OMM in Borrowdale!

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Originally Posted by Stagger

What a daft statment. All who started were there because they wanted to be.
If they had been left alone they would have finished Sunday with a great experience and awaiting their next OMM.

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God some of you lot are not very nuanced, are you? If you read what I wrote, it was by implication that the mountain marathon world was coming apart, and whether it did or not was neither here nor there. I was writing about perception, and last time I looked the public's perception of the MM world was, while completely erroneous, very much in the negative frame. That was the point about Baggins (obviously far too subtle and thus completely missed by some of you)...his trot round Ennerdale at the same time OMM was being cancelled precisely proved the point that in reality, nothing was coming apart at all. If taking comments in a completely literal vein is the best you can do, it's no wonder so much defensive, knee-jerk gibberish has been written here.

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Originally Posted by RichT

I think you should also consider where that £106k might go. I suspect that the farmers at Seathwaite and Gatesgarth view the OMM and other MMs as far more profitable business than sheep farming. I don't know the figures but from conversations some years ago with farmers whose land was used for event centres / overnights, they saw the income as very useful - directly into the local economy.

If you then start adding in insurance, Wilf's for over 2500, marquees, toilets, printing, website, etc I don't think the organisers are going to make a huge income from it.

I don't think the event is too big. You don't have to enter if you prefer solitude. Should Grasmere Sports be discontinued because thousands of cars turn up? How many people participate in Sports at that event and how much money does it take on the gate?

Some people will just complain about anything. There's room for everyone to do their own thing within reason.

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People justify it by talking money and growth and the local economy. So it must be good. As has been said by more than one commentator this week, the crisis in the natural world is infinitely more of a problem than the credit crunch. We just get so blinkered. When are WE going to turn the tide.

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Originally Posted by Splinter

God some of you lot are not very nuanced, are you? If you read what I wrote, it was by implication that the mountain marathon world was coming apart, and whether it did or not was neither here nor there. I was writing about perception, and last time I looked the public's perception of the MM world was, while completely erroneous, very much in the negative frame. That was the point about Baggins (obviously far too subtle and thus completely missed by some of you)...his trot round Ennerdale at the same time OMM was being cancelled precisely proved the point that in reality, nothing was coming apart at all. If taking comments in a completely literal vein is the best you can do, it's no wonder so much defensive, knee-jerk gibberish has been written here.

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In this area you have contributed greatly.

Its you coming on here when all the negatives are about and just sounding off. Do you own a mine somewhere?
Let folks think what they want as long as the race continues.

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Originally Posted by wheezing donkey

I run on the fells to get away from the crowds, not to join them.

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I watched the YouTube trailer for this year's championships DVD.

It was a very nice video, and a great advert for avoiding championship races...

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Originally Posted by Stagger

In this area you have contributed greatly.

Its you coming on here when all the negatives are about and just sounding off. Do you own a mine somewhere?
Let folks think what they want as long as the race continues.

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Actually you're wrong, and that's very much the problem I have with people like you. I can readily accept that you disagree completely with my point of view but I think if you bother to read back through all my posts on this thread, you will find that in the main they have attempted to be lucid, clearly explained, and thoroughly argued. Yes, I've taken a contrary position to the majority and TO A POINT I have seen the good side of Mark Weir while at the same time expressing that the race organisers DID make some serious errors of judgement though no party comes away entirely smelling of roses. But on neither side have I thrown the baby out with the bathwater unlike you, for whom the whole scenario appears to be black (Weir) and white (Parsons et al.) It isn't. If the quality of response my posts garner from you is a couple of petty insults like the one above then I think I'll not lose any sleep. If nothing else, I've managed to put my point across without needing to resort to personal attacks on other forum members. Stagger on. Enjoy.

All the caffuffle over the OMM initially made me feel like I missed out on an epic event but now, after the never ending health and safety and responsibilty and onus issues that keep coming out, its probably not my cup of tea. I run in the hills and fells like Wheezing Donkey to get away from all thats crap in life and all this feels like crap to me.

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Originally Posted by Splinter

Well, understand that I'm speaking for a friend here (two, actually) but they felt that there was no obvious reason (i.e. visible to them, having completed the first day) for cancelling at that point and they thought in any case it'd have at least been courteous if nothing else to give a reason beyond "bad weather" for the cancellation. There have been rumours that mid-camp was flooded, but they were told nothing about that.

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When approaching mid camp I could see the camping fields were flooded, as portaloos where floating round in them. Think this was the main reason.
I think the logic behind sending people back to borrowdale was that everyone had a car there and dry clothes etc. Plus they could check everyone back in and supply hot food.

The impression I got at the summit of Honister Pass was that the Police had jeopardised this.

Regards

Karl

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Originally Posted by Splinter

Actually you're wrong, and that's very much the problem I have with people like you. I can readily accept that you disagree completely with my point of view but I think if you bother to read back through all my posts on this thread, you will find that in the main they have attempted to be lucid, clearly explained, and thoroughly argued. Yes, I've taken a contrary position to the majority and TO A POINT I have seen the good side of Mark Weir while at the same time expressing that the race organisers DID make some serious errors of judgement though no party comes away entirely smelling of roses. But on neither side have I thrown the baby out with the bathwater unlike you, for whom the whole scenario appears to be black (Weir) and white (Parsons et al.) It isn't. If the quality of response my posts garner from you is a couple of petty insults like the one above then I think I'll not lose any sleep. If nothing else, I've managed to put my point across without needing to resort to personal attacks on other forum members. Stagger on. Enjoy.

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Everything is black and white it's only them that sit on the fence that make it grey.:)
No perrsonal attacks intended and I will buy you a pint if I ever come across you;)

Pardon?

I'm just back from a week in the Lakes after this event and rather daunted by the number of comments on this thread. Can someone point me to the highlights?

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Originally Posted by Marvin

I'm just back from a week in the Lakes after this event and rather daunted by the number of comments on this thread. Can someone point me to the highlights?

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There isn't many mate :)

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Originally Posted by Stagger

Everything is black and white it's only them that sit on the fence that make it grey.:)
No perrsonal attacks intended and I will buy you a pint if I ever come across you;)

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Fair enough. This subject has made me more tired than my last race!

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Originally Posted by Stagger

Everything is black and white it's only them that sit on the fence that make it grey.:)
No perrsonal attacks intended and I will buy you a pint if I ever come across you;)

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His is an orange juice:p

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Originally Posted by Guick Dotto

Hey man respect :cool: But take care up there, for remember "With such extreme weather, the mountains become a dangerous place "
I expect you need that advice from another fellrunner don't you?;)

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Well it was certainly extreme conditions last Friday up on the tops, but i survived the dangerous conditions guick through listening to my own advice:D. Snow line was about 2200ft, awesome days running over dale head and around buttermere onto the gables and back to borrowdale. Where on the evening I spoke to a gnarly local who said 'I aint seen weather like it since 1956, them runners shouldnt have started....', it turned into a long night in the Scafell.......:)

Good on yer:)

Seems the OMM is slipping down the list, so here goes with another post.

I enjoyed reading Richard Askwith's comment in The Independent:
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/g...ns-975372.html

I haven't got the patience to see whether anyone else has linked to it, but he explains much more clearly that I can, the event from the perspective of a runner, and what makes an event like this worth taking part in.

And a very recent one in the Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisf...-lake-district
This was written by a young man, Andy, who was doing the OMM with his dad. On that eventful Saturday evening I was making an exodus from the barn to Newlands via Newlands Hause with a friend from another pair. A car picked us up near the hause and we sat in the back seat next to Andy. His mother had picked them up from the barn. We apologised for the large amount of water we left on the seat - apologies again.
Yiannis

Now that the dust has settled I would like to add this postscript: Five of us escapees from the barn and from Seathwaite (plus some others later) had a most enjoyable evening at Swinside drinking excellent ale. So much for all that journalistic trash!

My day 2 map arrived this week and it remains unopened. Dying to have a look but have resisted the temptation so far in case me and my partner want to go and have a trot round sometime...and peeking would be cheating, wouldn't it??:confused:

Yeah, mine has arrived too... I forgot I wasn't going to look and enthusiastically opened it up... caught a glance, it is going where I thought it was, obvious really, then remembered... and rolled it back up. I am away in the Peaks for a bit of running and racing this weekend and have left the map at home, to take the temptation away!

You still up for a re-run of the OMM day 1 and 2 Grit? I may not be able to do it next weekend though, as my sprained ankle is still giving me trouble, so may want to wait another week...

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Originally Posted by Moorlander

Given Mr weir's Safety concerns. I thought you might like to know about something I witnessed earlier on in the year, whilst out on a BG recce.

A Green Helicopter came flying overhead in the Honister area. It carried out the most amazing aerobatic display very close to the crags. I like aerial displays, but had to look away more than once fearing it was going to crash in to the hill side. This went on for about 5 minutes before the helicopter landed outside the slate mine. Dont know whether this really means anything apart from the fact the man in question obviously likes to live dangerously when it suits him.

Im up for day two anytime...

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That helicopter shatters the peace of the Honister - Fleetwith - Hay Stacks area rather too much. Shame really, not just for people, but also the wildlife. I expect the peregrines will move-on, if they haven't already. Mr Weir might have the means and business accumen to be successful (in the narrowest sense of the word) at his Honister empire, but the Lakes could well do without people like him.

does anyone have an idea abt next yrs date, the last full weekend in oct is 24/25, altho the following sat its 31 and sun 1st nov, think itll be the 24/25 ??

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Originally Posted by egor

does anyone have an idea abt next yrs date, the last full weekend in oct is 24/25, altho the following sat its 31 and sun 1st nov, think itll be the 24/25 ??

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It's usually the weekend the clocks change which should be 24/25 Oct 2009.

cheers

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Originally Posted by egor

does anyone have an idea abt next yrs date, the last full weekend in oct is 24/25, altho the following sat its 31 and sun 1st nov, think itll be the 24/25 ??

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24/25
http://www.theomm.com/event/faqs.html

Yes I know this is old (page 47 old!), but amid all the tragic chaos we're having with the floods, just had to reflect on our local mine owner who has just survived driving his tractor and trailer into the floods. After swimming to safety, he gathered enough energy to fly his helicopter back over to film his overturned partially submerged unit, and still get back to welcome visitors to the mine (including Border TV), which is open in all weathers by the way.
Strangely, BBC didn't report it, have they learned something?

Ever got your name under every single last post in a given moment. This is my momentary monopoly :D

He could have turned the Lake District into a morgue driving a tractor in those conditions.

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Originally Posted by Chris K

Strangely, BBC didn't report it, have they learned something?

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Yes, to stop promoting his business for free.

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Originally Posted by Chris K

Yes I know this is old (page 47 old!), but amid all the tragic chaos we're having with the floods, just had to reflect on our local mine owner who has just survived driving his tractor and trailer into the floods. After swimming to safety, he gathered enough energy to fly his helicopter back over to film his overturned partially submerged unit, and still get back to welcome visitors to the mine (including Border TV), which is open in all weathers by the way.
Strangely, BBC didn't report it, have they learned something?

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What an hypocritical idiot he is!

Spelling police?

god is very quick these days. could be quicker and a bit more determined, but not a bad try. obviously my prayers have been - almost - answered.

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Originally Posted by Moorlander

Given Mr weir's Safety concerns. I thought you might like to know about something I witnessed earlier on in the year, whilst out on a BG recce.

A Green Helicopter came flying overhead in the Honister area. It carried out the most amazing aerobatic display very close to the crags. I like aerial displays, but had to look away more than once fearing it was going to crash in to the hill side. This went on for about 5 minutes before the helicopter landed outside the slate mine. Dont know whether this really means anything apart from the fact the man in question obviously likes to live dangerously when it suits him.

Im up for day two anytime...

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... Many will know that Mark Weir died in March 2011, when he crashed his helicopter :-(