2019 AGM and prizegiving: updated 3 Dec

Karen’s written up something about the AGM and prizegiving, as well as the race beforehand.  The minutes of the AGM will have to wait until Dick has finished electioneering – he’s a bit busy.  The photos here are Karen’s: you can find Nick’s photos on Flickr here, and his photos of the race beforehand are here.  Anyway, here’s Karen’s report:

Kong mini mm and then the Runfurther AGM and Prize Giving.

As last year we decided using a mini mm or score event was a good way to make it worthwhile for runners to travel. It also has the advantage of reducing the time faster runners have to wait around and it is good fun and nav practice too.  Injury and illness meant some could not run this year but those that did seemed to enjoy it.

I don’t think I have ever run from Greenfield before although I have been on some of the NE corner of the map before apparently. We left home early and travelled fast on deserted motorways. Parking was easy and I was able to relax. I always wonder why I don’t do more of these mini mountain marathons as I love the format and adventure. Today the weather was on our side too- dry except for a tiny spot of drizzle, not too boggy and good visibility. It would have been very different in the clag. I had no great plan but decided any hard hills should be tackled straight away and the road and big tracks left for the end when I was tired. There seemed to be others going up Alphin to the trig point but once I had dibbed there people vanished. The path towards Hoarstone Edge and my next control was fairly easy running and I guess the fires from last year helped. Once I left that CP it was clear that Mark and I would be running a similar route. I did see the Sunter family as we dropped off Wimberry Moss but then Mark and I were alone for about two and a half hours. In some ways I like this as there are no distractions and it’s very peaceful but there is always that nagging doubt of ‘oh hell, why is nobody else going this way? Have I made a really stupid route choice?’ I hoped not but was being tempted by a line of 40 pointers and then two 50s

After 4 controls the terrain became considerably less runnable but not truly awful and the clear vis let me pick out the huge rock on the skyline which was next.  It was a bit disconcerting to find most fences were not mapped and my route to my 7th CP seemed to take forever. I had hoped for a speedy descent to Pennine Way path but the terrain was not easy even if the next control on another huge boulder was.  The climb up to a 50 pointer was faster than I expected and I found a nice trod above the steep slope but below Bargeholme Moss all the way to the control on The Castle. Crossing Crowden Brook was interesting and I am sure the mountain bikers watching were disappointed when I stayed upright on the greasy slabs.

Better running along the PW suddenly meant loads of people, even if they were mostly coming the other way. Heading back from there I saw I had about an hour. Tired legs now but time to get closer to the finish.  Leaving Blackchew Head I was slow even though it was sort of downhill. Perhaps I should have eaten something.  After Chew Reservoir I made the decision to bank the points I had and play it safe. I ran down the road, ignoring a 30 pointer way up a rocky slope. Very tired legs saw me stumble after banking another 20 points and ‘windmill’ for about 20m- I stayed upright to my amazement and got a round of applause from nearby walkers.  With just one more 20 and easy running I knew I could be safely back in 4 hours and could slow down. Mark was nowhere to be seen (he had gone for the 30) but he reappeared as I stood chatting at the finish car.  The remote finish meant a leisurely jog back to the village where I met Bob coming up the hill for a walk. Back at download it was confirmed that my route choice had been fine. I was third at this stage with stacks of points.  Even by the end I stayed ahead of all the other females and was happy with some of the scalps I had taken.  Fast runners and great orienteers like Neil Talbot scored super amounts of points but I stayed in the top 20 and was happy.

Wonderful homemade soup made me even happier as did the big cup of tea and the cake.  I had totally destroyed my fell shoes though and need a pair for a race soon. Luckily Kong had some in my size, with grip and a wide toe box.  I will be washing my Altras and taking photos to send to the company. The soles are still fine but the uppers are shot.

Once changed it was great to have time to wander around chatting to people I only see at such events. Then it was time to move up the hill and search out the home of Chris and Carol Davies who were kindly hosting the AGM.  Once the Runfurther flag was up in the garden we were still early so we stood drinking tea and coffee in the kitchen as we put the world to rights.  Their lounge on the upper floor in what was a weaver’s house easily accommodated us all and proved to be a really convivial location. Big thanks to the Davies for the use of their home.

With the official business out of the way we stopped to eat, drink and chat before moving on to the prize giving. Sadly some runners were absent for a variety of reasons- trekking and racing in Nepal, injured and unable to drive, busy with family…

As always there were masses of prizes and Si Berry arrived with even more. Injinji socks for everyone! The reward this year was a mug and these went down well. Thanks to all those who made the effort to be there- especially Rory with his arm in a sling meaning his wife and young daughter had to come too and also David Chetta who raced near his home in the morning but then drove to Greenfield.

I now have a box of certificates, prizes and rewards for those that didn’t make it. If you email me when you think we might both be at a race I will try to hand them all over. (more photos on facebook) Minutes will be published but not until Dick has finished his work with the election. There was nothing controversial, the committee stays the same. 2020 races were announced and postcards handed out. Don’t forget to email me if you want an invite to the Pendle Way in a Day event.

Karen (karen at runfurther.com)

2019 Prizegiving and AGM – updated 24 Oct again

The Runfurther Prizegiving and AGM this will take place after the Kong Mini Mountain Marathon on Sunday 24 November, starting at Greenfield below Saddleworth Moor in the northern edges of the Peak District.  Entries are open on Sientries so get signed up!

The Prizegiving/AGM  will be at Chris Davies’s house, which is just a few minutes’ walk from the race HQ.  The address is 4 Higher Kinders, Greenfield, and we’ll put a map up here once Karen’s done it!  It will start at 3:30.  There’s virtually no parking there, so please leave your cars where you’ve parked them for the race.  We’re hoping the 2020 races will be announced at the Prizegiving.

There should be soup and cake after the race, then we will be providing drinks and some light refreshments at the AGM.

Please come if you can!

The Kong MMM race is a 4-hour score navigation race, with starts from 8:15 to 10 in the morning, so everyone will have finished racing by 2 or just after.  Get your entry in – it should be a fun event.

 

Round Rotherham 50 2019 – updated 24 Oct with blog links

The race

And so we come to looking at the final Runfurther 2019 event – the Round Rotherham 50.  A gruelling 50 miles round Rotherham in South Yorkshire, with complex routefinding, plenty of mud this year, and not many hills.  Yet again it made for a brilliant climax to the Runfurther championship.  Only Rory Harris could afford to take it easy, and needless to say he didn’t.

So, to the race results.  The outstanding performance of the day was Ben Hague’s winning time of 5:57:18.  This is the first time anyone’s ever run the race in under 6 hours, and Ben broke his own record time from last year.  Rory finished second, but was half an hour behind Ben, in a time of 6:28:05.  Third was Scott Williams in 6:57:32 – both Ben and Scott are local runners, members of Rotherham Harriers.  Fourth and fifth were Ken Sutor and Kevin Hoult, both previous men’s winners of the race.  And sixth was Sabrina Verjee in 7:47:41.  This has to be the second most impressive run of the day, as it was her first time running in the event, and this really wasn’t her usual running territory – she’s a brilliant mountain runner but not really known for navigating round industrial estates.  Clearly she can do that too, although she did set off with Kevin Hoult, so she may have had some assistance with the navigation for some of the way.  Anyway, she was less than 10 minutes outside the women’s record for the event (Kate Bailey, 7:38:02 in 2010).  Second woman was Elly Woodhead (9:00:03) and third Karen Nash (9:04:05), both well over an hour behind Sabrina.  Full results are up on the Sportident results site.

Karen has written up her blog, and you can find that on her site here, or read it below.  Nick Ham finished in a respectable time, which was good to see after his recent health problems.  As usual he took photos along the way, and I’ve used some here, although not any of his flytipping ones.  You can find the rest of them on Nick’s Flickr site.  There is another blog write-up here, and from comparing his finishing time with the results, I think it’s probably by Charles Colbourn, although it could be Colin Jordan or Richard Gordon.  I’ve no idea how he got a photo of David Byrne while racing though.

Runfurther Championship results

And so I can now reveal the winners of the Runfurther 2019 competition.  Subject to appeal over the Rotherham results of course.  This year I’m going to start with the women.

Women’s winners

1st:  Sabrina Verjee, 3948 points

2nd:  Hayley Evans (Buckley Runners), 3857 points

3rd:  Karen Nash (Team Krypton), 3853 points

I don’t think there’ll be much arguing that the best runner won this year.  Sabrina was actually first woman in four Runfurther races this year, although only three of these were counters, as none of them was a Short race.  Hayley beat her in the Lakeland Five Passes race, but this was just after Sabrina’s Ramsay Round and Dragon’s Back runs, which must have taken a lot out of her.  Sabrina beat Hayley in the Lakes 42, and has beaten Karen in all five of the Runfurther races they both finished.  Hayley beat Karen in both Lakes races, the only two events they both ran.

FV50

1st:  Karen Nash (Team Krypton), 3853 points

2nd:  Jenny Wyles (Chorley Athletic and Tri), 3148 points

As usual, Karen’s first FV50 by a country mile.  Well done to Jenny though, as that’s a very good points score.  She got almost as many points as Martin Terry, the MV50 winner.

FV60

1st:  Janet Hill (Springfield Striders), 2988 points

Well done Janet!  Again, that’s an impressive points score.  I suspect Janet won’t have any real competition until Karen turns 60, but who knows who will run next year?

Men’s winners

1st:  Rory Harris, 3987 points

2nd:  David Chetta (Mercia Fell Runners), 3835 points

3rd:  Kevin Hoult (Calder Valley Fell Runners), 3829 points

Rory was 3rd in 2017 and 2nd last year.  He’s been running better and better, and this year he’s won the title with room to spare.  Congratulations to Rory.  David was 4th in 2017, and 3rd last year, so presumably he’s aiming to win in 2020!  Again he’s been improving year by year.  Kevin was close behind him, but would have needed a much faster run at Rotherham to overtake him.

MV50

1st:  Martin Terry (Clayton-le-Moors Harriers), 3169 points

2nd:  Kevin Smith, 2888 points

3rd:  Steve Jones (Dark Peak Fell Runners), 2700 points

Well Martin always wins this category.  Kevin comes 2nd again, as he did last year.

MV60

1st: Alwyn Nixon, 2770 points

2nd:  Stephen Hall (Skipton AC), 2249 points

For the second year running, Alwyn wins, and Stephen is second.

MV70

Dick Scroop (Mercia Fell Runners), 1762 points

After two years as runner up to Bob Nash, Dick wins this year, as Bob hasn’t run a Long race this year.

Grand Slams

Nobody managed a Grand Slam of all 12 races this year.  Let’s hope that changes for 2020!

Most points

Women:  Karen Nash (Team Krypton), 7353 points

Men:  David Chetta (Mercia Fell Runners), 6463 points

Team Championship

1st:  Team Krypton (Karen Nash, Nick Ham and Elise Milnes), 7952 points

2nd:  Astley & Tyldesley Road Runners (Tim Campbell, Simon Ford and David Sloan), 7861 points

3rd:  Valley Striders AC (Anthony Fryer, Sarah Smith and Tim Straughan), 7421 points

Many congratulations to all this year’s winners!  And to the rest of you: keep training and beat them next year!  The full completed 2019 leaderboard has been finalised, and you can find that here.

The 2019 AGM and prizegiving location, date and time will be announced shortly, so keep checking this website.  The same goes for the 2020 races.

Karen’s race report

Round Rotherham- the last race of the series

It’s a funny race. I both love and hate it. Yet this was to be my 9th outing.
Hate it? Well yes. It is my annual punishment sufferfest as the course is flat and fast making it totally unsuitable for an ageing plodder who has rarely done sufficient training. It always hurts. My foot also hates the hard surfaces of many of the tracks and especially the efforts made by some fool who tipped aggregate along a nice muddy path.

Have never seen this in Wentworth before

I also hate the fly tipping and the lack of pride in community that this shows is depressing.

Despite the notice this seems the usual sight here

I do though love the people, quite like pitching myself against my previous times and the unpredictable October weather (although usually it is fine) and I love meeting up with old friends.

Briefing before 7am start

I don’t even mind the agricultural fields and the industrial scenery- I just let my mind wander on the history and feel sorry for the communities like Orgreave for what they suffered in the miners strikes. It’s not all horrid fly tipping some of the villages are pretty and the Roche Abbey area is lovely.

Roche Abbey

I completed number 9 and so now I guess I will return next year to get my special award for 10. Not that this is very impressive as Henry Morris has just achieved 30 and on one year did it twice with back to back runs.

Sharon the RO supervising Steve handing out dibbers

The race usually heralds the end of the Runfurther season and our last committee meeting before the AGM and Prize-giving. That’s my excuse for my head not always being in the right place! This year I had more excuses… my summer of six weeks rock climbing and one big event which involved lots of power walking up mountains and careful running down the other side is not ideal preparation for 50 flat miles.

No 243- she made it just

On top of this I had successfully arranged for Sabrina to target winning the Runfurther Women’s champs. Fearing I might do RR without her and so take important points she had entered too, even though it was not the sort of race she would enjoy. Then I worried about her getting lost and so arranged for Kevin to ‘escort’ her the best he could.  I really didn’t want to win by default but this also meant that now I had no reason to run hard. We started together but even before Elsecar I knew I couldn’t maintain that pace. Elly, a very young local girl, also shot off. Ah well, I would concentrate on being third.

At the start- I was soon feeling over dressed

The weather was superb. Dry, mild and even sunny later. The fields were nothing like as wet or muddy as I had feared. One local guy at Woodsetts was convinced I was taking the P*** when I said I thought it wasn’t muddy. I had to explain that if you run on the West Pennine Moors mud means people swallowing bogs not a bit of mud on your shoes and some splashes on your legs. Don’t think he will be visiting us soon!

Ken smiling and flying

Despite the hard (for me) pace I was enjoying myself. I had a chat with David B who I do not see often. I ran with Martin from NY Moors until I couldn’t keep up but then overtook him in the latter stages.

V50 Martin

I only saw Chris briefly as he stopped for a toilet break and then got lost- not often I beat him. It was good to see Nigel who I rarely see at races now. Then there were others lurking not far behind but getting closer over the past year- Kevin S and Sarah C.

Rory and Ken- two lovely super fast men

I was ‘around’ the same three men for much of the race with each of us proving stronger at different points and each of us stopping for different spells at CPs. I think I stopped longest but I was struggling to eat on the move and was trying hard to make sure I got some calories in without only relying on Mountain Fuel jellies and Raw Energy powder.

Langfold lake and smiling

Being with then certainly stopped my time from drifting even more badly and I am very grateful for Kevin B who had started at 6am but ran the last miles for me. As he kept trying to run it shamed me into joining in.  It was a happy partnership with me knowing the way, the odd chat and a bit of mutual motivation. The one place I didn’t stop was the new CP which had moved from Old Denaby to Hooton Roberts. It was very slightly off the path and at that stage I still had hopes of scraping in under 9 hours.

With Elly

I am very very glad I didn’t know that Elly was in fact only 30 seconds ahead here. Her mum texted her that message and she wished she hadn’t. She too was dog tired and now knew she had to keep running. I don’t think I could have done much about if even if I had known but it would have been interesting to see I suppose. We made good time along the riverside and canal but I did walk up through the slow climb in Swinton (well it’s flat almost if you haven’t run 50 miles) and then after Dearne College I had a couple of moments when I realised that the race was more than 50 miles, more than 81km and I would not be under 9 hours.
So Thanks to Kevin for his company, to Sharon and all the organisers etc as usual, to Kevin H for helping Sabrina,

Kevin
and Sabrina

to the farmer who had not ploughed the whole field but had left a strip of grass to run on and to the farmers who had crops in the fields rather than a ploughed mess.

Biggest thanks go to Bob who injured had gone for a bike ride instead of running but then made sure he was back to try to get runners to take spot prizes, to get my shower stuff from the van which was down on the beach and to help with all the flags and banners.

The ‘new’ venue for the race is great in many ways BUT… instead of doing the nasty road and cycle path in the dark when you are full of adrenaline it instead comes at the end in the heat of the late afternoon when each roundabout seems like just one too far and too many.

So 3rd woman in 9hrs 04 just 4 minutes behind Elly but a whole hour plus behind Sabrina. Hindsight is an amazing thing… If I had managed to persuade my body to try and got the 9 hours I wouldn’t have made any impact on Sabrina who was within 10 mins of the women’s record but I would have overtaken Hayley to be 2nd in the RF series. The men’s points were also dented when the local runner Ben lowered his own record to 5 hrs 57 – yes for 50 miles with some mud.

Dick was happy to get his 4th race and to take the lead in the Runfurther V70 stakes.

Three Towers Ultra 2019

The Race

This was the penultimate Runfurther race for 2019, and was a hard 43 miles round the Lancashire moors.  65 started the race, 52 finished officially, with 2 more missing a CP on the way.  Ken Sutor finished first on 7:27:00, Dave Beales was second in 7:33:39, and David Chetta third in 7:47:09.  First woman home was Fiona Lynch in 9:03:52, 8th place overall and a great run.  Karen Nash was second woman, 4 minutes behind Fiona, and third was Sarah Hobson in 10:19:00.  As usual Karen has written up her run, and you can find it on her blog, or lower down on this post.  No Nick Ham, so there won’t be any photos from him this time: the photos here are Karen’s.  The full results don’t seem to be up yet, but when they are you should find them here.

Karen Nash (left) & Fiona Lynch

Runfurther results

I’ve updated the Runfurther leaderboard, and you can find that here.  There’s till quite a lot to be decided at the final race of the year, the Round Rotherham 50 on Saturday (12 October).  We’ve got a good idea of who’s running at Rotherham, as the entry list is online (Sientries), and online entries have now closed.  However, just because someone’s entered doesn’t mean they’ll turn up.  And just because someone turns up, doesn’t mean they’ll run as well or poorly as anyone expects.  And just to add to that, it looks like there’ll be entries on the day anyway.  Here’s how things stand:

The men

First man this year is Rory Harris.  He’s already got 3987 points, and nobody else can catch him.  Second and third places are going to be between David Chetta, Kevin Hoult and Ken Sutor.  Kevin and Ken both have form at Rotherham, and both have entered.  As yet, David hasn’t entered the race.  If the three of them were to win at Rotherham in a dead heat, Ken would be second in the Runfurther champs, and Kevin third.  David wouldn’t have to be far in front of Kevin to overtake him though.  They’d both have to finish well in front of Ken to beat him to second place.

The MV50 title is probably going to be Martin Terry’s again this year, by the look of things.  Kevin Smith could catch him theoretically, but he’d have to run an unlikely time at Rotherham to do it.  Ed Gamble could catch Martin with a good run at Rotherham, but he hasn’t entered as yet.  Martin has, and Ed would have to finish well in front of him to take the title.  Assuming Ed doesn’t run, Kevin Smith will probably be second, and Steven Jones third.  Colin Williams could beat them, but he’d have to run well at Rotherham, and he hasn’t entered.

Alwyn Nixon will be the MV60 winner.  He can be caught in theory by Ken Wyles winning the race at Rotherham, but I’m sure Ken would be the first to agree that’s not very likely to happen!  And anyway, Ken’s not entered the race.  Stephen Hall has entered though, but he can’t catch Alwyn.

Bob Nash is currently the leading MV70, with Dick Scroop not far behind him.  Both have run three counters, and need to finish at Rotherham to make it four.  So far Dick has entered but Bob hasn’t.

The women

There are currently three contenders for the overall women’s title.  Sabrina Verjee has 3948 points, Hayley Evans has 3857 points, and Karen Nash has 3778 points.  Nobody else can catch them, but it’s anyone’s guess what order they’re going to finish in after Rotherham: it’s a bit complicated.  Even though Sabrina can’t gain any more points whatever she does, she can do a lot to determine the finishing order.  Hayley can’t catch her, and anyway she’s not entered Rotherham as yet.  Karen can still win the Runfurther title though, if she is first woman at Rotherham or if she is close to the first woman.  Karen has to score 955 points at Rotherham to draw level with Sabrina.  Sabrina and Karen have both entered the race.  Sabrina is a faster runner than Karen, but Karen knows the route, and has been first woman in two of the past three years.  I don’t think Sabrina has run the race before, and she’s more used to navigating the hills than around town.  If Karen runs at the same speed she ran last year (when she was first woman), Sabrina could only take the title by finishing 24 minutes or more ahead of Karen (unless another woman does, which is probably less likely).  And if she has a big enough margin over Karen, she could even push Karen down into third place, even if Hayley doesn’t run.  So is all that clear to everyone?  Didn’t think so, but it’s the best I can do.

The women’s vets winners are thankfully pretty clear.  Karen is first MV50 as usual.  Sarah Smith would also have four counters should she finish at Rotherham, but she hasn’t entered as yet.  Janet Hill is once again first FV60.

The teams

Four teams are still in contention for the team championship.  Astley & Tyldesley RR lead currently with 7861 points, but none of their runners have entered at Rotherham.  Valley Striders are second with 7421 points, and again none of their runners have entered the last race.  Third are Team Krypton with 7331 points, and Karen Nash and Nick Ham have both entered the race.  If Nick finishes the race, then Team Krypton will probably overtake Valley Striders.  They could even overtake Astley & Tyldesley, particularly if Karen also finishes first woman, or close to first woman.  Mercia could finish first too, in theory, but in practice the best they can hope for is second, which they could possibly manage if Dick Scroop runs his socks off at Rotherham and Nick Ham doesn’t finish.

By the way, please take all the above predictions with a pinch of salt in case I’ve calculated something incorrectly.

The AGM and presentations for 2019

…not much to say here, but as soon as the arrangements are finalised and Karen’s let’s me know what they are, then I’ll be posting them to the website!

Karen’s race report

3 Towers Ultra

Should be easy- local to home, mostly over moors I know, only 44 miles….. Ha Ha. Despite it being local we drove across in the van on Friday evening so that we could sort out flags and banners etc. Just as well because there were not many places to hang things.

I might know most of the area but not the myriad of rarely used paths that some of this route followed. Fortunately I had done a Howler recee for the second half and checked out some of the rest on my own. Yes, only 44 miles but that means some fast running and my body has become rather accustomed to stomping up very big hills or rock climbing. It was going to be tough.
Luckily some things did go my way. The weather forecast that had been pretty dire earlier in the week changed and in the end it was dry until early evening when most of us had finished. It was very wet and boggy underfoot but what’s new on the South Pennine moors and soft ground helps my foot too. I was hoping I would have the company of some guides over the first few miles and this worked out too; well mostly.

Start line

We stumbled along over tussocks and ditches in the dark for about 30 minutes until sunrise but there was a line of local runners to follow. I picked the wrong runners to follow and did a quick visit to Darwen cemetery but we didn’t lose much time there.

Not from today- I had no camera and the sky was not that blue

Once up at the Tower (aka Lancashire’s rocket) I knew the way and could relax.

A nice run down to Slipper Lower, through the woods, across the road and up over Great Hill.

Great Hill

All familiar ground- and I have missed these moors after an absence of two months. There was still one short footpath after White Coppice that I had never been on before though.
I would have been happy on my own but had the intermittent company of several runners including Tim C who was recovering from an injury and taking it easy. Running off Great Hill and down to the cricket ground I spotted David and Laura from Sportsunday photos- I bet they were glad it wasn’t raining. Before long CP1 at Jepson gate appeared. Somehow I was first lady? The next section had some fiddly bits and I am still not sure the best way through the boggy areas and up to Sheephouse Lane. Familiar ground around Rivington  and Winter Hill was straight forward and then CP2.

Winter Hill in the distance- we went up there too

I stopped here to refill bottles and eat a bit but I knew I had not really been eating enough- I struggle as soon as the pace increases and never really fancy much anyway. I was on my own from here through to CP3 as faster men had slowly pulled ahead. It was now warm and I stopped again to refill a bottle and eat again. I was still first lady at CP3 which was puzzling as I was sure Fiona was ahead.
After commiserating with Dick who had pulled out with a serious shoe malfunction I set off for our third tower above Ramsbottom- Peel Tower.

Peel Tower- Howler recee run

I was starting to struggle now and knew I needed to run more but just couldn’t do it. I like these moorland tops but my legs were heavy. After the drop to CP4 I slowed even more and then there was another drop to Book 1- The Long Way Home (you have to return with a page Barkley style.

Recee so I knew where to find the book

As I turned to trudge back up hill a grinning Fiona came flying down. She looked so fresh and was obviously overjoyed to have caught me. She had lost at least 20 minutes getting lost somewhere between Darwen Tower and CP1. She seemed to bounce away along the path and I tried to tell my tired body that once it was contouring I could run too.

Dry paths on the recee

I estimated that he gap was only about 4 minutes as I spotted her ahead and timed myself to that point. Book 2 was down a slightly hidden and overgrown path. Fiona couldn’t find it. With only a slight error and one fence climb I led about 5 runners safely in. As we left the Haslingden area and turned for the final boggy moor Fiona upped the pace yet again. I tried to keep her in sight but lost her at the road crossing. I found the tiny overgrown path and stopped to pick a few raspberries- yes I know it was a race… and then knew it was only 10 minutes or so to the finish. I was going to be outside 9 hours and would not catch Fiona so the raspberries seemed a worth while treat.

No chance of me in shorts today

Stu from Howlers had set up a gazebo in the pub car park and Bob was there with the Runfurther boards and prizes. 9hrs 7 and about 3 minutes behind Fiona. It was good to stand there and cheer other runners in.

Today’s effort had hurt. After a cup of tea, soup and a rest I treated myself to a massage. A good day out for Runfurther runners with Ken taking first man, David having a good run plus Fiona first woman and then me.

Also thanks to the landlady for letting us ‘camp’ in the car park and put the flags where ever we liked. Also for the awesome double fried egg bap for breakfast. Nice little pub if you are in the area.

Beacons 100 update

The question of how to award Runfurther points for the abandoned Beacons 100 race has now been sorted out (we think).  Many runners battled on for over 20 hours before the race was abandoned, and we were pretty uncomfortable about not awarding points for the race.  We have decided the fairest approach would be to give points to those runners who were still running at the time the race was abandoned.  To make it simpler we’re just doing this for Runfurther members, unless anyone else wants us to work their points out as well.

As far as we know, there were only two Runfurther members still going when the race was abandoned: David Chetta and Steve Jones.  David’s last checkpoint time was at CP6, at which point he was leading the race.  Steve’s last checkpoint time was at CP4.  We have therefore decided to award David 1000 points, and Steve 633 points, worked out from their respective times at CP4, which was the last point we could compare their running speeds.  If anyone else was still racing when the race was abandoned and wants their points, then let me know, and I’ll work out their points too.

This has given both David and Steve a few more Runfurther points, but hasn’t made a big difference as they both have four counters without this race.  I’ve updated the leaderboard accordingly.

Good luck to everyone running the Three Towers on Saturday!

Dig Deep 30 2019

No photos or race reports as yet for this one, but the results are up, and I’ve updated the Runfurther leaderboard.

There were 117 finishers, and the first of them to get to the end was Marcin Zeleski in 4:34:20.  Second was Craig Muress in 4:46:12, third was James Body in 4:49:08, and the only other runner to finish in under 5 hours was David Chetta.  First woman was Fran Cummins, 7th overall in an excellent time of 5:04:03.  Second woman was Jo Pearce in 5:44:23, and third was Amy Sarkies finishing 3 seconds later, so they may well have been running together.

Bullock Smithy Hike 2019 – updated 23 Sept

The Hike

The results are up on the hike website.  Kevin Hoult’s time has been corrected since those times were posted originally, and I’ve now updated the Runfurther leaderboard to match.  Rory Harris finished in a blistering 8:10, making Runfurther points hard to come by for all the other men on the hike.  Kevin Hoult finished second in 8:52, then Lawrence Eccles came in third in 9:17.  Next to finish in 10:21 were Jayne Lawton and Richard Kendall, making Jayne the first woman home by over two hours.  Coming in together in 23rd place were Sophie Kirk and Stephanie Wood in 12:34.

From Kevin Hoult: “Perfect weather conditions for a long run and the usual well organised and marshalled event you would expect.”  Apart from that I’ve got no information about how the hike went, but Nick Ham was on the DNF list, so I hope he’s OK.  He pulled out due to his recurrent vertigo problem (the illness, not a fear of heights).  He did get some photos before he had to stop though, and you can find them on his Flickr site.  As usual I’ve borrowed a couple to use here.

Nigel Aston wrote up his run (his 16th completion), and you can read that here.  Karen’s away so wasn’t at the event.

Runfurther championship standings

I’ve updated the Runfurther leaderboard.  Rory Harris is looking unassailable for this year’s men’s title, although theoretically he could still be beaten by anyone who’s already won any of this year’s races.  Kevin Hoult is looking a safe bet for second place.  David Chetta is currently third with good headroom over those behind him, and is the most likely to finish in third place.

Sabrina Verjee is still looking good for this year’s women’s title, but I wouldn’t put it past Karen Nash to finish first woman at Rotherham and one of the other two remaining races.  If she does that, and Sabrina doesn’t win one of the remaining races, then Karen will probably win out.  Hayley Evans is in a similar position to Karen, and could also end up champion, but I’ve no idea whether she’s going to be trying to win any of the remaining races – Karen’s got form and if I know her she’ll probably be intending to give it a go.  Anyway, Hayley needs a win at the Three Towers and one of the other two races to overhaul Sabrina.

Karen’s got the women’s V50 title in the bag as usual, and Janet Hill the women’s V60, again not for the first time.  Martin Terry looks set for another MV50 title.  No V60 or V70 men have run four counters yet, but the most likely contenders are Alwyn Nixon and Bob Nash respectively – Alwyn needs to run the Dig Deep 30, and Bob needs to run at Rotherham to make up the counters.

Valley Striders are currently heading the team championship, with Team Krypton close behind.

Beacons 50/100 2019

The weather made mincemeat of the Beacons 100 at the weekend, with torrential rain and gales overnight on Friday, leading to the race being abandoned.  Karen’s race report (below and also on her blog) gives a pretty good account of how horrendous it was.  There are a few photos in her account, but they are from recces beforehand!

So, no points for anyone in the 100, due to circumstances beyond everyone’s control.  Our condolences for everyone hoping for some well-earned Runfurther points.

The 50 went ahead on Saturday, with some route changes to avoid some of the high ground.  48 of the 61 starters finished.  First home was Daniel Weller in 9:38:59, 2nd was David Atkinson in 10:15:57, and 3rd was Victor Kotai in 10:55:21.  Bryn Evans and Hayley Evans finished just seconds behind Victor, so I imagine they were running together in the final stages.  Hayley was of course first woman home.  Hannah Hopkinson finished 10th in 12:36:52, and Margarita Felixberger was 13th in 13:01:14.  Full results are up on Sientries.

There were only a handful of Runfurther members running in the 50, so I’ll leave an analysis of who’s going up and down in the race for championship until after the next race.  In the meantime I’ve updated the leaderboard.

Karen’s race report

The Beacons 100 (Up Hill Down Dale)

Race report for UpHillDownDale Beacons 100 (and 50)

What a difference a day or two makes.

Black Mountain, love it

 

Wednesday 18 mile was a recee of CP5-7 in gorgeous weather. The views along the edges were superb and from midday the sun came out. I saw very few people on this western edge of the Beacons area – The Black Mountain.

Bad hair, but what a view

The paths were good and despite a massive descent and re-ascent at CP6 I really enjoyed my day out. It was varied terrain with some relatively pathless sheep trod moorland, the big edges and then the limestone of Dan yr Ogof.

I ran slowly to conserve my energy and thought it would be a section of the race to look forward to.

Thursday I did CP7-8 plus a bit more before deciding it was too hot to run.

Again the route seemed fairly straight forward but I was happy to know what was coming up. It was a section I had run a few years ago but in reverse and in the company of others so taking less notice.

Blue sky, shame it didn’t last

There seemed little point going down to the river crossing and then up the impossibly steep slope. There were no paths and I could see what had to be done. Instead I lay in the sun.

Straight down from where I was sat, cross the river and up the other side. Ouch.

It was going to be a tough route. I had recently looked at the results for the previous two years and been alarmed at the number of DNFs and the slow times for 100 miles (31 hours plus).

Race day. Ah well. Wind and rain for much of the day but it was on off and certainly wouldn’t be much of an issue for the race. After hours of reading in the van and reminiscing about Might Contain Nuts races from the Outdoor Ed Centre we moved to Crickhowell and got all the Runfurther gear sorted- flags and banners up, display boards and spot prizes out in the hall, a few prizes for the RO and then time to chat. I didn’t know many of the other runners but Steve Jones was there with plenty of time to spare too. I was dressed to run, my drop bag handed in and I just wanted to get going. It was going to be a tough course with the night coming early with all the low cloud. Perhaps I should have done a recee of this first 20 mile loop but I guessed that near the start there would be other runners around me.

MR believed the weather forecast ie.that the worst of the rain had passed and we would just have strong winds. Not true. At 8pm on our start line the rain started. I opted to put on my big heavy weight cag there and then. Correct decision. An hour later it was torrential bringing early dark and very very low vis. At this stage the wind was on our backs. I made my first mistake of allowing others to use their GPS and rely on them, first error. We were off line and lost some time to the amusement of those I later ran past. The last section to CP1 went well and even though I was on my own and no real idea of where I was heading the GPS seemed to say all was OK. Soon a couple of glow sticks confirmed I was close to the CP. The volunteers there made me feel good about myself and after a bite to eat I set off after Fiona who was about 20 minutes ahead they said. Despite the wind and rain I enjoyed CP1-2 and was making good time. It was a shame not to get the views but at least the nav here seemed easy as I ran along the ridge, picked up the Beacons Way and was on a nice wide grassy path with deep bracken on each side. I made a silly error entering the village at CP2 but soon put it right and found the guys waiting on the canal tow path. More food and the realisation that in 20 miles I had not had a drink. The tow path was easy; flat, no nav and just a bit overgrown and puddle. Bob and the van were waiting at the tunnel where he knew I would leave the tow path and meet the road. A swift cup of tea and I was off. The rain seemed to get worse but low down I was sheltered from the wind. I knew to leave the CP at the White Hart in Tal y bont but think I made a slight error on a parallel path next to the Taff Trail. I arrived at the dam OK and sort of knew where I was going on the next bit. I saw two torches behind me and now wished I had waited and grouped with them. The hillside was running with water and obscuring paths. By Waun Rydd I was getting blown all over and a bit scared. The path kept vanishing and I couldn’t stand up properly. Making forward progress was difficult. From then on the rain just got worse, torrential and non-stop. The wind became gales. I lost the path on the way down having taken my eye of the garmin to try to keep my balance. Even that failed and a strong gust blew me face first into a huge pond or puddle. More swearing and now I was soaked. I lost the path but decided to just keep heading down. It meant some bracken bashing and the two torches over took me during all this. I have only had my eTrex a short while and not used it much. It kept turning off when I wanted it. I climbed gates and headed down to the lane and the village. I had given no thought to eating or drinking yet again. I was scared getting off the hill down to CP3 but then proud to have done so and so continued. The CP was a van and I sheltered inside with a brew and stuffed down a huge pile of sweet potato I had been carrying. I was shivering but knew Bob and the van would be down in Brecon; not far and on lanes and tow path. Initially I struggled to get going on the lane as my cold muscles had seized up but by the tow path I was moving better and dawn was cheering me up. I found Bob and had yet another brew plus a marmite sandwich. Time to crack on and make use of the day light. The Usk was looking impressive as I crossed the bridge and started the climb towards the hills. I wasn’t moving very fast but I was at least moving forward. I had seen no runners close enough to speak to for hours and hours. The lanes seemed cruel as they headed down to streams when I knew really we needed to be going up and up onto the Beacons. The rain had washed out the hedges and the road was littered with debris from the water and huge branches brought down by the gales. As I left the relative shelter of the lanes the real force of the storm struck me. I did think about turning back on the first big wide low ridge but thought it would be soft. Higher up it just got worse and worse. I could barely stand up, moving forward was exhausting and I was worried about the tops. I nearly turned round and perhaps should have done. On the way up face into the wind I was drenched, blown all over the place and getting chilled due to my slow progress. By the top I was scared. Contouring away from Pen y Fan helped but not enough. I was blown over into the grass well over 100 times, I stopped counting.. After 45 mins on the top I knew I just had to get off and I didn’t really car which way. I put GPS and maps away and headed downhill on the least bouldery land I could find. I was blown over onto a rock which kindly gave me a dead thigh for a while. Should I have stopped, concentrated and tried to make it down the correct way? I will never know but I did know I wanted to avoid the rock path at all costs at least until I dropped out the worst of the wind. I soon realised I was heading down towards CP8 instead. I didn’t care. I was safer and the wind was less fierce. I hit the road at CP8 just as Jonny the RO drove by. This gave me a short ride up the road to CP4. If I had run up the road could I have continued? Probably but I am not sure it would have been sensible. I piled into Otto’s van and found Fiona who had been 1st lady changing into dry clothes. She like me had been blown all over, got scared and was too cold to continue. As the gas heater roared we were shivering badly. We agreed that it was SMJ and tried to make each other feel better. I never reached the part I had receed and never got to make the most of the day light and decent paths that I knew. Bob had been waiting in the van over the hill at CP5. In fact he had been trying to get some much needed sleep when he spotted the tracker and asked the CP staff what was going on. He came to my rescue and we drove a short way to a quiet layby and fell into bed. Thank god for the van.

By the time we woke the rain had eased to the extent there were some gaps in the heavy showers but the wind seemed just as bad. All the rain had of course swollen the streams and rivers. David had made it over to CP6 but it had taken him a long time and he had been confused by the diversion. He was at CP7 when he was stopped. Almost a dozen left CP4 and made it to CP5 before they were stopped. The Mountain Rescue pulled the plug. It is likely if the weather forecast had actually been accurate that we may never have started, certainly not on our planned route.

Not much path and a river to cross – memories of the OMM

The 50 miler set off on Saturday morning and so with more knowledge of the conditions they were serious rerouted away from the tops and any river crossings. I believe they went through the col to the east of Cribyn and the down the valley to the south rather than along the ridge south. They missed out Tor y Foel hill and went down the Taff trail to Tal-y-bont and back along the canal. They still got a long race but not those tops. Many finished at it must still have been a tough day out.

So another DNF. 2019 is proving to be a tough year despite some good runs as well. It seems whenever I take on a race that makes us change our holiday plans it goes a bit wrong. In NZ my race meant a big detour back across the South Island. This time it meant we stayed in the UK instead of heading off to the sun in the van. I just hope diverting from France and the Pyrenees to go to the Tor des Geants goes better. (Yes, feeling a bit low and fragile).

Adidas sponsorship

We are delighted to announce that Runfurther now has an additional sponsor.  Adidas UK have generously offered to provide us with 30% discount vouchers for race prizes, plus running shoes to award to the some of the Runfurther Championship winners.  Many thanks to Adidas – please buy their products!  (and those of our other sponsors of course…)

Pennine 39 2019 – updated 25 June

Greg’s Hut, Cross Fell

The Pennine 39 results aren’t up on the Nav4 site yet, as I write this, but Joe’s sent them to us, so here they are:

1 39 Ken Sutor Male 46 MV40 05:31
2 12 Stuart Fludger Male 46 MV40 06:32
3 27 Karen Nash Female 58 FV50 07:00
4 33 Steve Rivers Male 50 MV50 07:10
5 46 Colin Williams Male 55 MV50 07:20
6 6 Ian Challans Male 38 M 07:21
7 40 Chris Timms Male 38 M 07:22
8 35 Chris Sandison Male 47 MV40 07:24
9 31 David Owen Male 44 MV40 07:28
10 30 Geoff Osbaldestin Male 46 MV40 07:39
11 20 Ben Holmes Male 37 M 07:45
12 18 Charles Hazlerigg Male 34 M 07:48
13 38 Peter Sowerby Male 57 MV50 07:58
14 44 David Ward Male 46 MV40 08:04
15 1 Jason Allen Male 47 MV40 08:06
16 34 Neil Robinson Male 48 MV40 08:06
17 3 Rick Ansell Male 59 MV50 08:41
18 13 Katie Godfrey Female 27 F 08:44
19 22 Mohammed Sharif Jallad Male 27 M 08:47
20 45 Neil Wilkes Male 43 MV40 08:49
21 2 Simon Andreassen Male 52 MV50 08:57
22 4 Kim Ashworth Female 29 F 09:06
23 15 Louise Greenwood Female 49 FV40 09:06
24 50 Jenny Wyles Female 54 FV50 09:07
25 51 Ken Wyles Male 60 MV60 09:07
26 5 Paul Booth Male 43 MV40 09:13
27 9 Owain Davies Male 37 M 09:14
28 23 Rosie Jones Female 39 F 09:14
29 17 Nick Ham Male 55 MV50 09:27
30 42 Gareth Tosh Male 57 MV50 09:32
31 7 Michael Cottam Male 56 MV50 09:35
32 8 Richard Craig Male 43 MV40 09:46
33 11 John Figiel Male 53 MV50 09:54
34 19 Janet Hill Female 64 FV60 10:11
35 29 Sara Ordway Female 39 F 10:38
36 41 Nicky Torr Female 45 FV40 11:04
37 49 David Wyatt Male 46 MV40 11:04
38 24 Debbie McCart Female 57 FV50 11:27
39 25 Mel McCart Male 58 MV50 11:27
40 36 Richard Scroop Male 72 MV70 11:39
41 28 Robert Nash Male 75 MV70 12:03
42 43 John Vernon Male 68 MV60 12:03
43 14 Julie Graham Female 50 FV50 13:05
44 26 Elise Milnes Female 59 FV50 13:05

Ken Sutor won again, a few minutes slower than last year.  Karen Nash was first woman again, a few minutes faster than last year.  I suspect Ken may have been a bit slower this year because he didn’t have Rory Harris hard on his heels this time.  Stuart Fludger was 2nd, an hour behind Ken, and Karen finished 3rd, half an hour behind Stuart, in 7 hours dead.  Once more it was a select field turning out for this great race, with only 44 finishers.  I suspect it’s the remote location that keeps the numbers down.

Karen’s race report is up on her blog, and as usual I have copied it here too (see below).  Nick was there this time, and his photos are up on his Flickr site.  The photos here are his as well, apart from the top one.

Good to see Ken running well, and if he runs more Runfurther races he could be challenging Rory for the 2019 Runfurther title.  The same goes for Karen.  Although she’s a slower runner than Sabrina (who’s beaten Karen three times this year), she could well end up with four 1000-point counters again this year, if she keeps up her good form.  There are still three Long races to go, and if she’s first woman in two of them, she’ll have the maximum 4000 points again.  Sabrina can only match that by being first woman in the Dig Deep 30 in September.

Karen’s race report

Nav4 Pennine 39 (a race or a social weekend)

Actually it was both, but no surprises there really. I love Nav4 events- always great scenery, interesting route, superb CPs and post race food and loads of lovely people.
Our weekend started early on Friday with a rapid drive to Romneys in Kendal to collect mint cake for Runfurther.

Mint cake for all the remaining Runfurther races

Then it was a dash back to Hutton Roof to climb. The forecast had promised warmth and some sun but the reality was cool, breezy and some sun. Off came the shorts and one went the long tights and a few more top layers.

Spot the continent

Still we managed 10 climbs on the little crags and it let me practice placing trad gear again and getting some faith that the gear would actually hold me if it had to. By late afternoon we were driving to Keswick for our second collection of the weekend.

Eco new bags for Mountain Fuel

This time Mountain Fuel from Rupert. With the van loaded up we then drove to Alston, ignoring the road closed signs when we spotted cars travelling in both directions high up on the fellside. By 7pm all the flags and banners plus display boards were up and spot prizes displayed.

Alston YHA- what a great venue

After a quick meal in the van we joined Dick, Nick and John in the pub for a brief committee meeting.
It was a fairly leisurely start and plenty of time to be ready for the bus to the start at 8am. As I stood in the sunshine it was already warm, although not as hot as last year. Ken Sutor was running so the means Runfurther point would take a hammering but I wasn’t sure about the women. There were some I did not know and I ‘worried’ over whether they were fast. This was the fourth running of the race and I have done it every year. The first year we raced down the little field to the gates and over the bridge, then the next year we walked slowly and carefully across the failing bridge and last year we took a long detour walk to reach the other side. This year some paths were closed due to filming but at 9am on Saturday it was deserted. We were able to revert to the original start from just off the road. Race briefing was quiet and quick. We were off. I charged the first field to make sure I didn’t get stuck at the gates or the bridge – plenty of time to slow down a little on the riverside path.
The first stretch on the Pennine Way follows the river and you get glimpses of the waterfalls, including the spectacular High Force. The path is very runnable with just a few trip hazards. It then crosses pleasant farmland to the first bridge over the Tees before hugging the riverside below cliffs of Falcon Crags most of the way to Cauldron Snout.

Cauldron Snout

This section is scattered with rocks and most have been worn smooth by the river of millions of feet on the PW. Time to slow down and take care. As it tumbles down from Cow Green reservoir and over Whin Sill the flow is always impressive. It was all constructed as the outflow to take water down the Tees without the expense and ugliness of a pipe. A short scramble up the rocks and we were at CP1.

Ros at CP1

I was on my own. I could see a bright green vest ahead and knew that in front of that were Ken and Ilkley man. Behind me I could see orange vest but not much else. I couldn’t see any women but maybe they were running a cautious race with a speedy second half.  Before long I ceased worrying and just enjoyed the day. Running alone I kept a steady and more sustainable pace than sometimes. I was really having fun. Even the track to Birkdale and beyond didn’t seem so bad and I amused myself with memories from exactly a month ago when I was running the opposite direction in the dark and the rain during the Hadrian 100. After the pull up to 600m or so you get the lovely reward of turning off the vehicle track and running on grass. Happy feet again. I love this section towards the bridge over Maize Beck and the stunning High Cup Nick and even before you get there the views are lovely. The area is so quiet compared to the Lakes and the bird life is brilliant. I made good time to the Nick and although I didn’t stop I did soak in the views as I concentrated on staying ahead of orange shirt man. The next section is a rapid 400m plunge down to Dufton with views into the Lake District. It starts on grass but even once you reach the track there is plenty of grass verge. By now there were a number of walkers heading up the hill and most were congratulating us. I resisted the temptation to steal the post van that had been left idling at the top of the lane and knew I could be at the CP slightly ahead of schedule. Lins and Mel were in charge. My water bottle was taken and refilled- I added more Mountain Fuel powder and grabbed melon, tomatoes, crisps and cheese. I love real food at CP. I set off at a slow jog munching cheese and tomatoes. As I was leaving orange shirt man was just arriving.
The next climb to Knock Old Man is a beat all the way up to 794m. It was warm and steamy but not as hot as last year. The streams all had more water in than I remember so I was able to refill my bottle easily. I could see the green vest ahead struggling and decided to reel him in. No running just a steady and determined plod. Then I could see another runner further up and so I targeted them too. It made the climb go faster and nobody was actually catching me yet. After the cairn the plateau is fairly runnable and then downhill to meet the radar station road. There are at least 3 route options here. The guy ahead stuck to the road and didn’t turn off. That was the last I saw of him. Orange vest (Steve Rivers) was keeping an eye on me and followed. Go to snow pole 71, cut up the re-entrant, meet the wooden steps and contour the main hill. What follows is a lovely roller coaster down from Great Dun Fell, up over Little Dun Fell, down the other side and finally up Cross Fell. At 893m this is the highest point on the route. I tried to pull ahead to keep my trod a secret but Steve spotted me and followed. It’s nice and grassy, only a little boggy and cuts the corner slightly too. Someone had already been down it, I guessed it would be Ken.

Greg’s Hut

Arriving at Greg’s Hut I was greeted by Little Dave.

Nick at the hut

He was well bundled up in clothes so it must have been chilly stood about even though I was only running in shorts and T shirt.

Dave with water? (Pipe?)

We had a brief chat as I filled my bottle at the pipe and moaned about the ‘new’ yellow brick road that had been created.

Others at the pipe

The track down to Garrigill is about 6 miles or so and it goes on a bit. It also is definitely not all downhill!

The Yellow Brick Road

Somewhere along this Steve caught me up. It was good as we made each other run more than if we had been alone. A supporter walking up assured me that I would not be caught by another woman so that was good. Now it was just my race and perhaps an attempt to get a PB. A MF jelly perked me up and although I thought Steve had arrived strong I suddenly realised that I was alone again. I used the verge where I could to save my feet and the new hardcore on the road was better than I had feared. Thanks to the steam-roller guys who had done a good job. Garrigill appeared and I forced myself to keep running most of the way to the CP.

CP at Garrigill- nearly back home

Again the food was laid out and I knew I had to stop. Ignoring the food and a cup of tea would save 2-3 mins but I might run out of energy on the final river path. Stopping and eating would make dipping under 7hrs a big ask. I stopped. It is meant to be fun after all. Under 4 miles to go and despite the stiles mostly nice running. I knew the way and ticked off the landmarks in my head. First the footbridge, then the dink up right at the farm then the little bridge over a side stream and finally the start of the woods which mean you are almost back. I had set my watch early when Joe was doing his race brief and so could not be sure of my time. I ran fast, even up the final steps. 7 hours exactly. Bang on the time of last year. It would have been nice to get 6hrs….. but apart from the usual pain in my right foot I felt good. My legs were not really tired and I had not actually been pressured or racing people. Strange that just running at a steady pace got me the same time.

Top positions

Ken of course was already back and had won in 5hrs 31.

Stuart Fludger was an hour later and I was less than 30 mins after that. More a reflection on there not being many fast men on the day but I would get my 1000 Runfurther points. Steve came in 10 mins later followed by Colin, Ian and Chris. I had run with Chris last weekend and shown him the way several times. Today without me he had missed turning off the PW in Dufton to reach the CP but phoned Joe to let him know.

Lovely pressie

Joe presented me with my photobook and hoody- some lovely memories of all the days out and friends I have made over the last decade running ultras. It was a good opportunity to get a few more friends to sign the card.

So many memories

Nav4 carrot and corriander soup was wonderful and allowed me to recover enough to go for a shower. Refreshed from that I came down for more soup, bread, cake, tea, crisps…. yep love eating after an ultra.Others were having a tough day.

Nick was slower than last year but happy to have been able to complete after an op and recovery. Dick, Bob and John seemed to be taking forever.  I ate a bowl of Joe’s chilli as I waited.

They were now last though as Elise and Jules had ambled round stunned by what was to them new scenery and taking lots of photos.

Joe had given beer tokens so once I had made sure that Bob was very tired but sort of OK we went to the pub. When I returned to the YHA Bob had already walked back to the van and bed.
A leisurely and breakfast of several parts on Sunday set us up for taking down all the flags etc and the drive home. The plan had been to go climbing again but Bob was knackered and his leg sore and I seem to have damage the shin on my left leg, although on the plus side the ankle seems to have fixed itself.