Oaks Trail - another Blue Mountains run under the belt

It has been a very big weekend for me. After having some final tests done on Friday I got news that I was OK. I also had some work farewells that night so I decided to have a very rare big night out. After finishing at my work function I met up with my friend J and he always seems to lead me astray. Lets just say it was a very big night and I felt absolutely rotten on Saturday. Its almost like once a year I need to get absolutely tanked to remind myself of why I am a runner and not a partyer. I couldnt even manage to eat at all during the day.

After Running Angel had told me that she would like to come to the Oaks trail rather than doing the SMC 10km. I knew that I had to head up no matter how crap I felt. Because there was a later start I didnt have to get up till 7am so it felt great not having a 3.30am start. By the time we hit Glenbrook (which is surprisingly a short trip if you're using tolls) we were lucky we were early as the 9.22 am train to take us to Woodford came at 9.10 and we had to quickly jump on. It was funny as the train was packed with mountain bikers. Some hopped off where we did and some were heading further up the mountain. We realised that David wasnt on the train as we were meant to be meeting him and we werent sure when the Wentworth Falls to Glenbrook guys would be passing through Woodford so we decided to head off as it was already getting to 9.45 and bloody warm. The trail was really nice and we were surprised at the beginning how quickly time was flying. It makes such a big difference having nice scenery. It seemed as though we were often playing tag team with the mountain bikers as they would keep overtaking us and then stop so we would overtake them.

I was feeling OK for most of the way. I could feel like the run was making me feel a bit more human. Once we reached around the 14km mark the run became more exposed and we really started to feel the heat. There was a bit of a breeze every now and then which was greatly welcomed but it was really hot. It was a shame that once we hit the 21km mark I started to feel crap as this was where we could do most of the running as it was all downhill. The effects of not eating the day before and being dehydrated started to hit me. I was also worried about not having enough water as my camelbak started to feel rather light. I ran out of water about 500m before the creek. I was OK with this as I knew there was only around 3km left. At the creek I had a bit of a shower and filled my cap with water which was nice. I also filled my water bottle so I could keep pouring it on myself on the climb out of the creek. It was pretty tough climbing out of the creek. I was gasping for water. We were really lucky when we saw a visitors centre and they had drinking water there. I dont know what I was thinking but I filled my pack up completely (we only had a couple of K's left !!) we were soooo happy to see the train tracks on the way back. With a quick stop to ask for directions we were on our way to the station. I have never been so happy to see my car (OK, maybe at Megalong!!).

Milov was not far behind us and he went off to grab us some drinks. Some of the others started to come in dribs and drabs and we all sat around having a good chat about starting up a trail running series. I couldnt believe how fast time flew and we realised we better head home. I had Milov and Running Angel with me in the car and it was the first trip home from the Blue Mountains lately where I wasnt falling asleep driving !! Although I felt crappy on the run I feel so much better for having done it. I think it really got rid of all those toxins I put into my body. Just a shame that I got better just in time to go to work tomorrow. All up today between 27.5-28km.