Day 51
Once again the storms continued overnight. This continued into the morning with high winds and rain. Mark made the call to start later in the day in attempt to allow the storms to pass.
At 11:00 Mark set off with new pair of trainers, number 5. Number 4 are still going well but were soaked through on the downpour of day 50. Mark started the day still feeling tired. Aside from having run 1638 miles in 50 days, Mark's calorie deficit was (and still is) still an issue. This would be a key focus over the next few days to build up and hopefully generate more energy reserves.
30 miles was the target for day 51.
"Conditions improve tomorrow and a record haul of miles is a must. Saturday and Sunday must see 41 miles ran each day."
"Monday and Tuesday both need record hauls of miles. That will then leave 14 days of the run left."
"Play is underway here on day 51 of the run across Australia. Very windy still. A cold 13 Celsius. #B64"
On day 50, Melanie, from the early days in Perth, contacted Mark to let him know about about about a fundraising activity that she would be holding. Melanie had made some Rocky Road brownies and was sending them into John's workplace with all proceeds being donated to Mark's two charities. A fantastic total of £48 was raised - move over Mary Berry - Mellie Berry is here!
At 14:50 Mark finished running for the day:
"Totally exhausted after 11 miles. Legs feel like they have growing pains. This is torture today."
"Finished just short of 12 miles for the day. Drained. Not a good day."
The focus for the remainder of the day was to ensure that Mark rested and carb loaded - tomorrow would be a big day.
"I've got a 35 mile stretch tomorrow unassisted. Full pack on and carrying 4 litres of water. This may be the way to go."
"This is the tactic I adopted during the final week of the run across the USA. Not seeing the RV very often helps to focus."
"There is no choice but to continue no matter how tired I'll get. This week can still be rescued."
"I've got a belly full of delicious food cooked by @Donna__Houghton. I think I've actually eaten more calories than I've burned for once."
Day 52
Day 52. Nothing less than 45 miles will do today. Seeing the RV for the 1st time at the 35 mile point. Carrying more supplies than usual.
Just said goodbye to @Donna__Houghton in the RV. Next stop for me is a town called Morgan.
"Rarely, on all of my travels, have I seen a more amazing sight than 2 Kangeroos hopping through the outback."
"You kind of get a peaceful feeling. They are very impressive creatures. A real treasure of this country."
"14:00 Marathon done so far on a warm day. 10k from #Morgan. Enjoyed it today so far. @Donna__Houghton's work on my feet has paid off #nopain"
At 16:00 Mark had completed 32 miles and made a stop for his first break. I checked his waist pack and camel bak and was pleased to see that all of the supplies had been eaten. In addition to pasta for tea the night before and porridge for breakfast Mark we had hoped that addition snacks would help sustain his energy levels. So far so good!
After an hour, Mark was back out on the road. The next, and final, meeting point for the day would be a half marathon distance. Fortunately from the break point we were able to identify a mile long shortcut which saved a great deal of time for the day.
As the day passed it was great to hear that Mark was doing so well. I had my concerns around the mileage meeting point, especially after the pains suffered the day previous but Mark was focused on 45 miles. The donations had continued over previous days and the fund was nearing to £27,000.
"Today has been a tough but enjoyable day so far. As my headline sponsor, @drivebenfield, would say - #enjoythejourney #rgrdownunder"
"If the fund passes 27k today then I'll run a bonus mile at the end of the day. #cashformles uk.virginmoneygiving.com/rungeordierun"
18:30 - "#ifeeltheneed #theneedforspeed Time to finish today off in style."
"Thank you to whoever has just donated 200 pounds. The 46th mile is for you today."
"40 miles done. Can't hang around. Later. #ifeeltheneed #theneedforspeed uk.virginmoneygiving.com/rungeordierun 10k left. #boom"
"44 miles done so far on day 52 of #rgrdownunder with @drivebenfield. Time to wind it down to 46. Amazing sunset."
"46.1 miles done. Brilliant last 20k. There may be some tour records in there. I'll have to check the uploaded stats later."
"Mile 46 was 9 mins 3 seconds. The 2nd quickest mile of the tour. 4 seconds away from the quickest mile."
Mark finished running at 20:30. This didn't leave long for a quick turnaround in order to shower, treat feet, eat and then sleep. Bigger miles mean longer days. Longer days mean less recovery time, there is no easy way about this.
"It's just gone dark and it's still 21 Celsius. It's going to be a warm night here in #insectville."
"Very pleased with today's run. Carried a full hydration pack on my back and round my waist all day. All to do again tomorrow."
"Lights out. #eat #sleep #run #repeat uk.virginmoneygiving.com/rungeordierun #rgrdownunder"
