Funnily enough I wrote a post on the subject title a few months ago , https://www.runbkrun.com/2025/08/27/how-much-is-too-much-or-is-a-dnf-better-than-a-dns-part-1/ . Little did I suspect I’d be asking myself the question as the start of the 6 inch trail ultra marathon yesterday morning.  ( https://www.6inchtrailmarathon.com/ )

First of all some background on the event. The 6 inch trail ultramarathon was started twenty years ago by Dave Kennedy, together with his bother-in-law Nathan Fawkes, as a fat-ass trail race (i.e. free entry) that would be staged just before the boys sat down for Xmas dinner and all that that entails. Their logic was if they ran an ultra, they could overindulge in the Xmas period without doing too much damage to their ‘trail running’ physiques.  Of course, their logic is flawed as we all know ultra runners always carry a bit of puppy fat , which they can then utilise when they run out of nutrition during the event, well that’s the theory anyhow.

This would be my 16th time racing the 6 inch and over the years there are many traditions that have started and strictly adhered to over the weekend. It use to be a family weekend away but as our kids have all grown up it has morphed into a boys weekend.

Tradition one is the photo of the boys before we set of on our adventure. In this case it’s me, Adam and Bartsy in the local IGA carpark, Saturday high noon.

Next is the photo in the Truckers Lounge at the Baldivis service station where we were joined by Veronika, whose driving is so bad no one is prepared to drive with her, so she comes alone.  This, as the name suggests, is a private lounge reserved for ‘truckers‘ but I feel as Convoy is one of my all-time favourite films I’m allowed entry.

Tradition number three is the photo outside the truckers lounge with the signage in view.  As you can see the signage, as with the whole service station, has been updated and looks very posh.  Unfortunately, the quality of the ‘tukka’ available within the establishment hasn’t changed and I was forced to take on an egg sandwich.  No worries, we were here for the two photos and we got them so time to move on to Goldmine hill.

Goldmine hill is where the event starts and it’s a two, or three kilometre , depending on who you talk to, nasty gradient that sets the tone for the rest of the day if you misjudge it.  Take it easy and you arrive at the top ready for a great day racing in the hills, get it wrong and you arrive at the top contemplating rolling back to the start and crawling home.

Tradition four is the drive-up Goldmine hill and taking photos along the way. We just did the drive bit this year for some reason although Bartsy did stop at the bottom and christened one of the porta-loos, this could now become a tradition for next year?

Tradition five is the shot of the boys in the water showing off their guns, this was added last year.  It’s good to know that even after so many years we can still find new traditions to add to the ever-expanding list. (We’re thinking of starting a calendar of us runners semi-naked, for charity ? What do you think? Answers in the comments section.)

Tradition six is the pre-race photo, just after we tick ourselves off as arriving for the start in North Dandelup Village Hall.

The final tradition is the finishers looking resplendent in their finisher’s shirts, showing off their medals but for the first time in over fifteen years I’m not in this one after pulling out at 18k into the event.  This brings me back to the title of the post, is it better to DNF or DNS?  It’s a double-edged sword me thinks. A DNS shows you realised you wouldn’t be able to complete the event and did the sensible thing by not starting. This protects your body and limits any damage that could, or would have been, taken on board if you had attempted to run an ultra, ill.  Unfortunately, runners are not sensible, and most would argue for a DNF being a batter option because at least you tried to finish.

Driving to the start line I knew there was a good chance I’d be in trouble if I started. I was feeling nauseous and had probably lost a few kilograms on the toilet a few hours earlier. I would have been dehydrated and weak from whatever bug had taken hold of me. (With hindsight probably the same one that had struck down my daughter and wife earlier in the week!)

The issue you face of course is if you DNS (did not start) you’ll always wonder if maybe you could have finished, albeit probably a tad slower than planned?  With a DNF at least you’ll know but you are then tarred with a DNF to your name, which for some is something they find hard to stomach.  Ultimately you are in a lose-lose situation as both options leave you open to criticism.

I decided to go with the ‘roll the dice’ option and hope I could still finish albeit towards the back of the pack, with a finishing time playing secondary to just finishing. Unfortunately, this seems to be my favourite word in my posts this year, I probably chose the wrong option and ended up pulling out at the first major road crossing at eighteen kilometres in.  Some of you may think that left only around thirty kilometres to the finish but at this stage I was probably just ahead of the sweeper and three hours into the event.  I would have been cutting it close to finish in the eight hours allotted time.  More importantly I wasn’t having fun, far from it, and five more hours of not having fun wasn’t that appealing.

Of course there is the finish at all costs mentality but after twenty odd years of racing, and this being my sixteenth time racing this event, I really wasn’t overly excited and couldn’t muster up enough enthusiasm to carry on. If I had continued there would then be a seven-to-eight-hour finish time against my name which I considered worse than a DNF. So many reasons to DNF , and this time, for the first time for many years, I decided to justify one of them and pull the pin.

So was it the right thing to do? It’s a personal question that one. I could have probably finished just before the cut off, around eight hours, but what would that accomplish.  This was an end of year event more about spending times with the boys than the actual event, at this stage in my running career.  The days of top three finishes are well and truly over and it’s not as if I haven’t finished this event fifteen times before.  Some will say it could have been sixteen but at what cost , I need to justify suffering and in this case I just couldn’t, simple.

Of course Bartsy was unrelating in his ‘banter’ which bordered on just being plain nasty but that’s Bartsy, he is very competitive and in his defence we did pay out on him last year when his hammy prevented him from finishing.  The rest of the crew were very understanding, and social media also aired on comforting rather than confrontational.   No worries, typing this post I am happy I made the right decision albeit having another DNF to my name hurts but that’s just ego and I’ll take some learning from this moving forward,  which is a good thing, one of the most important ones avoid your Wife if she is sick and you have a race coming up !

Finally, a new tradition now is the DNF runners started last year when Bartsy pulled out with TB at aid one with a dodgy hammy. Unfortunately, there’s that word again, I joined TB this year.  I’m hoping Jon (TB) and I avoid this photo next year, actually I’m hoping no one is in this traditional photo next year!

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Big shout out to fisiocrem , this product is just incredible for tired and aching legs. I use it daily and have noticed a vast improvement in recovery.

Bix hydration is just ace, a product brought to life by Vlad Ixel a professional ultra runner who knows a thing or two about hydration. ( https://www.bixvitamins.com/ )  The best thing about Bix is it tastes good with many different flavours and you never get sick of drinking it, this is a big plus as Maurten and Tailwind (both great products)  can be difficult to digest later in the event.  From the website :-

As an Australian elite multiple trail running champion, with wins in over 40 ultra-marathon races across Asia, recovery from training and races has always been my top priority. 

In searching for a solid recovery and hydration supplement, I recognized that critical vitamins and minerals – both in diversity and quantity – were missing from almost all supplements on the market. I had the feeling that in an effort to maximize their bottom-lines, companies in the hydration space, failed to deliver a product that could meaningfully assist athlete performance. 

In order to address this, I began the development of a hydration product. After two and a half years of development alongside a leading German sports scientist, BIX Recovery, an advanced, high-quality recovery drink was born. 

BIX boosts 12 active ingredients scientifically balanced to replace lost electrolytes and assist in immune function. It’s designed with quality vitamins and minerals, in quantities that work! 

BIX is a recovery solution for everyone, that will get you to the top of your game!

What can I say about HumanTecar,  ( https://athleticus.com.au/ ) it looks great, smells great and is awesome for recovery or even pre-run/workout. Read about the science behind it first and then try the products. The compression bandages are just magical after a long event. Put these on and the next day you are recovered, I have used them on a number of occasions and they never fail to astound me albeit the family poke fun at me as I look like a ‘mummy and smell funny’ !

Fractel ( https://fractel.com.au/ ) have your performance headgear covered. I love the colours and the functionality of these hats, I guarantee there is one model you’ll fall in love with.

Shokz headphones, let you keep in touch with the world around while losing yourself in quality tunes or podcasts. ( https://shokz.com.au/ )

T8 running apparel is the best you can get, second to none. Designed for the ultra humid Hong Kong conditions the owners live in.  It is light and does away with any chaffing worries. T8 is the name given to the highest typhoon warning in Honk Kong,  storms and typhoons with gusts exceeding 180kph, which explains the branding. ( https://t8.run/)

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