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Dawn Tuffery and Kerry Suter
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Dawn Tuffery and Kerry Suter are both relatively new to running ultra marathons, but both runners performed well at the recent Athletics New Zealand 100km Championships. The 100km championship was held in conjunction with the New Balance Great Lake Relay around Lake Taupo. Both Dawn and Kerry run for the Hamilton City Hawks club. Dawn won the women’s 100k in 9hr 05min 47sec and Kerry was second in the men’s race clocking 7hr 45min 09sec. (Martin Lukes of the Sumner Running Club won the men’s 100k in 7hr 30min 35sec)
Dawn and Kerry, both new to the sport of ultra marathon running, give us the run down on how the race went and talk about running ultras more generally in this interview…
Describe how the 100k went for you.
Dawn
I really enjoyed it. Despite the nervousness beforehand, everything came together perfectly on the day. My support crew was fantastic, the weather was good, the course was straightforward. Good preparation and training helped, but I was also lucky it all went so smoothly - I know from recent experience that injury or anything can make a long run a whole lot harder. Overall it was fun rather than a struggle, and finishing felt amazing. One of those days I'll remember for a long time.
Kerry
I really didn't know what to expect as I'd never run anywhere near that distance before. The key to ultra distance is to run conservatively until you reach the point that you know you can increase the tempo and maintain it to the finish. I ended up resisting the urge to go with Martin Lukes and held back until about 75km where I started putting in some good consistent four minute kilometres. I was running really strongly and closing the gap to the lead when at 85km I was savaged by horrible cramps in both legs. Any plans of winning or even finishing strong were replaced with the terrifying thought that I might not finish at all. I ended up staggering across the line 15 minutes behind Martin for second place.
Were you happy with your time?
Dawn
Yes, definitely. I was loosely going for sub 10 hours, so to be near nine hours was great. There was an optimistic point in the middle where I thought I could sneak under nine hours, but then I started feeling fragile around 85k so didn't push it.
Kerry
A few years earlier Mark Bright ran a little over eight hours to set the Taupo 100km road record. I started the day knowing that with Lukes in the race, the chance of victory was less than remote so I aimed simply to run a good time. I thought eight hours was quite an ambitious target given my lack of experience over the distance but then what sort of an athlete would I be if I didn't set the seemingly unobtainable goals? I was on track for a 7:30 but the cramps slowed me to 7:45. 15 minutes faster than I thought I could go and 26 minutes faster then Bright's record. I was really happy with it having not known if I would even finish.
What sort of training did you do leading up to the 100k champs?
Dawn
I did the trail running Triple Crown in November, so had built up an ok base before that. From mid-December I bumped up normal training a bit, and gradually increased the weekend long run each week to a maximum of six hours. Doing the Tussock Traverse both ways (54k total, running to the start of the race first) three weeks before the 100k was a good confidence booster because I still felt good at the end. I had lots of good advice from people in our club, particularly Glenn Sexton. Having fellow club members Kerry Suter and Brian Halford both training for the 100k too was good for morale - you're not the only one doing ridiculous runs every week. The hardest runs were the midweek ones when I felt tired, and one notably tough Te Aroha ascent with Kerry when we'd both done lots of training the day before. Discovering 'Born to Run' during the tougher training weeks was encouraging, as it's such a fun read.
Kerry
I still consider myself fairly new to running so I have always focused the bulk of my training around developing my aerobic engine. I'd try and get through a couple of hours of steady jogging a day, usually made up of two runs. I remember doing a 50km training run to Cambridge and back and collapsing on my front lawn thinking there was just no way I could manage the 100 km for nationals. Normally I'd try and make the long runs interesting by getting out on the trails but since the target was the Taupo 8 x 12.5km course I thought I should train the mind as well and make many of my runs as boring as possible. Things like 10 x 6km loops around a lake or 20km out and back on dead flat railway tracks and depressing country roads to Cambridge. In terms of mileage, a standard week would be 160km to 190km with the biggest being a little over 200.
How long have you been running ultra marathons for?
Dawn
This was my first one (aside from the unofficial ones during the six weeks of training.)
Kerry
I have always done most of my racing on trails so in terms of distance very few of my races are Ultra Distance but in terms of time I am frequently racing durations far longer then my road marathon time. In early 2009 I won a 54km course at the 'Kaweka Challenge' in 8 and a half hours. Barely an Ultra Marathon by distance yet the terrain made for a very tough day. Not long after I won Tarawera Ultra (87km) in 7:22. In short, I've been racing ultra distance for just on one year now.
What made you take up running and what got you into running ultras?
Dawn
I entered a fun run about five years ago, on the coaxing of a fellow football player, and enjoyed it. Then did some 5k Loaded Hog runs, joined the Hamilton Hawks, and was hooked from then on. Ultras have always intrigued me a bit, but I didn't want to try it too soon. After my first marathon in Christchurch last year I finished thinking I could go further, and kept reading about people like Martin Lukes, Val Muskett and Lisa Tamati doing interesting long-distance things overseas. Then I heard about the 100k champs last year and thought, yeah, that's me in 2010.
Kerry
I didn't run as a young man so missed the opportunity to post the amazing track or middle distance times some guys have. Now in my early 30's I find my ability isn't to run fast but to push hard for really long periods of time. A shame really because 30 minutes of suffering over 10km is a whole lot more appealing than five hours of pain in the later part of an ultra distance race. I've always been of the opinion that if you're good at something you should give it everything and see how far you can go with it. There's a chance I can represent NZ on the world stage which just never would've happened if I stuck to the more familiar 'club' distances.
What sorts of things go through your mind when running an ultra?
Dawn
All sorts really. In the 100k I was mostly thinking about keeping a controlled pace between the 5k’s, and first enjoying the starry night and then the changing scene as the sun rose. Lots of chatting to other runners, and waving, and planning what food and drink you want next! I can't really remember, but I didn't get bored enough to ask for music. Towards the end I was just focussing on keeping the legs chugging along, and counting down. Again, the support crew and friends who turned up really helped.
Kerry
The mind suffers almost as much as the legs do. You're constantly trying to rally yourself and keep positive. Fatigue starts to creep in before half way and you have to be really careful not to focus on the pain that is continually trying to stop you from going on. Mentally I am just thinking "YOU CAN DO THIS, HANG IN THERE!" Similarly you need to maintain economy otherwise you will wilt fast. The other conversation you have with yourself goes along the lines of "stay upright, keep the cadence up, relax your shoulders, run clean, don't get ragged". Often this is out loud. If I find myself really down I try to think about my six month old daughter, which always seems to bring a smile to my face.
Any advice for other would be ultra marathoners?
Dawn
If you're tempted, definitely give it a try. Start slowly, pace yourself, and enjoy the experience. You're capable of more than you think.
Kerry
Ultra Marathons are dangerously addictive so be careful. Read 'Born to Run', get out and jog a lot, then show up on race day. Find places that are fun to train and it'll never be a chore. You'll never know what you're capable of until you really try. Exploring your limits can be painful but is also really rewarding and can be a whole heap of fun.
Is there anything else that you think that readers might be interested in about you?
Dawn
I have a fairly varied set of interests I guess. I do stilt walking and various performing as a side job, and I love stop-motion animation. I'm currently working at Wintec's School of Media Arts part-time and studying towards a Master of Arts.
Kerry
I have a 'run streak'. Everyday I run at least 5km or 30 minutes (which ever comes first). I've done this for over 920 days. I know 5km doesn't sound like a lot but I've averaged 15km/day over the streak duration and only run the minimum when injured or tapering for a target race. I wouldn't recommend this foolish training method to anyone particularly those running Ultra Distance. I just can't explain in words how hard it is to run for 30 minutes the day after a 100km race.
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