Middle Pack

In keeping with my recent theme of no running training and only racing on races that are less than 6 miles and usually on an evening, it meant I could do the Otley Chevin fell race. Although only 3.5 miles it does pack in a whopping 900ft of ascent before tumbling back down to the finish.

This was the only category A fell race in the Valley Striders Fell Champs and it was also my only official short category race I competed in for the whole of last year. Last year I biked to the start only to realise that my house is then 10 miles uphill from Otley. This year I took the car. Quick pick up of another runner and we were in Otley in plenty of time. Quick register and on the start line.

The race is a cruel one, with a lot of tarmac, steps and road so not your typical fell race terrain. Really a very steep trail race would be a better description however I feel that wouldn’t do this classic race any justice to class it as a trail race.

The race started with the minimum of fuss and off we went up the cobbled street, over the bridge and up a steep road. As it was a Strider fell champs race and I wasn’t sure how fit the others are at the moment I decided to try and hang on to the faster Striders and see what happened. We were soon onto rough trails but still going steeply uphill. It then turns in to a steep section of stairs. Here I culdn’t decide which would be the fastest way to get up them? Hands on knees? stand upright? start jogging? It was kind of inbetween all three so I tried all three. That was until first lady ran past me on one side and a guy from club walked past me on the other. the guy from club looked like he wasn’t trying as hard as the lady so I tried to walk just behind him. As the path flattened out briefly I tryed to catch up but this was just not happening as the brain was saying go faster but the legs were not listening. So I tried to tuck into a nice rhythem and keep my breathing under control as we went up a final ascent to the top of the Chevin. Thinking I will get him later (I always think that, but never do?). There is then an all too brief spell of generally flat trails across the top of the Chevin, going round Suprise View before the great descent back down to the finish.

The descent is a very fast non technical descent that seems just to plummet to the bottom of the Chevin. At one point I was flying down only to lose my bottle a bit and try to apply the brakes. I really do need to master that descent as you could really pick up some mighty speed if you could get your legs to keep up with you.

Eventually the track goes onto concrete and an even steeper section that really does jar the legs. I was catching my club mate so kept on pushing. Back the way we came and I was now catching him fast, but also seeing the finish come even closer. I pushed hard down the road, finally finding a bit of speed 200m from the finish line but just couldn’t catch him.

I came in 22nd position overall, in a time of 20.48, club mate beat me by 2 seconds in the end. Winner Graham Pearce from Pudsey and Bramley in 17.35.

Another great evening race. Thanks to Skyrac for putting on the race and marshalling. I will definately be back next year and who knows I may even have a few goes at the descent in the meantime.

After the fun of Jack Bloor, I thought another of these short sharp blasts was a great way to spend an evening. So I decided to get myself up the the Kildwick Fell race. A measly 3.9 miles with 860ft crammed into those miles.

As always with these evening races, there is a mad dash to pick people up and get out of Leeds to register for the race and get sorted. Once arriving, we managed to register and get ourselves sorted and over to the start line before the heavens opened.

Soon we were starting and as soon as the race started the rain stopped, leaving a cool evening air, and the great smell after a recent rain shower. Perfect for a run.

The race starts with a steep road ascent before hitting moorland and upwards still. I felt a load better than Jack Bloor last week, but was apprehensive not to push too hard too early. The up soon gave way to a gradual descent back down to tarmac and me thinking I was on my way back to the finish so started to push a bit only for the people in front of me to disappear back up the hill again. Damm, back up to the top again, I wish I had looked at the race route beforehand. So up again, lungs now gasping and rasping. Always seems to be the time the photographer gets snap happy and catches you looking pained and deadly serious as you concentrate on not stopping to catch breath.

This time the ascent was shorter but a lot steeper, and soon we were back downhill, gradual, followed by steep followed by tarmac and very steep. Before you know it you are sprinting (if you can call it that) across the field to the finish, before stopping and trying to catch some breath.

The best bit about these evening races is the pub afterwards. A swift pint, a catch up with other runners you know and a bit of banter. Oh and if you are lucky a prize. Somehow I managed to come away with a bottle of wine for my efforts.

Final result was 17th out of 105 in a time of 29.27. Winner was Jonny Bradshaw from Wharfedale in a time 26.02, but ran closely in by Tom Adams from Ilkley only 2 seconds behind. There are some seriously fast juniors around that are giving the seniors a real run for their money.

The foot was hurting afterwards, but I know that I am reasonably confident on it on shorter distances and races. So with that in mind any long distance stuff is going to be on the bike this year and only short stuff on the fells.

Huge thanks to Brett and the marshalls for organising a real cracker of a race. A great pub afterwards as well.

I would like to thank David Brett for the use of the photos. Some of the others are absolutely great! Definately worth a look at. Bob Wightman was also taking photo’s so you can check out his as well.

The Jack Bloor fell race is an annual race to raise money for the Jack Bloor fund. This is a fund to help people without the means to pursue their dreams in the outdoors. A great cause and a worthy cause. It also happens to be a great race over Ilkley Moor! One of the few short fell races where navigation and recce’s really do make a difference (as I found out to my cost)

It is also another race in the Valley Striders Fell Championship and as it was a short race I though I would use it as a bit of a test of the foot and my runnnig fitness.

On turning up, Ilkley moor looked stunning! Blue skys and people dotted all over the side of the moor as the juniors were running their races. There was a bit of a breeze but an ideal evening for a race. After a quick registration and a few questions about sneaky route choices we were off.

I set off at what was my standard race pace (first mistake) and was soon at the first checkpoint, I was also first strider at this point. A slightly wrong line from the checkpoint and down to second strider. This I felt a bit better about as my lack of any serious training for the last 6 months meant I should be a lot further back, but I thought its only a short race. I will live.

A great descent to the next checkpoint and although the breathing was a tad erratic the legs were loving the stretch. Holding position and seeing other struggle on the hill, off I went towards checkpoint 3. I got to the top of a short ascent and then a stitch came on very fast. It felt like i had been stabbed and I couldn’t get any air. I just couldn’t breath in at all and was slowing with every step. This wasn’t meant to happen? I was forced to stop and stand still with my hands on my head just trying to get myself sorted. People streaming past me, including another two striders who just nodded and carried on (cheers for helping guys, don’t worry it wasn’t a heart attack). Soon the pain subsided and off I went again. I now think I was at my proper position in the field as I was able to hold position but not really manage to catch anyone until the final descent. I didn’t take the best line but I took better lines than a few others so gained a spot, lost a spot and sprinted up the final funnel to a painful 52nd out of 228 runners in a time of 49m 12 seconds.

A reasonable result considering the lack of actual running I have done, but still disappointing considering people I have raced with and been around on the final results over winter and autum of last year were top 25 and a good three or four minutes faster. This has been a better test of fitness, and it has given me a bit of motivation to get moving with things. The foot is no better, but also no worse so I am just going to start picking thing and see what happens.

noonstone-fell-raceTo sum this race up in one sentence would be “great fun, but not my finest moment”

I made the journey out there with a few others for the first of our club Fell Championships only to find I had forgotten my fell shoes! So this being described as a “beast” on the website also there would be considerable amounts of mud, bogs, groughs and steep hills. I was not impressed. I hummed and arrghhed about buying some more shoes at the shop, but having paid for a bike the day before I wasn’t feeling too flushed for cash. The other option were my road shoes or don’t do it.

I tried not to do the race initially, quoting my physio “take it easy”, then mentioned weak ankles, lack of grip, and anything else I could think of to get out of running in flats. It all fell on deaf ears and eventually I was convinced to line up with another 250 runners for the 9 miles of mud and hills.

The start was flat road to the base of a hill then a steep climb up onto the tops. Not too much of a climb but it seemed like I was taking twice as many steps as everyone else as I just couldn’t get grip. Resporting to all fours scramble made it faster, but not easier but I was up the first hill and off! Then the mud! Gloopy stuff was fine as I sank up to the ankles. Grip wasn’t therefore an issue, only issue was keeping your shoes on. As the first descent was coming up this was going to be the make or break for the race.

I minced and shuffled down the hill, as everyone else streamed past me. I took myself off the racing line so I didn’t slow others and also to get that imaginery grip I was so hoping for.

On hitting the flat maintained bridleway at the bottom of Stoodley Pike I tried to push on as much as I could as I knew the rest of the route would be tough with no grip. Passing a load of people along the path and up to the top of the hill, then they all passed me again on the way down the other side of the hill down.  The rest of the race was a struggle between falling flat on face or falling on my arse as I tried to pass people, only to fall over and get passed again.

Coming up to the final descent, my knee was bleeding, my face was covered in mud from a face first head plant into a bog, my number had come off and it was sodden and covered in mud.

I decided the final descent was best taken sitting down, with the occasional get on feet and slowly get down the hill. The thought being I had got this far with only superficial wounds, I wasn’t going to injure myself seriously on the final descent. Then a quick sprint to the finish and it was all over.

An interesting race and I am glad that I took part, although disappointed that I didn’t have proper shoes as I reckon I would have been a good 20 places further up the field.

Final postion was 58th out of 251 starters.

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On Wednesday I went and did my first night event of the year over near Skipton. This is not a training session but it is also not a race as there is no prizes for being fastest. Prizes go to the people who are closest to their predicted time.

As I am still reasonably new to running, it is the only race event I have actually done more than once so I actually knew the route and knew what to expect. It was also a good chance to see if I had improved in the last year.

Around 30 runners and a bloke on a crosser turned up with varying degrees of lighting. From the top class Hope vision lights to your usual petzls etc. I have to say this is the place for a bit of headtorch envy as there is such a clear advantage to have a bit extra power strapped to your head but it could be claimed to take some of the fun out of running in the dark.

At 7.30pm the event started with a bit of jostling up the road and onto the moors. This is where the fun started as you realise that much of the path was like sheet ice and you knew there was going to be a few falls that night. A sharp run up to the top of Sharp Haw followed by a great descent down towards rough haw before ascending that, round the trig and back down a steep rocky section and back up the slog towards Sharp Haw. As there was still snow on the ground it was often a bit easy to go off the paths and find yourself in some rough stuff which really drained the legs.

Then the final desent back to the road. Last year this was great fun, a slight gradient on pretty flat soft ground. This year just a mix between visible ice and black ice or the option to go slightly off the paths and risk the ankles on the tussocks and slightly longer grass in the dark.

Overall I finished 5th in 38 minutes 21 seconds so I was nearly 2 minutes out of my guesstimate of 40 mins 10 seconds. The spooky thing is that the race time was exactly the same as last year to the second. So why I was so wrong on my guess I do not know? I think I have improved as most peoples times were between 2 and 5 minutes slower than last year due to conditions and I didn’t feel I had pushed as hard this year as finishing in one piece was more important than getting a good time in slippy conditions.

A fair few bloody knees, and tales of slides and falls as we retired to the warmth of a bar to give out the prize for closest to the time.

All in all a great way to spend a cold Wednesday night in December.

Picture courtesy of Bob Wightman

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