Hypothermia

[alwaysinjured]

Alan, I absolutely agree. The recent debate has tended to focus on legal and litigation considerations rather than actual safety. That's important of course but leaving it aside and focussing purely on safety; If the history of fellrunning has taught us one important safety lesson above all it's that our biggest enemy when out on the fells is hypothermia.

True. A minor detail error in the rules (on a "b list" of revisions , not bothered mentioning so far) - is that the information section on hypothermia has no action. It needs to say head new section 13

Competitor - "Must study causes of, symptoms of etc".

I also think consideration should be given to the idea of "places of safety" where courses go to very remote places. For the sake of one big rucksack, it might just have saved a life in the past: for the those that did not see it, the suggestion of setting up a multiperson tent with sleeping bag(s), clothing, warm/drinks - that a runner can head to on signs of hypothermia, and then having warmed up a bit, advised not to go down alone from there. Located at a "pinch point" in courses that it is hard to miss, like a narrow col. The last two fatalities appear to be people going off route to find safety, when a long way from anywhere safe. Who knows whether it might have helped - having a place to head for: but there is far more chance the runner might find that under their own steam, than the needle in a haystack chance that an RO might find the runner in time, if gone off route trying to find safety.