Look at me

Look at me

I'm a train on a track

I'm a train

I'm a train

I'm a chook-a train

yeah !

Yes, Well. Ahem. I’m not really … but after last week running along the Gold Coast Indy-car race track, today I ran along an abandoned train-track for a shade over 8km.

And it was fun! :-)

This morning, I did the 5^th annual Lowood-to-Fernvale Rail Trail Fun Run … along with about 600 others.

The race began around 9am, in the Esk Shire town of Lowood, (population 1000 or so). And we ran, from there, along an old railway line (which has since been covered with dirt) to Fernvale, 8.3 kilometres away.

I should get the stats out of the way, first. I ran (or jogged, more accurately) the 8.3k in 55 minutes and 33 seconds – not a spectacularly fast time … but do I care? It’s still less than a year since I ran more than 100m in my adult life, so I no complain :-)

It was amusing, actually, to compare this week’s run with last week’s Gold Coast Marathon 10k event (see my race report for that event here)

For a start, there was about one-tenth the participation – which made the start line a somewhat less frenetic place to be :-)

Also, there was a much friendlier – and family-oriented – feel about the event.

As an example, many participants parked cars at the finish line at Fernvale, and took the free shuttle-busses to the start … allowing our non-running spouses / children / assorted-hangers-on to stay in Fernvale, at the weekly Country Markets.

My wife Shirley came with me today, and rather than just sitting around waiting for me, she was able to browse the stuff at the markets … which she described as being like a giant garage sale featuring stuff from her Grandma’s place!

Another example? As a genuine Fun-Run, there was a medal (and trophy) for the winner – who did the 8.3k in around 25 minutes – but there were also cash prizes for those who dressed up – including a trio of clowns, and a pair of witches.

Then, at the finish line, we all got given a ‘sample bag’ … complete with caps and brochures about the region ... before wandering around the post-race entertainment: jumping castles, face-painting, classic cars, rock-and-roll dancing demonstrations, and a sausage sizzle run by the local Lions club, for charity.

I am ashamed to admit, I sampled their steak-burgers … which wouldn’t have been a problem – except that I’d already been across the road to the local (award-winning) bakery and snaffled half a sausage roll and half a cream donut. That immediately blew the 700 or so calories I’d burned with the run. And that’s without even considering the mug of Merlo coffee that we grabbed at a nearby Café. But it was so scrummy. Ah well :-)

But it was a fabulous way to spend a Sunday morning – good company, good running, good weather, pleasant surrounds (so much so that I even took the ear-buds out during the run, and just allowed the natural sounds around me to ‘motivate’ me).

I got to chat with fellow runners (including a Personal Trainer who says she hates running – but a client wants to take it up, so she thought she should do some running herself, first) and a photographer who spotted my Cool Runner cap and gave me some extra encouragement (although I think maybe I should be considered a Cool Plodder, rather than a Cool Runner)!

Having said that, I just looked up my only other run of (roughly) this distance, the Spina Bifida 8k last year – and I see from my race report that I did that in 55:57 – so that makes 55:33 for an 8.3k a new personal best! Woot! :-)

So, all in all, it was great run – and I’ll certainly be signing up for it again next year. If next week’s Run For Research is as much fun, I’ll be very pleased.