WA Aus Champs - Part 4

Saturday, 21 October 2023

The long distance champs were quite a drive from our place at Alkimos, and with the early starts it meant a pretty early departure. We weren't complaining though - any attempt to avoid the heat was appreciated!  We were all in the back end of our start blocks so the event was in full swing when we got there - most people were heading off to the start after having sheltered from the sun in the light bush canopy while they got ready:

Without doubt the absolute best part of my own race was crossing the finish line at the end - I had such a sense of relief that it was done as I'd spent time in the previous days fretting about what was to come and wondering how I'd cope in the heat.  My course was only around 6k and took me just under an hour - I'm not sure how Jett survived his 10+ km course - it's very impressive.   The bush was quite scratchy as it was filled with xanthorrhoea plants and other bristly bushes but it was quite pretty and there were lots of flowers around the forest as well.  I only made some very small mistakes in the occasionally vague terrain which I was happy about so I was 2nd overall which was the best I could have hoped for given the quality of the competition that day - in fact I wasn't even sure I'd make the podium so I'm really pleased with how it turned out.  Zali won her class by being her usual steady self, Jon was pipped by 7 seconds for 1st place and Jett had a respectable run, surviving the heat and the hills.  This photo of the finish area gives some indication of how hot it felt - no-one wanted to occupy that space out in the sun!:

The next best thing about my day (after finishing), was having an icecream van at the venue - a rare treat for orienteering events as normally the most we can hope for is a coffee van.  I reckon the operators had a good day although it could be argued that with that sort of weather they could have parked in supermarket car park and done an equally lively trade!

On the way home from the event we stopped at the lake that was definitely too cold to swim at the previous weekend and immersed ourselves for as long as it took to reduce our body temperature - it was lovely.

Back at our apartment we had time to swim in the sea before dinner then watch the sun set over the ocean which was pretty nice.

The next morning we were up early to pack up and I squeezed in one last ocean dip before we set sail south to Perth and the final event - the Aus Sprint Champs.  I love a sprint event and this one was great - it had complex route choices, a bit of a stair challenge and a general fun vibe.  I lost 30-45 seconds in the last few controls but managed a win anyway as I'd had a good first half and my closest competitor (with whom I was 1 second ahead of 2/3 of the way through) made an even bigger mistake on the 2nd last control. So I guess I was a bit lucky to get away with a win but I'll take it! Zali and Jett were both running in the elite classes and did fine while Jon was bumped off the podium by just a few seconds.

As all the competitors gathered together on the manicured private school oval for the final presentation ceremony the extensive and powerful sprinkler system suddenly came on and sprayed people, bags and the tech gear.  The speed at which people raced to protect themselves and their stuff probably rivalled that of the race they'd just run. Some people heroically grabbed or stood on some of the outlets to hold the spray in one direction while others just saved themselves.  Eventually the rest of the presentations were held under cover to the slightly soggy recipients.

After all that excitement we said a sad goodbye to Francesca our fantastic Italian orienteering coach who had been in Tasmania for almost a year and was flying from Perth straight back to Italy.  Zali and I returned our hire car then rode the last few kms to the airport on the schools trip mini bus which had space for some extra passengers. Flying home with Jon and Jett finally gave me a chance to catch up on their news as we rarely crossed paths during the week as they were totally immersed in the schools team world.  Jon had a fun time as well and felt it was a great way to finish off his 6 year dynasty of being the part of schools team.

And that was the end of our week. It was lovely to get away after a few stressful work weeks preceding the trip and I'm really happy with most of my runs and how the rest of the family went.