Boosting the training prog for the Trial

Well I have been given my new training program. Gulp!!!!

Seeing as I have spent the last 3 months training to 10km only ... we have had to drop me back to 7min/km pace and add distance to get my stamina up. So each weekend the Sunday walk extends by 2km.

Today we did a slow 18km and next Sunday is the dreaded 20km. The scary part of the training is the weekend after that................that's when we step up the pace too.

I am intending to get 20km done in 2hours......the qualifying time is 2hours 8mins...which is more than do able. What gives me doubts is googling the names of the other competitors and seeing their recent times. Ok some were un-judged so that could make a difference on the day, but it did stop me and make me think "why am I doing this?"

Then I think about what all this means to me....At my age to even be trying for the trial team is an amazing feat, to actually have a shot at the 4th spot is again an amazing feat and if I have to be truthful I guess I have a small fear that I am aging and am trying to recapture a small portion of youth. Ok...so I laugh when I read that too, but......I do think that race walking has turned out to be my fountain of youth. I feel younger than ever, fitter than I have ever been, have a waist again, have toned up, feel healthy and fantastic!!!!

I can now understand how athletes can end up addicted to exercise. The endorphins you get from a good hard walk make all the days stress's disappear. You cant but help to feel positive and smile...LOTS.....

I was told recently by one of the juniors that "race walking is the new pink" I have to agree with her. :0)

Opening night for "The Track"

Tonight was the official opening night of our new Mondo Track and first meet of the year.

The club put on many events - ranging from 100m, 200m, 300m and 1 mile for the Masters. They also put on a 3000m Track Walk. Parents were encouraged to join in but instead they choose to spectate and cheer from the banks.

It was great to see so many people and to watch some very fine young athletes....(who knows .. one of them could be the next big thing!!)

Sadly there were only 2 race walkers..........myself and Pete. The others had made themselves scarce. So we decided to just take it easy and treat it like a training session............. YEAH RIGHT!!!!!!

Gun goes off and so does Pete....I am left thinking "holy smoke" so much for 2.26 pace so not to be out done, I caught up to him and sat on his heel. Pete being the much more experienced walked dead centre of the lane forcing me to walk the outer line or tuck in about a metre behind him. I was not falling for that tactic so sat right on his shoulder on the line. (Yes I walked a little further but I was not letting him away with that)

I kept watching my GPS and thinking "man we are flying" it was faster than our training nights but I was surprised I was keeping up.

We rounded the last lap - got the bell and it was on. I was waiting for Pete to make his move (as he was me) 200m mark went past and I thought he will go out now so I hung on moving closer to his shoulder we rounded the back straight and I let rip at the 100m mark ... shoulder to shoulder we walked at the 25m mark I pulled away to cross the line in 16:50......My best time ever on the track. Yahoo!!!!

Sadly the time cant be posted as an official time as there were only 2 judges. So for future races we will make the effort to find 3 judges. You just never know what will come out of a track night.

A great night was had by all.

Waimea Half Maraton

The day dawned with absolutely perfect conditions. Slightly overcast and not a breath of wind....I am sure it was to spite me.

With the decision made to pull from the Half Marathon I was able to focus on how I would race the 10km. I woke to a fully blocked nose and my face felt like I had been hit between the eyes!! I was not even sure if I could complete the 10km but I didn't want to let my team mate down (I did have a back up plan - my coach had put his hand up if I pulled out at the last minute) My husband was also in a team but for running. So we headed off to Rabbit Island to find both our team partners and to put on race numbers. I went over and scratched from the Half - I don't know who was more surprised..the organizers or the competitors?

Last year I teamed up with my training partner Yvonne and we dressed up in bright neon outfits and had a ball. This year she had teamed up with her friend (and top Nelson walker) Wendy. I nearly doubled over laughing when I saw their costumes. They had a multi coloured Mo Hawk wig on and the most ridiculous looking pants I have ever seen... (they had plastic moulded bare bottoms that were part of the pants).....all I could think to say was "check it out...two moons!!!!!" They looked fantastic and did win the best dressed and deserving so too.

I was to walk the first two legs and Pete the second two. I was also double booked for the day as it was my grand daughters 2nd birthday, so I was to leave as soon as I had finished my legs.

The race got underway and it was a good tussle for the first 500m with Wendy rocketing out in front. I had decided to stick to 5:50 pace and so slowly caught her up and passed. I came through the first 5km at 29:47 and was to finish my 10.4km in 1:01:47 much faster than I had anticipated. The last two km were my worst with my ears popping and hurting along with my sinuses too.

I tagged my team mate and then waited for my husband to come in (runners started 20mins after walkers) He finished his 10.4km in 56mins which is awesome for him. My team mate (pete) completed his two legs 10.8km in 1:05:?? giving us a combined time of 2:07:30 winning us the team section - (I am fondly called Trumpeter and he is SOF - sly old fox)

Walking Teams
1 221 02:07:30 Trumpeter and SOF
2 213 02:12:48 Mad Dogs
3 220 02:33:43 The Nanas


Me out on the beach end of the course.


Pete aka SOF winding his way through the picnic area


This is Wendy in costume and Gary about to catch and pass by

A hard decision to make....but....

Tomorrow is the Waimea Half Marathon. Its held at Rabbit Island on a 5km loop course. I have to admit its one of the most boring course's known around here. Every year I have managed to team up with a group or one other and just entered the teams section.

This year I decided that I would bite the bullet and do the Half. I was thinking ... I will be fit and still race ready from the Worlds in Sydney, even though I had only trained up to 10km and have not walked 21.5km in about 6 months. I was feeling strong and confident.

My training partner asked me this week to team up as well. That's the good thing about this race, you can compete in two events - team and half. The person doing the half starts first and tags you at the 10km mark...then you both head out. The person doing the half then pulls off the team number and carries on for the individual portion.

Well since I have been back from Sydney, I have been plagued with a horrid head cold or maybe a sinus infection. Everyone tells me its probably the flying that has set it off as I feel like I need to equalize my ears....they are blocked and keep popping all the time and I have no balance. I have been fatigued and constant blowing of my nose has driven me nuts. I had to rush around town two days ago and nearly fainted from the effort.

So I have made the decision to pull out of the half. I will still do the 10km for the team but I know that I am not well enough to push my body that far.

Then it is rest up and let my body take a break.

World masters gold, silver for Sunderland

Article in our local paper - Nelson Mail


WALKING BACK TO HAPPINESS: Nyle Sunderland displays the gold and silver medals she won at the 2009 World Masters Games in Sydney.


Just a year after winning three gold medals at the Oceania Masters Games in Townsville, Nelson race walker Nyle Sunderland has returned home from Sydney's World Masters Games with a gold and silver medal.

Now the 42-year-old athlete is looking seriously at heading to Sacramento, California, in 2011 to compete at the World Masters track and field championships as potentially the pinnacle of her competitive career.

In Sydney, she missed out on the 10km road walk gold by around 12sec, despite finishing in a personal best time of 59min 50sec.

She was one of nine competitors in her 40-44 age group competing over a 2km loop course at Paramatta Park, eventually finishing second to Australia's Fiona Porley.

"[The course] had two slight rises coming up to each turn so it wasn't a fast course," said Sunderland. "Those rises didn't feel like much for the first couple of kilometres but, trust me, by the end they felt like mountains."

Sunderland's tactic had been to sit on Porley's heel from the 2km mark before trying to walk her down, which almost worked.

"At the 9km mark, she pulled out from me and I made the choice to follow and I probably should have waited because when I caught her, she gave one last burst and I couldn't keep up. It was a really tight race. She lives in the Blue Mountains and trains on the Paramatta track so she knew it like the back of her hand."

That wasn't the end of the drama, though, as both athletes ultimately succumbed to the heat.

"She collapsed at the finish line and was being attended to, then about three minutes later I did the exact same thing. I think it was just all the heat and exertion and over-excitement ... but both of us were carted off by paramedics and given oxygen. It was only about 25 degrees, which doesn't seem like much. It just felt hotter because of the black tarmac we were walking on.

"The heat coming off that was just phenomenal and you were quite sort of dehydrated anyway, it didn't matter how much water you'd drunk."

Anticipating a rematch with Porley in the 5000m track race at Olympic Park five days later, Sunderland was disappointed to learn that the Aussie had withdrawn as they prepared for the start, supposedly still feeling the effects of her 10km victory.

"I was so psyched to give her a really good battle and she pulled out."

Strategically, Sunderland again planned to "let the rabbits go absolutely ballistic" before reeling them in.

Having also been grouped with the 35-39 competitors, "I'd pretty much caught them all up by the first lap and continued to stay strong in the field and led both age groups the whole way round", she said.
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Her time of 28min 28sec was also a personal best by around a minute. "I had to look twice at the clock myself, I couldn't believe it. It was a phenomenal race."

Sunderland said she was fitter and faster than she'd ever been and attributed much of her success to the support of mentor Stephen Farquhar, training partner Peter Hague and husband, Shane.

"Without their help, I wouldn't have achieved what I did."

5000m Track Walk 2009

I spent most of Saturday afternoon at the track soaking in the atmosphere and supporting the guys. Who in turn promised to come and support us ladies.

I woke Sunday feeling really good, tried not to think about the race too much and went out for the morning to see a couple of sights. I must have planned and re-planned my race strategy 100 times. About 1pm I went to the track and lay on the grass listening to my ipod and watching some of the women's races. I was so amped and ready to met Fiona again. A couple of the guys turned up and helped me with my warm up and stretch's. I had brought a tee shirt so I could get signatures on it, so one of the guys grabbed it and shot off to get the women who had finished to sign it.

One of the most awesome things of the day was that my aunty from NZ was in Sydney at the same time and had found her way to the track and was there to watch me race for the first time. I was so excited and very nervous....I really wanted to win now.

They had grouped two age groups together again 35-39 and 40-44. We were all called to the call room and it was here that I found out Fiona had pulled out. She had not recovered from our 10km and was ill. I was really disappointed with this news. But any one of the ladies could still take it out.

We lined up and I got the outside lane. My one and only game plan.....let the rabbits bolt and then I would chase them down. Sure enough, 3 went out (1 in my age group)but surprisingly I caught them up with in the first lap and passed them on the back straight to take the lead of both groups. One of the 35-39 group stayed on my heels, but it didn't bug me and I just kept at a steady pace and slowly pulled away from her. By lap 6 she was 10mt behind me and by lap 10 she was 30mts behind. The water station was set up on lane 5 and the guy would not step in to pass you the drink so it you wanted one you had to cross three lanes to reach it and there was a judge right beside him. Two girls were warned as I passed by. I finally succumbed to the need for water so choose a time when I had to lap a slower walker.

Rounding the end curve and hearing my aunty and her friends calling out really kept me going, but the most amazing thing was by lap 10 it felt and sounded like everyone was calling my name or go NZ go.....it was the most amazing feeling.

I had been watching the clock and trying to work out in my head if I was on target or not but ended up giving that up...(maths not being my strongest subject anymore??) and focused on my breathing. The bell sounded (man what a sweet sound) and I started to push and pick up the pace...I counted my steps till I heard the bell ring again for the next walker (105 steps) I just had to complete the last lap - get past all the judges and I had won my gold. I came round the last bend and into the next lane for finishing and noise felt deafening. I picked up the pace and went for it, eyeing the Chief Judge in the last 100mt. Crossing the line in 28.28 (well thats what the clock said, still waiting for results to put on line)

Then it was wait for the race to finish and the judges to confer and then it was announced I had won my GOLD!!!!!

So below is the finalists in the 40-44 Women 5000m track walk 2009



Thanks to all my sponsors. Now to keep them on side and hit them up for Sacramento 2011!!!!!

REST DAY

Today I must rest!!!!

I have walked the city over and over. Time to sit.

We are heading out to Bondi Beach today and then will go look at Kings Cross. These are the last two touristy things to do. We were going to head out to blue mountains but I didnt want to be cooped up in a car for 2 hours each way.

Its my big race tomorrow. Must admit to being more jittery about this one. Now that I know how fast the other lady is and how she races....it will be tough.

I didnt sleep well last night and woke this morning feeling very unwell. Hoping its nerves and not something I ate.

My Aunty from NZ has arrived in Sydney and is also coming to watch me race. So now I will have heaps of supporters cheering me on.

Will report back tomorrow night on the out come.

Wish me luck............