Baker finishes sixth in gruelling 217km ultra-marathon

Adam Bakercrop2019050920190509 TBW Newsgroup
INCREDIBLE ACHIEVEMENT: Glencoe's Adam Baker finished sixth in the massive 217km Down Under 135 ultra-marathon held in Victoria over the weekend.
Picture: JAMES MURPHY[/caption] WILD terrain, a 217km journey, almost 52 hours and 50 minutes of sleep - they were the conditions Glencoe's Adam Baker overcame when he ran sixth in the 2019 Down Under 135 ultra-marathon in Victoria over the weekend. Baker has been long-distance running for five years and competed in the event

Adam Bakercrop20190509 TBW Newsgroup
INCREDIBLE ACHIEVEMENT: Glencoe’s Adam Baker finished sixth in the massive 217km Down Under 135 ultra-marathon held in Victoria over the weekend.
Picture: JAMES MURPHY

WILD terrain, a 217km journey, almost 52 hours and 50 minutes of sleep – they were the conditions Glencoe’s Adam Baker overcame when he ran sixth in the 2019 Down Under 135 ultra-marathon in Victoria over the weekend.

Baker has been long-distance running for five years and competed in the event in 2018, but managed just 185km before the 54-hour time limit cut his trip short.

This year he was determined to make the distance, which he achieved with two hours to spare, with a finish time of 51 hours and 54 minutes.

Of the 31 starters, just nine runners finished due to the time restriction.

The course worked its way through the Lerderderg and Wombat State Parks and began at Bacchus Marsh, proceeding up through Blackwood and almost to Daylesford, before returning to the starting point.

The terrain was tough and at stages there was no track to follow, with ribbons on trees marking the way.

“It is all cross country stuff, a lot of single tracks and a few vehicle fire trails, but that’s it,” Baker said.

“It is a lot different to running on the road, but I enjoy it more.”

The 217km distance – or 135 miles – was the furthest he had ever run, which only adds to the huge achievement.

Baker competed in his first marathon five years ago and since then has worked his way up to the massive distance of the Down Under 135.

“In 2014 I did the Melbourne Marathon and it just went from there,” he said.

“I did my first 100km event in 2015 and my first 100 mile in 2016.”

The ultra-marathon status is given to any event over the marathon distance of 42.2km, but it would not be a far cry to title the Down Under an impossible distance.

“Someone made an interesting analogy, it is like five marathons back-to-back and you are climbing the equivalent of Mount Everest,” Baker said.

“It was wild terrain, one section was 11km long up a creek bed and there was no track to be seen anywhere, they had just hung ribbons up in trees.

“There were boulders and rocks and fallen trees – you were stopping every 200 metres to pull all the prickles out of you from the bushes.

“It was crazy stuff.”

Baker trained for the event for the full 12 months after his first attempt and had a vigorous seven-day schedule during the 12 to 14 weeks leading up to this year.

However, it is difficult to prepare for the lack of sleep and mental strain dealt by the epic event.

“I had two sleeps – one at 4am on the first night for 25 minutes and a second at midnight on the second night for another 25 minutes,” Baker said.

“Your mind is definitely not very sharp by the end of it.”

Several aid stations were set up along the way, which provided Baker a chance to resupply his pack and also set smaller goals.

“The end goal was I really wanted to finish it,” he said.

“I put a lot into it this year and had a lot of people backing me.

“It is a massive distance, but you just pick your aid stations and go ‘right, I am going to run through to there and then to there’ – you just break it down.”

However, Baker said he would not have been able to make it to the finish if it were not for his support crew.

“I could not have done it without them,” he said.

“From O’Briens Crossing, which was 63km in, we were allowed pacers with us.

“They run with you and it makes it a lot easier, especially when you get to the really technical bits and you are tired.”

Baker’s crew consisted of Scott and Nicole Sawyer, Brad Tilley, Kathy Thurlings, Rachael Dowdell and his wife Kerri.

Having now conquered the Down Under 135, Baker said he is unsure at this stage if he will return to the event, but will likely test himself internationally in the 100-mile ultra-marathon at Tarawera in New Zealand next February.