Michael Smith – One month to go!

It’s less than one month to I will be standing on the beach at Skippers Canyon at 8am, with 42km of trail between me and the finish line at Moke Lake. While I am slightly intimidated by the Shotover Moonlight Marathon, I am pleased with my training and feel reasonably prepared.

In the past three months I have ticked off several adventure runs. They have been a mix of 6-12 hour “adventures” in the hills, as well as shorter and faster “runs” in the Port Hills. Last weekend I successfully ran 42 km from Lyttelton to Diamond Harbour via the tops, which has proved to myself that I can run that far.

With four weeks to go it’s almost time to taper, but not quite. Richard has agreed with me to cut back the distance, and focus on strength work via some hill sprints in the next fortnight. While I haven’t necessarily changed what I’m doing with the coaching, it’s nice to have someone to talk to and ensure each week has a focus, making sure time and effort is not wasted!

After the Moonlight, my focus will turn to cycling, with Le Race the target. The first group training session last night confirmed that I still have some work to do! It hurt, but in a good way. Apart from treating myself to a 160 km round trip to Akaroa, my cycling has been limited of late, but I am confident it will return quickly. The CP group sessions are a great way of encouraging you to dig deeper than you would by yourself, and I highly recommend them.