2006 07 04 Mt Ainslie Run-Up

A special Mt Ainslie Run-Up was conducted for a Runner's World Photo Shoot today. This was likely to be quite an excited gathering, as Mountain Suprema Emma Murray retained her title in the World Long Course Mountain Running Event yesterday in Colorado, with mentor and legend, the Mountain Supremo himself, Trevor Jacobs coming 23rd outright (not too shabby for a bloke about to turn 55).

Here is a listing of the results. John Harding's report states:

It should be noted that Emma finished 11th outright in the field of 800, only just behind these outstanding male internationals. Reminiscent of Six Foot Track when she was 4th outright in a field of 900.

It should be remembered that Emma's background is bush walking, rogaining and orienteering, so she has no trouble running over rough ground (a very different skill to rhythm running on the road). And she has phenomenal endurance from her staple training run of a 100 min effort in the mountains before breakfast next to where she lives in Canberra. How many male runners do this most days of the week before heading off to work? And Emma also does something else on most other days of the week, from a lunchtime orienteering event to biking to work or a run.

The Canberra marathon was her first road marathon and because she has done very few shorter runs on the road, there was little to guage what pace was realistic. So the Pat Clohessy approach for Deek's first marathon was used: run comfortably for 30kms then push the pace from then on if feeling good. So Emma ran comfortably with Trevor Jacobs for 30kms then put the burners on and came home in 2:45. The evidence is that a sub 2:40 is well within her capability. She won a trip to the Osaka
marathon in Japan next year in finishing first Australian in the Canberra
marathon.

It will be interesting to see how excited John Harding is at the run today!