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| Race prep. The right way! |
Old county tops. 3 little words, and the prospect of quite a
long, hard day out. Something along the lines of 38miles and 10000ft of
climbing. To be honest, its pretty much what I've mainly been training for over
the past few months. My partner Alasdair was putting in some hard miles
throughout February, when I took a month off running, and I basically didn't
want to end up being the one holding us back.Lots of training later and the big
weekend arrived. 5pairs from Glossopdale, and a good number of us travelled up on Friday evening, staying in
a climbing club hut.
Pasta followed by beer followed by bed was the order of the
night.
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| Pre-race pasta |
Up at 6 and do a few last minute kit checks before we headed
down to Dungeon Ghyll for registration and a proper kit check. Standing there
with a rucksack made me feel positively over prepared when the guys with
bumbags started turning up.
All too soon it was time to start, and we made our way to
the car park. The Glossopdale runners had
strategically placed themselves right at the car park exit.
So when starters orders were called, everyone else lined up behind us. Head of
the pack and we are almost first out of the gate.
No need for having recced here as there was a great line of
runners in front of us, and an even longer one behind. I soon realised that
this was also the ascent line which Andy and I had used for the Ian Hodgeson
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| The Glossopdale dream team |
Mountain Relay last year. Comfortable with knowledge of this line, I settled
into an easy pace - rain and headwind notwithstanding, and carried on up the
hill, trying to keep no further than 20 metres behind the seemingly
indefatiguable Alasdair. (It wasn't actually the same line, it just looked like it and my mind was playing tricks on me. Just another normal course of events for a feel race...) Andy was having much the same amusement with Dan,
asking if I had a leash to keep Ali back, and if he could borrow it to keep Dan
in check...
After Grisdale tarn a split came, with the top 2 teams
taking the line directly up, and the vast majority of others opting for a more
diagonal line. Both, of course took in a fair amount of steep ascent. We chose
the first, direct
line up the hill, and then a shallower angle across, over
and then up to the top of Helvellyn. On the long ascent up, we saw the front
runners zooming down the descent line, among them were Julien and Mark, who had
accelerated away up the path.
To the top, check time about 1:50. Oh. The one thing I
remember is Andy Anastasi saying "with the OCT, if you get to the top of
Helvellyn in less than 2 hours, at some point further on, you're really going
to suffer". Oh well, we're going to be suffering anyway.... but not before
a fantastic downhill section where Alasdair and I had a brilliant line,
overtaking a number of teams, and, incredibly, nearly catching up with Julien
and Marc by the bottom of Wythenshaw! They were only about 100m ahead of us,
and Alasdair appeared to surge to try and catch them, but I put a stop to that
with the comment "I can't catch Julien up a hill in a bog on a good day,
let alone in the middle of an epic... let them go".
So we did.
We battled on up what was essentially a vertical bog for
what seemed like mile after mile. I suppose we must have been slowing down a
little as Dan and Andy, who we had left behind on the descent (Andy had
apparently decided to attempt to concuss himself on a stone halfway down), were
catching us by the top. As we approached the only part that we weren't entirely
sure about navigationally, we were together.
Around High Raise and down to Angle tarn we kept our
momentum, I think I only managed to fall over about 3 times on that part, and
we got to Angle tarn without too much upset or confusion, which was a real
relief. It was very much the part that could have scuppered us.
We said our numbers at the checkpoint, Dan and Andy were
informed that the team with their number had gone through about 10 mins before,
which was a little confusing. What was also a little worrying was that we were
6th and 7th respectively. Top 10? At this stage? Surely some mistake?
I was a bit worried about just when the wheels might fall
off. If we are going this well, then at some point, somewhere along the way,
we're probably going to bonk hugely. Well, no point in standing around worrying
about it. I put my very very very sodden gloves back on, stuffed more food in
my mouth and started up the path to Esk Hause. It had been raining more or less
constantly from the beginning. I was starting to get a bit chilled, and my
hands, even in massive gloves- which were now soaked, were also going cold. Not
a good sign. We just needed to keep moving, even if everything was starting to
weigh a ton.
Alasdair and I put some time into Dan and Andy, and the
other team that was with us through to Angle tarn, on the way to Scafell
summit. Trying to eat as intelligently as possible, while moving as fast as
possible so as to keep warm. Further up into the mist, across the sharp rocks,
past the walkers in their full waterproofs, looking at us in our shorts as if
we were mad. To the top, - about 4:38 - we shout our number to the marshal as a
group of 3 peak baggers attempted to make very lame jokes about us running (and
who were thoroughly ignored) and down to the direct line off the summit.
We vaguely knew were we were going, and with the assistance
of a compass bearing and semi-photographic memory we were soon thrashing our
way off the hill. Tired legs and complaining knees were amplified by the steep
grassy terrain, and muscles were screaming at us to stop. With other teams
really not all that far behind there was no option but to just keep on
going.
Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime of descending, the
ground flattened out and stretched over toward Great Moss. By this time I had
stopped counting how many times I had fallen over, it must have been somewhere
in the high teens, but now came the boggy section. Less falling and a whole lot
more trying to get legs out of holes with no bottom.
Having spoken to Dan about this section last night we knew
it would take about an hour or so. Yiannis has apparently done it in 55 mins in
the past, which is scarcely believable. It was decided that we should just keep
on moving as fast as possible no matter what the terrain. There was no-one in
view behind us, so we needed to be vigilant. If there is someone obviously
chasing you, then there is always incentive to keep moving, but without that
incentive, it is easy to become complacent.
Not us.
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| Into Cockley Beck |
Every step taken as fast as possible, every slip recovered
or rolled out of to keep going as fast as we can.
No stopping to take off
gloves, no stopping to get anything out of main packs, just food from side
pockets, and keep on rolling.
We thrashed our way through indeterminate bog, crossed a
couple of rivers, churned our way up a climb, and with fatigue well and truely
setting into our legs, pounded our way down into the final food checkpoint at
Cockley beck. Alasdair was craving a banana at this stage, and from conversations
with others who have done the OCT in the past, the food at Cockley Beck has
attained a mythical status. Tea, sandwiches, bananas, cakes, flapjack, water,
you name it, it was there. For all I knew, there would be candles and a sit
down dinner, more welcome than that, though was the sight of Els,Caitlin and
Josie Swan on the path, cheering us along and telling us that we were indeed
still 6th.
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| Happy Face |
6th? at this stage? Again, scarcely creditable. I was still
wondering just when the wheels were going to come off.
To the checkpoint, a Tuna sandwich, Alasdair got his banana,
and I could almost see that we were going to get sucked in to comfort eating…
if we stayed too long we might be losing valuable time that we would need at
the end. Mutually, we grabbed a small amount of food and set off up the
ridiculously massive climb up to the Old Man of Coniston. Ahead of us we could
see some other teams - quite a way ahead.
The climb was incredibly strength and will sapping, despite
the clag it was still getting warmer, and there was no end to the climb. The
teams we could see were about 15 mins ahead of us, and climb as we might, there
was no way to close the gap. We continued trying to eat, but it was getting to
the point where food tasted of ash, and it was difficult to swallow with the
effort of walking uphill and breathing at the same time.
Eventually the top came, and "running"
recommenced. It was closer to a shuffle than a run, but slowly we got the limbs
moving again and started the clag ridden bash across to Coniston. That route is
a whole lot longer than you expect. It took us forever to run over there, the
main point which kept me going mentally was that we could see the tracks of the
teams in front of us. Then those teams started to come past us on the way down
and back off Coniston - must be getting close then.
We eventually got to the top, shouted out number and started
to run back. Fatigue was really really kicking in now, but after 6:56, we had
done the final Top. Now all we needed to do was get down and back.
On the way off we passed a huge number of teams, they all
looked really fresh to my tired eyes, and I could see the possibility of a top
10 position rapidly diminishing. Just needed to keep going as hard as possible.
Only about 6 miles or so left. We dropped a slight clanger on the route off, not
following the optimal line - this was in fact the only navigational error of
pretty much the whole day, which was astonishing, and all credit should go to
Alasdair and his recce and navigational skills, however, right to the last
checkpoint before the horrendous descent down the road into Little Langdale we
kept in 6th.
On that descent we were passed by a team that looked
incredibly strong. Where we had started out, perhaps a little too fast, I
suspect they started slower, and had scythed through the field as the day wore
on. They were passed and down the hill, and we had no energy to stay with them.
The powergels then made their appearance, inside the last hour of a race like
this, nothing else works like them to keep you awake and tuned in to getting to
the end as fast as possible. It doesn't matter about stomach cramps, because
you should be finished before they hit...~!
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| Right at the end |
The pace picked up imperceptibly as we realised how close we
were. Throughout the day both of us had been the flagging member of the party,
and we had both been the stronger part. Now we were reliant on each other to
get through this final part.
We crossed into the valley at 8:05. A chance for a sub 8:30
if we get a shift on. Down and through the fields, and across streams. The ending
had been flagged and we got to the first of the flags at 8:21. Hoofing it down
toward the end, we knew we had it in the bag and crossed the line in 8:24:11.
7th overall.
That was a pretty long day in the saddle and from wondering
if we might make it into the top 20, getting a top 10 finish was a huge bonus.
The time was amazing as well, especially after speaking with others who have
run it in the past, saying that it was pretty much the worst conditions
underfoot that they had ever had to run it in.
Julien and Mark came in 5th in about 8:04, Andy and Dan were
10th in about 8:45ish. We missed out on the team prize (to locals- Ambleside)
by 59 seconds. Which, over 8-9 hours of racing is pretty good going. So 3 teams
in the top 10. John and Phil came in just under 10 hours,
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| Chuffed with that |
and Andy F and Dave
were just over 10.
An excellent day out in the Lakes, and that makes 3 top 10
places in 3 consecutive races for me. Unheard of, and very much unexpected. The
long runs in the last few weeks, and the general training that I've been
putting in has certainly paid dividends. I didn't hold Alasdair up, and in
fact, we made a very strong pairing. There is talk of a sub 8 hour next
year. I may have to continue training....
I am now the proud owner of a 3 county tops t-shirt and a
lot of soggy gear. Unfortunately, no team prize this year, but that means we
shall have to try all the harder next year.
Theoretically
THIS LINK should take you to my strava course for the race.
Thanks muchly to those who organised it, the Achille-Ratti club, those who manned the
checkpoints and made this event happen.Thanks also to Els Swan whose photos I have shamelessly copied off facebook.
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| Post race sustenance in the Stickle Barn |
Thank you.
