From two hours to 24-hours, Urquhart now finds herself on the Australian team for the 24hr Asia & Oceania Championships in Chinese Taipei and recalls how she got in to the time-distance sport.
“I recall an ultra running friend in 2016 telling me she was going to do a 24-hour event at Coburg, around an athletics track,” Urquhart says.
“I remember thinking, ‘what on earth would motivate you to do such a thing?’ and to much amazement, a year later I found myself towing the line at the Sri Chinmoy 24hr race in Sydney.
“But this time, my mindset was different. I was intrigued to find out how far I could run in that time frame; would I hit the wall at 100kms? I had never run more than that. Or would I be able to push on and complete a miler?”
With no pressure and just an opportunity to challenge herself, Urquhart clocked 192kms. She explains the event was tough but it set her up for the future.
“Yes, it was difficult, but at the same time the experience set the cogs in motions and I found myself asking the next question – could I make the magical 200kms? With the training and knowledge I have now, could I really do it?” she recalls.
“So I raced Coburg 24hr in 2017 and finished with 203kms! This got me across the line to be part of the team going to the Asia Championships this year!”
Urquhart’s fascination with a 24-hour race is about exploring her physical and mental limits.
Curious to know how far she can go, Urquhart is just as intrigued to learn and implement strategies to push those limits; from trying different nutrition plans and mental approaches to adding more tempo work in her training.
“Experimenting with these different factors and seeing how you can optimise your own performance is challenging, but at the same time very empowering and rewarding,” she reveals.
“I still feel very new to the 24-hour event, and there is a lot to learn, so when I found out I was on the team I decided to link up with a coach, Andy Dubois. Up until this year, I had trained myself, using much of the knowledge I had gleaned from ironman triathlon and adventure racing, but having Andy on board has been invaluable.
“It has taken the stress out of planning my own schedule, provided me with an experienced person to ask questions and brainstorm issues, and allowed me to build up my confidence in my running.”
Urquhart says she is beholden to be part of a great team heading to Chinese Taipei.
“I feel very grateful to have been given the opportunity to represent Australia like this, and appreciative of the support I have received to make this happen,” she beams.
“One area which I think I can improve on is my mental preparation, so I’ve started learning more about mental strategies and practising these during training sessions.
“I think there is so much we don’t know in this area, or which may be understood in fields of psychology, but has not been translated to our world of ultra running.”
Urquhart will be racing alongside her Australian team mates at the 2018 IAU 24hr Asia and Oceania Championships in Chinese Taipei the weekend of December 1-2.
Pictured (feature): Donna Urquhart. Photograph – Joe Armao.
Pictured (above left): Donna Urquhart with her family after the 2017 Coburg 24hr. Photograph – Supplied.
