Just thought i would give a younger perspective of FITC.
Im a 20 year old student, fairly active as a teenager, became very lazy as a student. My housemate is a comitted fell runner and lent me FITC over easter. Reading it inspired me to take up fell running, have been entering at least 1 race a week, am supporting a BG attempt next week, and as a result of gettin into running managed to pack in smoking.
Just thought i would share how FITC benefitted a young mans life
Well done, Liverpudlian lad, leave them fags behind, wish i couldOriginally Posted by scouse_fellrunner
Just thought i would give a younger perspective of FITC.
Im a 20 year old student, fairly active as a teenager, became very lazy as a student. My housemate is a comitted fell runner and lent me FITC over easter. Reading it inspired me to take up fell running, have been entering at least 1 race a week, am supporting a BG attempt next week, and as a result of gettin into running managed to pack in smoking.
Just thought i would share how FITC benefitted a young mans life, enjoy your running, enjoy the lakes, keep being inspired
I enjoyed the book a lot but didn't recognise some of the more sensational decriptions of the danger/hardships involved in races! At the risk of appearing mischevious I wonder where the author was running in wearing his Ben Nevis number for one of the photos in the book? I know he did the race, I was there, but I did notice a few discrepancies between the photo of him actually in the race and a second one wearing the same number and almost the same kit somewhere that I dont recognise as part of the course! Does this mean I cant believe everything I read anymore? No disrespect, I did enjoy the book and it would be nice to see some more out there.
Just bought this book!
I've been fell running since 1983 and on BG support duties since 1984. I bought and read this book when it first appeared in 2004. I thoroughly enjoyed it and identified with much of it. HOWEVER, I can see a negative aspect to a popular book that over publicises the ultra side of our sport to the masses. Last night, I supported the slower of our two Bowland contenders on the final Honister - Keswick leg, departing Honister at 21.33 in absolutely atrocious conditions. I had spent the previous 21 hours assisting at the road support points and had engaged in conversations with several other support crews. The point that I'm coming to is that there appear to be a good percentage of contenders with very little background in hill-going, who think that reading FITC is the only preparation required for an attempt. A typical example, was a portly middle-aged to elderly gent at Honister - very much home counties to judge by the accent - who was providing road support for his son. This gent was struggling to find his way between the road support points and was woefully clad for the job that he was doing in the prevailing conditions. His son had no nav skills himself and very limited experience of the Lakeland fells, as did his on hill supporters ( only one per leg ), and he was using walking poles. He had left the Moot Hall, travelling CW at 7.00 on Friday evening and it was now 8.15 Saturday evening. These people seem oblivious to the need for serving some sort of apprenticeship in hill-going before tackling something as demanding as a 24 hour round in the vagaries of the British weather. I know that we live in the age of instant coffee; but I sincerely hope that it does not take the death of a lost/injured/hypothermic contender of scant experience, before the wake-up call is heard and our wonderful sport has been blackened by the sensationalism of the tabloid gutter press. One of the other two supporters on our leg ( 100 BG support outings to his credit ) commented, " I bet that lad's write-up makes a really sad read."
During the course of the day, we had talked to 3 or 4 other support crews with similar stories to tell.
there's only one person to blame forall this mid-summer madness ont'Lakeland fells and that's Bob Graham, God rest 'is soul. Just as Alfred Wainwright, God rest 'is sole as well, turned t'Lake District into Blackpool promenade.
A worrying trend, but hard to see how FITC could be blamed for contributing to it, given that Askwith had 4 attempts and still only just got round despite a serious amount of recceing, training and planning. He seems to go out of his way to emphasize how hard the BG is (and having supported Leg 4 late pm Saturday I can't disagree ...)
Very valid points WD.
Conditions were grim enough on section 4 with Ian on Saturday, his last section in the dark must have been a nightmare.
The thought of inexperienced / unprepared / ill-equipped teams out in those conditions horrifies me. Fatalities waiting to happen.
Some valid points there WD. But I think they're points that relate not just to the BG but to the increasing popularity of fell running in general.
I too saw and heard of some of the ill-prepared support teams out at the weekend. I'm glad to say that our man had excellent experienced support on each leg, but especially on Legs 3 and 4 where it's really needed. He also had due respect for the mountains, dressed properly for the conditions and had been out doing plenty of training and BG support in the run-up to his attempt.
But your point regarding a potential death is very valid and, as I say, I don't think that's just a BG issue. I was told by a leg 3 pacer that some of the people in the Great Lakes Race were up on the Scafells in shorts and vests on Saturday and looking seriously cold. One wonders what conditions it would take for these people to put some additional clothing on?!? Additionally, I have to say that I am always surprised that at almost every fell race, there appears to be a hardcore who still don't carry full and proper kit. What do these people think would happen if they fell and injured themselves and were immobilised?
I'm not sure you can fully blame FITC, but it obviously has had some impact. In particular (being controversial here), I suspect there is a tendency amongst those who cross over from road racing, who don't have a background of time spent on the fells, to underestimate just how serious it can be up there at times.
There were numpties out on the fells before FITC and before Wainwright, I doubt that there is any great increase in their numbers. From memory, MRT statistics show a fairly constant number of call outs for all reasons over the last thirty years or so. Given the increase in numbers on the fells, this would indicate that there is now much better awareness of the risks.
The problem is: experience/nous/hill sense, call it what you will, only really comes about from having close calls and recognising them as such then learning from them. Of course the consequences of such near misses can be very serious.
My first attempt on the BG came to an end on Scafell when I recognised (about an hour too late really) that I was becoming hypothermic and needed to get off the hill ASAP. Eight hours later in the bath at home I was still cold. Experience or lucky? My second attempt came to an end on Helvellyn Lower Man in similar conditions to Saturday when we were being blown off our feet. Reckless for being out in such weather or being optimistic about the forecast? (About 6 hours later the weather had cleared out)
Many of my reccies were done in winter conditions, often alone - reckless? Well one recce on Skiddaw came to an abrupt end when having seen no-one on the hill I looked towards Great Calva and all I saw was a dark brooding pit with swirling snow and a biting wind. I simply turned round and went straight back to Keswick even though I was intending to do both legs 1 and 2 that day. Another recce (with three others - all experienced on the hill) around Wasdale in driving rain/sleet/snow and no-one else on the fells at all. We got back down to Wasdale and someone said "I wouldn't have done that on my own". The other three replied "neither would I" - reckless or sound judgement?
Having said all that, a BG attempt in dodgy weather is a serious undertaking and you need to know that the support is reliable and if things go wrong then all members of the party are capable of getting themselves and anyone injured off the fells.
Better get some work done.
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