Mt Eden Month/Mangawhau Marama

Posted by Ed on September 29, 2019

Every day in October 2019 I will summit Mount Eden/Mangawhau in Auckland.

There are a number of reasons for this, each of which popped up in my head over the course of an hour or so, and each of which seemed to coincide so perfectly that I really had no choice but to give in and do it.

• I have no reasons not to
  I have no races or holidays planned for October, so nothing to really get in the way of pulling this off. Plus, the shortest return route to the Mt Eden summit from my apartment is just 5.3km, and though there’s around 150m of climbing involved, the mileage itself shouldn’t be too crazy. That particular route involves the steepest trails, though; I expect most days I’ll do a couple of kilometres more.
• I want to enjoy the extra daylight
  The end of September marked the beginning of Daylight Savings Time here in New Zealand, and with the noticeably longer evenings and the gradual return of warmer weather I want to spend more time on the trails.
• I love Mt Eden
  Simple enough – a diverse set of excellent trails and plenty of #vert, right in the middle of the city. What more could you ask for?
• I want to be as prepared as I can for my next race
  On November 24th I’ll be running the Rotorua Running Festival 50km, and whilst I have got in some good runs, my consistency has been lacking. This is a chance to get in a sold month of structured, consistent volume.
• I want to feel that feeling
  It’s been a fairly stagnant winter for me in terms of adventure, by which I mean that ‘not-quite-sure-I-can-do-this’ feeling that I haven’t really had since starting LEJOG last year. And that’s okay – everybody needs down time. But I’ve long since accepted that I am someone who needs ‘projects’ and plans and overarching narratives to pull me through tough times.
  The nature of this challenge means there will no doubt be summits that have to wait until late at night, or crammed in early in the morning, or battled for through inclement weather. And therein lies the fun – the uncertainty of how each run will unfold.

I’ll be reporting back here each week and posting updates on my Instagram (@trail.bagger) so check back to see how my month unfolds. If you’re interested in joining me for any summits, drop me a message on Instagram and I’ll let you know of my summit plans for any particular day.