MANAGING FEAR

WILD WISHES

MANAGING FEAR!
I’ve just had the most awesome fear experience, and I have to share it with you.
After reading “Paths of Glory” by Jeffrey Archer, (about George Mallory’s Everest climbs, recommended by Belinda Castine, Mon Manly) I got so motivated and pumped I decided to go bouldering on the golden sandstone cliffs of the Spit.
I set myself a traversing challenge and started to gain confidence. Soon I found myself facing a decision: to go up, past the possible “point of no return” onto uncertain ledges without much to hang onto; or traverse a tricky bit and hope for the best; or try to retreat the way I’d come by down climbing.
My heart began to race and I began sweating profusely. I thought about my responsibilities as a mother of 3 and how sad it would be if I had to be rescued from my little ledge, 3 meters above the ground at the Spit! Silly silly me.
But the physiology of my body was almost overwhelming. I tried to calm my racing heart and think clearly, but I couldn’t. I froze. My heart raced.
I thought about all the frightening things I make you guys do, and I waited.
Then I made a plan.
I would take my chances on the down climb. I held my breath and nervously lowered myself blindly down the ledge, wishing I didn’t have boobs and hoping my feet would stick to an edge or crack somewhere below. Finally I felt a foothold and breathed a sigh of relief.
My challenge reminded of a valuable lesson. We all need to upskill and train to overcome fear with safety. I am now resolved to master that particular cliff, with ropes next time!
I encourage you to take on big Adventure Fitness challenges, and overcome fear by upskilling and being as fit as you can. Check out all the awesome challenges we have in store for you and if something tickles your fancy, no matter how hard it is, go for it! We’ll help you every step of the way!
Di Westaway,
M D Wild Women on Top

WILD ENDURANCE 09

Wild Endurance 09 was awesome. We finalised our team two weeks before the event, after Linda sprained her ankle and Jules developed a stress fracture to end up with Roz, Millie, Merel, Vic and me! I felt very privileged to be in such great company, with all the girls able to run long distances.We planned for a 21 to 22 hour goal but our main focus was to run everything we could in daylight, knowing that once the sun set, we'd slow down and survive on our mental toughness.Our slogan was "Tuffen the f**k up!". And it worked.Roz and I pushed hard for the first 50, then I thought I'd die from fatigue, sore hip, sore knee and massive blood blisters.Roz was awesome throughout as she breezed along and Millie had a tough first half with a few annoying issues to contend with. Vic and Merel stayed focused and tuff, also seeming to saunter along with little apparent effort. We had a magic moment at 60k as the light disappeared, when Merel and Roz tucked up their trekking poles and took off at a trot. We all followed, miraculously, as they ran through the middle of our only visible competition - an all girl team of ultra marathon runners who had been giggling around us since the start. It was remarkable. It felt like an invisible cloud picked me up and sent me effortlessly along with the girls, in spite of my aching body's protestations.We powered on through the night, with Millie carrying us up hundreds of stairs around Wentworth Falls and me again feeling like a lump of lead. Then again suddenly I got a third wind at Leura and strode out to get us off the roads and back onto the spectacular cliff top tracks toward Echo Point. At this stage we were one united mass of power as we strode up the stairs to the finish, pausing briefly to put lips gloss on and remove our fluro vests and reveal our purple Wild Women on Top shirts for the finish line. When we learned that we were the 1st female team and second overall we were thrilled. What an experience!! Cant say I'm in a hurry to do it again soon, but to experience the remarkable power of a strong, tuff, committed team of fit positive women is truly amazing and inspiring. This is addictive.Di Westaway, Wild Women on Top Wild Endurance Team member 09