, 2013, 2015 et. al.). Yes, controlled nerves can be good, but the kind that completely sap all energy from your body? Not so much.

The following tips for tackling race day nerves have been tried, tested and suggested by some of the best in the business.

If you find yourself suffering from unhealthy pre-race nerves, try putting some of these tips into practice – they might just be your ticket to a more relaxed race day.
 
1. Be honest with yourself and trust in the training
Nothing makes me more nervous than greeting the start line knowing I have not put 100% into my training. Conversely, nothing makes me calmer than greeting the start line knowing I’ve prepared to the best of my ability.

Remember those days you ran in the rain, swam in the dark and opted out of a very enticing sleep-in? Now is their time to shine!

Trust in the training you’ve done, set realistic race expectations and be confident that your T:Zero Multisport coach has prepared you as best they can. Having trust in your coach and knowing within yourself you’ve given it everything can go a long way to calming that nervous beast within.
Know your plan, be unwaveringly confident in your preparation and stick to it.

2. Visualisation
Visualise yourself going through the motions – from race morning preparations all the way through transition set-up, swim start, bike, run and my personal favourite - the finishing chute!
Not just handy to employ on race day itself, visualisation is great to practice regularly in training before race day rolls around. Every training session is an opportunity to visualise - race morning, race start, transitions and crossing that finish line.

When race day dawns, having that familiarity and focus will make it feel (almost) like just another training day. 

3. Get organised
Depending on the location and type of race, arriving a day or so beforehand for smaller, local events or more if we’re talking long-distance, provides a good opportunity to settle in and familiarise yourself with the local area, race HQ and the course itself.  

If you can, take the opportunity to do some race course reconnaissance – ride (part of) or drive the bike course, jog part of the run course and do some easy swim course laps in the day(s) leading up to your race. Alternatively, if you live close by, make sure you train part (or all) of the course regularly.

Familarise yourself with the race day schedule, transition opening/closing times and any specific race requirements to alleviate unnecessary stress, so you can save that energy for the race itself!  

Also, think about booking your accommodation early - perhaps close to the start line (but not too close) and take into consideration the location of any support requirements you might need such as bike mechanics and masseuses etc.

4. Meditate … or just breathe!
For a sure-fire way to destress, there’s nothing better than a solid meditation session. But if the thought of finding your zen in a sea of nervous pre-race chatter seems impossible, employing a simple breathing technique might just do the trick.

Try “3,4,5”. Breathe in for 3 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, breathe out for 5 seconds and repeat (I know you just did it, but do it again for good measure).  

This little technique has been instrumental in calming my nerves and lowering my heart rate during periods of peak anxiety, and best of all it’s so easy to remember. If this one doesn’t float your boat, there are plenty of other breathing techniques around. Find the one that suits you best and … breathe.

5. Listen to Music
Listening to music can provide a wonderful and easy distraction to stop you getting too worked up by what’s going on around you – particularly during transition set up.

Music can help to relax you and headphones provide a great buffer to drown out the nervous chatter of other athletes and act as a deterrent for unnecessary interruptions.

Keep your music light and fun. I like to listen to the same music I’ve trained with over the months leading up to race day, making sure a couple of key favourites that really lift me up are on high rotation.

6. Use Mantras
Effective mantras address what you want to feel as opposed to the adversity you are trying to overcome. When you feel as though doubts and distractions are getting the better of you, a mantra can help to keep you calm and focussed on the task at hand.

Numerous studies have shown that positive self-talk leads to overall increased performance and an increase in athlete self-confidence. Mantras are great at directing your mind away from negative thoughts and towards more positive ones that can help you transcend the pain or anxiety you are (inevitably) experiencing.
Choose a mantra that’s short, positive, instructive, and full of action words. For example, “Strong, Light, Smooth” was my mantra for Ironman marathons.

Test your mantra during training to find one that works for you.

7. Pre-Race Rituals
Developing a pre-race ritual is a great way to help you bring a sense of normalcy, familiarity and comfort to race morning. As with visualisation (refer Tip #2), the best time to create and polish your pre-race ritual is during training.  

Your ritual can be anything from eating the same meal the day before and on race morning, (the classic) flat lay of race gear on your bed before packing it up or the order in which you go through the motions on race morning - body marking, transition set up, stretching and so on. Your ritual can be whatever you want, as long as you find it effective, calming and meaningful.  

8. Remember your ‘Why’
When all else fails? Make sure to remember your ‘Why’. As cliché as it sounds, at the end of the day, we love this sport and we do this sport because it’s FUN.  

Training, racing, logistics and irrational fears aside – what’s the one thing that lights the fire within, for you?
Take some time to stop and reflect on your journey, your progress and your ‘Why’.
 
As always, there’s rarely a ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution and what works for one athlete may be completely useless to another. So please, take the above suggestions with a grain of salt.

Try testing some of these techniques during training and on your ‘B’ and ‘C’ races to find what works for you. Come race day, you’ll be sufficiently equipped to transform those pre-race nerves into excitement and measured anticipation.  

What are your own tips and tricks for dealing with pre-race nerves? Let us know in the comments below! 

​I don’t even know where to begin, it was huge, it was amazing, I have been on a high for days!  I can’t believe that I felt on top of the world all day?  Thanks to my brilliant coach Richard, my wonderful husband Viv and our gorgeous kids, I ran 100 km and can truly say I enjoyed every minute.  I wasn’t racing, I didn’t look at my garmin for pace or heart rate, I enjoyed stopping and having something to eat at the check points (CP’s), I appreciated the views and stunning scenery.  I ran when I wanted to and walked when I wanted to, it didn’t matter.  I felt oddly relaxed from the moment I crossed the start line.  I didn’t know how to run 100km, but I believed that I could so I just ran by feel?

I hadn’t slept well during the night, I was nervously excited and couldn’t wait to get out there.  We haven’t been to the Blue Mountains before and had done only a few short walks to Echo point, Three Sisters and explored the Scenic World boardwalk and rides the previous days.  The views and weather had been picture perfect.
I made myself eat a bowl of porridge as I dressed in warm layers.  My eldest daughter had already braided my hair back the night before ready for the head lamp I would wear later today.  My running pack was ready with the mandatory gear and I had premade my litre of lolly water that I had decided to carry.  That had been a light bulb moment of realisation that I only needed the capacity to carry 2 litres of fluid. 
Our accommodation was in a great position close to a UTA bus stop and the travel to the start line was hassle free.  The wait to my start group time in zone 3 seemed to take an eternity!  I ate a banana, had numerous toilet visits and at the last moment stripped down to my shorts & T, armwarmers and gloves.
I have been so excited about doing the UTA 100 since Richard and I stalked the internet in February and managed to get a start position in the sold out event.  Since then it has been a huge trail running learning curve for me.
Heal to toe shoe drop, what’s that?  Is it important?  Trail shoes/road shoes…….difference?
Poles, are they useful?  How do you use them?  Is there a pole etiquette?
Running back pack/vest….fit, size, volume?
Running in the dark……Head torch? How many lumens?
I have run through countless spider webs, been covered in leeches, seen snakes, wild pigs and cassowary’s in training, had some spectacular falls, become entangled in metres of “wait-a-while” and gotten myself slightly lost on numerous occasions.
Finally my wave at the UTA 100 started at 6.56am.
People set off very fast but I had already decided to jog out as it went straight into uphill anyway.  I made my way around the first 5-6km without accidently ending up on the 50km route, gave Viv a big happy smooch and headed down into the trails.

It went down, down, down and was particularly rough through the land slide section.  I remember hoping we didn’t have to navigate anything like this at night as I clambered over rocks and logs, wishing my legs were a bit longer.  The trail was narrow and I happily trotted along in the queue of people not fussing about pace.  The Golden Stairs didn’t trouble me at all.  My legs were fresh and the day still felt relatively cool to me having trained in Cairns.  I was surprised to find myself already at CP1.
 
My plan was to stop at every CP and have a good drink of water and something to eat.
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CP1: watermelon

By this section I had realised there was no chance I was going to get lost today!  There was pink flagging tape everywhere and prominent crosses on incorrect routes at each junction.

I took in the gorgeous views and chatted to people around me.  Before long we came to the Tarros ladders.  There was no queue because they were directing everyone via Duncan’s Pass.  There was a lady stuck on the ladder and the volunteers weren’t sure how long it would take to get her down?  Duncan’s Pass is a very interesting detour!  I was very happy that I still had my gloves on as I used the thick knotted ropes to help me almost abseil down the trail.  It is supposed to be only 300m longer than going down the ladders but I’m guessing it takes a lot longer as coming into CP2 I overtook a lot of the same people I had been in front of before the ladders?

CP2: Bakery bun and banana

I enjoyed the climb up Ironpot mountain, it was very similar to a lot of the trails I had done at home and Ironpot ridge was worth the climb.  On pre-reading the somewhat complicated written directions I had wondered why they sent you on this narrow, exposed out and back section?  It’s simple, the experience is magical.  I rock hopped over granite ledges feeling like I was on top of the world with the most spectacular backdrop and aboriginal music beats.  It wasn’t the first time that I wished I ‘d brought my son’s go-pro to capture the moving moments and I locked the experience away in my memory.
Then it was time to go down again, I randomly thought as I precariously slipped and slid down the mountain that I wouldn’t be to bad at this trail running if only I could run downhill!

The last part of this section had a lot of runnable terrain and I jogged along easily, mentally registering the distance sign meant that I had run a marathon so CP3 must be getting closer.

A few hundred metres out of CP3 we were stopped for our mandatory gear check.  The phone was easy but my thermals were stuffed deep in the back pocket so I had to take my pack off and ran into CP3 with it only half on.
This was the first checkpoint where crew was allowed and it was so nice to see the kids and my hubby.  The kids had been acting as spotters and had seen me up at the gear check then ran down with me.  There were lots of people and music playing.  Here I refilled my lolly water and collected my poles.
As I didn’t know the course at all and it was too long to remember, I had asked Viv to bring the elevation map to the CP’s so I could see what was coming up.  I had decided to run the course CP to CP so it didn’t become too overwhelming.
CP3: It was around midday so I had lunch.
Vegemite sandwich and mandarin

This section is mostly uphill so I had my poles out from the start.  I ran and hiked, ran and hiked up Nellies Glen which then became the Six Foot track stairs.  More Stairs!  I like going uphill and I love using my poles.  I don’t think I always run as fast with them but they conserve my leg energy.  It didn’t actually take long to get to CP4.  My right ITB was tightening slightly but it had just climbed up a lot of elevation and odd stairs.
I had planned to put on warmer clothes and even completely change at CP4 but it was only 2pm so we decided to reassess at CP5.
CP4: Dark chocolate sesame snaps

 I enjoyed this part of the run as it passed through several of the places we had visited in the previous days.  It was only mid-afternoon so lots of people were out on the tracks but everyone yelled out “runner coming” to alert people and it was very easy to pass through.  Leura forest was a beautiful section, I thought I might use my poles again up Leura Cascades but managed the stairs fine without them.  Up and down, Up and down.  I loved hearing the bells from the volunteers as we reached the top of a climb.  I had a drink of water at Fairmont Resort and started munching on little pieces of my Clif bar as I set off towards Wentworth falls.  Here I enjoyed the stepping stones across the falls and watched the sun start to slowly descend in the sky.  It was 5pm and I was hoping to get to CP5 before I needed a head torch.

As soon as I hit the bitumen I picked up my pace, cars were tooting and people cheering as they drove to and from CP5.  I arrived just as darkness engulfed the CP and my hands started to get cold.
At CP5 we refilled my lolly water for the last time.  On went the fleece, gloves, hand warmers, head buff, head lamp and high visibility vest.  I was starting to get a bit tired but was still feeling great.

Viv moved me on out of CP5 before I could get too comfortable.  I jogged down from the hospital for many kilometres to Jamieson creek before the uphill started again.  There wasn’t a lot of people on this section with me but my headlamp gave me a comforting circle of light and the reflective flagging tape was easily visible.  I felt strangely at home in the dark.  Richard had made me do so many hours of hill repeats in the dark that I’m sure he could hear me cursing him from Cairns but apparently there was method to the madness 😊
I had a drink at the 90km Aid Station and knew I was now on the last climb.  What I wasn’t prepared for was the amount of people vomiting on the way up.  I stopped several times to see if I could help but soon learnt to leave them be.
As I entered Leura forest I started passing 50km people and seeing 100km people going in the opposite direction.  I heard one person say to his friend that they must do a U-turn soon.  I didn’t want to tell them it was a 30km U-turn!
I saw a sign that said 3km to go, then 2km to go, then I was at the bottom of Furber steps.  Apparently there is 951 of these haphazard long steps, wide steps, short steps, inconsistent steps, laddered steps to get to the finish line.  I knew from my Trinity beach stair training that it took me approximately 20 minutes to climb 1000 normal stairs.  My garmin said I had been out on the track for around 13 and a half hours.  Wow, I could get a silver buckle here but it was going to be close!
 
 
Ok, head lets love these stairs and the legs will follow, I’m sure that’s what one of the pro’s said on the panel on Friday night.  I didn’t really know where the top was but suddenly I was on the board walk and there was my crazy crew cheering me to break the 14 hour mark.  It was so exciting I forgot to turn my head torch off for the finishing photo.  We all ran down the final stretch and under the UTA banner.  Someone announced my name, I did a final gear check (rain coat & bandage I think?) and I was given my silver buckle.
I was so excited, I couldn’t stop jumping up and down.  I had just run 100km!  One Hundred  kilometres, that is awesome!.