Training Log Archive: Mark3

Had been really looking forward to the moorland days but did really badly today :( running well but getting lost. Great area though.

Started well but mysteriously deviated on #2 (not trusting compass enough?). Then pretty solid until 7 where the hilarious routegadget shows me on top of the control without finding it and navigating back to the same place a couple of times. My real error here, which I made tomorrow as well (good luck with those tenses) is not reading the control descriptions and so not knowing what I'm looking for, and navigating to the flag rather than the feature.

Eventually one of the 5ish people list with me found it, but I was furthest away. In my haste to catch up I totally missed the next control, no excuses for that one. After that I had a good run, but the damage was done. Frustrating.

25th. Fifty-five minutes faster than 2019?!?

Pretty much everything went right. Started quickly so as to not get held up on the singletrack. Similar route up Bessy Boot to 2019 but I think slightly worse very near the top; we deviated left very near the top but could just have stayed straight. From BB very similar route again although cut further left of the tarns at High House and never had a path section, just went straight into the Allen contour to Esk. Great vis so far so no danger of mistakes.

Up Scafell Pike with Joe with noone just ahead and so I had to guess where the scree started; dropped in one gully too early so it was a bit slow near the top. But it's pretty low quality scree anyway so didn't matter much. Stayed left of the path on the Corridor Route on the first section before the T junction and then the section straight after; this worked well. But then do need to go back right to the path before it gets all reentranty. I cut the corner before Skew, which is the next time to leave the path, too much and got a bit cragfast, and Joe got a few seconds lead. But we were together again by Sty Head.

Great Gable climb uneventful but into the clag. Luckily the person ahead of me cut the corner and so I was able to without having to think about it. However I didn't really appreciate the angle we were therefore approaching from and so messed up the line off the summit massively and led Joe through the rocks to the contour; still faster than the tourist path though so all good.

Green Gable nicely contoured and then out of the clag; still took the BG line over most of Brandreth though for simplicity. Much more successful then the recce Grey Knotts contour and down to Honister. Joe cramped up at Honister so I got a bit of a lead I was keen to keep so put a lot of effort in on the climb. Took my standard line SE from summit since in the clag again and noone else there. JH went due E then SE later to still go S of the tarn, must try that.

Once we were on the steep descent some people were dropping down left of the super slatey section which I didn't realise was an option; I came a similar distance behind them so there's not a lot in it, but my way had plenty of tourists today and so was a bit dicey, the other way is preferable to avoid knocking people over.

Found the right gate this time (when path disappears, go left into streambed and it starts again) and then easy to finish.

Really pleased with this and not really sure why it's so much faster than before. 1 Clif bar, plentiful Bloks and 1L was fine; there was water on Honister so could probably work with 500ml and only stop for very minimal time (since it was a bucket).

VJs were great today too.

BB 35.30
Eh 40.40
Sp 22.23
Sh 19.04
GG 22.51
H 26.53
DH 23.26
F 21.55

Standard loop, warmer than expected. Just getting it done as might not get out tomorrow.

2nd :) behind Allen (again)

Pleased with this though. Started in first, passed by one of the people who started fast at Sheldon and then expired so I wasn't worried about him; Allen and Rob Whitby. Allen and Rob were soon 1 and 2 and I passed the other guy just before the road downhill started. At the end of the road downhill I was only 20s behind Rob and Allen, Rob being ahead at that point. But Allen pulled away on the climb and I got past Rob too, and he wasn't close enough to retake after the climb finished. Allen super strong on the climb as usual and finished 90s ahead of me.

I'm really happy though, 4min ks on a race with 300m ascent is an awesome result for me.

Race itself was fine, bit of everything, not as interesting as Cracken Edge so would do that one if there's a clash again. But nice to tick off a new Ethel. Great MaccH attendance tonight so very sociable.

3rd; got a snazzy mug and everything.

Started briskly and was winning for 500m or so which was a little terrifying as I had no idea where we were going since some of the signage/marshalling was a little sporadic. 'Let' someone overtake going up the first grassy climb and then was just behind though loads of flattish fields with plentiful gates and stiles.
Overtaken by someone else on the climb up to the Tissington Trail and couldn't stay with the two of them, but got front row seats to watch their battle all the way round; they only finished a few metres apart but I was probably nearly a minute behind. Big gap to 4th too. Tissington Trail bit was pretty dull but it got more interesting after that again; sloping fields, some woods, some road. Had thought it might be slippery given loads of rain earlier, but it's been so warm it had all dried out and actually road shoes would probably have been fine.

Another sweaty one. Good to see Mum there who waited around for my prize since I had to get back for dinner with Em.