In just under a week, I'm going to be toeing the line of the Lakeland 50 for the sixth time. I'm looking forward to it as I love the race, the people involved and the atmosphere that is not only inclusive for the athletes but the families of the athletes (and has given my youngest daughter an obsession with foxes!).
I'm also pretty excited about testing myself against a really strong field. Danny Kendall (5th overall at the MDS and ran just over 8 hours a couple of years back), Jayson Cavill (last years winner), Ben Abdelnoor (The Noor, one of my fell running heroes and current record holder), Andy Horrobin (ex elite cyclist and scarily fast oldish bloke), Lee Knight (will actually push himself hard enough to make his eyeballs bleed), Marcus Scotney (Winner of most things, and current fastest person to Troutbeck) is on the entry list, Anthony (Forest) Bethell (King Raidlight and a talented runner), Matt Wilson, Steven Lord, and probably a few others I have missed!
My main goal is to improve on last years' performance - to actually win the damn thing this time. This means my game plan is going to (potentially) have to change from last year. 2015 was another warm one, so my plan was to take it (relatively) easy to the top of Fusedale, then pick it up along Haweswater and pick my way through the carnage. That worked up to a point, but even though I took 12 minutes out of Jayson over the last 16 miles, he had built up enough of a lead initially for that not to matter at all.
Secondary goal (if I fail the first) is to get around in under 8 hours. Unless it's stupidly hot again, I think I'm capable of that.
Fall-back goal: Get on the podium.
This year, the plan is to stick with the guys at the pointy end, and see who lasts it out. I'm pretty confident of putting in a good showing. I've been using TrainAsONE (link here, get involved in the Beta) and it has made a massive improvement in my pace vs heartrate. I'm also part of Team Mountain Fuel (Link here, it's awesome stuff) and have based my nutrition strategy around the Xtreme Energy carb drink. It's brilliant, and has totally revolutionised my fuelling. It works incredibly well (for me) when backed up by jelly babies! It also means that I'm not lugging around 19 gels with me this time.
How I'm fuelling: Pretty much a 500ml bottle of Xtreme Energy between each checkpoint, and top up my jelly babies on the way round. Most checkpoints have jelly babies, so I'm going to have to carry less. From Kentmere onwards, it's all about salted flat Cola at checkpoints as well. Tastes pretty grim, but does the job.
Both of my daughters are ready for the Lakeland 1, and are perfecting the dance moves as I write. I think Esmee should get herself a new mile P.B. as well.
Sunday, 24 July 2016
Sunday, 17 July 2016
Gear Review: The North Face Better Than Naked Long Haul Short
I’ve reached the point in my running life where I’m always
on the lookout for new shorts. All of my
old faithfuls are slowly disintegrating, and my shorts rotation is
diminishing. Enter Father’s Day, and a
new pair of The North Face Better Than Naked Long Haul Shorts (Long Hauls from
here).
The Long Hauls consist of an outer short, with a long, tight
fitting internal short with FlashDry™, a proprietary TNF material additive
which improves moisture management and temperature regulation. It also helps them dry out really fast as well.
When you first look at the shorts, they look mostly like
normal, slightly longer shorts, with a strange, thick black band running around
the top.
That unusual looking band is where part of the genius of
these shorts lie. Contained within the
band is a series of elasticated, open pockets to expand your on-the-go storage
options. There are 7 of them, the
pockets at either end being slightly larger.
The smaller will fit gels, keys, ipods, whilst in the larger I can fit
in a Berghaus Vaporlight Hypersmock.
There is also a zipped pocket on the back which is big enough to fit in
a 5-inch smartphone of your choice.
If that wasn’t enough, there are also pockets on the liner
short - 2 larger pockets on the right leg, 3 smaller pockets on the left. I’m not entirely sure exactly what I could
put in there, as they would be a faff to get to whilst racing and they aren’t
particularly deep.
So how do they actually feel on? They are fantastic. The FlashDry™ does what it says – keeps
everything moisture free, and breathes exceptionally well. I have worn them for extended periods in hot
weather, wet weather or both combined (English Summer!) and have had no
chaffing or discomfort whatsoever.
I have even tried them out fully laden, 10 gels, 1
waterproof, ipod, phone, keys and was very impressed. Because the pockets are above the hips and
where the draw-cord is, they don’t slip down.
The contents are kept firmly in place from the elasticity of the
pockets, and don’t bounce. The gels are
easy to access, and I was able to remove/replace the phone without any faffing
which was a surprise.
The only downside to the shorts is that because they are so
breathable, in cold weather everything gets a bit…cold.
These shorts are by far the best I own, and have revolutionised
my load carrying, and are a perfect companion for packs without any up-front
carrying capacity.
Recommended.
Saturday, 25 June 2016
Ladybower Trail Marathon
A little while back, I did the Kielder 50km race (blog here) and met a bloke called David Riley. He was just getting into organising some trail races in the Peak District. Fast forward a bit, and he's putting together the inaugural Ladybower Trail Marathon.
David got in contact and asked me if I'd like to be involved and race in it. I was pretty excited about it as I love that area of the Peaks, and it was about perfect timing for a last long hard effort before the ever-closer Lakeland 50.
And with views like this, why wouldn't you?
So as race day approached I was in the pretty strange position of wondering how on earth I was going to pace it, as it was (relatively) flat, and I have zero experience with long flat races! As luck would have it, I noticed team-mate Dan Page sneaked in a late entry. He's a 2:40 marathoner, and a running coach, so I figured I could get a bit of pacing advice off him before he left me in a cloud of dust.
My nutrition plan was pretty simple. Mountain Fuel Night Fuel the night before, a bottle of Xtreme Energy before the race, then throw down some water and jelly babies at the checkpoints as I wanted to travel as light as possible. I had no idea if this was a good idea, but it seemed to work for my 3 hour pickup runs, so worth a shot I thought.
On the drive up, I decided that I would run at about 145-150bpm, which is around 6:30/mile (on the flat!) and just below my threshold HR (155ish) which should leave me in a position to push on if I could later in the race, rather than crash and burn (for once!).
I arrive, park up and get registered. Everything is wonderfully low key and very friendly, with a really nice atmosphere to it. I spot Dan, say a quick hello, then spot Tony Holland (of The Ultra Runner Store fame and leader of the Ultra Runner Trail Team) and Shelli Gordon (outstanding long distance trail runner and Ultra Runner team mate) and have a catch up.
Race start time. Dan and I head off at the front, and pretty soon trotting along solo. Have an interesting chat about heart-rate, trying to find out if my strategy is a good one. Turns out I can't actually run at his heart rate. My max is 179, his threshold pace is 175. Not going to try matching that anytime soon!
Our pace, to my surprise, turned out to be near identical. Both running just 5-10 bpm below threshold, and both similar pace. I'd pull away on the climbs, he'd pull me back on the flats. The first CP arrived, I stopped to grab 2 cups of water and 5 jelly babies. Dan grabbed some water and blasted through. Luckily there was a short climb after so I could catch him back up.
The race carried on like this until the second checkpoint, about mile 10. Chatting whist we were running together, but no pressure to run at each others pace. If we were together, fine. If he was just in front, fine, he'd come back on a climb. If I was in front, fine, he'd catch back up on the flat. Fantastic to be running near someone but with no pressure to match their pace, just to keep on at your own.
Checkpoint 2, I stopped for some water and to grab 5 more jelly babies. Dan blasted through again, and I spent the next mile or so catching up the 20 metres of distance between us. I caught him on a climb, then moved a bit in front, putting the biggest gap between us so far. We reached the bridge on the A57, where the terrain suited Dan and he caught back up. At half marathon distance now, in 1:27ish.
We start heading back up on the lake. There's a nice trail, and it's wooded. There's something about running along wooded paths that just relaxes me and I pull away from Dan a little bit. All too soon it's over, Checkpoint 3 arrives, with salted nuts! I grab some water, 7 jelly babies (next CP is 6 miles away!) and suck the salt off a handful of nuts before spitting them back out (steady!).
It's a 400 ft climb from here, in the space of half a mile. Head down, keep the heart rate steady. Seems to work ok - I get up the hill alright, Dan just behind me and I can pick up the pace straight away along the top. There's an amazing view off to the left of the Kinder Plateau, and up towards Snake Pass. Awesome. A tiny descent, then another climb of 100ft or so, where we run past a couple of mountain bikers. One of them is a bit sad about it (What's going on here? This aint right! I'll get you on the down!) as I trot by, followed by Dan. Then my favourite bit - a nice, technical downhill. I let myself relax, and cruise down the hill.
I got to the bottom of the hill about 30 seconds before the mountain bikers (Ha!) and headed off back around the lake. I put just under a minute on Dan down there, and tried to capitalise on that by picking up the pace a little. Which worked well until mile 19, where stitch happened. I jammed my fist under my ribs (sometimes works), slowed down a little (sometimes works), grunted a lot (never works but it hurt like hell). Stopped. Walked. Saw Dan. Ran a bit. Got passed by Dan. Started up some sort of weird, short-stepped fast shuffle and ran along with him.
Really not a fan of this, and right on the edge of too much pain to run, but I wasn't letting Dan get away! Thankfully a checkpoint was coming up. No idea what they were going to be able to do to help, but one was coming all the same.
We arrive at the same time, and they have bottles of water. Bonus! I grab a drink (stitch immediately relaxes!), 5 jelly babies, a bottle of water and head on out, feeling great that the stitch had gone. I'm out before Dan too, so he has to push a bit harder on the climb to tag back on. I encourage him to push on if he wants, as I didn't want to hold hands across the line. He doesn't.
We get to the top of the lake again, then Dan cramps up in his left calf. I'm just behind him, so I see his gait go a bit funny. Well, this could be it! I think to myself, and get a move on out of there. Even though it's a steady climb, I push up to 153bpm, maintaining 6:40ish pace. We've got 4 miles to go, it's on!
Little did I know that Dan had only slowed a little, and briefly, and a mile later I hear footsteps. Time to push harder! And hello, stitch. I back off a little, and it feels like some sort of weird, slow motion race, I feel like I'm moving through treacle but Dan isn't pulling away. I start to get hopeful. I spot the dam just by the finish. I'm still feeling good, and the stitch eases a little with the adrenaline.
I push harder, then with about half a mile to go hit the gas. Feels good. Nearly there. Push harder. Finish should be just around here...although we are still up a little high... Yes! The road down to the finish! Massive adrenaline hit, and a little emotion, and I'm near sprinting, fatigue forgotten. I cross the line 1st, in 3:03:37, with Dan Page 2nd, 24 seconds later. 3rd place Warren Watts comes in 5 minutes later to round off the men's podium.
First Lady (6th overall) is Elly Woodhead in an impressive 3:31, followed by Katey Foster (8th overall) then Shelli Gordon (9th overall).
Ben Brindley finished 46th, in 4:43 which is pretty epic, as it was his 7th in 7 days. All Peak District based, all very hilly, and all in aid of Buxton Mountain Rescue (donate here)
A very informal prize giving, and I get the surprisingly heavy (9.3kg!) trophy.
An awesome end to a really enjoyable run.
Things I learnt from the run.
1) Running to a set heart rate is pretty cool, and worked really well for me here. I was about 5bpm under threshold, and it felt nice.
2) I can run faster than I though I can. See above.
3) I need to make sure I drink enough for that I don't get smashed by stitch again. Or get some sort of really light drink carrier thing,
4) Jelly babies + Mountain Fuel = nice, smooth energy delivery (for me, anyway).
5) TrainAsONE really works. I've been following it, it's adaptive training plan is brilliant. (website here)
Stuff I need to change for next time:
1) Push my pace to threshold from the off. I felt too good at the end.
2) I need to take some fluid around with me. Need to find myself a 500ml bottle carrier thing. Not in pack or bumbag/belt form though. Some kind of handheld. Suggestions?
Stuff I wore:
x-bionic The Trick top. Coped with the temperature changes really well.
Tight Shorts. No chafe :)
x-bionic energiser boxers. No chafe :)
injinji trail socks.
Scott Kinabalu shoes. These things are comfy, grippy and just work well.
Thanks to Mountain Fuel for fuelling my run.
Thanks to David Riley for the race entry.
I'm going back next year, such a fantastic event. Also, need my first sub-3 marathon!
David got in contact and asked me if I'd like to be involved and race in it. I was pretty excited about it as I love that area of the Peaks, and it was about perfect timing for a last long hard effort before the ever-closer Lakeland 50.
 |
| Photo: David Riley |
So as race day approached I was in the pretty strange position of wondering how on earth I was going to pace it, as it was (relatively) flat, and I have zero experience with long flat races! As luck would have it, I noticed team-mate Dan Page sneaked in a late entry. He's a 2:40 marathoner, and a running coach, so I figured I could get a bit of pacing advice off him before he left me in a cloud of dust.
My nutrition plan was pretty simple. Mountain Fuel Night Fuel the night before, a bottle of Xtreme Energy before the race, then throw down some water and jelly babies at the checkpoints as I wanted to travel as light as possible. I had no idea if this was a good idea, but it seemed to work for my 3 hour pickup runs, so worth a shot I thought.
On the drive up, I decided that I would run at about 145-150bpm, which is around 6:30/mile (on the flat!) and just below my threshold HR (155ish) which should leave me in a position to push on if I could later in the race, rather than crash and burn (for once!).
I arrive, park up and get registered. Everything is wonderfully low key and very friendly, with a really nice atmosphere to it. I spot Dan, say a quick hello, then spot Tony Holland (of The Ultra Runner Store fame and leader of the Ultra Runner Trail Team) and Shelli Gordon (outstanding long distance trail runner and Ultra Runner team mate) and have a catch up.
 |
| Tony showing off his new gels. |
 |
| Comparing our different Scott shoes |
Race start time. Dan and I head off at the front, and pretty soon trotting along solo. Have an interesting chat about heart-rate, trying to find out if my strategy is a good one. Turns out I can't actually run at his heart rate. My max is 179, his threshold pace is 175. Not going to try matching that anytime soon!
Our pace, to my surprise, turned out to be near identical. Both running just 5-10 bpm below threshold, and both similar pace. I'd pull away on the climbs, he'd pull me back on the flats. The first CP arrived, I stopped to grab 2 cups of water and 5 jelly babies. Dan grabbed some water and blasted through. Luckily there was a short climb after so I could catch him back up.
The race carried on like this until the second checkpoint, about mile 10. Chatting whist we were running together, but no pressure to run at each others pace. If we were together, fine. If he was just in front, fine, he'd come back on a climb. If I was in front, fine, he'd catch back up on the flat. Fantastic to be running near someone but with no pressure to match their pace, just to keep on at your own.
 |
| Spot the dodgy leg action |
Checkpoint 2, I stopped for some water and to grab 5 more jelly babies. Dan blasted through again, and I spent the next mile or so catching up the 20 metres of distance between us. I caught him on a climb, then moved a bit in front, putting the biggest gap between us so far. We reached the bridge on the A57, where the terrain suited Dan and he caught back up. At half marathon distance now, in 1:27ish.
We start heading back up on the lake. There's a nice trail, and it's wooded. There's something about running along wooded paths that just relaxes me and I pull away from Dan a little bit. All too soon it's over, Checkpoint 3 arrives, with salted nuts! I grab some water, 7 jelly babies (next CP is 6 miles away!) and suck the salt off a handful of nuts before spitting them back out (steady!).
It's a 400 ft climb from here, in the space of half a mile. Head down, keep the heart rate steady. Seems to work ok - I get up the hill alright, Dan just behind me and I can pick up the pace straight away along the top. There's an amazing view off to the left of the Kinder Plateau, and up towards Snake Pass. Awesome. A tiny descent, then another climb of 100ft or so, where we run past a couple of mountain bikers. One of them is a bit sad about it (What's going on here? This aint right! I'll get you on the down!) as I trot by, followed by Dan. Then my favourite bit - a nice, technical downhill. I let myself relax, and cruise down the hill.
I got to the bottom of the hill about 30 seconds before the mountain bikers (Ha!) and headed off back around the lake. I put just under a minute on Dan down there, and tried to capitalise on that by picking up the pace a little. Which worked well until mile 19, where stitch happened. I jammed my fist under my ribs (sometimes works), slowed down a little (sometimes works), grunted a lot (never works but it hurt like hell). Stopped. Walked. Saw Dan. Ran a bit. Got passed by Dan. Started up some sort of weird, short-stepped fast shuffle and ran along with him.
Really not a fan of this, and right on the edge of too much pain to run, but I wasn't letting Dan get away! Thankfully a checkpoint was coming up. No idea what they were going to be able to do to help, but one was coming all the same.
We arrive at the same time, and they have bottles of water. Bonus! I grab a drink (stitch immediately relaxes!), 5 jelly babies, a bottle of water and head on out, feeling great that the stitch had gone. I'm out before Dan too, so he has to push a bit harder on the climb to tag back on. I encourage him to push on if he wants, as I didn't want to hold hands across the line. He doesn't.
We get to the top of the lake again, then Dan cramps up in his left calf. I'm just behind him, so I see his gait go a bit funny. Well, this could be it! I think to myself, and get a move on out of there. Even though it's a steady climb, I push up to 153bpm, maintaining 6:40ish pace. We've got 4 miles to go, it's on!
 |
| Focused! |
Little did I know that Dan had only slowed a little, and briefly, and a mile later I hear footsteps. Time to push harder! And hello, stitch. I back off a little, and it feels like some sort of weird, slow motion race, I feel like I'm moving through treacle but Dan isn't pulling away. I start to get hopeful. I spot the dam just by the finish. I'm still feeling good, and the stitch eases a little with the adrenaline.
 |
| Heading in to the finish, Dan Page just behind! |
I push harder, then with about half a mile to go hit the gas. Feels good. Nearly there. Push harder. Finish should be just around here...although we are still up a little high... Yes! The road down to the finish! Massive adrenaline hit, and a little emotion, and I'm near sprinting, fatigue forgotten. I cross the line 1st, in 3:03:37, with Dan Page 2nd, 24 seconds later. 3rd place Warren Watts comes in 5 minutes later to round off the men's podium.
First Lady (6th overall) is Elly Woodhead in an impressive 3:31, followed by Katey Foster (8th overall) then Shelli Gordon (9th overall).
Ben Brindley finished 46th, in 4:43 which is pretty epic, as it was his 7th in 7 days. All Peak District based, all very hilly, and all in aid of Buxton Mountain Rescue (donate here)
A very informal prize giving, and I get the surprisingly heavy (9.3kg!) trophy.
 |
| 1st and 2nd, Team Mountain Fuel |
An awesome end to a really enjoyable run.
Things I learnt from the run.
1) Running to a set heart rate is pretty cool, and worked really well for me here. I was about 5bpm under threshold, and it felt nice.
2) I can run faster than I though I can. See above.
3) I need to make sure I drink enough for that I don't get smashed by stitch again. Or get some sort of really light drink carrier thing,
4) Jelly babies + Mountain Fuel = nice, smooth energy delivery (for me, anyway).
5) TrainAsONE really works. I've been following it, it's adaptive training plan is brilliant. (website here)
Stuff I need to change for next time:
1) Push my pace to threshold from the off. I felt too good at the end.
2) I need to take some fluid around with me. Need to find myself a 500ml bottle carrier thing. Not in pack or bumbag/belt form though. Some kind of handheld. Suggestions?
Stuff I wore:
x-bionic The Trick top. Coped with the temperature changes really well.
Tight Shorts. No chafe :)
x-bionic energiser boxers. No chafe :)
injinji trail socks.
Scott Kinabalu shoes. These things are comfy, grippy and just work well.
Thanks to Mountain Fuel for fuelling my run.
Thanks to David Riley for the race entry.
I'm going back next year, such a fantastic event. Also, need my first sub-3 marathon!
Tuesday, 7 June 2016
Old County Tops
Ah, the Old County Tops. The classic paired fell race, taking in Helvellyn, Scafell Pike, and Old Man Coniston, starting and finishing in Great Langdale. There's 37 miles of it (route choice dependent), and about 10,000 feet of ascent involved.
It's brutal. It takes no prisoners. If you go off too fast, you'll hurt all of the way to the end, if you make it. Too slow, you might not make the cut-offs. Can't navigate in the clag? Might end up anywhere (god knows I did!). Haven't experienced any 1000+ ft descents? prepare for your quads to go numb...
It is, however, my absolute favourite race, and the race I have completed the most often. This was to be my 7th, one t-shirt for every day of the week. And what a t-shirt it is. The most recognisable in fell running.
This year was to be a departure from the norm for me, as I was having to enlist help from outside my running club (Erewash Valley RC) in the form of Chris Baynham-Hughes. I've known Chris ever since the Welsh 1000m Peaks race, where we both came off Snowden the wrong way at the end. I've run a few races with him since then, so I knew we would be able to put up with each other. Expectations were set at 1) complete the damn thing and 2) get in under 9 hours. Everything else was irrelevant.
I was using the race to test out how Mountain Fuel would work for me over a long period of time, backed up with checkpoint food and some jelly babies. Plan was 4 sachets of Xtreme over the course, with refills at Wythburn, Angle Tarn and Cockley Beck.
Race morning arrived far too quickly. Kit check, registration, catching up with the usual suspects and some new. Race briefing, a final kiss from Mel and the girls (Esmee with her head in her book) and then we were off.
A steady trot along the bridlepath, onto the road briefly then up onto the footpath that goes over Thrang Crag and then down into Grasmere. Still going nice and steady, not sure what place we were in, but wasn't really too bothered. We head up Tongue Ghyll to Grisedale Hause still going steady. Almost go the wrong way around the lake as the clag was down, then head straight up the fence line to The Post. It's properly raining now, and really windy, although not a head wind as yet. Some good running along past Dollywaggon, High Crag, Nethermost Pike to The Shelter on Helvellyn. Numbers registered, then the massive descent down to Wythburn Carpark, and Food Point 1.
We go straight down until the terrain flattens out, then across and down to meet the path on the other side of Comb Ghyll. Not the best route as others take much faster lines here, by dropping down further before heading across the ghyll. Down the very slippery steps to Wythburn, for a Mountain Fuel top-up, a jam sandwich and half a cup of tea.
We exit out, and get a trot on along the path to the road crossing. We pass a couple of young lads and have a bit of banter. We will see more of them later...
It gets warm heading up Wyth Burn, so I take my smock off. It's a Berghaus Vapourlight, love it but it gets a bit sweaty on the inside when it's warm. About 3 minutes later when we hit The Bog (actual name, very appropriate too!) the temperature drops again, so back on it goes, over my pack this time. A bit tight, but more convenient.
We trog around The Bog, then take a slightly more Northerly route on the approach to Flour Ghyll, which works well. Neither of us sank. It's a hard slog up to Greenup Edge, and CBH hits a bit of a low patch going up. We regroup, then head straight into the teeth of a ridiculous headwind. It came accompanied with rain, small droplets that hurt. A lot. The run down to Stake Pass was just on the right side of exciting - too much more and it would have been verging on dangerous.
The two young lads pop past us, moving well on the descent. We hit just above Stake Pass then head up towards Angle Tarn. We followed the main path this time instead of the slightly more direct route as it was easier running in the horrible weather. We pop past the lads, then on to Angle Tarn for a supply top up and photo opportunity.
It's brutal. It takes no prisoners. If you go off too fast, you'll hurt all of the way to the end, if you make it. Too slow, you might not make the cut-offs. Can't navigate in the clag? Might end up anywhere (god knows I did!). Haven't experienced any 1000+ ft descents? prepare for your quads to go numb...
It is, however, my absolute favourite race, and the race I have completed the most often. This was to be my 7th, one t-shirt for every day of the week. And what a t-shirt it is. The most recognisable in fell running.
This year was to be a departure from the norm for me, as I was having to enlist help from outside my running club (Erewash Valley RC) in the form of Chris Baynham-Hughes. I've known Chris ever since the Welsh 1000m Peaks race, where we both came off Snowden the wrong way at the end. I've run a few races with him since then, so I knew we would be able to put up with each other. Expectations were set at 1) complete the damn thing and 2) get in under 9 hours. Everything else was irrelevant.
I was using the race to test out how Mountain Fuel would work for me over a long period of time, backed up with checkpoint food and some jelly babies. Plan was 4 sachets of Xtreme over the course, with refills at Wythburn, Angle Tarn and Cockley Beck.
 |
| Briefing |
Race morning arrived far too quickly. Kit check, registration, catching up with the usual suspects and some new. Race briefing, a final kiss from Mel and the girls (Esmee with her head in her book) and then we were off.
A steady trot along the bridlepath, onto the road briefly then up onto the footpath that goes over Thrang Crag and then down into Grasmere. Still going nice and steady, not sure what place we were in, but wasn't really too bothered. We head up Tongue Ghyll to Grisedale Hause still going steady. Almost go the wrong way around the lake as the clag was down, then head straight up the fence line to The Post. It's properly raining now, and really windy, although not a head wind as yet. Some good running along past Dollywaggon, High Crag, Nethermost Pike to The Shelter on Helvellyn. Numbers registered, then the massive descent down to Wythburn Carpark, and Food Point 1.
We go straight down until the terrain flattens out, then across and down to meet the path on the other side of Comb Ghyll. Not the best route as others take much faster lines here, by dropping down further before heading across the ghyll. Down the very slippery steps to Wythburn, for a Mountain Fuel top-up, a jam sandwich and half a cup of tea.
We exit out, and get a trot on along the path to the road crossing. We pass a couple of young lads and have a bit of banter. We will see more of them later...
It gets warm heading up Wyth Burn, so I take my smock off. It's a Berghaus Vapourlight, love it but it gets a bit sweaty on the inside when it's warm. About 3 minutes later when we hit The Bog (actual name, very appropriate too!) the temperature drops again, so back on it goes, over my pack this time. A bit tight, but more convenient.
We trog around The Bog, then take a slightly more Northerly route on the approach to Flour Ghyll, which works well. Neither of us sank. It's a hard slog up to Greenup Edge, and CBH hits a bit of a low patch going up. We regroup, then head straight into the teeth of a ridiculous headwind. It came accompanied with rain, small droplets that hurt. A lot. The run down to Stake Pass was just on the right side of exciting - too much more and it would have been verging on dangerous.
The two young lads pop past us, moving well on the descent. We hit just above Stake Pass then head up towards Angle Tarn. We followed the main path this time instead of the slightly more direct route as it was easier running in the horrible weather. We pop past the lads, then on to Angle Tarn for a supply top up and photo opportunity.
Angle Tarn
Waiting for Chris....
Still waiting...
Chris has a bit of a mare with his CP admin, hands were too cold to open packets. Entertaining stuff though. From there, it's the steps of doom up towards Esk Hause. We catch up to Pup (James Harris), who had broken his partner a bit. He finished tying his shoelaces then ran up the rest of the steps. That lad is a machine.
Back in the clag from Esk Hause all the way to Scafell Pike, with me risking injury with every footstep - all broken, wet slabs and me in Salomon Fellraisers. Comfy, hard wearing and fantastic in every respect. Except they act as a frictionless surface when confronted with wet rock.
We take the direct route off. 7th time doing the direct route, 7th different route down. Adds to the excitement. We pick up the trod easily, and head off down until we get to 3 other pairs scratching their heads when it disappears (including the lads). Where to go next? James lets slip that I've done it loads, so I point in a direction I hope is right. And in all fairness, it's OK. Only a small bit of climbing, although I do put a small hole in my smock.
It's very steep and grassy down towards Great Moss, and the lads hammer down the hill, then...go in completely the wrong direction. Too far away to hear us unfortunately, but we have a good laugh. Chris get out some concoction he made earlier, containing coconut, apricots and some other stuff I can't remember, coated in chocolate. It's amazing.
Across Great Moss (should be called Great Bog. Really.) then pick up the trod taking the direct line to Mosedale. We meet the lads again, have a bit of a laugh then hit Mosedale. One of the best bits of running in the race, we let loose a bit and stretch our legs.
Leg stretching.
We then hit the oasis of calm and food that is Cockley Beck CP.
This place is amazing. The Cheese and Homemade Pickle sandwiches are amazing. We get our Mountain Fuel topup, a chow a sandwich, cup of tea and a bit of fruit cake (I have learnt not to gorge myself here, sickness does follow...). The lads pass us and carry on, going slightly to the left of the normal route... We exit the CP, the Chris spots a lady called Wynne in a campervan. He tells me she has Honorary BG Club membership because of her amazing support of so many successful rounds. She also had Brownies. I had one. I think it had more calories in that one piece of cake than I had consumed all week. It was incredible.
We hit the climb up to Coniston Old Man. It actually feels easier than it has done before. I credit the brownie. We look for the 2 lads, but can't see them. Clearly, they have smashed the climb and going strong. We carry on, hitting the fences at the stiles and move upwards strongly. About halfway up we look back... and see the lads quite a way behind. Wonder where they have been?
At the top, it's undulating all the way to the checkpoint at COM summit. We run the flats, the downs, and even some of the gentler ups, and get treated to some amazing scenes through breaks in the cloud over towards Windermere. We hit the CP, then it's mostly downhill from there. We get caught by a strong descending pair, both in full waterproofs, by the time we hit the Three Shire Stones CP. A quick drink, and we hit the road down to Blea Tarn. We pass by the Waterproof Pair again, and it's getting really warm. Like really, really warm. We finish the quad-shredding road descent, then hit the path past Blea Moss and Blea Tarn. We hit the gas, trying to drop the pair, and spot a new pair. Not in waterproofs. 2 miles to go, and the race is on. We keep a good pace going, adrenaline carrying us up most of the climbs, until the drop down towards the campsite. We take the route over the fields towards Side House, and they close a little on the descent.
We up the pace. We're holding them. We get over the last ladder stile, onto the last short road section then increase pace again, and hold them off to finish in 16th place, in 8:34.
All in all, another fantastic day out. My favourite race of the year. If I could only do one, it would be this one.
Stuff which worked:
Montane cap. Kept the rain from blinding me.
Mountain Fuel. Interspersed with Jelly babies, was perfect. Didn't hit any low patches, just a constant supply of energy.
X-Bionic kit The Trick T-shirt and shorts kept my temperature stable, had less faff with taking off/replacing layers over the race.
Injinji Socks No between-toe blisters. Yay!
Thanks to MountainFuel for fuelling my race ( https://www.mountainfuel.co.uk )
The Ultra-Runner shop for kit ( http://ultra-runner.com )
X-Bionic for The Trick top and bottom ( www.x-bionic.co.uk )
Monday, 14 December 2015
Keyworth Turkey Trot
Previous week's training:
Monday: 10.4 mile run after work. Felt good!
Tuesday: 15x 30 sec efforts at approx 5min/mile, 45 sec rest. Sounds a lot, but in reality only 7.5 minutes hard running. Need to double that for next time!
Wednesday: Club night, annual F.A.R.T.S. run (First Alternative Run To Stanley). New route as clubhouse changed, 12 steady miles.
Thursday: Pyramid! 2/3/4/5/4/3/2 minutes with 60/90/120/120/90/60 seconds rest. All at around h/m pace of 6min/mile.
Friday: Rest
Saturday: Paintballing. Which is now added to my list of "Things Not To Do The Day Before A Race". An inordinate amount of time holding a crouch meant dead quads for...
Sunday: Turkey Trot Half Marathon. 13.1 miles, 501ft of climb, 1:20:17 and 17th place.
Strava here
It's my annual road half, and a nice scenic one at that. It's not flat, but not ridiculously hilly and a good chance to get a good pace going on for stretch. My club mate Tom has been going from strength to strength this year (upping his mileage from 50 per month to 150 may have had a bit to do with it...) and was looking for a p.b., and also to beat me.
I was just looking to stay ahead of him.
My race nutrition plan had started the night before, with a Mountain Fuel Night Fuel (made up with hot milk - pretty tasty). 2 pieces of toast for breakfast with a Morning Fuel made up with hot water. On the drive in I sipped a bottle of Extreme Energy Fuel made up with 500ml water.
Arrived to the race with Tom, caught the transfer coach to the race (it was cold out!) and went to inspect the Derby Runner race stall. It's my local running gear shop, and I like to support local whenever I can - so new road shoes!
Got myself changed, put on my arm warmers (don't like cold), caught up with some club mates and David Greenwood, an up and coming ultra-runner. Went for a warm up jog around the block and discovered that my quads were feeling a bit...iffy...but ok.
Ready to go, on the start line, go! Felt pretty good for the first bit, running strong and on pace. The intro 2 miles is downhill overall, and easy to get carried away on. So I did, but this time I eased back a bit when it flattened out. Even found a photographer:
Next week's training
Monday: 10.4 mile run after work. Felt good!
Tuesday: 15x 30 sec efforts at approx 5min/mile, 45 sec rest. Sounds a lot, but in reality only 7.5 minutes hard running. Need to double that for next time!
Wednesday: Club night, annual F.A.R.T.S. run (First Alternative Run To Stanley). New route as clubhouse changed, 12 steady miles.
Thursday: Pyramid! 2/3/4/5/4/3/2 minutes with 60/90/120/120/90/60 seconds rest. All at around h/m pace of 6min/mile.
Friday: Rest
Saturday: Paintballing. Which is now added to my list of "Things Not To Do The Day Before A Race". An inordinate amount of time holding a crouch meant dead quads for...
Sunday: Turkey Trot Half Marathon. 13.1 miles, 501ft of climb, 1:20:17 and 17th place.
Strava here
It's my annual road half, and a nice scenic one at that. It's not flat, but not ridiculously hilly and a good chance to get a good pace going on for stretch. My club mate Tom has been going from strength to strength this year (upping his mileage from 50 per month to 150 may have had a bit to do with it...) and was looking for a p.b., and also to beat me.
I was just looking to stay ahead of him.
My race nutrition plan had started the night before, with a Mountain Fuel Night Fuel (made up with hot milk - pretty tasty). 2 pieces of toast for breakfast with a Morning Fuel made up with hot water. On the drive in I sipped a bottle of Extreme Energy Fuel made up with 500ml water.
Arrived to the race with Tom, caught the transfer coach to the race (it was cold out!) and went to inspect the Derby Runner race stall. It's my local running gear shop, and I like to support local whenever I can - so new road shoes!
Got myself changed, put on my arm warmers (don't like cold), caught up with some club mates and David Greenwood, an up and coming ultra-runner. Went for a warm up jog around the block and discovered that my quads were feeling a bit...iffy...but ok.
Ready to go, on the start line, go! Felt pretty good for the first bit, running strong and on pace. The intro 2 miles is downhill overall, and easy to get carried away on. So I did, but this time I eased back a bit when it flattened out. Even found a photographer:
Photos by John Oldfield
As you can see, arm warmers on, and slightly in front of Tom. Even both feet off the ground!
At mile 3 is the only decent hill on the course. Good gradient, about 160ft of climbing, usually where I gap the group I'm with and catch the next one. Today, my quads said, quite firmly, "no". Tom gapped me, I struggled up and felt a little sad when I reached the top. Being an undulating course, if I was going to be like this every climb, it was going to be depressing!
Thankfully I caught Tom up again and we got into a bit of a groove and the miles flew by. We started reeling in the people who had started off too fast and life was generally going well. I was full of energy, and my dead quads, while not up to the usual standard, were now playing ball. Until Mile 10.
At about mile 8 there is a 1.5ish mile steady down hill, followed by a bit of flat, then a long grind up to about 10.5 miles. That part really hurt. Tom started drifting ahead, and some other bloke caught up. Thankfully there is a steep downhill, which somehow perked me up. Caught back up to Tom then started gassing it up the other side past the 11 mile marker.
I pushed as hard as I could along the next flattish mile, with Tom either on my shoulder or just in front of me:
Photos by John Oldfield
The last 200-300m is slightly uphill through an estate. I figured I'd probably lose out if I was still side-by-side with Tom, so I pushed early. Thankfully he broke before I did, and I finished about 5 seconds in front of him. I was about 20 seconds slower than my fastest time, but Tom achieved a 20 second pb, which was a fantastic result.
Things that went well: My fuelling experiment worked perfectly, I felt strong the whole way around, not even a 10-mile dip. Nailed it with Mountain Fuel.
Strong pace most of the way round - only "hanging" at one point, and not for long.
Things I need to sort: Don't Do Stupid Stuff The Day Before A Race! Paintballing, yep, that's stupid.
As ever my thanks go out to the following for supporting me on my journey:
Mountain Fuel - https://www.mountainfuel.co.uk/
The Ultra Runner Store: http://ultra-runner.com/
X-BIONIC: https://www.x-bionic.co.uk/
Beta Climbing: http://www.betaclimbingdesigns.com/
Monday: 6.7 miles steady recovery
Tuesday: 15x 60sec, 45 sec recovery. Potentially cut short, depending on how recovered I feel.
Wednesday: 10 mileish steady run.
Thursday: 2x 15 min, 5 min recovery @6min/mile pace-ish)
Friday: Rest! (Yay!)
Saturday: 2 hours-ish at around 6:50-7min/mile pace
Sunday: No idea yet. Maybe 90 minutes.
Monday, 7 December 2015
Turkey Trot Lead Up
This Sunday, it's time for my annual 80-ish minutes of pain. My annual road half marathon. It's about as much as I can take of it, because it is working the thing I am not very good at - maintaining a painful pace for a decent stretch of time.
It's why I run long. So I don't have to do fast.
I say that, but I do enjoy it.
This year, it's slightly different, as I'm not going to have my standard gel at 10 miles. I'm experimenting. This year, it's me + Mountain Fuel vs the Turkey Trot. There's a lot riding on it too. A pb of 1:19:something to try and beat, two fast-improving club mates to try and stay in front of, and some justification of my choice to leave gels behind. Big ask.
I've pegged out my run tonight, 10.4 steady miles (here) and have got the following training for this week:
Tuesday: Couple of miles warm up, 15-18 30 sec reps, 45 sec recovery. (here)
Wednesday: Club F.A.R.T.S. run. That's First Alternative Run To Stanley. About 13 miles or so, in the dark, across fields and through the Bog of Doom.
Thursday: Fun times Pyramid. 2/3/4/5/4/3/2 with 60sec/90sec/120sec/120sec/90sec/60sec recoveries.
Friday: Rest day,
Saturday: Paintballing. So sprinting, and resting.
Sunday: Race day.
Nutrition strategy: Follow the Mountain Fuel plan: Night fuel the night before with warm milk. 2x pieces of toast with a Breakfast Fuel smoothie. Sip an Extreme Energy Fuel on the way to the race. Experiment is to see whether that lasts me the whole race. I reckon it should - the very same fuelling lasted me about 20 miles on the White Rose 30 at a fairly decent clip, so 13 at a bit faster should be reet.
Pacing strategy: Run faster than Tom and Andy.
I have no pacing strategy really, except for try and keep around 6min/mile.
Feed back on Sunday Night with how it went.
It's why I run long. So I don't have to do fast.
I say that, but I do enjoy it.
This year, it's slightly different, as I'm not going to have my standard gel at 10 miles. I'm experimenting. This year, it's me + Mountain Fuel vs the Turkey Trot. There's a lot riding on it too. A pb of 1:19:something to try and beat, two fast-improving club mates to try and stay in front of, and some justification of my choice to leave gels behind. Big ask.
I've pegged out my run tonight, 10.4 steady miles (here) and have got the following training for this week:
Tuesday: Couple of miles warm up, 15-18 30 sec reps, 45 sec recovery. (here)
Wednesday: Club F.A.R.T.S. run. That's First Alternative Run To Stanley. About 13 miles or so, in the dark, across fields and through the Bog of Doom.
Thursday: Fun times Pyramid. 2/3/4/5/4/3/2 with 60sec/90sec/120sec/120sec/90sec/60sec recoveries.
Friday: Rest day,
Saturday: Paintballing. So sprinting, and resting.
Sunday: Race day.
Nutrition strategy: Follow the Mountain Fuel plan: Night fuel the night before with warm milk. 2x pieces of toast with a Breakfast Fuel smoothie. Sip an Extreme Energy Fuel on the way to the race. Experiment is to see whether that lasts me the whole race. I reckon it should - the very same fuelling lasted me about 20 miles on the White Rose 30 at a fairly decent clip, so 13 at a bit faster should be reet.
Pacing strategy: Run faster than Tom and Andy.
I have no pacing strategy really, except for try and keep around 6min/mile.
Feed back on Sunday Night with how it went.
Monday, 3 August 2015
Lakeland 50 - Take 5!
The Lead Up:
My last long race was the Scafell Trail Marathon, which went well, and with a few long steady runs under my belt I was feeling pretty good about the race. I had scanned the entry list (as I do) and noted that, amongst others, Marcus Scotney and Ben Abdelnoor were going to be racing. Matt Wilson was also running well, Phil Hayes who has completed nearly as many times as me, Sally Fawcett, Debbie Martin-Consani, James Haworth (beat me at the Highland Fling) and Jayson Cavill (yay team-mate) so I was planning for a top 10 finish somewhere.
I was also part of a new Trail Team - the Ultra-Runner.com Trail Team, having taken a step back from the TORQ Performance Trail Team. Although I still remain #TORQfuelled, I now have the opportunity to work with X-Bionic, Ultimate Direction and Injinji, which is pretty exciting!
The drive up on the Friday was a bit slow, but uneventful. We arrived in plenty of time to get settled into the hotel, and wander down to the event center to catch up with everyone. A quick chat with a few mates who were partaking in the 100 - Kevin and Chris Perry, Dave Troman, Janson Heath - then it was off to the Endurance Store to get myself some shoes to run in. After a chat with Richard Bardon (who was supposed to be racing, but had completed an Ironman the weekend before - as if that was some kind of excuse) he convinced me to have a go on a pair of Hoka Mafate Speed 3's. Turns out they were the same colour as my shorts and pack, as I was to find out later!
The start of the Lakeland 100 was its usual awesome affair, with some opera to start, then a protracted wave of runners, enthusiastic sprinters (led out by the irrepressible Ken Sutor) all the way back to the walkers at the back. Always an awesome spectacle. The it was back to get a spot at the front of the crowd for the Lakeland 1. I was running with Esmee (5) this year, and Mel was with Josie (3). Mr Fox was his usual entertaining self, doing his dance routine which Esmee had practised, and had near perfect. They started, then the girls did really well, both running the whole distance, Esmee doing around 10 minutes, Josie doing sub-12! Took a selfie with Esmee whilst waiting for the other 2 to finish...I'll talk more on that later.
Then back to the hotel, girls to bed, down to register where everything went as smoothly as it always does - the organisation is fantastic, then back to the hotel to try and get some sleep!
Race Day
After a couple of hour sleep, it was off to the event center for some toast, coffee and the pre-race talk which was as inspiring and hilarious as usual. Packed on to one of the many buses, then off to Dalemain Estate for the start. An uneventful journey, chatted lots to the guy next to me who was a first timer. Arrived at the estate, and caught up with lots of friends who I was going to be racing with over the course of the day. The wait was slightly less than normal as the start time had been changed to 11:30am, which was fantastic as the wait is the worst part! Finally time to get scanned in to the waiting pen, had a quick chat with Marcus Scotney (who had forgotten his heart rate monitor!) and Ben Abdelnoor who were both looking fit and well (there goes first and 2nd)! I also spotted Ben Hamilton, who had beaten me on the Kielder 50k - top 10 was starting to look shaky!
Start!
James Harris (legend!) and Martin Gardiner sprinted off at the start, and led the field out James hilariously dressed in tutu, patchwork-looking vest and bow-tie.
The 4 mile loop was the same as always, the fast starters coming back slowly, Marcus Scotney shooting off into the distance followed closely by Jayson Cavill, then Ben Abdelnoor with Phil Hayes chasing him down. I formed a "chasing pack" with Micheal Irving, Stephen Weston and Anthony Bethell. We essentially ran together until Checkpoint 1, Howtown, which we made in 1:21 ish. Quick water refill, and off again.
Fusedale. Everyone's least favourite part of the course. My plan was, get to the top still feeling good. Which I did. Anthony absolutely smashed the climb, put minutes on me, and everyone else close pulled away as well. Howard Seal caught me half-way at the stream, refilling, and Sally Fawcett caught me near the top. We exchanged a few words, then it was the descent to Haweswater. I let my legs go and set about catching the people on front. Then Paul Grundy shot past. ANother one to reclaim.
A bit of route confusion by Stephen and Paul, and I nipped in front of them for the run along Haweswater. After a couple of bad experiences along here, I have learnt to love this section. Nice, technical running and if you can keep a good even pace, time can be made. Well, it can if you don't fall over! Just about to re-take Paul and I switch off long enough for my toe to catch on something, and land on my side. Sore knee, elbow, and shoulder. (the shoulder bruise took a few days to come through, but it's a beauty!)
Up and running again, soreness fades quickly and I'm soon chasing Paul down again - and also Anthony B seems to be coming back towards me as well. Paul and I dib into Mardale Head at about the same time, I'm in and out faster though. I catch up to Anthony fairly quickly, and he looks not quite as chipper as he did. As the climb up to Gatesgarth Pass progresses, Ant slowly falls behind so he must have been suffering to be dropped by me up a hill! Near the top Paul caught me again, and we trotted down towards Sadgill Farm together before he changed gear and disappeared down the hill. I ran solo from here to Kentmere CP, the home of the famous fruit smoothies.
Mine didn't taste that nice as this time I put a sachet of salt in - things were getting a little crampy. Out the door and then off up to Garburn Pass. Near the top I was again caught by Sally, who was looking as strong as ever. Up over the top, there was Howard Seal on the side of the track, with legs in spasm. He waved us on when we asked if he needed anything, and it was a nice trot down to Troutbeck, with Sally dropping off on the downhill. Some news at the bottom - Marcus had dropped from the race - bonus, 1 place closer to the front! I had a quick count though and figured I was in 5th at this point with Jayson, Ben, Phil and Paul in front. I had also discovered that I had done something to my back/ribs/diaphragm at this point, and breathing wasn't as pain-free as it should have been.
And look, there's Phil, asking me which way to go. 4th! Me, Phil and Sally ran as a 3 through Skelghyll Woods, then myself and Phil pulled away a little before the Ambleside CP.
My girls were waiting for me with the news that 3rd was only a couple of minutes ahead and didn't know where he was going. I stopped in for a bottle refill and some salted coke. Phil shot straight through, which I thought was adventurous - he was either confident or concerned.
Apparently there were clowns at Ambleside. I really don't recall (Sorry Charlie S). I've got a vague idea Little Dave was there too.
Bouyed by seeing my girls, and the knowledge that 3rd wasn't far off, I set off looking forward to the climb up and over Loughrigg Fell towards Skelwith Bridge. I overtook 8 or so mountain bikers up the hill (hilarious), saw Charlie Sharpe at the bottom (high-five) then caught Phil and Paul on the road section down to Skelwith. Boom, 3rd! There's a lovely run along the side of Elter Water where I upped the pace a bit - as much as my breathing would allow - Paul fell off, but Phil was still just behind. Saw Mel and Girls (they had been practising the Haka to spur me on - this was forgotten as soon as they saw me!) and Ez ran off to open the gate, Mel tells me Ben had dropped (gutted for him, delighted I was now in 2nd). Pressure on! Into Chapel Stile CP, refill, coke, out.
And Phil was still just behind me. All the way along Langdale Valley, breathing hurting, Phil 2 paces behind. If I wasn't sure that he was hurting worse and just trying to hold on, I'm pretty sure this would have messed with my head a little! Climb up to Blea Tarn, then a brilliant run across to Wrynose Road. I love the technical running along that section, and I pushed it a little which I think was the final nail in Phil's coffin - didn't see him again after the unmanned dib-point.
I did however see Paul Grundy. Right. Behind. Me. I'd had someone shadowing me ever since Troutbeck so I was used to it now, and I figured he'd be pretty tired from having to catch me, so I put a bit of a plan together - stay in front until the descent into Coniston, hopefully he would continue his theme of smashing the descents, and I could re-take him on the road. Ambitious, flawed, but it was all I had. The climb up over Knotts went well (I popped some Ibuprofen - should have done that a lot earlier) and managed to stay in front on the descent, pushing into the hurt a little. A strong run into the CP, bottle refill, coke, watermelon (the best thing I had tasted ALL DAY!) then out before Paul with a handful of grapes. Push up the side of the hill, right on the edge of cramp.
Paul drops back, little by little - great, if I can keep this up he might not catch me on the descent! On to the flat bit before Crooks Beck, why hello cramp! Stop, quick stretch, walk, jog again then limit effort. Can't push hard enough to increase distance, but still in front. Far enough? Don't know. Reach top of climb, descend - last year I pushed so hard on the descent my legs seized up on the road. That wasn't happening again this year. Still down fast, but not reckless fast like last year.
Cue one Paul Grundy, sped past at the bottom of the technical section, and put about 20m on me. We get onto the road, time to get a move on. Paul's gait is looking a bit off - his left calf was cramping, so it was time to put the hammer down. All the pain of Track-Day Tuesday came to fruition and I laid down a 6 minute last 0.7 of a mile, holding off Paul to take 2nd in 8:28.
A week later it still hasn't sunk in.
Always an amazing reception when you cross the finish line, especially with my family waiting for me. I went inside and assumed my normal position:
My kit was re-checked (it passed) and I sat down and chatted with Paul, the girls, marshals and everyone else that came in after, whilst waiting for my stomach to settle down enough for more than a cup of tea (it didn't).
Sally Fawcett came in 4th, just outside the course record and first lady, Ant Bethell recovered from a fairly protracted bad patch to snag 9th, Debbie Martin-Consani rounded out the top 10 and was 2nd lady. Matt Wilson was 11th, Phil Hayes 13th.
I didn't get much sleep (never do post-race), but a midnight snack settled my tummy down. The cooked breakfast the next morning helped as well! We got down to the presentation early, so we could see the last of the #lakelandlegends come through, the guys who stick it out right up until the cut-off are so inspiring!
The presentation started off with a collection of all of the selfies that had a #lakelandlegends or #liveinthemoment hashtag, and me and Esmee were up on the first slide, it was pretty cool! The prizes were all handed out in due course (even the women's ones...Marc!), and the girls came up on stage with me:
Taking it easy on the first bit. Contradictory, maybe, but if I pushed harder over the first section I may have been closer to Jayson - but that relies on me not crashing and burning , which happened to a couple of front-runners.
SO, next year, plan is: Don't fall over, run faster. Simple enough.
Thanks to all of my sponsors:
X-Bionic
Ultimate Direction
Injinji
Thnkas to TORQ for keeping me as a #TORQfuelled athlete
Thanks to the Ultra-Runner.com Trail Team - you guys are awesome.
Next race is the Dig Deep Intro Ultra - little sister of the Ultra Tour of the Peak District where I was 2nd last year, should still be a cracking race!
My last long race was the Scafell Trail Marathon, which went well, and with a few long steady runs under my belt I was feeling pretty good about the race. I had scanned the entry list (as I do) and noted that, amongst others, Marcus Scotney and Ben Abdelnoor were going to be racing. Matt Wilson was also running well, Phil Hayes who has completed nearly as many times as me, Sally Fawcett, Debbie Martin-Consani, James Haworth (beat me at the Highland Fling) and Jayson Cavill (yay team-mate) so I was planning for a top 10 finish somewhere.
I was also part of a new Trail Team - the Ultra-Runner.com Trail Team, having taken a step back from the TORQ Performance Trail Team. Although I still remain #TORQfuelled, I now have the opportunity to work with X-Bionic, Ultimate Direction and Injinji, which is pretty exciting!
The drive up on the Friday was a bit slow, but uneventful. We arrived in plenty of time to get settled into the hotel, and wander down to the event center to catch up with everyone. A quick chat with a few mates who were partaking in the 100 - Kevin and Chris Perry, Dave Troman, Janson Heath - then it was off to the Endurance Store to get myself some shoes to run in. After a chat with Richard Bardon (who was supposed to be racing, but had completed an Ironman the weekend before - as if that was some kind of excuse) he convinced me to have a go on a pair of Hoka Mafate Speed 3's. Turns out they were the same colour as my shorts and pack, as I was to find out later!
The start of the Lakeland 100 was its usual awesome affair, with some opera to start, then a protracted wave of runners, enthusiastic sprinters (led out by the irrepressible Ken Sutor) all the way back to the walkers at the back. Always an awesome spectacle. The it was back to get a spot at the front of the crowd for the Lakeland 1. I was running with Esmee (5) this year, and Mel was with Josie (3). Mr Fox was his usual entertaining self, doing his dance routine which Esmee had practised, and had near perfect. They started, then the girls did really well, both running the whole distance, Esmee doing around 10 minutes, Josie doing sub-12! Took a selfie with Esmee whilst waiting for the other 2 to finish...I'll talk more on that later.
Then back to the hotel, girls to bed, down to register where everything went as smoothly as it always does - the organisation is fantastic, then back to the hotel to try and get some sleep!
Race Day
After a couple of hour sleep, it was off to the event center for some toast, coffee and the pre-race talk which was as inspiring and hilarious as usual. Packed on to one of the many buses, then off to Dalemain Estate for the start. An uneventful journey, chatted lots to the guy next to me who was a first timer. Arrived at the estate, and caught up with lots of friends who I was going to be racing with over the course of the day. The wait was slightly less than normal as the start time had been changed to 11:30am, which was fantastic as the wait is the worst part! Finally time to get scanned in to the waiting pen, had a quick chat with Marcus Scotney (who had forgotten his heart rate monitor!) and Ben Abdelnoor who were both looking fit and well (there goes first and 2nd)! I also spotted Ben Hamilton, who had beaten me on the Kielder 50k - top 10 was starting to look shaky!
Photo - Jen Regan
Start!
James Harris (legend!) and Martin Gardiner sprinted off at the start, and led the field out James hilariously dressed in tutu, patchwork-looking vest and bow-tie.
Photo - Jen Regan
The 4 mile loop was the same as always, the fast starters coming back slowly, Marcus Scotney shooting off into the distance followed closely by Jayson Cavill, then Ben Abdelnoor with Phil Hayes chasing him down. I formed a "chasing pack" with Micheal Irving, Stephen Weston and Anthony Bethell. We essentially ran together until Checkpoint 1, Howtown, which we made in 1:21 ish. Quick water refill, and off again.
Fusedale. Everyone's least favourite part of the course. My plan was, get to the top still feeling good. Which I did. Anthony absolutely smashed the climb, put minutes on me, and everyone else close pulled away as well. Howard Seal caught me half-way at the stream, refilling, and Sally Fawcett caught me near the top. We exchanged a few words, then it was the descent to Haweswater. I let my legs go and set about catching the people on front. Then Paul Grundy shot past. ANother one to reclaim.
A bit of route confusion by Stephen and Paul, and I nipped in front of them for the run along Haweswater. After a couple of bad experiences along here, I have learnt to love this section. Nice, technical running and if you can keep a good even pace, time can be made. Well, it can if you don't fall over! Just about to re-take Paul and I switch off long enough for my toe to catch on something, and land on my side. Sore knee, elbow, and shoulder. (the shoulder bruise took a few days to come through, but it's a beauty!)
Up and running again, soreness fades quickly and I'm soon chasing Paul down again - and also Anthony B seems to be coming back towards me as well. Paul and I dib into Mardale Head at about the same time, I'm in and out faster though. I catch up to Anthony fairly quickly, and he looks not quite as chipper as he did. As the climb up to Gatesgarth Pass progresses, Ant slowly falls behind so he must have been suffering to be dropped by me up a hill! Near the top Paul caught me again, and we trotted down towards Sadgill Farm together before he changed gear and disappeared down the hill. I ran solo from here to Kentmere CP, the home of the famous fruit smoothies.
Mine didn't taste that nice as this time I put a sachet of salt in - things were getting a little crampy. Out the door and then off up to Garburn Pass. Near the top I was again caught by Sally, who was looking as strong as ever. Up over the top, there was Howard Seal on the side of the track, with legs in spasm. He waved us on when we asked if he needed anything, and it was a nice trot down to Troutbeck, with Sally dropping off on the downhill. Some news at the bottom - Marcus had dropped from the race - bonus, 1 place closer to the front! I had a quick count though and figured I was in 5th at this point with Jayson, Ben, Phil and Paul in front. I had also discovered that I had done something to my back/ribs/diaphragm at this point, and breathing wasn't as pain-free as it should have been.
And look, there's Phil, asking me which way to go. 4th! Me, Phil and Sally ran as a 3 through Skelghyll Woods, then myself and Phil pulled away a little before the Ambleside CP.
My girls were waiting for me with the news that 3rd was only a couple of minutes ahead and didn't know where he was going. I stopped in for a bottle refill and some salted coke. Phil shot straight through, which I thought was adventurous - he was either confident or concerned.
Apparently there were clowns at Ambleside. I really don't recall (Sorry Charlie S). I've got a vague idea Little Dave was there too.
Bouyed by seeing my girls, and the knowledge that 3rd wasn't far off, I set off looking forward to the climb up and over Loughrigg Fell towards Skelwith Bridge. I overtook 8 or so mountain bikers up the hill (hilarious), saw Charlie Sharpe at the bottom (high-five) then caught Phil and Paul on the road section down to Skelwith. Boom, 3rd! There's a lovely run along the side of Elter Water where I upped the pace a bit - as much as my breathing would allow - Paul fell off, but Phil was still just behind. Saw Mel and Girls (they had been practising the Haka to spur me on - this was forgotten as soon as they saw me!) and Ez ran off to open the gate, Mel tells me Ben had dropped (gutted for him, delighted I was now in 2nd). Pressure on! Into Chapel Stile CP, refill, coke, out.
And Phil was still just behind me. All the way along Langdale Valley, breathing hurting, Phil 2 paces behind. If I wasn't sure that he was hurting worse and just trying to hold on, I'm pretty sure this would have messed with my head a little! Climb up to Blea Tarn, then a brilliant run across to Wrynose Road. I love the technical running along that section, and I pushed it a little which I think was the final nail in Phil's coffin - didn't see him again after the unmanned dib-point.
I did however see Paul Grundy. Right. Behind. Me. I'd had someone shadowing me ever since Troutbeck so I was used to it now, and I figured he'd be pretty tired from having to catch me, so I put a bit of a plan together - stay in front until the descent into Coniston, hopefully he would continue his theme of smashing the descents, and I could re-take him on the road. Ambitious, flawed, but it was all I had. The climb up over Knotts went well (I popped some Ibuprofen - should have done that a lot earlier) and managed to stay in front on the descent, pushing into the hurt a little. A strong run into the CP, bottle refill, coke, watermelon (the best thing I had tasted ALL DAY!) then out before Paul with a handful of grapes. Push up the side of the hill, right on the edge of cramp.
Paul drops back, little by little - great, if I can keep this up he might not catch me on the descent! On to the flat bit before Crooks Beck, why hello cramp! Stop, quick stretch, walk, jog again then limit effort. Can't push hard enough to increase distance, but still in front. Far enough? Don't know. Reach top of climb, descend - last year I pushed so hard on the descent my legs seized up on the road. That wasn't happening again this year. Still down fast, but not reckless fast like last year.
Cue one Paul Grundy, sped past at the bottom of the technical section, and put about 20m on me. We get onto the road, time to get a move on. Paul's gait is looking a bit off - his left calf was cramping, so it was time to put the hammer down. All the pain of Track-Day Tuesday came to fruition and I laid down a 6 minute last 0.7 of a mile, holding off Paul to take 2nd in 8:28.
A week later it still hasn't sunk in.
Always an amazing reception when you cross the finish line, especially with my family waiting for me. I went inside and assumed my normal position:
My kit was re-checked (it passed) and I sat down and chatted with Paul, the girls, marshals and everyone else that came in after, whilst waiting for my stomach to settle down enough for more than a cup of tea (it didn't).
Sally Fawcett came in 4th, just outside the course record and first lady, Ant Bethell recovered from a fairly protracted bad patch to snag 9th, Debbie Martin-Consani rounded out the top 10 and was 2nd lady. Matt Wilson was 11th, Phil Hayes 13th.
I didn't get much sleep (never do post-race), but a midnight snack settled my tummy down. The cooked breakfast the next morning helped as well! We got down to the presentation early, so we could see the last of the #lakelandlegends come through, the guys who stick it out right up until the cut-off are so inspiring!
The presentation started off with a collection of all of the selfies that had a #lakelandlegends or #liveinthemoment hashtag, and me and Esmee were up on the first slide, it was pretty cool! The prizes were all handed out in due course (even the women's ones...Marc!), and the girls came up on stage with me:
Photo - Tony Holland
They were pretty excited about that. It was also pretty awesome that the Ultra-Trail.com Trail Team managed a 1-2 as well, with Jayson smashing out 1st place with an awesome 8:04. I received a glass trophy plaque thing, and a 5L Montane Pack (which, Mel tells me, brings me to a total of 8 packs).
As ever, a massive thanks to Marc, Terry and the crew of marshals, volunteers and supporters without whom this race would be nowhere near as awesome as it is. Also a massive thanks to Mel, Esmee and Josie for putting up with each other while I'm out training, and providing massive support to me in my racing.
Things that worked for me:
Getting to the top of Fusedale in one piece. Felt a whole lot better about everything after that.
1x TORQ gel every half hour. Good, solid, energy.
The Hokas -for me, they are perfect for this course, they take the sting out of the long descents from Gatesgarth and Garburn.
X-Bionic The Trick shorts and t-shirt - kept me a good temperature, and chafe-free.
Injinji socks - I get blisters between my toes on long distance events without these.
Ultimate Direction AK vest - just big enough for everything now I have upgraded my waterproof to a Berghaus Vapourlight Hyper Smock.
Salt in my coke later in the race. Perks me up a treat. Tastes a bit grim though.
Things that didn't
Falling over. I need to not do that.
Taking it easy on the first bit. Contradictory, maybe, but if I pushed harder over the first section I may have been closer to Jayson - but that relies on me not crashing and burning , which happened to a couple of front-runners.
SO, next year, plan is: Don't fall over, run faster. Simple enough.
Thanks to all of my sponsors:
X-Bionic
Ultimate Direction
Injinji
Thnkas to TORQ for keeping me as a #TORQfuelled athlete
Thanks to the Ultra-Runner.com Trail Team - you guys are awesome.
Next race is the Dig Deep Intro Ultra - little sister of the Ultra Tour of the Peak District where I was 2nd last year, should still be a cracking race!
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