And again, another fantastic day out with a mountain of top quality food! 8th time for me and guess what - I'll be back.
Thanks all the Achille Ratti folk who make this happen.
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And again, another fantastic day out with a mountain of top quality food! 8th time for me and guess what - I'll be back.
Thanks all the Achille Ratti folk who make this happen.
I agree, it is a great race. Loved it. I will have another go next year, with more of a race mentality.
Bad luck Daz, did Nick not enjoy it?Quote:
Originally Posted by DazTheSlug
Well done Baggins getting round in a good time after supporting a fast BG the day before, nice to briefly see you as you stormed off up Grey Friars.
Fantastic even I will be back what a superbly organised event by the Achille Ratti
Felt like you were my support on a round! Promise I won't do anything daft the day before next year I'll even do some road running :pQuote:
I will have another go next year, with more of a race mentality
Thats some PB well done steve!Quote:
an hour faster than last year
We had a little wobble just before the top but managed to rally after that :DQuote:
nice to briefly see you as you stormed off up Grey Friars
Well done steve. I am sure gez gave you a good whipping!Quote:
Originally Posted by stevefoster
Sorry to postpone you know what, but I am still knackered!
Look to a weekend in July. Glad you had a good OCT... Fancy it in a year or two:w00t:
Fantastic event - well organised by Chris and his merry band of Marshals - special thanks to all the helpers for the fantastic feasts along the way...egg butties never tasted so good as they did at Cockley Beck!
Due to injury I "lost" my initial running partner due to a fall last week (during a reccie of the course) - but was "lucky" that another runner also had an injury (sorry!) so was matched up with a local :-) (thanks Chris!)
Unfortunately for Luke my new partner I fell on the way down from Helvellyn (lower section) - leg went into a bog and momentum took me another way...I thought Id run it off - but it kept niggling at me. We were doing good time...it got worse as we approached Scafell...coming down was agony...but the promise of a "famous" t-shirt kept me going...bragging rights were at risk.
The run into Cockley Beck was horrendous (not sure I can call it a run)..and we had to make a decision...we had plenty of time before the cut off...we must of lost at least 60-80 mins by now...spurred on by an egg buttie - decided to have a go at Grey Friars ... we just kept going and before we knew it we were at the checkpoint...climbing didn't seem to be as painful as the desent's..
The last desent into Langdale was the most painful I've ever experienced - but there was still a "race" on..a few teams were around us...and we (ok I) wanted to finish before them...10.40
Im now the proud owner of a "Limited Edition" 2012 OCT T-shirt
thanks to all the runners who gave me some motivational cheers on the way round :-) - and special thanks to Luke for not giving up on me (top fella had to get up @ silly o clock to put a rope on Broadstand)
Memo to self: next time try not to start going up Dow Crag thinking that it's Coniston Old Man. :o
Felt like we were sprinting down the road at the end to try to get under 9 hours, but to any watchers it was probably more like a comical stagger!
9:01:05, so on the plus side it leaves a target of 9 hours for next time.
Like everyone else, I really enjoyed my first OCT and will definitely be back. :)
Excellent day out on the fells,enjoyed every minute. Thanks 2 all at Achilli Ratti for putting on a good un!
Defo be back next year.:)
Well done to all, but it looks like you had a character forming day Dylan! Well done mate and good luck for your BG.
I try my best.Quote:
Originally Posted by BillJ
Car Key found on Helvellyn Sat at around 7am - 19th May
Phone me with description / vehicle make to claim.
Details are in the FRA handbook under the races I organise
AG
normally I'd let Nick answer that for himself, but he's away til ThursdayQuote:
Originally Posted by stevefoster
basically I think it was a combination of a bog-standard "bad day" plus a bit of a culture-shock in terms of the underfoot conditions
Congrats to you and Gerry btw Steve - Great Stuff! :thumbup:
and what happened to Twig Boy?
I'm a bit surprised by all the comments along the lines of "great fun, thoroughly enjoyed it".
I thought the whole thing was utterly hideous, nothing but pain from beginning to end, and the only thing that kept me going to stagger across the finish line was the knowledge that otherwise I'd have to do it again.
I'm already beginning to look forward to coming back for more of the same next year :)
Cheers Daz, no idea about Twig Boy, he's a Rock Star these days so maybe he's been mugged by Nicholas Groupies:w00t:Quote:
Originally Posted by DazTheSlug
I found that when I first did this in 2010 - in the heat on the way up the Wythburn valley I vowed to never run again :o. Missed it last year with injury but really enjoyed it on Saturday - the cooler weather compared with 2010 helped!Quote:
Originally Posted by Toreador
Huge thank you to achilli ratti and all the organisers/marshalls/helpers - superbly organised and a fantastic race. Never has a cheese butty tasted so good than at Cockley Beck :D.
Thanks for all the positive comments and congratulations to all of those who completed. From an organisers point of view the day ran smoothly and we managed to stay dry at the finish which was a big improvement on last year. The results will be posted on the Ratti web site as soon as possible - there's a lot of names and numbers to enter into excel so its taking a bit of time. Hope to see you all next year - Saturday May 18th is looking like the date to put in your diaries.
Two things I'm curious about.
1. Why are the cut-off times for Angle Tarn and Cockley Beck are so much tighter than for the finish (which was was quite relaxing in comparison).
2. Where does the drinking water at the Old Man checkpoint come from - do they really carry enough water for 400 people up from the valley?!
Re 1), I suspect because if you can't get to Angle Tarn in the cut-off time, they don't want to have to wait on top of the Pike for hours on end and they can ask timed-out runners to head straight back down to Langdale, and, at Cockley Beck, because they don't want to leave the poor souls on top of Coniston Old Man until late into the evening. Seems sensible to me. Not so bad at the finish, they can hang around chatting and still keep warm/dry if necessary.Quote:
Originally Posted by Toreador
I guess that makes sense - I was thinking of it from the runners' point of view not the marshals'. It must be pretty hideous up there in bad weather!
1. It is a safety measure; if you cannot make the cut offs it is likely that you would be out for too long (for your own good) and also could be finishing late in the day, which is not something the organisers would want, especially if they have to go looking for someone who is missing.Quote:
Originally Posted by Toreador
2. Not everyone needs water at the Old Man and those who do, probably just take a mouthful. ydt
I understand the cut-offs. It just seemed that the first two were relatively difficult to hit, but the final one (ie finish within 12 hours) was easy once you'd met the others. eg we made Angle Tarm by 20 mins, Cockley Beck by 15 mins, and the finish by 45 mins (would have been well over an hour if I hadn't ground to a complete halt due to cramp/dehydration). You could put the first two back by half an hour, and the majority of those getting to Cockley Beck in time would also finish in time.Quote:
Originally Posted by ydt
But I was forgetting the organisers - obviously they want 100% back before 8, rather than having to go off and search for the missing 1% :)
Those marshals on COM must be there for about 8 hrs I would guess.
Thanks for the comment about cut off times - they are primarily in place to ensure all runners are at Angle Tarn by 15:45 and at the finish by eight. I'm still using the cut off times that were in place when I took over the organisation a couple of years ago, but I will review them based on this year's results. It is a difficult one - a team that is going strong but slow might make it back if allowed to continue after cut off time, but a team that is knackered probably won't.
It's an interesting one, but totally understandable from the point of view of the RO. I was timed out with my partner at Cockley Beck. We would have been just outside if we would have got a shuffle on, but we realised after getting down from Scafel Pike that the game was up so we just walked/jogged back. The marshals very kindly gave us a lift back.Quote:
Originally Posted by Chips
The frustrating thing was we were pretty fresh (relatively speaking) at Cockley Beck and probably could have made it back within 12 hours. We misjudged our pace at the start, thinking it would be good to start slow and finish strong, but by the time we realised we had gone too slow it was too late to pick it up over the rough terrain of Scafell.
Knowing the cut off times and the terrain we're both confident we'll complete the event next year in good time. While it was frustrating to miss out this year because of our miss judgement rather than our fitness I think the cut off times should remain, it makes the event more challenging!
you mean Cockley Beck by 15:45
Angle Tarn by 1:30 is a bit odd though, as if you got there at 1:29 you'd have virtually no chance of making CB - but I assume this is for a bit of marshal discretion in cases where pairs running strongly who had been delayed for navigational or other reasons could still be allowed to continue, whereas people plodding along looking a bit shattered already at 1:20 could be "advised" to retire
A few photos from Saturday
http://climbing.me.uk/OldCountyTops/index.html
I reckon the cut off times are about right. Challenging, sure, but this isn't supposed to be an easy race.
We took it steady to Angle Tarn and had 21 minutes in hand, steady again towards to the bottom of Scafell Pike, before realising if we didn't start really pushing we'd be out at Cockley Beck, arriving with only 12 minutes inside the cut. Not overly tired we finished with just less than an hour to the good, running a fair bit of the last few miles, though passing some teams who were by then just walking
Extend the cutoffs and there is a possibility of fading tired runners finishing in the dark.
When I raised the subject I wasn't really suggesting a change - how could I on the basis of just one year - I was just curious.
richpips had similar times to us though - relatively close to the wire at Angle Tarn and Cockley Beck, but bags of spare time at the finish. Most of those who arrived at CB at the same time as us will have been similar (all apart from 2 teams overtook us :) )
Like a few others, we misjudged the time a bit and had to press on for Cockley Beck after coming off Scafell. I think the cut off's times were just right though. Had a fantastic time - thanks to all involved.
Sounds like everyone enjoyed the day, but didn't someone get banned for something similar last year?!Quote:
Originally Posted by Stanners
A couple of stories and some photos of our grand day out
http://www.northumberlandfellrunners.co.uk/
Good reads Bob, glad you enjoyed the day.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob the Dog
Not that it's any of your business pal, but my mate decided at Angle Tarn that he couldn't continue. We told the marshalls who retired our team and i was told if i continued i was no longer part of the event. I decided to carry on and at each checkpoint made sure the marshalls knew who i was and what the teams number had been. They had all been forewarned via raynet. I have completed the race 3 times before, know the route well especially in good weather and am fit enough to finish. After losing time i still managed to get myself round in around 8 hours 15 mins. If you want to stir the shit pal, talk to me face to face. What a beautiful day. It only takes one to spoil it!!Quote:
Originally Posted by Hobbsy
Charming!Quote:
Originally Posted by Stanners
No stirring intended - just a note of caution when posting comments about completing it solo after last year's DSQ's! Glad you enjoyed it.:)Quote:
Originally Posted by Stanners
Understand Hobbsy's concern about Stanners post but having been there, it was all above board, all concerned were happy to let Stanners carry on as a training run. Job were a good un:)
Nice reports, but this seems like a tresspass to me "However they didn't know the sneaky short-cut in front of Side House farm. " I also think they in question was me and my partner. I had just bashed my knee so was running slow around Side Pike. But as you say I did not know that line. But looking on a map the only right of way is the one that we took, through the farm. Or do rights of way not apply to this race?Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob the Dog
Also looking at the map, strictly speaking the only of getting to Side House Farm in the first place is if you take the permissive path from the NT campsite, which involves a descent and reascent (and is longer than the also-questionable route through the campsite to the road). Any other route involves at least 100m or so of 'trespass' across the land just below the Access land.Quote:
Originally Posted by Alan Lucker
Very true. It is why I considered the fastest route, and the one I was going to take, was going through the NT campsite and down the road. It is probably the fastest "legal" line. But when I saw others cutting off the side of the fell around Side Pike, I thought it must be acceptable. This isn't a right of way I know, but in my opinion it is not as bad as cutting through what looks to be the front garden (albeit a large one) of a farm house.Quote:
Originally Posted by Toreador
Like it or not, it's a clear breach of the rules and the spirit of the event and the last pair wo did something similar were indeed disciplined by the FRA. There is some discussion of it on pages 40/41/43/44 of this thread.Quote:
Originally Posted by Stanners
Regardless of your own ability, experience - or ambition/pride! - the organisers ask all pairs to remain together, retire together if retirement is needed, and report to the finish as a pair. It's not too much to ask...