Date: 27 February 2016
Distance: 19.1km
Time: 2:09.36

The birthday boy having a peaceful night.

Overcast and a bit fresh at the start.

Rob and me – ready for action.

Less than a minute to the start.

Briefing by Tim Day.

Shortly after the start, a dash across a paddock.

More paddock (cross country) running in the first few kilometres.

Time to shed a layer as it quickly warmed up.

Gerry comfortably jogging along as I was huffing and puffing to keep up.

A short stretch of farm road.

Jumping fences is normal for these kinds of events.

Having a blast out on the trails.

“If you go into the woods today, you’re in for a big surprise”.

Rob about half a kilometre ahead of us.

An awkwardly placed water station. First you veer off to the left, missing the table (my thoughts were that the water point was maybe meant for the 15km guys?) and when you pass it again from the other side, you turn away towards the right before reaching the table, missing it again.

Crossing one of many similar little bridges.

The trail winds through beautiful forests.

No doubt we’re on the right track.

A short little uphill after crossing the railway line.

Remnants of the Taonui viaduct.

Halfway – yay!

The cobblestone of the historic path is still visible in parts.

Pete still going strong.

Information boards along the Old Coach Road.

The second water point about 2km from the finish.

On the home straight back to the Powderhorn Chateau.

Final bridge across the railway line before the finish.

All done. Happy with what I’ve managed to achieve.

Prize-giving.

As it was Gerry’s birthday on the 26th, we decided to make a little outing of the trip. Not sure where we would stay – the only requirement was to camp somewhere nice and quiet – we went to the nearest DOC campsite only a few kilometres outside of Ohakune on the mountain side. It looked quite nice but decided nonetheless to check out the campsite at Raetihi which was only $4 per person more. However, the latter being more busy and civilised, we opted for the more scenic out of town rustic option at the foot of Mt Ruapehu. Continue reading →