The Lakeland 100

So, the Lakeland 100, and my attempt at it.

A bit of background first.  The Lakeland 50 (LL50) is how I first came to ultra-running.  I saw it advertised in January 2010, in a Trail Running mag.  I thought, that looks interesting.  £60.  Nope.  So used to fell running, and its usual entry fee of £5, I wasn't so keen.  On to the next page, competition time.  Entry to the LL50/100, all the kit, shoes and accommodation.  Called the wife, got her to enter it for me, then promptly forgot about it.  Until I won it.  Bonus.  Also, the longest I had run up to that point was the Elan Valley OMM, and quite a bit of that wasn't really running.  So I also got to experience my first Old County Tops.

Went up for the recce, the classic 2 day Dalemain-Ambleside-Coniston.  Can't recommend it enough, have never had to use map or roadbook on the 50 since.  Spent most of the 2 days running with Dan Doherty (who, I didn't know, is an accomplished ultra-runner), and catching up with Jon Morgan, whenever he waited for us.  We completed the 2 days running in just under 7 hours, so suffice to say I was feeling pretty hyped.  Until I went to the track, got injured and only ran one more time before the race.  A 10k.  Posted my worst time in a long time, a little under 40 minutes.  My ankle hurt, and I didn't get along with my shoes (back then the only choice for long distance was the roclite 315).

I ran.  I was in pain from about mile 4.  By Kentmere I wanted to quit. By Langdale I felt like I was running with shards of broken glass in my joints.  I eventually came 13th, in 10:15ish.  I knew I could do better.  I went back.

2011.  Entry paid for,didn't blink at the price, as I knew by then it was great value for money.  Training went well, Old County Tops time improved. I was ready.  June 6th, Castleton fell race.  Pushed it hard.  10th place, coming down the hill and gaining.  Hesitated over a stile, caught my toe.  Fell about 6 feet, landed on my arm, my ribs, my knee.  My knee hurt.  People passed me, I got it going.  I ran, hard.  About 5:30/mile all the way to the finish.  It hurt to breathe, it hurt to move my arm.  Passed some people.  Finished 16th, with broken ribs, fractured elbow and bloody sore knee.

I was back running a little within 2 weeks, my arm felt weird, breathing was painful, runs were slow.  Still, the Saunders would sort me out..and it did.  Extremely hot, ran ok, not much pain from ribs or elbow, but my partner was suffering badly from the heat and had to pull out for his sake on day 2.

LL50 Race day.  My Saunder partner was also running this, and it turned out to be a scorcher.  The 500ml bottle I bought turned out to be 300ml, I started cramping at Gatesgarth, body started rejecting food at Langdale.  I think the only reason I came 13th again this year, was that we started 1/2 an hour later, and nobody in front of me knew the way down to Coniston.  I'm assuming this from the amount of headtorch lights I could see all over the valley.

2012.  Injury free, all year.  LL50 start line, feeling good, hammered it from the start.  3rd place, 8:35,1 minute behind 2nd (Grant MacDonald, should have one, passed me about 6 times as he kept getting lost) and 5 behind 1st.  Job done.  Time for a year out, back for the LL100 in 2014...or so I thought.

Turns out I had a free entry into the 2013 event.  So I went for the 100.  I also went for a couple of sessions at The Endurance Coach.  I can't recommend these guys highly enough.  I followed (mostly) their plan, my speed increased, pb's fell, I felt awesome.  I became so attached to my training, I didn't race much.  At all, nearly.  But I was alright with that.

Almost forgot to mention, in this time I have also 1) Completed the equivalent of a full time Maths Degree through the Open University.  2) Had 2 beautiful daughters.  Esmee on the 14th of February 2010, Josie on the 23rd of April, 2012.  3) Had a full time job.  Sacrifices were made, Mel, my wife spent every second weekend (my long run weekends) solo babysitting. When I think about it, I have missed so much.  Which has a bearing on my later decisions.

I have also been converted to Hoka-ism by Richard Bardon.  I was originally going to run the 100 in my well worn-in, but big-toe shredding Combo XT's.  Mel said I should take them in and show them.  So I did, and Mark, the Hoka rep was there.  He sorted me out with a pair of shiny new Rapa-nui's (the Racing Model!) and a new pair of Injinji socks.  I wore them, straight out of the box.  They are awesome.  There will be a review to follow.

Back to the story.  2 months out, started hammering the peak district, long runs, big climbs.  3 weeks out, taper.  Going well.  10 days out...norovirus.  Only diarrhoea though.  Slightly concerned, as I had a race that night.  Started well, crashed out at 3 miles and slowed.  Still managed a sub-30 hilly 5 mile, but was drained.  So drained that I didn't do my annual 10k.

Monday came, body was back to normal.  Very tired, though.  Ran on Tuesday, speed session.  In theory.  Wednesdays 8 mile club run felt good.  I was ready again.  Extremely confident in my body, in my training.  The perfect mental state.

Race Day: It all started so well, started running with Chris Baynham-Hughes (also with diarrhoea), and felt good, although I was feeling a little slow on the climb near the top.  Blasted the downhill, came into checkpoint 1 ahead of schedule, 1:08.  In and out, and on.  Again, a little slow on the climb, but not too bad, into CP2 with Chris, and 2 others.  Had some flapjack, and everything started to go wrong.  So slow up the hills, not much go on the flat.  Surely can't hit a rough patch 15 miles in?  It'll pass...

CP3, the group of 3 near out of sight.  Coke, ham sandwhich, Black Sail Pass.  Chris and Co put loads of time on me here.  Also, Chris Perry and his dad Kevin Perry caught me up, and I had a good chat to Chris, before bombing down to Black Sail YHA.  That was so much fun, just light enough to see, absolutely killed it.  Past the YHA, crawled up the next hill.  Another cracking descent.  Saw lights 1/2 way down, caught them when they were 3/4 down.  I do love a good downhill.  Into Buttermere together, and then on the path to Sail Pass.  This is where it really went wrong.  Energy = gone.  Chris B-H had stopped for a toilet, Chris and Kevin Perry passed me, and someone else.  I'll get them on the down I thought.  Or not.  My descending legs had left me.  Not trashed quads, just..no energy to run downhill.  Oh dear.

Chris B-H caught me on the down, and so did Lee Knight (eventual 6th place).  Into Brathewaite, where Chris Perry was stretching out his calf.  Him and his dad carried on, I loaded up with: Rice pudding, sweets, coke, cake, jelly, more sweets.  Left with Chris B-H and carried on.  Made quite good time to the bottom of Latrigg, mostly because of the lack of climb.  Chris left me here (he didn't realise until he was at the top!), as I was once more pathetic uphill.  From there to Blencathra was really hard work, and started dropping loads of time.  Made it, eventually, in 13th or 14th.  Chris Perry was there, retired.  I was toying with the idea, but it was silly o'clock in the morning, and my hotel was locked.  Not much point really.  Then Grant MacDonald came in, so I left in pursuit.  Managed to keep with him until...the climb to the Old Coach Road.  Him and another bloke that had caught up trotted off up there, whilst I struggled.  They were long gone when I was at the top.

I walked the entire length of the Old Coach Road.  Whilst on it, I decided I was definitely pulling out, and I would be getting to Dockray CP at about 5:30, the pace I was going I would get to Dalemain at 9:00.  My wife was getting sms updates, so I didn't want to worry her unduly and have them getting far longer apart than I had predicted.  Dockray it was.  And I was feeling really good.  A bit of light chaffing on my back, legs were fine, spirits good, just not enough energy to raise a run.  Not even downhill.

Dockray, the place of the Great Misunderstanding (also the billion midges).  So I got there, and made my intentions pretty clear.  No more, was stopping.  They said, "you do realise we can't take you back from here".  I translated that to "someone will be along soon to pick you up".  So I made myself comfortable, had some food, got eaten by midges (still got lumps).  Then realised, by the conversations they were having, that I was walking back to Dalemain.  Oops.  So off I set, down a big, long road.  Downhill.  Met Ross Litherland coming back up the hill, almost at the top in fact.  He was pulling out too, his quads were trashed and he couldn't get down hills.  So I broke the bad news to him - he was going to have to go down the hill he was on again, as there was no transport back from Dockray.

At least I had company for the 3 and 3/4 walk to Dalemain, feeling extremely phony whenever anyone cheered.  Got a big hug from Angela Bardon, got fed, watered, then sat in the sun until retrieved.

I'm ok with the DNF.  Despite the hard work, effort, sacrifice, it was due to something beyond my control.  I also made it further than Terry Conway.

I did have one tearful moment, when my daughter called me and said "it's ok Daddy, you can walk, you can come back now." Then "Can you walk home?"  She won herself a medal from the Lakeland 1, ran all the way.  So proud.

So where to from here?  Back in the 100 to show it who's boss?  No.  Beaten.  No.  What I'm going to do is the LL50 again, in 2014.  In 2015 too.  Then when the girls are a bit older, then back to the 100, to do what I should have.