Skiddaw Race

[stustod]

Some photos below

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stustod/sets/

[Alan Lucker]

Great photos Stuart and a great race too. It was good to get back to racing. The top section of Skiddaw was rough, but luckily it was only the very top section above Little man, otherwise the wet gear would have gone on. Thanks to the marshals especially the ones on the summit. It must have been tough standing around in that.

[IainR]

Great photos Stuart and a great race too. It was good to get back to racing. The top section of Skiddaw was rough, but luckily it was only the very top section above Little man, otherwise the wet gear would have gone on. Thanks to the marshals especially the ones on the summit. It must have been tough standing around in that.

Heard it was tough.. I ended up staying down in North Wales as I've been feeling awful on runs recently.. so went and won a trail race and felt great.. but a fellow Eryri runner said it was tough on the top ridge.. do fancy doing this one year but didn't fancy the 7 hr round trip for an expectedly poor trip..

[fozzy]

Really good fun race today - enjoyed it a lot. Thanks to everyone at Keswick AC for organising and a special thanks to the marshals at the summit CP - I would not have wanted to do that job today.

Got a really painful spot right in the middle of my left heel (on the bottom) from something pressing into it constantly on the descent - might have been a small stone or something - not sure, but need to sort that before Snowdon. Other than that, I enjoyed the descending, although I was better on the track than down the grassy bit - I found that hard!

My quads were mashed by the bottom of Jenkin Hill - trying to get them to power me up that little incline was impossible and round Latrigg it felt like I was running through treacle.

That wind was brutal as well - I went from being very warm on the last bit of climb to cold very quickly. Had I realised the plateau was quite so long, I might have put my jacket on (I was only wearing a vest), but I figured it would take me longer to stop, get it out, wrestle to get it on in the wind, than to get up to the summit and then get off as fast as I could. I was warm by the time we hit the fence line at the bottom of the first drop again though, so it would only have come off again.

Think the wind was at least as strong as at the top of Whernside on the 3P last year (2011) if not stronger - that was blowing me across the path, much like today. The strongest I've encountered was on Mam Tor - reccing the Edale Skyline - nearly got blown off my feet at one point, and actually considered getting down on hands and knees to get down to Mam Nick that day.

[Woodzy]

great pics, thanks to keswick ac marshalls n helpers in awful conditions ont top.
its a pity a mindless few chose to ignore the RO words on the startline about keeping to the main path ie not cutting and jepadising the future of the race for all. races carnt happen without land owners permission and RO time and effort, so think on please.
also to the runner who was ditching his waterproof bottems to his wife after the kit check i didnt get his no or club not sure what differance a few grams made! but i do know they would of kept the cold off if he had of needed em!

[sifell]

I would also like to add my thanks Keswick AC and helpers for the organisation and especially to both the chaps at the summit - that can't have been much fun.

I think that if I'd have tried to wrestle a jacket on at any point on the last part of the climb I may well have disappeared into the mist a la Mary Poppins.

[shevyB]

great race. great piccies too Stustod :-)

[eardstapa]

I think that if I'd have tried to wrestle a jacket on at any point on the last part of the climb I may well have disappeared into the mist a la Mary Poppins.

Well, although I managed to get my jacket on just in time, my arms were still very painful with cold!

Hearty thanks to the marshals at the top - and along the route.

Didn't do very well at all in this race, but enjoyable nonetheless! Next time...

[Brummy John]

Many thanks to teh martials and everyone else, especially the poor folk at the top who had to endure that wind and to Allan Buckley for giving me race number 50 to celebrate a special occasion!

[Brummy John]

By the way if anyone finds a pair of glasses up there let me know. They belong to Mark Walker and they blew away during the race. That made for an interesting drive home today as he was driver and no one else was insured for his car!