Today was a beautiful day, the sun was shining by the time we were preparing lunch and getting ready to go ...
... this curious sight caught our eye as we were about to depart from Daly Waters ...
... along with this plaque, signed by some of the greats.
Our girls team operated out of the camper van today, and we ran the first section out of Daly Waters ...
... we are still finding our feet, seeing how much we can do together as a team, so we bumped it up 5km each from yesterday. Let's see how we go ...
Irina set off first and we pulled into the service station to wait for her ...
... this was a truck stop as well and we felt the dryness of the Northern Territory as the dust was blown into us as the trucks went past ...
Today our bodies were coping a little better with the heat and you were able to focus more outward than inward and started to embrace the beauty and uniqueness of the Northern Territory ...
We had a nice head wind today. For a runner this usually isn't something you enjoy, but with the clear blue sky and temperature rising with each leg that we did, you started to appreciate the cool breeze pushing you back slightly ...
The sun seemed to have pulled all the moisture out of the land up here.
The hard clay on the side of the road, felt more like concrete than something a tree would be planted in ...
... and 'grass' was more like matchsticks as you ran through it.
We had two unexpected but welcome Peace Runners today – Thilo and Eleanor from the Gold Coast. They saw Roos running with the Peace Torch and pulled over to ask what she was doing. As soon as they heard she was running for Peace they both decided they wanted to be a part of it and leapt out of their car to run with her for her final section ...
... it was a sight to see the three of them running in! As soon as they found out we are still to run through their area there was a quick exchange of numbers and we all look forward to running with them again when we reach the Gold Coast. Then off they ran back to their car they had abandoned a few km back ...
... and we took off to pick up our runner and drop off yet one more.
As we had done the first section today our finish point was where the other team put the brochure out as their start point. Our final runner soon came upon this 'signpost' but knew the team would still be a few minutes away so instead of waiting in the heat on the side of the road with no shade it seemed more appropriate to pick up the brochure and continue to run, retracing the steps of one of our Peace Runners who had already been that way only a few hours before.
As we continued driving towards Renner Springs and our accommodation, we made a short stop in Elliott. As we pulled into the rest area we were greeted by the local dogs, who were all very friendly and enjoyed a good pat.
Up ahead, the first boys’ team were enjoying 90 kilometres of pure running.
It was still hot and sunny, along the seemingly endless highway, but even the newcomers were now used to the relentless sunshine. Only a distance runner could complain about something like that.
While to a European or a New Zealander's eye, the roadside flora may appear dry and uninviting, nevertheless there is tremendous beauty, subtlety and variety everywhere if one only looks ...
In the middle of seemingly nowhere (on the Stuart Highway), a monument had been built to Australia’s first Overland Telegraph line on 22 August 1872, “an important link in the electric chain”. This seemed ironic, because we have rarely been able to get a phone signal for the past three days.
Amidst the endless dry, once in a while a pond or reservoir beckons with its call of life ...
... not only do the cattle find this place most inviting ...
... it is also a haven for birdlife.
We were not sure how five of us would complete the exhausting task of running 90 kilometres, but by now, we had no doubt that we would be successful ...
... thanks partly to Bayarkhuu running a total of 25 kilometres (leaving a mere 65 kilometres for the rest of us), we had finished before the end of lunch – and we hadn’t even needed to wake up at the crack of dawn to achieve this.
The second boys team started the furthest ahead, with 101km to cover – the highest mileage for one team of this journey to date. The sun was burning brightly and the sky was ever-so-blue ...
... Prachar started with a warm-up jog to get the ball rolling ...
... then Steve followed ...
... approaching his "namesake town" ...
... here he is, Steve in Elliott!
Our team was fortunate to have with us several excellent runners to help cover all these kms. Abhinabha from Holland, takes up the story:
Aside from running for the grand and beautiful cause of world-peace, Samalya (from Berlin, Germany) and myself (Abhinabha) joined the Australian Peace Run also to put in some quality training for our upcoming marathons.
Samalya is a fast 1500 metre runner (with a PB of 3:56) who is training for a marathon in August ...
... I will be trying to lower my personal marathon best (currently at 2:27) in the Amsterdam marathon in October. Since today was a day of big mileage, we decided to do a long run of 24km each.
We split up our runs in three blocks of 8km each, so we could get back in the van to refuel (i.e. drink) every half hour or so. I started running and the van drove ahead 8 km ...
... to let off Samalya, who started his first block there. When I arrived I hopped into the van, drank and rested my legs, while we drove ahead another 8km, passing Samalya on the way, to let me off again for my second block. The van then waited for Samalya to arrive, drove him ahead 8km (passing me) and let him off for his second stint. We repeated this logistical technique (called ‘leap-frogging’) three times, until each of us had done 3 blocks of 8km, both totaling 24km.
Although it was hot without a merciful cloud in the sky ...
... we were blessed with a strong breeze, which soothed our heated limbs. It did provide quite a bit of resistance however, since we were facing it head-on.
For me the first two blocks went well and the running felt both smooth and strong. My aim was to increase my pace steadily throughout the run, starting at 4:15 per km and knocking off 10 seconds per km every 4km. So after 4km I was running 4:05 per km and after 8km I brought it down to 3:55 and then to 3:45 (or 6:00 per mile). So far so good. Yet after 16km the heat, the headwind and the miles started taking their toll and I was forced to run my last 8km considerably slower than I had planned. By that time the afternoon heat really had kicked in, so it was a matter of counting down the last few kms until the familiar sight of the van parked at the side of the road put me out of my misery. ☺
While doing the long run I still found inspiration and strength to wave at all the approaching cars, and most of them waved or honked back enthusiastically. It was great to start this first of my four weeks of peace running with a bit of a bang, anyway.
Abhinabha
(Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
Samalya (Berlin, Germany – where, as he likes to remind us, the current world records for both 100m and the marathon have been set!) – finished, as he always does, with a huge smile.
After these two had propelled us 48 km further forward ...
... they could relax a little ...
... while Sukhajata took over the lead role ...
... with some backing from the others.
All 3 teams arrived almost simultaneously at Renner Springs Desert Hotel, where the owners, Christine and Al, greeted us. Thanks to Christine and Al for providing us a place in their camping ground, along with a room for us to use as our office for the night. We are most grateful for your kind generosity!
The resident peacocks here have charmed us and helped us settle in for the night after another rewarding day on the Peace Run.
