Lorne and Geelong

On Friday the 5th January Mum and I headed to Lorne (after the 5th Ashes Test had finished) so I could do the Lorne Mountain to Surf race. It's an 8km (or so) race. The first 2km are on streets up and down big hills. The next 4km are along a lovely bush track. The last 2km are along the Great Ocean Road and a foreshore track. The day had been 35 degrees so I was freaking out a little. It did cool down a bit but it was still boiling during the race and I felt a bit light headed especially at the beginning. It really was a lovely race and if it wasn't for the heat and the hills it would have been blissful. I had to walk for the first time ever in a race which is kinda sad but it was so hot and my legs just weren't moving! 10 seconds of walking rejuvenated me though.

I was hoping to finish in under 40 minutes and in the top 20 in my age group. I ended up finishing in 42 minutes which I suppose isn't too bad considering the heat. And I finished 17th in under 18's which is good coz it's a hot field with lots of people. When we were wandering around Lorne before the race I walked straight past Anthony Hudson (had to stop myself from saying "it's Huddo!") carrying a Mountain to Surf pack. I looked up his results and I'm very happy to say I beat him by 21 seconds!!

One of the reasons I did the Lorne race is because Clare and Anna are down there. Anna was working on Friday afternoon so I visited her in her bakery. And Clare spotted me just before the race. I think she calmed my nerves!

The whole of Lorne had a great atmosphere and I thoroughly enjoyed it. However we didn't stay in Lorne, we stayed in Geelong with a friend of Mum's from dragon boating, Fred. It was really nice staying at his place. We were staying in Geelong because on the Saturday we were doing the 70km Amy Gillett ride.

The ride went from Geelong to Queenscliff and back. It was really easy on the way to Queenscliff, despite the slight headwind. But on the way back we had a massive headwind and it was very difficult. It took us 4 hours to ride the 70km which is quite slow.

It was a very fun weekend (well it wasn't even 24 hours) and I'd love to do it again next year.