I’m really glad I didn’t try to finish the City to Surf at any cost. A much worse injury would have ensued, most likely a snapped Achilles. I am still hobbling about, but I reckon I’ll be running freely within a couple of weeks, though I’ll be keeping the pace quite low for a while.

I’ve gone out for runs each morning since Sunday, making sure I don’t miss a day (I will elaborate on the reason for this soon). As long as I don’t place any effort on the left calf, I seem to be able to manage for a kilometre or two. It’s a strange running style – I call it the “crutch style”. My left leg acts like a crutch, balancing my body while the right leg does all the work. It takes me nine to ten minutes per kilometre, no faster than a decent walk, but at least I’m having a run. If I had to do more than two kilometres at a time, however, I’d risk overloading the good leg and injury it too.

As disappointing as it was, I’ve decided to view Sunday’s race in a positive light. Other than the Achilles pain at the time, I quite comfortably reached half way (the tough half) in a faster time than I expected. This augurs well for the future.

I’m now nearing completion of the final review of my book about the world run. It has already been with the publisher for a period, and I’m currently finishing the last bit of fine-tuning of a few aspects. It won’t be in the book stores until well into next year – the process simply takes that long – but I reckon it will be worth the wait.

On This Day

Aug 12, 2012

No report published on this day.

Aug 12, 2013

Distance today = 52.19 km; Total distance = 24,660.59 km; Location = Mt Gambier – 37 49.790’ S, 140 46.703′ E; Start time = 0755, Finish time = 1614

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/357572683

The one predictable thing about the weather in these parts is it’s unpredictability. It can be lovely and sunny one moment, and cold, wet, and windy half an hour later. That’s what happened today, but the worst of it only occurred over the final few kilometres.

Although it was a reasonably busy road, from Penola to Mt Gambier, the shoulders were very good, so I quite enjoyed the run. One highlight was a tuna pie I bought in Nangwarry.

It got quite cold during the final stages as I approached South Australia’s second largest city. On arrival in Mt Gambier, I did an interview with Sam from the Border Watch newspaper. She also took some photos out on the road.

I also reached the 94% mark today – I now have less than 1,600 km to run.