Just over one short year ago Loughlinn Kennedy started trail running and on Saturday he won the Hounslow Classic 68km Ultra SkyMarathon at Blackheath.
The Blackheath runner completed the gruelling course, which climbed in and out of the Grose Valley at least twice, in 8 hours 47 minutes and 4 seconds, holding off New Zealand’s Danny Garrett in 8:57:43, and Joseph Dorph in 10:09:01.
Fourth overall was Sydney’s Beth Cardelli in 10:24:33, and Mt Victoria’s Lou Clifton wasn’t far behind at 10:51:12, the second woman home and sixth overall.
Kennedy said the leading pack narrowed early to himself and Garrett, who “didn’t know the course so he stuck to me like glue”, with the pair having a friendly chat along the way, and Kennedy even lending the New Zealander his car for the weekend. But around the 40km mark it was game on, with Kennedy slowly establishing a lead.
With temperatures in the mid 20s, he took every opportunity to cool down in the Grose River.
“You could cook your body a lot,” the 35-year-old said.
“I wanted to stay in the river as long as possible … but was watching who will make the first move.”
“The whole thing was really hard. It’s such a tough mental game,” Kennedy said.
“Danny was right there. I had a decent fight on my hands.”
While putting the training in beforehand and being fit for the course was vital, Kennedy said getting the nutrition right for fuelling the body was equally important.
“Getting that sorted was a massive help. That worked out really well for me on the day.”
Lou Clifton from Mt Victoria had an unexpected nutrition challenge when she arrived at the first aid station 20 minutes earlier than anticipated, to discover her support crew hadn’t arrived.
Her crew would have brought food and a particular supplementary sports drink not supplied at the aid stations, so she got by on water and energy gels for four hours.
“Anything can happen. You get blisters, stubbed toes, cramps, feeling sick. Everybody goes through the journey of feeling good and feeling bad. It comes and goes, as long as it goes you’re okay,” Clifton said.
The 44-year-old, who is coached by renowned long distance runner Brendan Davies, ran the inaugural race last year and was the fourth woman home. She said her goal this year was to complete as many races in the Skyrunning series as she could. Skyrunning is the peak of outdoor running defined by altitude and technicality and counts some 200 races worldwide. Clifton has competed in New Zealand and this was her third Skyrun in Australia this year.
She was thrilled to finish just 27 minutes behind Beth Cardelli.
“I was very happy to be that close behind," Clifton said.
She encountered two snakes along the way – a brown snake that slithered off the track, and a python she had to step over.
“It was a really good day. I’ve been training since June. The time and commitment was worth it,” Clifton said.
“It was not about the placing. It was about doing the best I could do on the day.”
On Sunday, the 21.1km SkyRace was also held as part of the Hounslow Classic.
Scotty Hawker cruised home in a blistering 1:59:07, closely followed by Eric Holt in 2:01:34 and Blake Turner in 2:09:24. Maeve Kennedy was the first woman across the line in 2:35:38, followed by Maria Walsh in 2:41:10 and Gill Fowler at 2:42:59.
About 300 runners took part in the Hounslow Classic, starting and finishing at Allview Escape in Blackheath.
