I'd chosen
this race towards the end of last year. I was casting around for a
trail marathon that met the criteria and this one did the job. It was 4
loops of a 10k trail with a bit extra added on and I'd not done a
looped race before, and there was a concurrent 10k for Ian to run so he
didn't have to wait around for me all day. What's not to love?
The night before I was diligently reading the race briefing (always a
good idea in case there's some weird bit of mandatory kit/critical
instruction that had previously gone unnoticed) when I discovered that there was also a concurrent 60k
ultra marathon (6 loops of the circuit) and you could upgrade on the day.
Few races allow
this and I've been doing A LOT of running lately. I also have a couple
of low(er) mileage weekends coming up. Hmm. Hmm. I text my coach.
He replies, "I think yes, go for it. Obvs slower pace through and walk
the hills. DRINK lots as it's gonna be warm and make sure you eat every
30mins". I'm excited. We drive to Nottingham the night before and eat
the obligatory pasta for dinner then get an early night.
We
arrive bright and early at 8am, get myself a nice new ultra race
number, had a delicious expresso and a quick loo trip and then it's time
to set off at 8.30am:
The
race was predicted to be
warm and it was warm. Within minutes of starting, I needed the loo
again (that expresso was starting to look ill-advised). By Mile 1 I
knew I was going to have to stop so rather than holding on I decided to
make use of the bushes. Sadly when I rejoined the race I
was literally dead last... There were only about 50 ultra runners and I
could see down the hill behind me, there was nobody there. The tail end
of the string of runners was a good 250m in the distance. Competitive
instinct kicked in, I
cracked on and didn't walk any of the hills. I overtook a few people
and started to settle into my stride once I'd got round the first
circuit.
The second
circuit was the hardest as it felt like there was still a
long way to go. My shorts were chafing as this was the first time I'd
worn them this year (!) so I decided I'd have to change into leggings,
which luckily I'd brought with me along with a change of shoes just in
case. Ian rang me when I was about 15k in and kindly fetched my spare
kit from the car and met me when I finished my second loop. I proceeded
to remove my shorts in front of a few hundred
spectators as I didn't want to lose too much time by going to the toilet
(oh dear). Hopefully I didn't traumatise too many small children. I also
switched from trail shoes to road shoes as the trail was quite hard and
rocky which turned out to be a great decision. My road shoes felt like slippers!
The change of outfit gave me a boost for a couple of km, but the third
circuit was also fairly tough. Other
runners would run with me for a bit and chat which helped pass the
time. The scenery was also very pretty and varied so I wasn't at all bored of it yet.
By
the time I began the 4th circuit I felt in control. I was
coming up to the marathon distance and still had plenty in the tank.
The weather had cooled down and there was even a bit of rain! The feed
stations were really good, there were three each lap with lots of choice
(mars bars, chocolate fingers, gels, oranges, walnuts, dates, sweets,
crisps, cake, fanta, coke, water) and they were really well stocked
right to the very end. I
picked up the pace for the 5th lap as I was feeling really strong, and
then when I finished it I took off my vest and left it
with Ian for the final lap. I was well-hydrated so I thought losing the
extra weight would make the final lap slightly easier. I didn't see
anyone for the first 6km or so, but eventually caught up with and
overtook a few people in the last few kilometres of the race. I
realised
with about 30 minutes to go that if I cracked on I would come in under 7
hours so I really bust a gut the last couple of kilometres, as shown:
I
actually managed three of my very fastest kilometres of the whole race
in the last 5k, and the last 10k was the fastest of all six laps which
is quite pleasing. One final push and I was across the finish line!
After
the race there were FREE 10 minute massages, which were bloody
brilliant, and an ice cream van, which was also brilliant, and a lovely
medal. Later there were FREE photographs (many many thanks to
Curley Photography for these), you'll notice this report has about a billion more pictures than usual for this reason!
Here I am at the finish, representing my lovely new running club
Penny Lane Striders:
And here's some nice juicy stats:
Place: 25th out of 49. 2nd in my age
group (missed first BY FOUR SECONDS). Ahhhhhhhh!!
Actual time: 6:56 (Garmin was a bit shorter as I hadn't switched off auto-pause).
Definitely
a race I'd recommend, with 5k, 10k, half, mara and ultra mara
distances, on the day entry and really beautifully organised and
marshalled.
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