Well bugger me – top effort. I want some of whatever Spyke’s physician prescribed for his Achilles troubles…
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Well bugger me – top effort. I want some of whatever Spyke’s physician prescribed for his Achilles troubles…
Amazing effort. Well done Spyke and JC!
http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/news/...record/001732/
Monumental
tuned in to the Sports News on the TV last night...
they showed some footballers checking into a hotel, but no mention of this :confused:
Footballers my arse.
I think that it was a bottle of malt hidden in the Ben Hope cairn, courtesy of top man Charlie Campbell - great gesture.Quote:
Originally Posted by IanDarkpeak
A truly awesome physical and logistical effort, well done Spyke and all the support team.
The following report by Dave Hewitt sayes it all
Well, that didn’t take long. At 3:06pm on June 3, a mere 39 days, nine hours and six minutes after having started on Mull on April 25, the Staffordshire-based runner Stephen Pyke – Spyke to pretty much everyone who knows him – reached the top of Ben Hope, Scotland’s most northerly 3,000ft hill.
He thus completed the fastest self-propelled round of the list, beating a record held for just under a decade by Glaswegian Charlie Campbell. Campbell’s effort – 48 days 12 hours – was rightly regarded as monumental, so to see Spyke carve off nine days – or 18 per cent – is remarkable.
Asked shortly after reaching the trig point whether he was glad to have finished, Spyke said: “In some ways, yes. I’ve enjoyed every day in some way. It’s been a really good excuse for 40 days on the hill, and it’s definitely been a team effort.”
The Essex-born ultra-biathlete averaged more than seven Munros per day in a extended bagathon during which he cycled and occasionally canoed between groups of hills. He shredded not just the record book but also the guidebook, racking up two 12-Munro days, five 11s, four tens, one nine, seven eights, five sevens, three sixes, five fives, one four, four threes, two twos, and one one.
The daily dozens were a sweep-up of Schiehallion plus the Carn Mairg and Lawers ranges, and a remarkable surge that took in all ten Mamores after an aperitif of the Beinn a’Bheithir pair above Ballachulish. Day 20 saw another huge effort: the Cruachan four, the Etive five, then Stob Ghabhar and Stob a’Choire Odhair.
On Day 28, the plan had been to simply cycle from Kintail to Skye, then set about all 12 Cuillin Munros next morning. But the outlying Bla Bheinn was climbed that evening, clearing the way for the traditional 11-summit exposurefest, In Pinn and all.
Thus each of Spyke’s 40 days included at least one Munro – quite possibly a record in itself. The physical and psychological strength needed for such a relentless attack is barely comprehensible. It is one thing to have a massive day in the Scottish hills, but to immediately follow it with another, and another, requires huge reserves. Apart from the evening feast and nightly sleep, there was no rest break, no downtime.
Best days? The ten eastern Cairngorm Munros in snow, the Cuillin, and the big Fannaich/Fisherfield traverses were all mentioned, as Spyke and his support team sipped champagne from plastic flutes in the Ben Hope sunshine. “An unexpectedly good day was over Beinn Dearg,” Spyke said. “The north side of Cona’ Mheall was really interesting, and Seana Bhraigh was a nice evening hill.”
There is great mutual respect in the hill-running world, and Campbell had been up some time earlier to wedge a gift-wrapped bottle of malt – The Singleton – into the cairn awaiting his successor’s arrival. Ten years earlier, Rory Gibson and Andrew Johnston, whose record Campbell had beaten, had done exactly the same (well, it was The Macallan in their case). Campbell’s bottle came with a note to Spyke: “It takes a singular determination and character to see an enterprise like this through to a successful ending, and you have done that.” He described the Munro record as “a people thing”.
If that was tradition, there was also a lovely coincidence. Chris and Jim Sharp from Edinburgh, who were climbing Ben Hope in holidaymaker mode, are friends of Gibson. “These days Rory is a busy architect and dad,” said Chris Sharp, “and as good a golfer as a skier and climber.” The Sharps had no idea that they would be on hand to witness the record change hands again until they saw the malt at the cairn.
Can the record come down any lower? Will Spyke one day return, clutching a bottle for a runner even speedier and stronger? “Someone could trim four or five days off,” he said, “but they would have to go some to do that. It could be beaten, but it would need armies of supporters setting up bivvies on the route.”
It is not his worry, though. Asked if he would have another go were someone to claim the record next year, he laughed and shook his head: “I only do things once.”
It is hard to see the Munros being done much faster than this. Over the course of almost six weeks Spyke and his team racked up high scores in each of the necessary disciplines: route planning, support logistics, luck with the weather, injury avoidance (switching to a pair of Inov-8 X-Talons put a stop to the mid-round Achilles twinge), plus the old staples of speed and stamina.
Highland weather can scupper any attempt – and Spyke had it almost as good as could be hoped for. Generally dry and no major storms (although one of his support team was blown over and injured a wrist on Ben More Assynt – she duly climbed Ben Hope with her arm in a sling), while fears about lingering snows proved unfounded.
Campbell undoubtedly had worse weather in 2000, with rain on 20 days including six utterly foul ones. He also had more trouble with injuries, necessitating a visit to Oban A&E. The great incalculable is how might Campbell and Spyke have fared given each other’s weather and injuries. Evidence suggests that Spyke would still have been the faster, but with the nine-day margin much reduced. It is worth remembering that Campbell likewise set off with 40 days in mind.
The scale of Spyke’s effort was perhaps best summed up by a walker met halfway up Ben Hope, who described it as “an Olympic level of achievement”. It certainly is – and the comparison, made by one of the support team, of a sub-40-day Munro round with a sub-four-minute mile is apt, too.
Were there any justice, Spyke would be a strong contender for the Sports Personality of the Year award – but, just as with Gibson, Johnston and Campbell before him, he won’t even merit a mention. Hill running is too niche – and perhaps too nice – to appeal to a television audience obsessed with commercialised mainstream sport.
Come the end of 2010, however, will anyone else have managed such a sustained, at-full-stretch achievement as this – and enjoyed it in the finest traditions of amateur endeavour? Unlikely.
Very well put - top acheivement Spyke!Quote:
Originally Posted by Moorlander
Well done Dale a perfect write up to a monumental trip.:)
Aye, good read Dale.Quote:
Originally Posted by IanDarkpeak
And Well Done to Spyke, awesome achievement!
Chapeau Spyke, seriously impressive stuff, well done!!!
Has it been done any faster by anyone not self-propelled?Quote:
Originally Posted by Moorlander
good question! I doubt it which makes it all the more impressive. I did see a link to long distance multi day rounds, I'll try and find it but I don't remember seeing anything quicker.Quote:
Originally Posted by Toreador
With amazing co-incidence after the fastest comes the most!
A few days after Spyke completec his sub 40 day round Steven Fallon (Carnethy) completed his 14th round on the Inn Pinn
see here:-
http://stevenfallon.blogspot.com/
I think Spyke should have hopped on the bike and got himself down to the lakes then Snowdon then Ireland to do all the 3000 footers in britain and Ireland like Hugh Symonds. Only joking although I think Hugh was running between them all and Spyke ended up at the wrong end of the Munros anyway.
Thats a serious chunk out of the record and I think it will stand for years and what a great excuse to have long days out in the hills
Superb run, Spyke! I was half-hoping you'd drop a day so I could see you finish, but of course am glad you didn't. Sub 40days - superb.Quote:
Originally Posted by Toreador
There was a Munros relay, involving Eddie Harwood and others in 1990. Under 13 days, assuming it's this one http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/...seven-1.570120 A different challenge altogether. Interestingly they started with the Cuillin presumably to ensure good weather there.
I did drop this into the conversation as I happened to be with Spyke at Tom a'Coinnich above Mullardoch. Can't remember what the great man said about it though ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by ydt
Been catching up on the last few blog days (i.e. since my Day 32 bit part) - a good read. Re Day 35 Torridon, I saw Mat the YH manager at the weekend. Mat recently entered the Marilyn Hall of Fame having bagged 600 such hills :-) I wonder how many people have been involved, one way or another?
There were two gose at the Munros relay. Your article is from the first. The second was 3 years later. Same setup with a team of 7. Timtable was for 1 an hour but we missed it by somthing like 6 hours in the end. I don't remeber the extact time unfortunatly. Was good fun and I was probobly in the best shape I have ever been in 2 or 3 weeks later.Quote:
Originally Posted by RobW
Was Tony Payne involved in the first or second, or both? I think I made some notes from his hardcopy, probably lying around on my PC somewhere...
Presumably the first although I am not sure who was around supporting all the time. Runners on the second were: Eddie Harwood, Ross Powell, Steve Johns, Mark Hartell, Craig Harwood, Graeme Bartlett and Ifor Powell. Eddie was the driving force for both efforts and may well still have all the route details and times.
Strong team! Forumites may be interested to note ;-) that the Munro-per-hour challenge is still out there, presumable proportionately a little easier as there are now 283, with some Tops having been promoted to Mountain status
Spyke was back in Staffordshire this week for a well earned rest you may think? Not really, we were out at local trail race on Thursday then he was back up to Scotland on Friday to take part in the LAMM. Steve and Tim finished 10th overall and 1st Vets team in the Elite class. Brilliant..
Interesting interview with Stephen Pyke and Hamish Brown
or you can read the article in TGO magazine for September.
looks like some one is after Spykes record
http://www.facebook.com/ChallengeMunro
Lots off hype about this on twitter/Facebook. Anyone no the bacground to this. Spykes reputation goes before him, but never heard of this guy..
I've been chatting to the guy, don't know him but it appears he has a a good support team behind him? He seems to be well organised at the moment. time will tell...?Quote:
Originally Posted by gordonb