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Goto: 2004-11-15 2004-11-17 Australia

Oaktree Road> - Street, at main entrance>.


60km, 6:20:11h. Excl. food, water, road-finding, toilet etc. stops.
Total 14.220km.

(Runner Company by Oliver Nidermaier all stage; Crew: M. Gillan).

Start: 7:23am.
Finish: 15:21pm.
Time GMT + 8 hours

+18c, clear sky & medium wind at start.

+25c and same at finish.


- Ultra runner debut!

I always regard it as an honour when a runner chooses one of the stages of
the world run to make his or her first attempt at becoming an ultra
runner; to go beyond the marathon distance for the first time in their
running experiences!


On today?s stage Oliver Nidermaier from Munich, Germany, joined me at the
start of the stage intending to do just that ? to go from having completed
the marathon distance on two occasions to become a "full metal" ultra
runner :-)


He had 60km waiting for him. He had expected 52km, but I had told him the
night before over the mobile phone that it fortunately/unfortunately was
going to be just 8km extra than that. Its only a few extra, and it would
make it a nice even 60km that any ultra runner can respect - although each
kilometre tend to be long at that end of a run.. ;-)


Oliver took it with a stiff smile and stood up for the promise that he had
made to me about 11 months ago back in Europe before the start: If I
made it to the other side of the earth, running, then he would join me for
at stage down there in Australia! That simple; and that horrifying once
it became reality ;-)





He surprised me overcoming that stage with a professionalism and
dedication to the effort that I can only take pleasure in!!

- I take pride in having helped "given birth" to a new ultra
runner!!

Another twist to the story is that Oliver happens to be ceo. in one of the
companies that supports my attempt to become the first to overcome a run
around the globe: Pepper Technologies which is now also a part of
Computershare here in Australia.

- What a sponsor to have!!! It is part of the idea of the world run that
also the sponsors involved is not alone in it for the media-effect, but
are also committed to the sport and the effort of this project. That makes
us a team that work together towards this far-away-goal instead of just a
well supported individual J

Yet, off course there is regularly media coverage which is good for the
sponsors, good for the sport & ultra sport as well as keeping the general
moral up!


One the main channels covering the run today you can get a glimpse of at
the following link where the journalist actually ran out there with us on
the hot sunny roads to Melbourne.

Got to respect that too!


 

TV-Coverage link: 
http://media.theage.com.au/player/playlist.mpl/15100_2.asx?rid=15100&cid=2

After the finish we had an excellent reception and welcome by the Computer
share here in Melbourne ? all the good food a runner can dream of? And
even some of the employees stated an interest in coming out in the
Nullabor Desert to help me get well through that hot challenge which is
waiting for me with about 45 Celsius during the hottest months where I
will have to run across it!

And as if this good treatment wasn't enough, I got another mental lift by
being invited to the Danish Club in Melbourne for dinner. Quite a large
turnout that made me feels as if I were back home in my native country
again (after about 14 000km you become to miss you home quite a bit).
Thanks a lot for being there to help!!

- So all in all one of the best days of the entire run so far :-)


PS: After refreshment and consulting his wife, Oliver made another
dangerous promise: If I make it through the last part of the run ? back
to London ? then he will join me for the final stage to the start & finish
place in Greenwich at the Old Observatory where the international GMT
time-line is situated.


What he didn't know by then is that this particular stage is planned to be
a 100km stage. Happy training :-)