Today's Training

[Travs]

Like me the probably found it didn't mix with drinking, smoking weed and nightclubbing. I quit sport when I started DJing in clubs in the early 2000s, the hard house scene was booming and it drew me in. In retrospect, with a vo2 of 62 at age 14 it was a bad choice.

I was similar, was decent level cross-country up until 16... but over the next couple of years gave up taking it seriously, in order to plough my resources into Drum and Bass raves, following Coventry City home and away, and sunday league football.

My drastically dwindling fitness and increased weight in my late 20's led to me getting back into serious sporting endeavour.

[anthonykay]

Longer than usual training run for me today: 1hr 38mins, just 5 minutes less than I took at the Turnslack race four weeks ago.

Up to Beacon Hill, then onto less well trodden footpaths, down to Ulverscroft Lodge farm, then the long, gentle climb up to Bawdon Castle Farm (there's no castle) and Cattens Rough, across to Dean's Lane and back home via Buck Hill. It's very rare for me to run over Buck Hill from south to north, as I enjoy the steep, rocky climb up its north ridge; but really I need far more practice at descending that sort of terrain.

I was very glad that I had taken water with me. I also took some food, but didn't use that.

[PeteS]

Took the opportunity of a stop off in the Lakes on the way back from Scotland to fit in a short, fell run. Fueled by Stornoway black pudding, I nearly beat my PB to the top of Ullock Pike from the fell gate. Onwards to long side and Carl side I dropped down over White stones and back through Dodd Wood to the Ravenstone. 8.5km/690m in 1.15. Confidence still not there on the descent but looking ok for the LDMT in a few weeks.

[Travs]

Couldn't face another big fell day after yesterday, so did a road run instead.

Stair - Newlands Hause - Buttermere - Honister - Borrowdale - Keswick - Stair.

All passed uneventfully, the hardest part going up Honister Pass into a headwind. A beautiful morning once i'd gone over Newlands.

22.5 miles

Then this evening a little run out over Catbells in the drizzle. 3 miles.

[Mike T]

Couldn't face another big fell day after yesterday, so did a road run instead.

Stair - Newlands Hause - Buttermere - Honister - Borrowdale - Keswick - Stair.

All passed uneventfully, the hardest part going up Honister Pass into a headwind. A beautiful morning once i'd gone over Newlands.

22.5 miles

Then this evening a little run out over Catbells in the drizzle. 3 miles.

Well done Travs - that looks like a tough 22.5 miles.

Did you run all the ups? One of the joys of fell running - for me - is permission to walk once it is beyond a given level of steepness and/or roughness. But tarmac makes the run/walk transition more dependent on mental toughness.

[anthonykay]

I think Championship race vet entries are distorted. Vets will turn out because of the prospect of medals (believe me - I know!)but will not turn out week after week. Of course champ entries are high overall but the younger runners will be racing every week. Vets need to look after themselves more.

Eyam (next Tuesday) is not a Championship race: the current entry list has 38 M60/M70 entries out of a total of 199 males. That's not far short of the proportion of M60+ in the Championship race just the other side of the moor at Bradwell. These oldies are tough in Derbyshire.

Your point about the availability now of trail races, which was not the case 30 years ago, as an alternative to fell running is an interesting one. However as one who has not welcomed the growth in fell race participants I have no complaint.

Interestingly, numbers at many fell races have decreased since 30-40 years ago. The 1988 Fairfield Horseshoe race which you mentioned in your earlier post had 426 runners (including an A Kay of Thames HH). There were fewer fell runners in total, but they were spread over a much smaller number of races. This is why winning times in many races now are slower than in the 80's and 90's.

I was talking to Kevan Shand at Turnslack, pointing out that his quoted record time for the race was slower than when I ran it in 1995. He got out his results archive, and found that there were faster times in many of the earlier Turnslack races. He commented that "We all ran together then", meaning that with the thinner calendar, many of the top fell runners would be competing against each other week after week, resulting in much faster times.

I ran the Sedbergh Hills Race six times in the 1980's. In three of those races, I was faster than this year's winning time; yet my best position was 17th. Looking at the 1980's results lists, they were full of the same names that would feature near the top of the Championship tables, even when Sedbergh wasn't a Championship race.

[Graham Breeze]

Eyam (next Tuesday) is not a Championship race: the current entry list has 38 M60/M70 entries out of a total of 199 males. That's not far short of the proportion of M60+ in the Championship race just the other side of the moor at Bradwell. These oldies are tough in Derbyshire.



Interestingly, numbers at many fell races have decreased since 30-40 years ago. The 1988 Fairfield Horseshoe race which you mentioned in your earlier post had 426 runners (including an A Kay of Thames HH). There were fewer fell runners in total, but they were spread over a much smaller number of races. This is why winning times in many races now are slower than in the 80's and 90's.

I was talking to Kevan Shand at Turnslack, pointing out that his quoted record time for the race was slower than when I ran it in 1995. He got out his results archive, and found that there were faster times in many of the earlier Turnslack races. He commented that "We all ran together then", meaning that with the thinner calendar, many of the top fell runners would be competing against each other week after week, resulting in much faster times.

I ran the Sedbergh Hills Race six times in the 1980's. In three of those races, I was faster than this year's winning time; yet my best position was 17th. Looking at the 1980's results lists, they were full of the same names that would feature near the top of the Championship tables, even when Sedbergh wasn't a Championship race.

I sense an erudite article for The Fellrunner lurking here Anthony and I am already looking forward to reading it.

[Travs]

Well done Travs - that looks like a tough 22.5 miles.

Did you run all the ups? One of the joys of fell running - for me - is permission to walk once it is beyond a given level of steepness and/or roughness. But tarmac makes the run/walk transition more dependent on mental toughness.

I ran the Newlands Pass fine. But i must admit to walking some of the steeper sections of Honister, due to a combination of the 30 miles in my legs from the previous day, a tough headwind, and most importantly the sheer steepness of some of the sections.

Back to the fells today and a far greater proportion of walking went on today... Took the lonely track from Stair/Newlands up Rigg Beck and down into Buttermere. From Buttermere got my head down for 55mins hard slog to the top of Red Pike.

Then along the length of the High Stile ridge to Scarth Gap... i don't seem to get on well with this ridge, either hitting it in the depths of despair (Buttermere Horseshoe race) or as today in poor weather... its quite a tough one in poor weather to keep on track, let alone take the optimum route.

After a break for food below Gamlin End i headed across Scarth Gap, taking the fellrunners route onto Haystacks via the fence. Had a good look around on Haystacks and memorised a few important bits, such as the exact point to turn off the main path to head for the fence.

Continued on to Honister, then headed for Dale Head Tarn. Actually managed to find a path/track all the way across to the tarn, which i'd never been able to locate before. It branches off the main Honister-Dale Head path a little earlier than one would expect, starting as a set of quad/jeep tracks.

From Dale Head Tarn straight down the length of Newlands Valley, starting to feel sorry for myself now, trundling back to Stair to round off 18.5 miles.

I think tomorrow's slightly easier day has come at the right time. 75 miles since sunday and i'm starting to feel the effects (although i felt great early on today running down from Rigg Beck to Buttermere, and whilst i certainly wasn't going race-pace up Red Pike, i ate up the 2000ft+ climb like it wasn't there).

But meeting a clubmate at Whinlatter tomorrow for a run round the forestry tracks, so will do little else, save for possibly a jog into Keswick early on.

[Travs]

Stayed off the fells today in order to be fresh for a decent paced run around Whinlatter this evening with a Godiva clubmate.

The conversation in the forestry car park went something like this...

Him: "so what do you actually want to do tonight...?"

Me: "i don't mind what distance we do, but i can't go too hard, i've done nearly 100 miles since saturday, and just ran up Whinlatter Pass to get here..."

Him: "suits me fine, i did a hard track session last night so i'm f****d"


It doesn't take Poirot to work out that we then set off at a hard pace and attempted to run each other into the ground...

I don't know exactly where we went as i am unfamiliar with the forestry paths, and spent most of the time unable to see through the sweat... but we ventured on both sides of the Whinlatter road, and at one point we topped out on Lord's Seat summit. I, true to form, pushed the pace on the uphills, and he had me hanging on during the downhills.

A solid 8.5 mile effort... On top of a gentle run to Keswick and back this morning, and run up to Whinlatter and warm down, gave another big total for the day of 21.5 miles.

Back to the fells tomorrow.

[Travs]

A quite easy-paced jaunt on the fells today... up the main path from Newlands onto Causey Pike...

Across the Sail ridge to Crag Hill. The intitial plan had been to make a quick drop down to Coledale Hause, but in light of the clear weather, i took the opportunity for a good look around the area, checking out the routes around Crag Hill, Wandope, Whiteless Pike and Grasmoor. I think its the first time i've been up there with time on my hands and good weather, so made the most of it.

After summitting Grasmoor then heading down to Coledale Hause, went up Sand Hill, almost to the summit of Hopegill Head, before turning to Grisedale Pike.... this was the busiest part of the day, in fact aside from my brush with a race on sunday, the busiest i've seen the fells all week... so quickly diverted north off Grisedale Pike down the ridge to Hobcarton End and down into Whinlatter Forest. As expected i saw nobody from Grisedale summit until hitting the Whinlatter road.

Down the road to Braithwaite and across the low fell and fields to Stair.

14 miles for the day. An easy one, but feeling the cumulative effects tonight.