Winter 100 2014

The Winter 100 hadn't really been on my radar for 2014 but earlier in the year having completed The Thames Path and South Downs Way I decided to book up for the Centurion Grand slam again. However this plan got scuppered early on due to a chest infection just before the North Downs way. All the same I thought I'd still do this as my last ultra of the year. I wasn't quite sure how things would go being that UTMB was only 7 weeks previous but I felt ok, so went along with no great ambitions of a fabulous time.

The build up hadn't gone exactly to plan, I think I peaked a week early. The previous week had been quiet at work, I was full of energy and although I supposed to be into a two week taper I was running every day. What I hadn't anticipated was what a hard weeks work I had booked myself up prior to the race. I am a groundworker / landscaper so there are no easy days but I at least like the Friday off before a hundred to relax. Not to be this time, we did a full shift on the Friday. I did however go to bed at 8 o'clock that evening and slept right through until 5 am, so mentally tired I was not.

5am is a bit early for pre-race breakfast so I drank a couple of mugs of tea, grabbed a flask and an egg sandwich, chucked my kit in the van and set off. It's only a two hour drive from Maidstone so I had enough time to work out my plan for the race ahead. I had a few plans actually milling about in my head so it was only a case of picking which to run. Although I keep the plans simple I think it is important to have one even if you ditch it later on, in my case I tend to ditch early on. Having a pre-race plan is a great tool to get you mentally in the right place. Plan "A" was to run a 3 ½ hr first 25, 4hr 2nd 25, 4½ hr 3rd 25 and 5hr 4th 25. This obviously would have to be a perfect day, perfect weather, fitness, trail, nutrition, perfect everything really. Plan "B" is sub 20 using 4hr, 5hr, 5hr and 6 hour splits. As I didn't know what effect UTMB or the previous weeks work would have my head was saying plan B but my heart was screaming plan A. Given what a poor season I've had trying to achieve various time goals there would be little point holding back for this one so Plan A pb pace it was then.

Check In was great this time round, there was so many people there I knew and it was a pleasure doing the rounds and chatting with everyone. I did sit briefly and chat with Jeff Springford and Lee Kelly while I had my breakfast and deliberated what shoes to wear. There was not much cohesion in peoples view of what condition the trails were in. I had brought my Inov-8 290s for comfort or my Mizuno Harriers for grip. Finally deciding to go for comfort to start with. The format of the race is 4 out and back spurs so you are never more than 25 mile from your drop bag at HQ. This is great because you can travel pretty light. My decision for this race was to have all the mandatory kit on my person but just the most minimal kit I could find. Then I could have more substantial kit in my drop bag should conditions change. The kit  I carried for the race consisted of Ultimate Direction Highline pack with the bladder and padding stripped out, a bottle, both maps, Berghaus Vapourlight hyper smock, a £2 poncho, pair of skins tights which pack so small and I knew I wouldn't wear them, a 180g base layer, lightweight hat and gloves, Silva trail runner head lamp, small hand torch, batteries, tiny £2 compass, equally tiny whistle, 2 gels, iphone, scaps and an emergency blanket. I would not normally race this time of year with so little but given the format and warm weather forecast this was my decision on the day. After getting our kit checked, numbers pinned on and the briefing we were ready.

We had to walk up to the start due to the change in location of the HQ, so we strolled up to the Morrell rooms and carried on chatting. I went to the front for the start, a top 10 was going to be tough today but you might as well stand in the position you roughly want to finish. The rain just started to spit with 5 mins to go, so I composed myself and readied for the task ahead. With a blast of the horn we were off. A quick sprint down to the narrow foot bridge then we could settle into our pace. The top half dozen were off very quickly and a group of about 5 of us settled in to a 7½ to 8 min mile pace. It felt quite fast but not unmanageable.

We were straight out onto the Thames Path which wasn't as muddy as I had expected and I was just about getting grip on the grassy path. Within a couple of miles we reached a pub and three of us shot ahead when we should have turned left. Good job we ended up at the bottom of someone's garden or I would have just kept going. The pace was relentless and we shot through the 1st aid station. I was running with Paul Ali, Peter Bowles and two others, between us we exchanged chat and the miles just melted away. We were about 1/2 mile from the turn when Ed came bounding back along the trail followed not too far behind by the other podium prospects. I stopped at the turn, filled my bottle and sampled some cake. We were heading back.


One thing was for sure, it was hot! I was sweating buckets, I had anticipated a mild race and only wore shorts and a tee shirt but it was un-comfy hot. I suffer a bit with cramping in my legs but during UTMB I was taking scaps and drinking salty soup with no cramp at all. I decided that the cramps must be down to a lack of salt even though I take scaps. So I was taking one every hour during the heat.


One of the best things about the out and back format is you get to see the race unfold at the front and you can encourage all the runners throughout the pack. After many high fives we got back to running the 1st leg. The trail had now turned very slippy due to it being churned up and grip was hard to come by. I dropped back ever so slightly which felt more comfy, I felt I was pushing it a bit too much in the mud. We ran on to HQ and the first leg was done in about 3hrs 40 ish. I got in and decided that I would change to my grippy shoes for leg two. I also creamed my feet while the shoes were off. I took a few handfuls of food and shot off again.

Leg two is without doubt my favourite, it go's along the Ridgeway through South Stoke onto North Stoke and on up to Swyncombe via Grims ditch before returning. I backed off the pace slightly but still had it mind that I wanted the 50 done in daylight and that gave my 4hrs for this section. The run to North Stoke goes parallel with the Thames and isn't very far, maybe 4 mile or so and we arrived there very quickly, I still stopped, filled my bottles and grabbed some gels knowing the next section was 8+ miles. The route is mainly uphill for the run into Swyncombe, going through woods, across a golf course and through fields, a bit of everything really. As I neared the golf course the leaders came back the other way they must of been 8 or 9 miles ahead already. I carried on steadily onto the turn around being passed by the leading ladies in the process.
I had been taking the scaps very regular and eating plenty of gels backed up with crisps and fruit. Something wasn't right though, I wasn't sweating anymore and certainly hadn't peed although I'd been drinking loads. As I wasn't sweating my temperature was rising and my head felt very un-comfy.
I replenished my stocks at the aid station and headed back. Although my head felt like bursting I felt right in the zone a ran like a man possessed. I greeted everyone on the way back and really enjoyed the trail running, really great fun all the way to North stoke. I quickly filled my bottle and ran hard to the half way point. I made it in plenty of time 7hrs 50 ish and daylight to spare.
Instead of rushing through the Aid station I had a to do list and stuck to it. Change t-shirt, change socks, cream feet, fresh buff, fill bottle and eat properly. I did all that and decided to change shoes back to my 290's and I was off again. Roughly a 15min stop, but  I got everything right. I had grabbed a few bits to eat while I started leg 3. I walked up the High st, ate and carried on walking for about a mile. I was passed by a couple of runners but wasn't feeling the need to chase them down, I had a good fifty but didn't feel I had a pb in me on the day so I wasn't really bothered. I did resume my running and ran/walked upto bury down. Usually there is a wicked head wind as you run along the Ridgeway towards Chain Hill but luckily enough there was a cross wind today and it was very runnable, boring but runnable. As I reached the monument on the trail I knew the turnaround was not that far. Up ahead was the aid station, it looked like a spaceship from Close Encounters, lights flashing and all. As I got closer I could hear what at first I thought was SL2's "On a ragga tip" but soon realized it was in fact Prodigy's "Out of Space", a tune that brought back memories of my hedonistic lifestyle circa 1992. The fact there was a giant chicken in the aid station made me think for a second I was back there. Defo time to move on.
I ran back along the Ridgeway smiling and reminiscing about my youth, a happy runner was I. Back through Bury Down and the long slog back to HQ. I was through 75 in 13hrs 21. Happy enough with that but no pb today so I'd concentrate on a sub 20. Another quick cream of the feet and I joined the Thames path for the final leg.
I felt really shitty as I started the leg and really struggled to run right from the off. My hamstrings felt like they were being tightened as I moved and I was lacking energy. My stomach was not playing ball at all, I had eaten about 8 gels and 3 bags of shot blocks during the race and my stomach had had enough. I felt sick! and couldn't get any calories in. Peter Bowles and Peter Hague soon caught and passed me, I didn't care, I'd had enough to be honest. We joined up again in the aid station and walked out heading toward the final turnaround. They both soon started running and I tried to stay with them but I was hurting and just concentrated on run /walking there was no way I was death marching this one out. As I left the Thames to negotiate the housing estate I saw Peter Hague walking around looking lost. Luckily enough I have run through that estate about a dozen times and knew exactly where to go. It wasn't marked at all at the junction (someone must have removed them). We stuck together through that bit and rejoined the Thames. It soon started raining and before long it was hammering down, I put my poncho on which is really a bin bag with sleeves and a hood. The rain continued for a couple of hours and the poncho worked a treat.We chatted for a fair few miles and it soon emerged that Pete was feeling as rough as I. We carried on together and kind of worked out that sub 20 was borderline but I was doing what I could. I felt as sick as I ever have at this point but needed to eat! Energy levels were near zero. Just shy of the aid station I ate another gel, this made me gag, I swallowed it and pressed on gritting my teeth so not to be sick. I turned around at the aid station and headed straight back giving Pete the option to come with me. He agreed and we left together. We were both hurting and made a pact to finish together, we pushed each other all the way back, for once I was glad of some company. As our sub 20 came and went, we finished together in 20hrs 19mins, happy enough with that and another buckle in the bag.
All in all I had a good race, I think the weeks hard work affected my legs in the latter stages but I had kind of expected that. I didn't stop me pushing the pace when I should of reeled it in a bit but where's the fun in that. I really enjoyed meeting up with everyone before the race and making new friends during the race which for me was the highlight on an pretty uneventful race.
Something that really did go well was my feet, no blisters, no maceration, I think I really have it sussed. I used Camphor spray everyday in the run up to the race to harden the skin. The evening before I rubbed Gurney Goo into the soles of my feet as recommended and on the morning repeated that. I have now changed from drymax socks to icebreaker merino wool socks that are far less abrasive. I also reapplied the Gurney Goo every 25 mile and changed socks at 50. Sorted.
So as my ultra running season comes to an end the year hasn't exactly gone to plan. I haven't really performed when I wanted to, each time I stepped up ready to attempt a pb or other goal I've fallen a bit flat. My highlight was definitely UTMB which was a fabulous experience. My low point was the TP100 where after training so hard, losing weight, eating right and generally doing everything perfect I blew up in monumental style. So my attention turns to 2015. I have an entry in for Hardrock but with a 2% chance of getting in I'm not holding my breath. My third entry will be going in for Western States next week. Surely 2015 will be my year for that. I am holding out for HR or WS to be my "A" race next year. I have an entry in the Thames Path 100, In case I don't get in Western States so I have qualifier for 2016. When I find out my fate on the US races I can book up the rest of the season. At the moment if I don't get in either I shall enter Spartathlon but if I do I'm thinking about doing an Autumn Ironman. Apart from that it will be marathons and 50 mile or less ultras.
So Merry Christmas and Happy New Year ;-)

Thanks again to http://www.kentphysio.co.uk/ for your ongoing support.

Congratulations to Kyle Blackburn for his fantastic Barcelona Ironman Finish. Well done bud.

UTMB 2014

Having failed in 2014 to gain entry into Western States again I made other race bookings for the year. Everything was sorted until my entry for UTMB came up, I had got in through the lottery. I cancelled the LL100, the C2C and The UTMB became my "A" race.


Training for this was going well up until 4 weeks out when I suffered a minor burn out. Being so busy trying to run a business and training had taken its toll. I was working 7 days a week, doing 10 hours labour a day plus my hill training of an evening. I was knackered! I was getting up, working, training, eating and sleeping. I got a couple of heavy migraines 4 weeks out which is a sure sign I was run down then I picked up a cold and chest infection. With 3 weeks to go I missed my last long run and had to settle for shorter high intensity stuff. I actually worked 35 days on the bounce before finishing on the Sunday before the race so I had a few days to chill out before we flew out. All my planned visits to the Lakes and Brecons went by the way side and little did I know what an effect this would have on my race.


This race could be done cheaply I suppose but I didn't find it cheap at all. When you start totting up I probably spent £1.8k total for my wife and I although only I ran. There was race entry, hotel for 5 nights, flights, insurance (used dogtag for specialist insurance), transfers, eating out, new kit, spending money whilst out there, the list goes on and on. We treated it as our summer holiday so I'm not complaining.

My room with a view.

We flew out from Heathrow on Wednesday morning and had a nice enough journey using BA for flights and Cham express for our transfer. The weather had been awful on the Tuesday but as we arrived the sun was shining the beauty of the Alps became more apparent as we got closer to Chamonix. I was in awe as I stared out of the mini bus window at the gorgeous mountains passing us by. After an hour and a half transfer we were there dropped off right outside our hotel and checked in. After a lengthy wait we managed to get sorted and got to our room. No, no, no this room was not good enough, no window! I can't stay in the Alps and make do with skylight especially after all the money we paid. Back downstairs and kindly ask to be moved. "We only have one other room and its a bit noisy", fine we'll take it. It was lovely, a view of the station one side and Mt Blanc out the other.


I decided to get my kit checked in straight away so I was free on the Thursday. I chucked my kit together and headed for the check in. Below is everything used or carried during the race.


Raidlight  Endurance 14 ltr pack: After trying many packs in the run up I decided on my very old and faithful pack. I can't get on with vest type packs, doing a physical job means I haven't got a typical runners physique and they rarely do up across the chest especially when full. A lot of runners had small packs and some looked like there was no way they had the mandatory kit. Any way my pack was perfect for the job. Heavy but perfect.


Water supply: I used a standard bottle for water kept in the bottle holder of my pack and a slim-line bottle shoved in my pack for emergencies and to make up the mandatory water requirement. Worked fine and only had to crack into my small bottle a couple of times.

Hows that all going in that bag?

Mobile: Iphone that has to work in all countries all the time so I took an external battery aswell, Mandatory.


Personal cup: I bought the Salamon cup which is tiny so didn't use it. What I did is to get a beetroot juice carton and cut the top off, folded up and shoved in my pack. You do need something if you want coke or tea etc because there is no cups after about the 4th aid station. Worked perfect. Mandatory.


2 Torches with spare batteries: My main torch is a Silva Trail Runner 2 used with Lithium batteries. This torch works fine and is very comfy with a good light beam. My back up is a Silva Siju which is fine but only as a back up. Mandatory


Survival Blanket: I bought the cheapest, smallest conforming blanket available at the expo. Mandatory


Whistle: On pack. Mandatory


Bandage: I had a small roll of self adhesive bandage stuffed in my pack. I also carried 2 stretchy tubey grip bandages in case my knees packed up. The roll was mandatory but the tubey was not.


Food reserve: Carried Gu gels,a Snickers and an Eat Natural bar. Mandatory. I got this majorly wrong but more about that later.


Waterproof coat: I carried my Hagloffs LIM which I carry on every race. Has never let me down. I also carried a disposable poncho for the first time which went over me and my pack when faced with a shower. Worked brilliant and will defo use it again as it so much easier than unpacking and putting your coat on and off. Coat mandatory, poncho not.


Long trousers or over the knee shorts and long socks: This one was the hardest to decide on and I actually changed 10 minutes before leaving for the start. My final choice was to wear compression shorts and have full compression tights in the pack. This was the right choice as I wasn't cold and didn't need to change. Unless you wear tights in the UK you'll be fine in shorts. The long trousers were Mandatory.


Warm layer: I carried and wore an Ice breaker Merino wool base layer 260g. Merino wool is fantastic and in my eyes the best clothing you can have. You don't get cold or hot or smell like a urinal. Mandatory.


Cap or Bandana: I carried both and usually always do. Mandatory.


Warm Hat: Same Berghaus hat I've had for years. Mandatory


Warm and waterproof gloves: I carried fingerless gloves because they are my preference but for mandatory reasons I carried light weight silk glove liners and black marigolds.


Waterproof trousers: Berghaus Paclight Goretex trousers. Rarely get worn but in this case mandatory.


Passport: Mandatory


Poles: Black Diamond Ultra Z poles optional but one of the most important items I had. So important that I couldn't have finished without them.


Handwarmers: The teabag type. Not mandatory but I have a problem with cold hands so carried them just in case.


Scaps: My electrolytes.


Pro plus: My caffeine hit.


Gurney goo: Foot lube


Spare socks: Merino Wool.


I wore;


Inov-8 290 race ultras, t-shirt, compression shorts, salomon cap, buff on my wrist, drymax socks with Gurney goo, Rock tape on various bits and my Suunto.


My drop bag contained a change of clothes, shoes and gels etc. My crew/wife carried similar.

Queue for Reg

I joined the back of a very large queue leading into a sports hall to get my kit checked and collect my number. It took a good hour to get into the sports hall and the front of the queue. I had to keep checking kit as I was so worried I'd forgotten something, too late now though I was called forward and handed over my passport. The lady tapped at her computer and looked at her screen quizzically, shit I thought what is wrong but within a few seconds a print out appeared and I was ushered on. On the print out I was asked to provide my long trousers, phone and water bottles. Kit checked passed and relax. My pack was tagged, my number handed over and the treasured wristband applied. I was out of there. I had a look around the very good expo and bumped into Peter Bowles, who was going to do the CCC. Our paths had crossed many times so it was finally good to have a chat and wish each other luck in our respective races. That evening we met some other UK runners and supporters for a few beers and a chat, we then headed back into town to watch some of the early TDS finishers come in.

Check in done

On the Thursday we did some sight seeing and went up on the biggest cable car in town. Not a great idea for someone as scared of heights as me. This thing was mental it virtually went vertical up the mountain but I just got on and didn't look down. The thing is, when this behemoth went over a ridge and crossed a pylon it started swinging. Oh my god what is going on, this is awful! I nearly passed out. Having said that it was a lovely trip after all and very beautiful indeed.

T minus 2 hours.

I had a great nights sleep and woke at 7ish on race morning, little did I know that would be the last sleep for at least the next 50 hours. We had breakfast and a walk around town trying to kill time but all I wanted was the start now. Town was slightly quieter as the CCC was under way, we grabbed a sandwich and headed back for me to get ready. The nerves were jangling but I just kept telling myself it was like repping Ben Nevis 10 times which somehow made the task seem a little less daunting. I was ready but just before leaving my room I decided to change from 3 quarter shorts to above the knee compression shorts. We walked down to the start line 2 hours early and there was plenty of room so I took a seat on a kerb and waited. Soon it was heaving and my wife had to walk away because it was just so manic. With an hour to go there was not a square inch around me but every so often someone would tip toe over everyone and squat into a non existent space. We had a few drops of rain which made some stand to don their coats which in turn made others surge forward, within seconds like a giant wave we were all forced to our feet and packed in like sardines. All the elite runners were now in the front pen and we all moved forward. I was so worried about this start as I thought if I lost a bottle or a stick I would never be able to stop and pick it up. As the music blared with minutes to go the sky opened up and it was lashing down. I took the decision to get my poncho out and get covered as everyone got packs off and rifled round for their coats. We were now down to the final minute and the Vangelis tune played, then the countdown and we were off. The start is manic, people jostle for position, crowds scream at you, and all the time you are careful not to fall.

Not long now.

The further out of town we got, the crowds dissipated and I was able to have a pee stop, two hours on the start line had taken its toll. The pace was fast as everyone wanted to crack on and the trail was easy. We soon reached Les Houches about 5 miles in and crossed the main road, before we knew it we were heading up our first climb. It was a steady climb up but by this time it was hammering down and my poncho was no longer cutting it and I was getting chilly so I stopped and put my coat on, after about an hour we reached the top. I felt good as we started to descend but it was steep, grassy and wet. My inov-8s were untested on this terrain so I took it steady thinking a fall would just end my race. The amount of people passing me was sickening, some were literally sprinting past me. We reached St Gervais and the party atmosphere was in full flow, screams of Allez,allez,allez filled my ears. This was amazing. I refilled water had some coke and onwards.

The first climb.

From St Gervais it was fairly runnable to Les Contamines then the climb to Col du Bonhomme. I was fast hiking all the way up passing lots of people and occasionally turning to marvel at the endless snake of headlamps behind. The higher we got the more aware of the altitude I was, getting slightly more breathless, very thirsty and sore headed. We passed the Col on to Croix du Bonhomme. We started another long descent into Les Chapieux, again I was getting pummeled on the descent, I just couldn't get any speed but I felt strong. I think it was Les Chapieux where I was ushered to a table for a kit check. Phone, coat and emergency blanket please. Be warned you will not get through this race if you try and blag it through without the correct kit.


The aid stations held water, coke, tea, coffee, and a salty chicken stock full of noodles. Food wise they had lumps of bread, cheese, salami, cheddar biscuit things and fruit. I was having a Gu gel every so often and a bowl of salty stock whenever it was on offer. In hindsight this was never going to see me through!


As we approached mile 30 I felt good, no sign of a bonk and the legs felt strong. I wasn't due to meet my wife till half way so pressed on. It was quite cold and about 1am so I stopped to strip off my soaked jacket and t-shirt and replaced it with my IceBreaker top, I soon warmed up. The rain had subsided but my feet were pretty mushy so I stopped again and took 5 to change my socks and reapply the Gurney Goo.

Happy to see the sun come up.

We followed a road for a while before ascending again and again I power hiked all the way before losing all my places on the next descent. There was becoming an every increasing pattern of climbs and descents with very little flat running. At this point my knee decided to start being awkward and I had sharp pain shooting through my leg so I got one of my tubey bandages out and strapped it up. This was hard going but doable, I felt ok. The climb up to Arete du Mont-Favre was steep and I felt quite lethargic for the first time. I also felt mentally tired so popped a pro plus and carried on forward. This was at roughly 40 mile, feeling slightly concerned at my tiredness I carried on. After another 6 mile of downhill we reached a plateau and as the daylight emerged I was treated to some beautiful views of the mountains. It was heaven and I had to stop to take some photos. We were just outside Courmayeur but the descent was near vertical switchbacks for at least 5k,  and my quads were feeling sore as we entered Courmayeur.

Plastic cow?

There was massive support in Courmayeur and a chance to get to my drop bag, meet my crew and generally sort myself out. You are allowed one crew member to meet you at designated aid stations and it was a boost to meet my wife and chat about the first half. I was about 14 hours in, 50 mile in and my 35 hr target seemed to be going to plan. I had a full change of clothes and reapplied the Goo to my feet. I moved through to the food hall and got a bowl of pasta with a dollop of tomato sauce. I went over to a table and joined a Brit whose name escapes me right now. I stood, as I have a saying "Beware the chair" which I stick too religiously. I once sat down after running London to Brighton and seized up totally, I never have or never will sit down during a race through fear of seizing up, although now it is a mental thing and signifies giving up in my head. Anyway the sauce on the pasta was horrid and I felt a bit sick so like a fool I slung it and wandered out. Now alarm bells should have been ringing as I had eaten very little apart from bowls of stock aka soup, a handful of gels and a few scaps.

Views to die for.

The climb out Courmayeur was hard and the Brit who I had ate with joined me I just managed to stay with him but energy levels were low, also my quads were hurting bad, the descent into the half way point had took its toll. My short lived partner pulled ahead and I carried on forward, shit, things had gone bad, this section was hell on my body. I was knackered and in pain. The lack of food meant a lack of energy and as we descended into Arnuva my quads were screaming and I was having serious doubts that I would be able to continue.  I spoke with another Brit on the massive ascent of Grand Col Ferret who informed me that we would be descending for about 10 miles from the top, the climbing I could cope with, the descent I wasn't so sure. Luckily I had a snickers in my bag as I was so hungry it was driving me to distraction. The descent was bad for sure, my legs were on the way out. My knee felt okay but my quads were blown, I pushed on to La Fouly. A lot of people passed me on the descent to La Fouly the feeling of wanting to pack it in was strong, had my wife agreed I would have dropped for sure but no she was having none of that. Basically it wasn't even considered by her. As I left the aid station her bus was leaving which she hopped on along with a wave of runners, people were walking in, quitting and jumping straight on the bus. It all seemed a little weird to me, there was no talking these guys round they were off. As I hobbled through the streets I took the time to stop and get my other tubey bandage out and strap up both painful quads. For the next few hours I hiked, hobbled, shuffled and jogged my way to Champex all the while trying to work out why do I do this sport? What is keeping me going? Why don't I just pack it in and go for a beer. My mental fortitude was being pushed to its limits. I stumbled into Champex and met my wife, and again my pleas to quit fell on deaf ears. I tend to get a bit wobbly when I'm totally shattered and was stumbling around the aid station, I was getting some looks from the medics but thought nothing of it. Only then did an American lady hold my arm and say to me "Don't come this far and get pulled from the race, they are looking at you and will pull you out" I tried hard to pull it together. Whilst in here  I tried to eat but couldn't face any of it, my occasional gel and chicken stock combo was just about keeping me ticking over. I told my wife if I was to carry on she would have to go buy me a sandwich, I had to have a sandwich! She agreed to get one and meet me at the next stop.

Hobbling along

I think I was about 25hours in as I left Champex and started to do some pretty incoherent maths on the race but my logic was, 3 peaks, 30 mile, 3hrs up, 2 hrs down each = 15 hours and I could do this! That did mean however I would be out there all night again. At this point I think I decided I would finish. After all it takes years to get in a position to earn the points for UTMB, it takes at least a year to gain those points, it took 2 years to get my entry and months of specific training to get here, now. I must finish this! As we approached the first of the three final climbs darkness started to fall again and the climb was hard, you look up and see lights in the sky and basically that is how high you will be going. As I neared the top there was a herd of cows getting rather rowdy and following us up the trail. They were making a lot of noise and generally being rather intimidating, I had to shout and clap my hands to get them to sod off. Just before the top I put my head torch on for the second night. There was a gate at the top and I leaned against it and thought, 1 down before shuffling towards the descent. This descent took my ages I could barely step down any more, each time I did I grunted and groaned with the pain. People ran past me as though I was stood still. Dozens of them! This went on for a good two hours. With the night also came the tiredness, just total mental fatigue. Just as I reached what I thought was the bottom we levelled out before dropping again even steeper, down massive steps each one bringing a tear of pain to eye. Before long I reached Trient I couldn't see my wife so was just about to leave as I was still rather wobbly when she ran in. She had just got off the bus with sandwich in hand. We chatted and I shoved the sandwich in my pack to eat en route. As I left I was pulled over by control. Another bloody bag check! Phone, coat and blanket. Bloody good job I had it, imagine a DQ at mile 86. I made a joke about having the most important bit of kit, my sandwich, before heading off again.

Kit Check. Again!

The second of my three climbs was as hard as any but my sandwich half way up helped me along. For some reason I was really struggling to breath on this ascent and kept having to stop to take deep breaths but my chest kept getting clogged up with phlegm and I was wheezing like a pensioner. How much more shit was this race going to give me! The descent was notably harder, at one point I tried to shuffle faster but tripped and fell flat on my face, on rocks and my pole flew over a wall of rock. Shit! I couldn't get up and double shit I couldn't climb over the wall and triple shit I wouldn't be able to finish without my pole! Luckily there was a runner right behind me. Great, I said can you help me, he ran on without a flinch. Fuck this I thought I have got to get my pole or I've had it, so I crawled over the wall on my stomach until my legs flopped over and was able to grab the stick. Then I had to climb back up and over the wall before righting myself on the trail. I'd done it.  The tiredness had hit hard and I was hallucinating quite strongly. Every stone had a face on it, people in bushes and trees with body parts. All pretty normal stuff. I was totally incoherent as I trudged into Vallorcine, shaking, hallucinating and struggling to think straight, all I knew is I'd better get straight out of  there before anyone noticed what an awful state I was in. I walked in filled my bottle had a coke and walked out, 1 climb to go.

Where am I?

As I left Vallorcine I walked for about 50 metres before stopping to ask directions. The path was clearly marked but I just couldn't work out where I was going or indeed where I was. As I walked up the clearly marked trail I thought I was lost, I had lost all concept of what was going on. I stopped to wait for some one to pass, they didn't, they stopped also. This was so confusing. I carried on trying to work out what was going on. At one point I was convinced we were all going to work, to build something, I even considered ringing my builders merchant! We approached a road and there was a line of lights reaching to the sky. I thought how does that road climb that high? Of course it wasn't cars it was head torches. I started the climb and had just about worked out we were in a race so that's what I kept telling myself. Quite often out loud! This did nothing to abate the hallucinations, they were rife everything had a face or wasn't as it seemed, I was completely out of it. In hindsight dangerously so. This climb was a brute, just never ending rocky switch backs. We climbed for hours, straight up. As soon as you thought you were there, you would see headlights even higher. Some of the path you literally had to climb to get through, we soon got into the clouds. We carried on climbing until we reached a rocky summit not dissimilar to Scafell Pike. We followed the markers across the boulder strewn summit for a couple of miles, this was just climbing up and over rock formations. On the bits I couldn't step down I had to slide on my arse, across the rock. This worked well until the rock pulled my shorts up and I slid bare bum down a rock. We had much joy after the race removing the rock from the cuts in my arse. This climb literally took hours in total and right at the top we popped out above the clouds a totally surreal moment for sure. The descent was okay to start, daylight had broken for the second time and the hallucinations had eased, the ascent seemed to have split the field and this was the first time I felt alone. It was nice to shuffle alone knowing I had almost done it, there was nothing could stop me now. During this descent to La Flegere an English voice piped up behind me, I turned and it was my pal Dan. We hadn't seen each other the whole week then finally bump into each other on the final descent. He was struggling with his quads, doing better than me but still struggling. We chatted the time away into the aid station, grabbed a final drink and struggled on. The downhill out of the aid station was steep and I was back to a snails pace. Dan went ahead and I shuffled ever downwards. I soon hit some nice switchbacks, rocky and painful but in the grand scheme of things nice. After another hour or so I reached civilization and things flattened out. I ran into town, literally battered and bruised. I started to feel very emotional but promised myself I'd keep a stiff upper lip. That shuffle was the finest mile or so I ran, I felt on top of the world. Ironically after running round Mt Blanc following a marked course the worse markings were in Chamonix town. I didn't have a clue where I was going but I didn't care, I'd get there eventually. As I rounded the town I saw Jacque and my pal Dave Bowen who handed me the union flag and I ran up the home straight with the flag above my head to screams of 'Go GB'. It was over. 40hrs 15mins. I collected the coveted gillet and went to sit down for first time in 40hrs. Dave asked what I wanted "Cold Diet Coke" my fave. That was the finest coke I've ever drunk. As I hobbled back to the room I couldn't help but laugh at the shit I put myself through for my sport.

OMG its over.

Without doubt that was the hardest thing I have ever done. Anyone inexperienced reading this be in no doubt this is a monster, a big vicious scary monster! I have run a hell of a lot and it took all of my experience to get this done, if you are considering it, consider the CCC first. You are either going vertically up or vertically down. My prep of constant hill rep sessions was laughable really. You need to train in that environment to do well in that environment. I'm glad I didn't drop as I never wanted to have to go back. Now if I do go back it will be because I want to, not because I have to. I have my finish, I have my gillet, it's done

. The time is irrelevant. I love to run but this is not really a running race unless you are elite then even then they must walk those ascents. It is a giant hiking contest. Having said that, it is a must do for all trail runners. The build up, the whole week is trail running heaven and the worlds best runners all congregating in one truly lovely place. Chamonix is gorgeous and so is the Mt Blanc massif.

Go GB

As usual I got my race wrong, I would have run a good CCC on my prep but it just didn't cut it for the big boy. Quads were blown badly too early, eating strategy was awful, running with verruca's is just wrong and even little altitude can affect you. I thought the key was to bust the ascents and cruise the descents but I was so wrong the Europeans walk the ups to conserve energy then bust the descents and blow you aside.
On the plus side it was an amazing atmosphere, Inov-8 290's are the mutts (they have almost wore out but great all the same), Gurney Goo for macerated feet is great, Drymax socks ain't all that. Merino wool socks are the way forward.


Anyway I did it. Am I going back?

The Gillet!

No!


(not yet anyway);-)

A special thanks goes out again to my sponsor www.kentphysio.co.uk who make life easier with their on going support.

South Downs Way 100

I do love the South Downs, it is a beautiful place to run. I can't think of many places I'd rather be in this country of ours. So running the whole length of it in the beginnings of summer holds much appeal to me. This would be my second running of the race, my first in 2012 was my performance of the year. Everything went right that time round so I was hoping for some more of that.

We travelled down on Friday afternoon in my father in laws van with the intention of me sleeping in the field in a bivvy bag and my crew sleeping in the van. The weather up until Friday had been fantastic so the idea of sleeping in the field seemed like a good one. We arrived in the middle of Friday afternoon and had a nice couple of hours sunbathing. As darkness drew closer I checked the weather and apparently it was pissing down right where we were? Well it wasn't but it was coming!  As it had been so lovely during the day I thought I'd wing it anyway so I flipped the tailgate up on the van and lay down under it and pulled the strings on my bag tight to my face. As I closed my eyes there was a flashing coming from over the hedge which I first thought was a train track but as it got gradually closer accompanied by some very loud bangs I realized it was the storm coming. I decided to ride it out and stayed put. Well it rained so hard it soon became impossible to get out my bag as I and all my gear would have been soaked. It was lashing in under the tailgate and the constant water bouncing off my face made it impossible to sleep. I had to do something, so I undid my bag, grabbed my foldup chair and put it over my face. I was soon tied back into the bag and managed to get a fair few hours sleep. I did however wake up in a rather deep puddle! I'm so glad my bag was 100% waterproof.


It was still tipping it down up until 5ish so I stayed in the van as long as possible. I had my number already so I thought I'd hang on as long as possible to save starting in wet gear. I got to the start line at 5.30 ish and didn't have a lot of time to catch up with everyone but said hi to most of my good friends. Time just flew and before I knew it the brief had been and gone and we were toeing the line. As we started Stuart Mills run off like he'd robbed someone. I just thought, what an amazing athlete he has this in the bag.


After my epic fail in the TP I decided the best plan of attack in this one would be to not have a plan and run on feel. Run for the love of running. The difference was massive, I had put so much pressure on myself for a pb at the Thames path that it took away from the enjoyment I get from running ultras. Well sod that this time, I was going to have fun. The strange thing about having no race plan is you have to make instant decisions on race tactics and as I rounded the field I had to decide what my starting pace would be. The one decision I did make and have stuck to for a long while now is to run my own race at my own pace, so no chatting for me for the first few miles just get on with it. At the TP my start pace had been 7.5 min miles, this time I settled into 8.5 min miles which was comfy and I was on my way.


The downs are gorgeous and the running was heaven CP1 was soon upon us, I had drunk half my 500ml of electrolyte and half my water at this point but didn't bother to refill as my crew had said they would meet me at 12 mile so I had a couple of cups of water and pressed on. Mile 12 came and went and I was sipping my water hoping I would see my wife soon but nothing. It was very humid, my head felt like it was in a pressure cooker as I approached the late teens of the race. My usual bad patch at 18 mile hit bang on its ETA. I was feeling really shit, thirsty, hot and  I really couldn't be arsed. My thoughts went to dropping, I couldn't think of any reason to carry on. During my ultra running life since my first 100 and only DNF, I have become mentally very strong and can usually find good reason to get it done. Could be any number of things but there is always something that you can latch onto, then you can put your DNF thought back in its box and crack on. Not this time though, for the first time I was questioning whether I could even be bothered to carry on for another 80 mile. What is the point? What am I getting out of this one? I've got a busy week next week, do I really want to feel like shit?  Luckily I entered the back end of QE park and knew the aid station couldn't be far, I sucked the last drops out my bottles and headed through the park and down the hill to the CP. My wife had found the CP but hadn't had internet all morning so couldn't look up where to meet me hence the lack of support. I drank plenty, ate some food, chatted about quitting with the wife and changed my wet hat and buff before moving on.

My feeding regime is a massive work in progress and I really didn't eat enough during the TP so I made sure I ate well this time. A caffeine free GU every couple of hours and more fruit than you'd find at a fruitarians banquet. I started to feel better and the running became easier, mile 22/23 to mile 35ish are usually very good to me and today was no exception. I could really enjoy being there. I really love the flora and fauna of the downs, it is truly outstanding and I just soaked it up for a few mile. I ran into Harting downs and my pal Gary Kiernan was helping out, it didn't take him long to take the piss about me carrying poles.
 I know the pole debate will never subside but I carried them as when else am I going to practice with them? I have the UTMB coming up and what sort of fool would go there having not used them over the distance. Not me. For those interested I used Black Diamond ultra Z poles and they were fine. I carried one in each hand for the whole distance and used them on some of the steeper climbs. My technique improved no end. The ease of putting them together and dismantling them really is really good and I shall carry on with them at every opportunity until August.
I could feel maceration starting on my feet around 35 mile, I've had it so much that I can recognise the first tingles. I was determined that this wasn't going to ruin my race so I pulled up at the next available stop, cleaned and dried my feet. I also changed socks and sprayed my feet with a silicone spray I'm experimenting with at the moment. I'm pissed off with trying to find the perfect shoe so I just wore an old pair of NB this time around. They were doing alright but it was early days.
I soon reached half way in roughly 9 hours which was perfect for a sub 20 which I would obviously take however much I was trying to run for just the love of it. I pushed on to Washington and was greeted with a hug and a kiss from Karen Webber and lots of clapping from the amazing support. I changed shirts, ate more fruit and soon went on my way feeling better now than I had since the start. This wasn't to last long.
Within a few short miles I was feeling shit again and amazingly tired. I was so tired I thought I was going to fall asleep on my feet, something that doesn't usually happen until about 2am but this was only about 5pm. I ran for quite a while with David Thompson who I've seen and spoken to many times but never ran with so it was nice to chat for a while and compare notes on how shit we felt. I was having to dig deep and was having strong thoughts about quitting again. Luckily there was a reason to continue, something I am trying to achieve so I focused on that and kept going. Somewhere around 60 mile I bumped into Luke Ashton he had got a wiggle on and was pushing for the finish already there was no keeping up with him so after a brief chat he ran off. Luke is a fantastic runner and although we have been close time wise on a few occasions I am under no illusion that he is the better runner and on his day, untouchable by myself. He is however game opposition and if I've got my racing head I will push myself to race with him, just not today. I ran down the long hill to Boltophs, had a quick stop and carried on.
 I was at least pleased I was able to run on command I hiked the ups and waddled/run the flats and downs. Somewhere between Boltophs and Saddlescombe farm my waddle turned into a half decent run and as I cruised along my toe hooked on a flint and I went straight into some brambles ending up on my back. Moments like that can only be laughed at, I lay my head back into the brambles looked at the sky and laughed, Oh what the hell am I doing? Getting up is always a lot harder than going down and what a struggle it was to get back up. Cp9 soon passed by and I was heading for Clayton Windmills. Clayton is a weird stop, you think you have run past it and are going wrong before you turn 90 degrees left and head on into the aid station. I was feeling hungry for real food and found a massive wedge of over cooked flapjack, burnt bits and all. It was delightful and I left the windmills a happy man, chewing on burnt flapjack and only 30 to go.
I was running ok now, slowly but running all the same and the miles were ticking away. Around mile 80 as darkness set in I started chatting with Dan Mayers, he too is running UTMB this year so we had plenty to chat about and good company he was too.
Next CP was Southease and another chance to sort my feet out, they were getting really sore again and I bit the bullet and changed to road shoes for the last few miles. The hill out of Southease is one of the bigger ones and I used my poles to good effect and hiked all the way up. On reaching the top I resumed running again and soon overtook Ken Fancett and caught Dan up. This section is quite featureless and although not overly difficult to navigate, you need to have your wits about you. I thought it best that I stick with Dan for this bit and Ken soon caught us, the three of us run/walked all the way to Alfriston. A quick turn around here and we pressed on, Dan ran ahead but was too fast for me so off he went. 8 miles to go and I was still running and ran all the way to Jevington albeit slowly. The last CP is always nice, you are there, you've done it, now enjoy it. I was checked in in the street and given the option to carry on but I walked into the aid station to say hello and thank the volunteers. I always think the last cp must be the worst to volunteer at, no-one stops, no-one eats or drinks and the hours are long. Pretty thankless really.
4 miles to go and I hiked my way up the hill out of Jevington, about half way up a light appeared behind me. I started to pick up the pace right to the top where I met the lonely marshall who ushered me off the downs. With the thought of someone overtaking me I got a last spurt on, all the way down the hill, past the houses and onto the main road. I switched my light off and ran by the street lights to the roundabout, hooked a left and ran down the home stretch. I actually passed Jez Isaac with only a few hundred metres to the stadium. Felt a bit of a git passing and always do that close to the end but needs must and I was on one. I entered to stadium for my final lap as I ran round that track I almost shed a tear. It had been hard and I'd almost pulled out 80 miles previous I felt quite emotional. I crossed the line got my hug from Nici, my medal from Mimi and a kiss from my wife. 20 hrs 43 but this run wasn't about times or places it was about loving running. As I stood there and calmed down I felt very unsteady, my legs were extremely wobbly and I was escorted to a seat. It was over. I showered, ate and headed for home. I need to get to bed as I had a family barby later in the day which I made and very nice it was too.

I had some major negative thoughts during the day and a lot of time to contemplate my running future. Although the camaraderie is second to none among the longer distance ultras, I for the first time ever have considered packing in the 100's. They are very hard, they take an age to recover properly, they affect my work and I don't feel I have anything to prove to myself anymore. I ran a sub 18 last year and I don't think as long as there is a hole in my arse I can better that time. The main attraction has always been  pushing my boundaries and seeing what I could achieve but once you've achieved all you wanted. What next? There are a few things I still need to do, Western States being the main one and I shall continue for sure until that is done and hopefully in sub 24 (I still have to get in first). Who knows that may well be my last 100! Watch this space...

Massive well done to Mark Perkins for smashing the SDW record time. Didn't see that coming after Stuart Mills opening mile. Also a great performance for 3rd by David Ross, about time you had the race to match your talent. Good running buddy.

Thanks again to http://www.kentphysio.co.uk/ for your support.

Thames Path 100 2014

My prep up to this had been perfect in my eyes. I will not lie, after the W100 although I did well I could see room for improvement. I decided that I would try and smash a fast hundred at the TP then I could concentrate on UTMB.I trained hard, ate better and felt great going into this. I worked out all my splits based on a 17hr 30 finish. What could possibly go wrong?

Me and the wife travelled up on the morning of the race after a good nights sleep in my own bed. We arrived at Richmond at about 7am and found a lovely park just round the corner from registration so we took the dog for a walk as it was such a beautiful morning. Some of you may have seen my dog its a pug and present at most ultras in the south of England.
Registration was a well organised affair. Get in, bag check, receive a token then go get your number and get out. Very regimented. Was nice to bump into so many people you know, registrations are more like a social gathering, Everyone relaxed and chatting its a great chance to catch up with people you hardly see. Made a point of finding Luke Ashton, Shawn Timmons and the rest of the Bosh group. Its amazing how many "friends" you have on Facebook and most of these people you have never met so I made a point of saying hi to anyone I vaguely recognised. Amongst the new friends was plenty of old ones as well. David Bowen, Jeff Springford, Paul Ali, Gary Kiernan and Lee Kelly to name but a few. I really enjoy the pre race buzz and those 2 hours flew by.


We were called back in for our race brief and went through the usual stuff, course changes, conditions, aid stations etc. Pretty pointless me listening as I have the memory span of an ant and all the important stuff goes in one ear and out the other. Mind you I made more of an effort than most as my wife told me at least half the runners just stayed outside and didn't even bother coming in. As the countdown began we were called up to the start line. There was a lot of spectators at the start even spotted a couple of Z list celebs. Oh what an illustrious bunch we are.

We were off! I had started at the front because my starting pace was to be 7 and half minute miles and I wanted to get straight into it. No pleasant chatting now, just head down, arse up as they say. As Ed ran off into the distance there was one runner just behind him then a pack of five followed by about five more including myself. Soon after the start Jeff ran up behind me and we ran together. We could see the group ahead and just followed we were soon out on a main road and after several minutes I realized there was no marker tape, we saw the group ahead turn right and when we reached that point there was no markings at all. We had gone wrong already. Bloody hell! Not even at CP1 and we were lost. Luckily there was a guy with us who quickly opened a map on his phone and after a while road running we picked the river up again and were back on track. We were soon into CP1 and I downed several cups of water and some fruit and cracked on.


I said to Jeff that if he wanted to go faster or slower he should do his own thing because I was running to a plan and sticking to it. Soon after this Jeff dropped off and had a walk it was really quite warm and the heat was getting to him. I carried on running at sub 8 minute miles. I soon joined up with David Ross and had a nice chat. David is an excellent runner and places top 5 in just about everything he enters. Good company to be in if you want a fast time. We entered CP2 at 22miles in under 3 hrs and first chance to meet crew. I had some fruit and some beetroot juice that I have been experimenting with. My wife informed me I was 8 mins down on my split so I filled my bottles and pressed on. I felt very sick soon after which I put down to the beetroot so I decided not to have anymore of that. As we passed the marathon distance we were at 3hrs 28. Fast, yes but it was planned.


Running along a river is one of  my favourite things to do and it doesn't get much nicer than the first 30 mile of this race. Sun was shining, trail was perfect, boats, birds, friendly people. This run had it all. As we approached 30 mile in around 4 hrs I was getting the first signs that my legs were not happy. David had run on and I had my first little walk. One of the problems with a flat race is getting the run walk/strategy just right although my splits hadn't accounted for much walking at all in the first half. I had a minimal stop at CP3 and cracked on. I had managed to pretty much avoid my 18 mile wobble today but I was about to have a major wobble at about 32mile. The next 6 miles into Cookham were not great and I was run/walking. I would walk for about 20 seconds then run for several minutes and repeat.


In to CP4 at Cookham and I informed my wife I was struggling. My legs were feeling dead the energy had just dropped out of them. I ate some food at this CP and left feeling rather sick. I tried to run but my stomach was turning. I put my fingers down my throat to try and bring the food up but it wouldn't come so I walked for a couple of miles and things soon settled so I could resume running.
My memory between 40 and 50 mile is sketchy to say the least but I was still run/walking and not loosing too much time so I thought if I can keep this up i'll still be in for a good time. Truth is I knew I shouldn't be feeling this bad this early, my legs were dead. Just no life in them at all. This was not good. I reached the 50 mile mark in about 7hrs 50. CP6 at Henley soon followed and a chance to get some hot food. I didn't hang about though and I was off again. I still couldn't manage any prolonged running and things were getting worse I was getting so much leg pain and now my calves were playing up.
In 2012 I was dogged with Achilles tendonitis and i was worried that the pain in my calves was actually my Achilles playing up again. I had used different shoes for this race as I try and move away from Hokas which is a bit of a trial. I believe my Hokas aggravate my hip so I have been trying various other shoes and todays shoe of choice was the Sketchers Go Ultra. These are a much hyped running shoe designed specifically for Ultra races. They do have a fairly low drop and I was worried  they were tugging on my tendon. I backed off more knowing that a tendon injury was not going to do me any good this season especially with UTMB coming up. I was weighing everything up now and seriously thinking of packing it in.

At Henley I had told my wife to meet me at Reading so I could pick up my night gear. Unbeknown to me she couldn't leave Henley as her car had broken down. I ran into Reading looking for her car but she wasn't there. Oh shit. As soon as I approached the CP Barry Miller walked over with my bag, luckily she had given it to Phil Taylors crew who had kindly brought it into the CP. I stopped and chatted for a while to gather my thoughts. It was good to just stop moving for a while and also have a think if I really needed to carry on. I have nothing to prove over the distance, my legs have no energy and I'm worried I'm carrying an injury. No brainer really, but on the flip side this is my Western states qualifier the whole point of all my running. I could drop and then have to rely on the SDW as my qualifier but if I'm injured I would have no qualifier at all. Right, I thought I can't let this go I have to finish. So now that decision was made I could press on with one thing less to worry about. I now text my wife telling her not to worry as I have everything to get me to the finish and if the car didn't go with the help of the AA it didn't matter. Another thing not to worry about.
I pressed on, I thought I would try and get to Whitchurch before nightfall. Something to aim for anyway. One thing that did strike me and something I have not noticed before was the amount of drunk undesirables along the river near Reading. I thought it was only Maidstone that had that amount of piss heads.

For the second half of this race, pretty much from Reading the trail is the polar opposite to the first. The first is predominantly hard pack trail and tarmac whereas the second is a rut. You have longish grass and a rut which is about a foot wide and bowl shaped. It is a complete nightmare to run on. As my legs were shot I was having trouble putting one foot in front of the other. Which may seem silly but actually putting one foot in front of another is not a natural running technique and can be very painful.This leads me on to the massive problems I had with my shoes. (1) They are quite a low drop as previously mentioned but this is not the shoes fault. (2) The grip is absolutely the worst ever on a trail shoe. On the very rare occasion we came across mud, I slipped. There was nothing, in fact I would safely say my road shoes would have been better. I lost all confidence and literally tip toed through any mud. (3) Omg this is the worst. I had worn them a fair bit prior to the race and had noticed a fair bit of lateral movement. The sole is very spongy and cushioned but so much so that they tend to move sideways, a lot! The problems that causes are, your foot will regularly turn over so if you dare step out of the rut your ankle will turn on the uneven ground and if you do run in the rut your foot is not landing level and your foot slides inside the shoe. This can mean only one thing, Blisters!
I was being passed very often now by other runners and my mind had gone off a time and just a finish was all that mattered. Paul Ali passed me on this section and looked strong, we spoke briefly and he moved on. I reached Whitchurch, mile 67 in about 12 hours and couldn't believe how many runners were in there. Not many of them looked keen to move on any time soon. I personally have never sat down during a 100miler through fear of not getting up again. So true to form I stood, gibbered some rubbish, ate some food and walked out. In fact this aid station worried everyone (well my mum anyway) because my time didn't get logged, they were worried I'd got lost on the trail and my word does my mum worry. She's my biggest fan really but just hates seeing me buckled in pain after the event and always asks if I'm packing it all in after the next one, to take up bowls or something else rather more pedestrian. Not yet mum.

The 4 mile to Streatley went on for ever and I was glad to meet up with my wife, I put her mind at rest and told her to meet me at the finish so she could sleep. I was going to be a while yet. I went in the CP and grabbed a baked potato and plodded on. Soon after Streatley or before I'm not quite sure I became massively disorientated. There was a lock with no markings and I really didn't recognise it. Luckily there was another runner near who told me I needed to cross, I didn't believe this could be possible and I needed quite a bit convincing as there was no tape but sure enough as we reached the other side I saw tape. I was really relieved as had that runner had not been there I would not have crossed and could have ended up anywhere. With all the movement in my shoes my feet were now really sore and every step was like treading on broken glass. This combined with all my other issues meant I was walking the last 30. Joy of joys, there is nothing more boring than walking all night.
I was having some wicked hallucinations during the night and they seemed to be based on friends popping their heads out from weird places, some amusement to get me through the worst bits at least. It had got very cold in the early hours so much so that my jumper didn't quite cut it and I had to put my hat and coat on. Cold, walking, in pain, excruciating pain, alone and pitch dark it don't get better than this. I don't actually remember more of the night than that, not even the aid stations, I think my brain just blocked out all the bad shit.

I think it got light just before reaching Abingdon. I know I had just had a lengthy conversation with myself whether it was spelt Abindon or Abingdon which turned into a song about the place. My brain was completely fuddled at this point and every thought was taking massive effort even the Abingdon song was as much as I could compute. I don't remember the aid station at Abingdon, I just remember someone saying 4 miles to the next aid station then 5 to the finish. That was probably my favourite bit of the last 30 mile. I power walked the 4 mile to the last aid station and stopped briefly for a snack. I had convinced myself that the last five would be runnable and I made every effort to run that five. I shuffled, hobbled and generally dragged my self along for the last few miles. With about 2 to go I was caught by a Dominic Grise and we had a good chat about the inconsequence of running 100s. We would run from bridge to tree and walk from bush to lifebuoy, it was as much as we could do. As the finish approach we agreed to walk to the field then ran across the field to finish. Thank Christ that was over. 20hrs 34 min. Quick photo, buckle and t-shirt acceptance followed by an absolutely astounding bacon sandwich. I didn't hang around long as I didn't want to seize up so we got in the car. My feet were so sore my wife literally had to rip my shoes off, not dissimilar to pulling a plaster off. There were toe blisters, sole blisters, what felt like burns in various other places and what I thought was a previously defunct verruca had turned into a mini volcano. I could not even put my feet on the floor of the car, I had to wrap them in my down jacket for relief. I sat back and put my sunglasses on, next thing I knew we were home.
My word that was hard, mentally and physically I was broken. I had said I was going for a time and that meant I had to go out hard, so I did. It really was shit or bust and I bust, big time. I'm not sure what to take from this as I am still a bit miffed about what went wrong. I think the heat didn't help early on but it has left me with more questions than answers. I'm not disappointed, just one of those things. There is always next time and next time I will not go out quite as fast and I'll be wearing different shoes.

A Coventry Way 40.

With the TP 100 coming up, I wanted a nice fairly flat trail race as a last long run to see how I was shaping up. The Coventry Way seemed the obvious choice.

I ran the Coventry Way 40 back in 2010 and always intended returning as it is such a lovely runnable route. I had a few objectives this time out (a) Run the whole thing (b) Run it as if it was the first 40 of the TP (c) If all went well run it in 6hrs.

As mentioned in previous blogs my weight is an ongoing issue and my thought process is that to get quicker I must first get lighter. I have been doing really well and had dropped a stone and a half up until a couple of months ago when things began to plateau. So a few weeks ago I devised an eating plan which I could stick to and simply wrote at the bottom “No chocolate, No crisps and No Alcohol”. That just about sums up my dietary misgivings. Any way the crux of it is I shaved another five pounds prior to this event and even dropped under 12 stone for the first time in years. So I was going into this in good shape.

Then come Monday, a bloody disaster, sore throat, heavy chest, I had a cold coming. I ran 4 mile Tuesday and it was awful, couldn’t breath and couldn’t have run another mile. Wednesday was just as bad, then Thursday it went from my chest to my head. I was full of it but a head cold is better than a chesty cold for sure, so the race could still be on. I ran 4 mile again Friday and could breath alright so decided to go for it.

Done my usual and kipped in the van Saturday night. The venue was the Queens head pub, the race HQ was out back so I parked in the field at the rear and got my head down. It was lovely and peaceful in my van until 5am when the walkers arrived. All of them! What a racket. I rolled over, put the pillow over my head and woke to my alarm 2 hours later. After the obligatory 2 mugs of tea I was ready for the off. “A Coventry Way” is a LDWA type of event, cheap as chips, well organised and start when you want. That is why the walkers went off so early. Forty miles is a long way to walk, why anyone would want to walk forty miles is beyond me;-) I enjoy being in the countryside and on the trails which is why I love trail running, you get to take in our beautiful countryside just quickly. I do enjoy walking but if I go for a walk it’ll only be about 10 miles max, anymore and I’ll be bored and my dog knackered.

The organisers recommend an eight o’clock start for runners, I had intended a nine o’clock start but as I was ready at 8.10 so I checked in and ran straight off.

Map in hand I set off up through  the fields and the first few miles flew by. My cold was certainly present as I coughed and sneezed my way along but my breathing  was ok so I pressed on. I set a pace of about 7.5 min miles to start and thought I’d just see how long I could hold it for. After about 4 miles the trail joins a disused railway and this is a lovely place to stretch the legs it continues for about 3.5miles. I had already passed a lot of the 8’oclock starters and as I motored along I passed several more. I knew some of the faster runners would have started after me but at this early stage I thought, if I don’t let anyone past me I’m doing well enough. Soon after leaving the railway about 8 mile in CP1, not much of a stop for me, gave my number in and scoffed a couple of jelly babies and I was off again.

My chest was a tiny bit wheezy but I still felt good so I pressed on. Straight after CP1 we crossed a golf course and as we turned a corner a rather pissed off golfer grumbled something at us as he was just about to tee off. One of the runners in front of me made a quip to him but he wasn’t amused as we passed he swiped at his ball and duffed it into the bush next to him. F**k it, he screamed. As I ran off I thought that is exactly the reason I gave up golf. You go out Saturday morning and go home with the raging hump having played terrible. Not my idea of fun.

About 10 mile in now and a little wobble with my nav as I almost run down the slip road of the A46 but soon rectify. The good thing about the nav on this event is that you have a hand drawn detailed map, written instructions and best of all the way marks are clear and frequent. If you are crossing open ground the waymarks are on posts with yellow painted tops. All very runner friendly. My pace had dropped off slightly, no excuses just natural slow down as I enter CP2 at about 15 mile in around 2 hours. I enter the CP amongst a lot of walkers and have to wait my turn to check in which is slightly annoying but rather that than push in. Now was my first refill of my new UD endure race belt. It is quite a minimal belt with two small 300ml bottles and it is a little bit of a faff to fill. I have some half Nuun tabs wrapped in foil and pop one of those in one of the bottles. A good few minutes wasted here.

I starting to feel rough now and my 18 mile low is hitting home. I go straight through CP3 at Wolston and try and get my head around the rough patch. I take my second GU of the day and within a few miles I am perking back up and try to step it up again. I roll into CP4 feeling good 22 miles done. I fill up my bottles and have some coke. On this event you have to carry your own cup as they don’t supply them so what better opportunity than to use my Salomon Soft cup. The cup is my mandatory UTMB cup but although it does the job it doesn’t hold much so I find myself having to fill it about four times at each stop to get a decent amount of liquid. Ok but not ideal.

Shortly after Brinklow Cp we join the Oxford canal and I put the hammer down for a few miles and pass the last of the walkers. The last two walkers are power walking within about 10 metres of each other almost like they are racing. The one in front tells me there is only about six runners in front and I should be able to catch them. This gives me new found vigour and I power on. When I’m running I look forward to seeing people ahead it really motivates me to catch them and pass them. If I’ve got my racing head on I will acknowledge people but also pass them with purpose. If you put the hammer down people are less likely to pressure you back so my pace will almost always go up a notch the second I pass and carry on for a mile or so before levelling back out. I use such a tactic at about mile 28 when I come across an impromptu CP. I have caught 3 runners as we reach the CP and although I need some water in my bottles I nod and say hi to the other guys but get little response. On that I shoot straight through and crack on. They leave right behind me but I’m off. Gone.

At mile 31, CP5 I again pass 2 runners approaching the CP. This time I need a full replenish of bottles, food etc. So I get it done but just quickly. I’m off before the other runners have decided on cocktail sausage or flapjack.

 I know I’m not a front end runner but the thrill of racing is good fun and everyone should have a go. I doesn’t matter where you are in the field just push yourself and take as many people as you can. I would still do it if I was at the back of the pack. To me a top 10 is another mans win so why not push on for that goal.

Todays pace is taking its toll on me, although i'm running at a good pace its far from easy and I have to give myself several talking to’s to push on. I roll into CP 6 and am feeling pretty low so stop for a couple of cokes and a few jelly babies before pushing on. We were warned pre-race that in a field just after CP6 there was some young feisty bulls and we should possibly have to use the road to avoid them. I look into the field and see no bulls, so I’m thinking the farmer has put them away so I go for it. As I reach the second field, there they are and one particularly fit looking bull jumps up and stares at me. I stare back, the gate is a good 100 metres away and the bull 50 maybe. There is no way I’m turning back and start walking he is making me nervous but I carry on. I’m half way and he edges forward, Feck this I’m off and sprint for the gate as I reach it he is still edging forward and I shout a triumphant "Ha you tosser" as I leave the field releaved.

 By my reckoning there must only be one runner in front of me and I run as hard as I can with the hope of catching him. Into the last CP and I’m told he was 5hrs 48 to that point and I am 5hrs 55 so with 3 mile to go no chance of catching him. I leave and run on. The last few miles drag especially as I it’s actually 41 miles but the finish soon appears and I’m done. 6hrs 23.

I never did catch the guy in front and he finished 7 minutes ahead of me but going back to my original objectives, I did run the whole thing, (apart from the bit with the bull), I did run it as I hope to run the first 40 of the tp (although I had hoped to have felt a bit better). I didn’t make my 6 hours which in all fairness I couldn’t do much about. I felt I had run a better time but didn’t so there. No excuses that’s all I had on the day so I got to be happy with that.

I do have to add that after all the races I have run “A Coventry Way” is a must for all trail runners. It has everything. It really is as good as it gets in our sport. The route, cost, volunteers, CPs, route all without fault. The organisers even do voluntary work on the route to keep it to a high standard. Fantastic.

As a warm up to the TP100 I’m still not really sure where I’m at the moment. I have a time in mind and a race plan. I’ve trained smart, eat smart and the next month everything will be to plan in prep for the race. I do however have doubts about getting the time I want. I’m sure I’ll finish, I’m sure I’ll go sub 20 but beyond that I’m not sure and a lot will depend on the day. One thing is for certain everything I know about distance running has been put into practice for  this race. I know everything I plan to wear, how I intend to start and what I intend to eat. All I can’t say for sure is how the race will unfold on the day.

Since writing this the results have been published and I was 4^th, missed a podium by 7 minutes ;-)

Sorry no photos this time as was travelling light and didn’t want to carry my phone.

Thanks again to www.kentphysio.co.uk for their support.