a bit delayed but better late than never ...

GUCR 2016

Well that was a surprise, and a more than pleasant one too. I actually did 34.31 and knocked well over an hour off my PB, the 35.43 time  I did way back in 2007. I also did 23.13 to GJA so a 100m PB too. I came 19^th, so a top 20 finish on top of everything else. its good to know that I can still improve on things even after all this time. There has after all a lot of water passed under the canal bridge since I ran my 1st GUCR in 2003. In the last few years I've been worried about never getting back under 36hrs again, let alone knocking an additional 90mins off. 

It was hard though. I struggled in the heat a bit on Day 1 and felt like I was struggling to stay awake overnight (though my splits show I actually went pretty well overnight). By morning my R knee ligaments were hurting and I was only able to run short distances before walking again. I caught up Nick and Phil Smith after Springwell and gradually began to run a bit more and more, keeping to a good 4mph average - and was surprised once again just how much you do need to run to keep to a 4mph avg though. Splits were:

CP	Miles	Total	2011	2012	2014	36hrs	2016
Cath de B	10.79	10.79	1.46	2.01	1.51	1.45	1.49
Hatton Locks	11.99	22.78	2.08	2.14	3.58	2.00	2.00
Birdingbury	13.66	36.44	2.50	2.41	6.13	2.45	2.45
H of E	17.31	53.75	4.19	3.56	9.27	4.15	3.59
Navigation	17.08	70.83	4.20	4.17		4.15	4.10
Br99	14.55	85.38		4.17		4.30	3.58
GJA	15.73	101.11	9.15	5.10		4.45	4.31
Springwell	20.82	121.93	5.59	5.52	5.30	5.30	5.28
Hamborough	12.90	134.83	3.12		3.15	3.15	3.03
Little Venice	11.72	146.55	2.53	6.52	3.00	2.45	2.42
	146.6		36.42	37.20	36.26	35.75	34.31

 

Only 1 section was slower than my 36hr schedule and that was the 1^st one (stopped for a poo not long after the start ) but only by 4mins. After that the next 2 were spot on. I was a fair bit faster to 50m but slower than I would have liked to 70m.

The real improvement looks to have been my overnight running. At the time I felt like I was permanently nodding off, though I did run a fair bit of the section to Bridge 99 and that is reflected by the fact that I was 30mins up on my schedule. Although I was slow/sleepy on the section to GJA I was still 14mins up on schedule which means that overnight I was 46mins up on schedule overall and that was where I really made the difference. the sleepmonsters didn't get me anywhere near as bad as they had done on the Spine. After that my knee pain became a bit intrusive and to Springwell I was only 2mins up. With hindsight I could probably have gained a good 15mins over schedule for that section, if my knee had allowed me to run more.

The last 2 sections were quite good though and I picked up 12mins to Hamborough and 2 more mins to the end.

I started the run being fairly confident I could beat 36hrs if things went to plan, especially after London but not really expecting to be anywhere near 34hrs realistically. I did have to be mentally strong especially after GJA and even more so after Springwell so as not to let the rate slip, but in the end I could probably have been even more close to 34hrs had I known just how close I was.

So, just like London I should be really chuffed with my PB but instead am thinking about how I could have been even nearer 34hrs and a Spartathlon qualifier if I’d not hurt my knee. its a bit annoying that they've made it so much harder to qualify, well for me at any rate. It even more annoying that the qualifying time for women is 35hrs, given that they have to finish Spartathlon in 36hrs as well.

It’s a real bummer to have been so close but I reckon I could have knocked off about 10mins to the 70m point, another 15mins to GJA and another 15mins again to Springwell if I’d been able to run more. That would have given me a 33.50 time, so there is still room for improvement despite the excellent run I did have.

I also got to GJA in about 23hrs 12mins so again I was more than an hour faster than my other 100m times (usually about 24.30-24.40) and my 1^st ever 100m sub 24hr time … still a good 2¼hrs off a Spartathlon 100m qualifier though. So it looks like if I don’t get in this year I’ve pretty much had it since there’s little time or opportunity to get a qualifier in the rest of 2016.

I did the Ramathon the weekend afterwards too in 1.44.44. It was slow/hot and I shouldn’t really have tried it but I had the number so thought what the hell. I went ok for the 1^st 3 miles or so but after that was hanging on for the last 10. usually its the other way around!

So what next?

 

and here's another ..

GUCR 2014

 

This was always going to be a strange one for me. It would be 2yrs to the day since I last ran a ‘proper’ ultra, with my last race being a 37.20 on the 2012 GUCR and not counting my pathetic Spartathlon attempt later in the year.

As a result I was pretty apprehensive since in the meantime I had seriously wrecked my back and 2013 proved pretty much a waste of space.

 

I had trained up though in 2014 for the London marathon and got a reasonable time. My back hadn’t been too bad but it is one thing training up for a marathon and quite another for 145m of canals. I was apprehensive but needed to know whether I had the fitness, both physical and mental to do any more of these real challenges. It was the mental side of things that worried me since a lot of water had passed under the bridge since my last ‘big’ ultra and I was a whole two years older. My goal therefore was just to finish the thing and no more. It would be my 7^th GUCR race and hopefully my 7^th finish too. It was a difficult decision which ultra I should make my comeback and in fact it was partly because of my record on this run that I chose it for a return to the proper stuff.

 

Louise dropped me off at the start. In previous years I have tried to get some sleep only to be thwarted by Birmingham’s nightlife. I’d have to get up before 4am but if I could get some half decent sleep at home it might be worth it.

 

In fact I didn’t get to the start until about 20mins before the race. I’d missed out on the previous night’s burgerfest and camaraderie and most of my time before the actual race start was spent making sure my kit was in the right pile etc and I didn’t have much of a chance to chat … or think too much about things either.

 

As a result no sooner was I down on the canal than we were off. It wasn’t raining yet despite the forecast but one disadvantage of setting off from home in the early hours is that I hadn’t had a chance to have my daily ‘regular’. I’d set off very carefully and towards the rear and by the time I’d found somewhere to offload and after only about 4miles, I was well towards the rear.

 

But that was good since it meant pressure on me was reduced – let others shoot off. Before too long I’d caught up with Lindley and John Poole and we to & froed for a while and I had a good chat with a few runners. It was all light hearted stuff and served to ease me back into things and gradually the pressure subsided. It was also starting to drizzle by this time too and well before CP2 I had to put on the wet gear. I didn’t care too much though since I seem to perform better in this sort of weather. The only worry was that the Hokas, necessary to keep my back in order, might skid about a bit on this sort of surface.

 

I have little idea now of my splits since my old GPS, the one that I can fit with AAA batteries for this sort of distance had decided to play up. It kept turning itself off and before night, had expired completely leaving me the novelty of just running.

 

Even less than a week after I’ve finished I can’t now remember a lot about the run which for me is not strange. 36hrs of running takes a long time, well 36 hours I guess, and is filled with lots of things but it soon all gets thrown out. That’s why we run these things again – we just forget, all too quickly about how bad we felt at the time etc.

 

I do remember that CP2 at Hatton Locks was wet. I’d just seen Louise and Boz at about 15miles before they left, at which time I’d been chatting with Martin who then bounded off ahead. I then met Steve Thompson on his bike and at the CP chatted to James and Javed. It was a good day … but wet, did I mention that?

 

Anyway, things went ok and time passed without any issues, albeit slowly, I do remember that too. My back seemed ok and I was just more than happy to be out there again. In fact I felt like most of the time I had a smile (or grimace) on my face. I can barely recall a time when I didn’t feel like smiling. Not even Henk patting my stomach at CP3, telling me that I was fat and that he had a nice warm space in his van which I would soon be filling could get me down. This time last year I could barely walk let alone run and even when I started back running in October 2013 I never dreamed I’d be able to start another ultra of this calibre again. I was determined therefore to enjoy the day.

 

My plan from CP3 onwards was to take my mind off things by listening to the Championship play-offs on the radio. Back in 2007 when I ran my PB, Derby had been in the play-offs then too, only on the Monday and only they won that time. I’d finished on the Sunday night, gone home to pick up my daughter and then gone back down to London on the Monday. A good weekend. This time I’d had to decide canal or Wembley. The canal won and perhaps that was a good decision given the team that turned up on the day was the ‘other’ Derby, the one that can batter a team for 90mins, miss any chances they have then let one chance on goal and a stupid defensive mistake ruin it all. Anyway, it did pass the time but the radio nearly went into the canal at Braunston and it nearly, but not quite, ruined the mood.

 

Braunston is a good point. It’s usually a hive of activity and marks leaving the canal for some hillwork for a short period. I didn’t stop for a Magnum this year since it wasn’t as hot and I didn’t feel like I needed the treat. For me it marks more than ½ way through the 1^st day and that was a treat in itself - I’d got to Braunston feeling healthy.  

 

It wasn’t long after the 50m point though that I started to feel it all. My knees were both suffering. The continual hammer was getting to them, despite the Hokas and it was all too much hard work and too much bother. I wondered why I really wanted to be back here again and wondered why I hadn’t just used the excuse of my back and age to retire gracefully. I had been aware that I would get to one of these low points eventually and though I was prepared for it and aware that they do pass (usually and eventually) I found I wasn’t ready for it after all and I didn’t recall just how bad and how low you actually feel. It was a very definite ‘never again’ time. It was also the point at which Louise phoned to see how I was getting on and I did advise her that if she ever wanted to extract a promise from me about not doing any more of these runs, especially over a Bank Holiday, now was the time to do it.

 

But I did carry on. I guess these are the points that can make or break runs, at least for the inexperienced. You have a lot of time on your hands and it only takes one second out of several hours of pain to DNF. I was waiting for one of these moments and as prepared as I could be I was still dragged down into despair for a time. Fortunately though, I resisted the urge.

 

By 60miles I was largely over it and the last 10miles into the (nearly) half way CP were slow but not as bad mentally, and physically my knees seemed a little less hammered too. At the CP I was met with unfailing cheer and help and once I’d put on my night kit and had a good feed I felt I was ready again.

 

But it didn’t last too long. Marching off into the night I found that it was difficult to run. I was slithering about in the mud and though I was more than happy that my feet were still dry unlike most others, I was worried that I’d wrench my back. It might in hindsight have been the Chimps excuse not to have to run but at the time the Human thought it was a valid point and didn’t resist. I usually try to run without the light of a headtorch where I can, but tonight the night was dark and I had to have the light on. As such my life was a little circle of light bouncing just ahead of me. Eventually I gave up any pretence of running and though I trogged on at a fair pace for most of the time I was finding it hard to keep awake, and when I started nodding off the pace slipped too. Caffeine tablets had no effect and the whole night seemed an extremely long one and the pace dirge-like. In fact the only thing that seemed to keep me wake was when I ate. I ate a Mars Bar and whether it was the effect on my stomach or the physical act of eating, it did waken me for a while.

 

Bridge 99 came and went. My least favourite CP (sorry guys) mainly since it is the dead of night when you eventually get there and invariably cold and wet too. It wasn’t wet this time though, though it had been shortly before and would be shortly after, but it was a better CP for me this year since I forced down a hot dog, which cheered me up.

 

The dawn when it came, was a gradual greying off of the nights blackness and pretty uninspiring, save for the fact that I was still here to celebrate it. It also heralded the need for my regular again and it took me a good while before I could find a suitable exit from the canal. Once on my way again it was now properly light but I was approaching GJA. The last bit always seems longer than I recall but I was starting to overtake some of the guys who had passed me in the night so my pace was picking up a little.

 

GJA is my favourite CP since this is bacon butty point. Today it was sausage and scrambled egg and a change back into shorts. I started off back on the road with long yawns. In previous years I have struggled from this point but this time it was the road to Damascus and not the Highway to Hell, and I would be shortly having my epiphany moment.

 

I still don’t really know what happened. In recent years my times to GJA have been remarkably similar however my race has got me there. I might have been fast in the day and deathmarched the night or been steady throughout but my times have always been the same within a minute of each other, from 24.34-24.38. I had arrived today some 15mins down, well out of the usual bracket but then again not far away from it either and as such, despite my steady Saturday and deathmarch through the night, was actually not too far from where I usually am. I was pleasantly surprised.

 

I started to run/walk again. The run periods got longer and the walks were restricted to yards, and I got faster too. My knees felt ok and for some reason at 110m I actually felt good and getting better. From just finishing I formed in my head the possibility of beating my 2012 37.20 time. The section to Springwell is always a long one at over 20miles but today it didn’t seem as bad. I had also started playing a game with the map. I looked to find the next red dot/milemarker and then tried to get there in 15mins. That meant keeping an average 4mph pace, not earthshattering sure but I’d worked out that if I was able to keep it up I’d beat my 2012 time. I was overtaking people too, probably most of those who’d passed me in the night.

 

I stopped at Springwell only for rice pudding and some of those marvellous marzipan balls. By now the weather had improved too, it was getting windy but was sunny. I paced it out to Hamborough in the same manner, overtaking a few runners in the process and ran the whole stretch from Bulls Bridge to the CP. At the CP and not only just to avoid James making fun of the Wembley result, I was able to get down a quick banana and back out quickly on the road.

 

Since well before Springwell I had been able to keep to a steady 4mph but now I decided to see by how much I could beat 15mins to the next mile marker. I found out during this period that some miles were definitely longer than others but was still able to push it. The sun was getting hotter but I felt I was able to push it now, it being only 10miles to the finish. I could also see that if I kept up the pace I’d beat my 2012 time by some margin – and possibly beat my 36.40 2011 time too. Not long afterwards I caught up with Sam who was struggling with his feet, as so many were. Mine by contrast were perfect, which I put down to the Sealskinz and liners. I hadn’t needed to disturb my feet all race and this I believe is the main reason I was where I was.

 

I was also still smiling. I can’t remember a race where I have smiled so much. It was definitely good to be back and so amazing to be feeling this good after 135miles too. That last 5miles though, is very long and every year I forget just how long. The amount of cans of Polish lager and rubbish in the bushes was also the source of some amazement too.

 

But soon enough the finish was reached. I would have said soon in sight but it wasn’t in sight until the very last minute due to the amount of walkers on the canal. 28^th out of about 61 finishers (about 50 dropped out mainly due to blisters from the wet weather, I think) and at 36.27 was my 2^nd best time and my fastest time since 2007.

My feet were well prepared and stayed dry throughout. I got no blisters other than a couple of minor ones on my little toes and I also ate well.  When I 1st ran the race in 2003 I came 5th in 40.20 and later, 38hrs or so was still fast enough to get me into the top 10 - not so now though, testament to the deserved popularity of the race.

My only real problem was sore knees and that I was starting to get shin splints in the last section. I think they were caused by my calf guards which I tend to wear on the longer stuff now. They do seem to help reduce muscle fatigue but they are a bit long for me and ridged round my ankles so, as my ankles swelled up they may have restricted my tendon movement - i'll have to invest in a new pair if I am allowed to run another long ultra!

For now though I am just so very pleased about Ultra no.98 and so grateful for being able to get back out there again, this being just the run to do it on - my favourite ultra by a long stretch. Finally, my great thanks to all involved in getting me there once again.

 

 

Woodsmoke & Diesel

... and heres another account from 2011. The smell of woodsmoke and diesel together with a million shades of greens and greys are my abiding memories of the race ...

Woodsmoke and diesel

 

Well, it did seem for quite a period that there’d be no account of this years race even if I had managed to get to the finish, but in the end it all turned out ok.

 

This run was the 1^st ‘proper’ Ultra I did in 2003 and has a special place in my heart despite the fact that it is to a large extent the antithesis of all that I thought I enjoyed in running (no hills, moors or mountains). I am however consistently back for more so it can’t be all bad and there is no doubt it is a significant achievement physically and mentally just to get to the end.

 

In 2003 I finished in 40.20 and came 5^th. This year some 3.5hrs faster I barely made the top 30, testament I think to the races deservedly increased popularity over the years. I had in fact retired in 2007 having against all expectations and calculations achieved a sub 36hr time. I didn’t think I would ever beat that and wanted to finish on a high but recent performances in Greece in particular, have made me question my continued ability to race over this distance, and to see what remaining Ultra career I had left, I needed to know how I would cope on this Ultra on which all others are judged, once again.

 

I was in no way looking to beat my 2007 time (though it would have been nice) but I wanted to know that I could still do it. Sub 38 was more of a realistic target given my slowing down over the last couple of years.

 

The race is notorious for its friendly nature throughout. The checkpoint staff are unfailingly friendly and encouraging and it was abundantly clear even before the start that although popularity and times had improved since I last ran, the friendliness was still there to match it.

 

I had run this race unsupported the last few times and it would again be the case this year. I think support can help when you are flagging, but the upside of running on your own is that you can immerse yourself in the race and be proud that your success, if it comes, and that overcoming adversities is down to yourself alone.

 

The night before in Broad St was noisy with precious little sleep despite ear plugs, but at least it was rest of a sort.  There were a lot of faces I recognised at the start but very little time to chat. The weather was good (that is to say cool and overcast!) and the whole thing seemed just so familiar despite not having been here since 2007. It was though my 5^th time.

 

After a brief chat from Dick Kearn the low key start just happens. Runners amble off under a bridge and along the canal rather than race off and the whole atmosphere indicates that all know it is going to be a long day … and night … and day again.

 

I set off well within myself for the first few miles but was champing at the bit much sooner than I expected. I had to consciously rein myself in and stop from pulling back up to those who overtook me. I knew just how far it was going to be. Light chats with those around occasionally but mainly I was happy to be in my own world. After about 4miles I caught up with Neil with whom I’d shared a room the night before and who I’d met in Greece. I knew he was much faster than me but as long as I was feeling comfortable I was happy to share the pace both before and after the 1^st CP.

 

It was on the 1^st two stretches that I met Steve Thompson, with whom I’d shared many hours on the Thames Ring and who was there for moral support, and then Jez Bragg. Jez has come on leaps and bounds since I was with him in 2004 on his 1^st Ultra and now has many records to his name, not least of which was a record time on the Fellsman a couple of weeks ago. It was good to see him again and we walked (... what Jez walks??) a mile or so to catch up before he shot off in the reverse direction.

 

The distractions took my mind off the running and though it wasn’t long before I caught Neil up again I knew by the 2^nd CP that I would have to start running my own race and put a lid on the pace for a while. I spared a few minutes at the CP to top up on water, energy drink and bananas and when I started off again Neil was well in front.

 

From the 2^nd CP (22miles) onwards my initial enthusiasm was draining and I was slotting into the Ultra mode. I was starting to find it harder and from about 25miles on did stop to run/walk a little and by the time the 3^rd CP (36m) arrived I was starting to flag. My pace was a little down on 2007 which in itself wasn’t a worry but it was here, very much as expected, that I was first experiencing those ‘never again’ moments that you always feel in Ultras when things start to get a little tougher. The feeling can be alarming and disconcerting for the novice Ultra runner but I was experienced enough by now to know that the feeling is transient and soon passes (well, after a couple of hours anyway)

 

I never remember too much about these runs afterwards but by the 4^th CP at about 53miles I had already been running for 10-11hrs so a fair bit must have happened. It was pleasant enough running along the canal, the ground underfoot was good, the weather ok but I just can’t remember now a lot more about it. I do usually recall the predominantly greens and greys of the landscape and the all pervading smells of diesel and woodsmoke but when you are running all day you have to throw some stuff out and live a half life or the enormity of it all just gets to you.

 

Concentrating mainly on remembering where to cross the canal and trying not to walk much I made it to CP5 at 70miles before dark but about an hour later than my 2007 time. I had earlier on kept a deliberately slow pace but the same can’t be said for the later sections where I was just plain slow and couldn’t have gone much faster if I’d tried. The 10miles or so before CP5 had been hard and each bend looked like it could be (but wasn’t) the last one before the CP. But ultimately the CP arrived and with it the milestone of half way. Other than the pace and time I was much encouraged. Apart from being plain slow I had no injuries, I was eating and drinking better than usual and managed a good troff at the CP too. After a brief chat with Javed who was supporting at the CP and as dusk arrived I put on the night kit and headtorch and headed off along the canal again.

 

I had in advance decided that the next two night sections would be make or break for me. I have never done well on these sections and the overnight 30miles has always taken me more than 10hrs. Pace is bound to slow in the dark but it has always coincided for me with an unshakeable tiredness resulting in an aimless plod for several hours.

 

Earlier in the day I had had strange desires to stop, lay down and go to sleep much as I had had in Greece last year.  I don’t know why this is starting to happen to me but it’s not good and I was hoping to stave off the sleepiness on this next stretch. I started off as I hoped to go on by run/walking with a good light from the torch but it wasn’t long before I had to stop and take off all the gear I had put on at the last CP. I was just too hot and I knew I was in danger of fainting. The brief stop was worth it though and whilst I didn’t run as much on this section as I’d hoped, the pace was significantly up on what I’d done before and I ended up at the CP at least 30mins faster than in 2007. What’s more this section can be a real drag. It can take forever to reach that horrendous CP, Bridge 99 which must be the place of so many ended races since you get there cold, tired, depressed and invariably wet. But not this year. The weather had taken a little turn for the worse, there was moisture in the air but it fell short of being drizzle. It did add to the cooling though so it was on with the warmer night gear again. I didn’t stop long – I knew it was best to get away from this CP as soon as possible so after a few minutes, some coke and a banana I was on my way, back into my own silvery circle of light bouncing a few feet in front of me.

 

I do where possible prefer to run in the dark at night, that is to say without my headtorch on. I generally find that way that you build up a better awareness of your surroundings and after a while can usually see well enough to run by. Unfortunately that was not the case tonight. It was heavily overcast and under the trees and next to the canal just too difficult to see the path and too dangerous to risk tripping over roots or missing the path entirely so the light stayed on most of the time.

 

One issue I had had prior to the Bridge 99 CP that had been creeping up on me was a pain in my plantar fascia. I was unsure what had been causing it but it had been getting steadily worse. It might have been the trail shoes that I had used regularly beforehand but only over distances up to about 40miles. The ground also seemed, in view of the lack of recent rain, to be very hard. I much prefer to run on softish ground but whatever, the pain was slowing me down. You really don’t need excuses to slow down and this was swiftly and subconsciously giving me too many excuses to stop and walk. Fortunately I had a spare pair of shoes at Bridge 99 and I spared the time to change into these, more road based trainers. Luckily the pain didn’t get any worse but I was still finding it interrupting my running and drawing me out of ‘computer mode’.

 

I also found out after Bridge 99 that the batteries were running low and it was not long before I just seemed to grind to a halt. It wasn’t for lack of food or fuel since this was still going down unusually well, but quite quickly I just felt incredibly tired and started nodding off. Very soon I was in just plod mode and with the sleepiness just lacked the mental capacity to recognise it and do anything about it. The foot joined in and I just hobbled slowly on through the darkness, immersed in nothing but my little circle of light.

 

In previous years I have been slow on these night sections but come dawn have usually woken up again. Sometimes dawn itself is an inspirational factor, but not today. There was nothing pretty about dawn today. The sky was heavily overcast. It wasn’t quite raining but nearly, and when dawn arrived it was simply a greying off of the blackness and very difficult to determine when it was actually daylight at all. When it was clearly light again my mode stayed the same and for whatever reason, whether mental or physical I just couldn’t run. I was walking reasonably fast again and was surprised to catch up Laurence who had left me many hours before. I walked with him for a while and then left him a bit on the last stretch into GJA.

 

Grand Junction Arms CP is another milestone. In fact it marks for me not only daylight, but also the 100mile point. It also usually provides the breakfast bacon and egg cob and sufficient motivation to get going on the last 3 daylight sections. I was pleased to see Andy and Ramona again. I changed into day gear and sat for longer than was perhaps wise with my breakfast cob before being shooed off by Andy to get going again.

 

I had not paid much attention to my 100mile split on arriving but was convinced that it was a lot slower than 2007. In fact I seem to have been about 2minutes up. This meant that although I had felt slow over the last section in fact I was 30minutes faster than I had been on the same section in 2007 and I had negated entirely the hour I had lost up to the 70mile point, over just 30miles. Had I realised this at the time then I might have been spurred on to great things and this might be one of the benefits of a support crew since as it was I was convinced I had no hope of pushing my 2007 time and my foot was still hurting, often it just grabbed me and stopped me dead, and thus gave me the excuse to continue just plodding.

 

It was not long before Laurence caught me up again and we walked together on/off for a while. It was not long after that either that Martin caught me up too (I’d last seen him arriving at the Navigation CP as I left).

 

This section was a drag and in hindsight my worst split. At 20miles it’s a long section between CP’s and again might have been a good place to have a support crew but I was continuing to suffer and as it warmed up I was finding this an added obstacle to keeping running. In 2007 I made good time on this section covering it in 5hrs but it was looking like today it would be a much longer day out.

 

The hardest thing about Ultras for me is the mental aspect. It is easy to know where you are physically and train up but not so easy to know how to train mentally. You can be as fit as you like but if your mind is playing you up it can create obstacles that at the time seem absolutely impossible to surmount but in reality are often no more than mirages. The mind is an incredible asset if you can retain some control over it in an ultra and the end of the world if you can’t.

 

I am used now to the ‘never again’ moments but sometimes when this fails to get you to stop, the mind can be so much more subtle. In Greece last year I found that after only 30-40miles and despite being pretty fit I just couldn’t run. I was sleepy, there were pains in my knees and hips and thighs and I quickly just got incredibly depressed and disillusioned. At the time this was very much real. Even afterwards I was very stiff so the pain was real enough I guess, but I do in hindsight question just how strong I really was mentally and how much I wanted it. Perhaps, if I’d been better mentally aware I’d have been able to recognise that my mind might have been playing subtle tricks on me and formulate a plan keep the chimp in the box.

 

The difference though between the Spartathlon and the GUCR is that in Greece you get precious little time to recognise issues before they become fatal to your race. The issue is even more important when you have to run as close to the deadlines as I do these days through deteriorating speed/ageing. It therefore makes it even more important to be mentally aware of the extent to which your mind will try and persuade you that you can’t do it and that you have to stop.

 

Today I did think back to my exit in Greece. I was aware of my dropping pace, of my inability to run more than a few hundred yards at a time but seemed equally unable to do anything about it. The advantage was on this occasion that my race wasn’t so time critical. Sure I’d be further away from my PB than I’d hoped but I’d still finish the race – in a way this made it harder to overcome the issue since I could convince myself I had no option but to carry on the way I was and in fact it didn’t matter if I did.

 

It came to a crux though when I factored in running at this pace to the end and realised that there was a distinct possibility that I’d miss the train I’d booked months ago. In fact the last one home Sunday evening – a train which in preparation seemed to give me a generous amount of time. This started a panic. I was in bad books enough for wanting to run again on a Bank Holiday weekend when we were supposed to be going away, let alone getting home a day late. I had to do something. As Springwell finally arrived and I had lost about an hour I decided that I’d take the chimps mind off the hurdles it was putting in my way and do something about it. I only stopped briefly at the CP. Time was of the essence if I wanted to get the train and I stayed only long enough to top up water and down a quick rice pudding. I carried on tentatively and in pain at 1^st but decided to put the watch to some use and start a strict on/off run/walk regime. At 1^st it was 0.05 miles off/0.10 miles on. The miles seemed to melt away and sooner than I’d realised the 12mile section was in single figures. I’d decided I needed to keep to a 4mph average and had the watch on that mode to keep an eye on it. If I kept to that I’d be there in 3hrs. I was able to. I extended the running to 0.25miles on/0.10 miles off and even got up to 0.75m on/0.25 off. Having the routine helped. Martin and Laurence caught me up and whilst it was good to run with them for company it did skew my regime. Sure I was running longer/further with them but walking slower when not. I tried to do my own thing and was rewarded by getting to Hamborough, the last CP in 3hrs as planned and also overtook a few other runners too.

 

I didn’t stay at the CP long. With only 12m to go it wasn’t worth it. Laurence shot off ahead. I was still having to walk some and on those stretches he pulled away, Martin doing the same shortly after. Nonetheless with an eye on my watch virtually every minute, my mind was occupied and I was able to keep to the 4mph plan.

 

It was however getting hotter, and the hotter it got the harder I found it to keep on running.  I still kept an eye permanently on my watch, and was still able to keep to a 4 mph average, though it was very hard.  I was also now regularly looking over my shoulder.  I could not see anyone behind me for as far as the eye could see but I was getting worried.

 

There are long straights on this section that are hard at this stage of the run. The chimp was spreading alarm and I was starting to find it hard to get him back in the box. I had been moving fine for a while now and missing the train was no longer an issue. As a result, the chimp was telling me that I could stop and walk now and it was hard to find the motivation to argue against that. I was not going to beat my PB and I was going to be faster than I had suspected. Couldn’t I settle for that? I looked at the time. 37hrs was approaching. The chimp was telling me that I’d never make it in under 37hrs but I wanted to try. I started running again. The chimp was still out of the box nagging at me to stop. All of a suddenly John Poole came past. Where had he come from? There was about 2 or so miles to go. We were nearly there but I hadn’t seen him approaching and he shot past at a pace much faster than mine, incidentally doing the same thing he’d done on the last mile or so of the Ridgeway in 2010 at the same time pushing me into 2^nd V50 place (though I hadn’t known that at the time). The chimp was bouncing up and down saying he’d told me so and I let John fade into the distance.

 

But it didn’t last long and from somewhere I’d found the energy to have a go. Perhaps sub 37hrs was still on and a 36hr time still sounded good – not as good as sub36 but not bad. So I burst into a run again and it was not long before I was moving at a faster pace than anything I’d done in the last 24hrs. I started to recognise the change in the scenery from the long straights to the start of the built up areas and I kept going. I’ve no idea how and the knees were protesting but I kept going. The chimp had me pull up in despair at one stage when I realised (yet again) that it was much further along this bit than I remembered, but it wasn’t for more than a few yards until I told the chimp that we could do it if we could just hang on, and we did. Eventually I recognised the last stretch and was able to push along the path to finish in 36.42. I was pretty pleased.

 

So was I disappointed? Well, far from it surprisingly. I realised I just love this race. I was an hour off my PB but an hour faster than my next fastest time. From the disappointment of being an hour down at Navigation I had pulled the time back overnight and been up on my PB at 100miles. From there and at 120m I’d overcome an issue that on another day would have meant a time nearer 40hr if I’d kept to the same pace and I’d done the same at 142m and finished strongly. I had no physical issues other than a sore Plantar fascia and tired knees and can’t remember a race where I’ve been stronger mentally and been able to respond, and that makes me more optimistic about my ability to run Ultras further into ‘old age’ than I’ve been for some time. So thanks everyone for a great race and maybe I will see you all again another year.

 

Stuart

 

p.s. Apologies to Dr Steve Peters for the chimp analogy that crept in there towards the end. If anyone gets the opportunity to hear him speak I would recommend it. I am usually very sceptical about psychiatrists and Sports Psychiatrists in particular, but you can’t knock the success he has had with the likes of Chris Hoy, Victoria Pendleton and Bradley Wiggins and he is a runner as well. Recognising the chimps antics and learning to try to get him back in the box is starting to have some effect on me too!