Tripping up & falling over

[Alexandra]

Alex, which bit of the Moorland recce did you trip on - was it actually on the moors bit? It was glorious yesterday, I bet you enjoyed the run anyway - how much of it did you recce, and what did you think of it?

How nice of you to ak, PB. No, I tripped about 5 minutes from the end, on the gentlest of level paths consisting of earth and pine needles. I recced a lot of the race, would have recced it all except I got lost at least twice, due to my feeble map-reading skills. I think I went wrong even before Hangingstone Road/Moor Road and I probably never found the correct route up from the road onto the Moor. Or if I did find it, it's a surprisingly rugged bash up through heather and bracken on whichever sheep trods you fancy. Then later after York View I descended too far and had to regain height to get back on the Dales Way. And since the route up onto the Moor is also the route down, I followed a different but still rugged and pathless probably incorrect way back to the road.

So, apart from the feelings of failure and puzzlement, with resulting worries that I might be about to be benighted without a torch, yes I did enjoy it. There is a lovely long downhill mostly on a good track from High Lanshaw Dam to Craven Hall Hill. The views are of course superb, with a real feeling of being away from and on top of the world, the mud was bearable, though if we have heavy rains between now and the 6th that might get much worse. I also really enjoyed running across some lush grassy fields, but I suspect I may have been off route at the time. In fact, anyone who takes any of the above route description as gospel deserves to get lost. Anyway, on the day there will of course be marshalls and markers.

[Shazza]

I find I am more liekly to go over on the 'easier' sections.

I'm a serial tripperupperer, my best one yet was on the tarmac section of the miners track approaching Snowdon Was too busy enjoying the view

[simgreen78]

I had a little six week or so phase over the summer where I tripped/slipped on almost every run I went out on.

My favourite was when I decided to actually run through Porter Clough in order to overtake a groupe of four or five ramblers that were struggling to get across the stepping stones. Two steps in and I fell flat on my face totally submerged in the water and right in front of them.

They were very kind in so far as they waited until I'd run on another two, maybe three metres before bursting into hysterical laughter.

Least favourite - horrible trip at Calver Peak Fell Race. Lots of blood. Although still got the scars of which I am very proud, which kind of makes up for it!

[plodding bear]

I think I'm going to try and get the night off work so I can do this one. I like the ethos behind it - a 'fun' fell run, all inclusive, and I know the moory bit quite well so that should help. I wouldn't worry about navigating Alexandra, it's all going to be marshalled and I'm sure there'll be plenty of others running along with you! I was around that way the other night with a headtorch and my dog - loved it.

[Alexandra]

I think I'm going to try and get the night off work so I can do this one. I like the ethos behind it - a 'fun' fell run, all inclusive, and I know the moory bit quite well so that should help. I wouldn't worry about navigating Alexandra, it's all going to be marshalled and I'm sure there'll be plenty of others running along with you! I was around that way the other night with a headtorch and my dog - loved it.

I'm not at all worried about navigating on the day. I'm sure that, having planned this event to tempt non-fell runners out of their comfort zone, Chris won't be wanting to lose any. It's just that I'll be out of my comfort zone too and I want to practise beforehand. I'd like to know I can get round in the 2 hours projected for the slowest - and yesterday, what with getting lost and falling over, it took me nigh on 3! If I'm going to take 3 hours, I don't think it will be fair to the organisers. I'll have another go soon and make up my mind after that.

[plodding bear]

You'll probably be fine - it's amazing how much time you can lose by having to continually stop and check the route; it breaks up your rhythm as well as costing time, then you start thinking that you're moving far too slowly... without any of that stopping you'd be a lot quicker! (me, it's walking up the hills that slows me as well.)

[Alexandra]

You'll probably be fine - it's amazing how much time you can lose by having to continually stop and check the route; it breaks up your rhythm as well as costing time, then you start thinking that you're moving far too slowly... without any of that stopping you'd be a lot quicker! (me, it's walking up the hills that slows me as well.)

You think I'm RUNNING up the HILLS???

It's true too that feeling unsure whether one is on route or hastening in the opposite direction saps the morale and the speed terribly.

[plodding bear]

Aye, and there's a lot of sheep tracks/paths around there which COULD be the one you want, or they may take you further from where you want to be...sometimes it's best to just stop, have a jaffa cake, and then try and work it out!
Oh, and when I mention walking up 'hills', that includes anything of more than about a three degree incline.

[Mark G]

I think its definitely a concentration thing - one year in the Old County Tops we started to run down the road section from Three Shires to see another team a bit ahead of us. We hadn't realised another pair was so close ahead so spent most of the rest of the race trying to catch and pass them, which we did just at the top of the pass between Little Langdale and Great Langdale. By now I think we were both running purely on mental effort and concentration - there wasn't much left physically. As we went past them one of them said 'Nice effort guys but I have to tell you that we aren't in the race - we retired at Cockley Beck and we're just jogging back to the finish' Immediately on hearing this we both fell over simulatneously and spectacularly on the flat section of path at the top of the pass. But we did get back up again and beat them to the finish!
So I think its often a case of Homer drink brain work no well if beer (substitute running for beer).

[Rob Furness]

I'd second the concentration thing, when I stuffed my ankle in last week it was on a featureless track coming down into coldstone beck on burley moor. I'd run a lot of the technical stuff and was spying out my route up the other side of the gully safe in the knowledge that the track in front of me was clear, then crunch. Down I went.

Concentration is very important and easy to forget, especially when tired.