Hoka Highland Fling race report

If you read my previous post, you will realise I was in the turmoil of a dilemma - to go for it or hold something back for battles to come? I am not one for indecision, I like to have a clear plan but this time I found myself standing on the start line in Milngavie not really knowing how I wanted to play it.

Tracey and I travelled up to Milngavie after work on Friday and I wasted no time before going down to the pub to register. It was great to catch up with Andy Cole and Mark Barnes, but I didn't want to stand around for too long when there was a nice hotel room with carpets and sheets (as opposed to our new house with floorboards, dust and sleeping bags!) just next door.

Like many runners, I think my biggest worry for the race was getting up in time to make the start so I set my alarm for 4:15am but put it on the far side of the room so I would have to get out of bed to turn it off. The adrenaline kicked in as soon as the alarm went off and I made the start with loads of time to spare, catching up with friends and just being happy to be back on that sacred car park.

The temperature just lifted enough for me to leave my jacket in the bumbag and, in fact, the weather made a welcome return to spring after a dismal few days. I got myself in the front start pen but made sure I was to the back of the group as I didn't want to get dragged along too quickly early on. The field spread out quite quickly and I soon settled into a nice rhythm but I was concious of the speed that I was running at, so allowed a few to pass me and tried to stick to my rough 8 min/mile on the flat plan up to Drymen. I met up with Matt Wilson along this stretch and we enjoyed each others company to Rowardennan, having previously met up for some running around Keswick.

What pleased me most about this early, flat section of the race was that I was able to keep up a reasonable pace without really panning myself and was pleased to reach Drymen (67th place) and then Balmaha in good time. The new path up Conic Hill really helps with your footing and makes for an easier climb. I reached Balmaha in 2:55 hours, spent a minute sorting my drop bag out and headed out of the car park with the attitude that I would allow myself to think I was in a race now - game face on!

I am so much more at home on the terrain up the eastern shore of Loch Lomond, I love the single track, twisty, rough, undulating and gnarly. I could feel I was starting to run well and, more importantly, cover the ground quickly with a minimum of fuss. I concentrated on being smooth, going with the flow and not fighting the terrain and as I worked with Matt, we seemed to be in Rowardennan in no time. We were away from the checkpoint in a couple of minutes, though Matt wanted to walk a while to sort his nutrition out and went on to finish in under 9:30 hours on his debut.

I was enjoying myself now, picking off runners every 5 mins or so, and with this positivity, I set myself the target of running all the hill out of Rowardennan. I almost managed this last year but had a couple of lapses so was determined to take the scalp this time - and did! I caught up and then tagged along with John Butters on the way to Inversnaid and we made good time together into the checkpoint along the single track.

By now, I felt I was in a nice groove and ready to take on the Marmite section after Inversnaid. If you just accept that it is rough and it's the same for everyone, there is no big mystery to this section and I really enjoyed myself, running my fastest split ever for this sector. Looking at the final results splits, I was the 15th fastest up the side of the loch which reinforces how much I was enjoying myself.

As I approached Beinglas Farm (22nd place), I started to play my usual maths game of predicting a time and realised I had a chance of breaking 9 hours for the first time, so that became my new target to keep me fired over the remainder of the race.

I knew I couldn't hang around so pushed on with the good running to be had on the forest road to Derry Darroch and was really encouraged by the support from Paul and Gaynor (thanks, guys), thinking I could catch the next man up the track. I finally caught the next place (Ryan McKenzie) just as we reached the rollercoaster woods, feeling very pleased with myself and then proceeded to fall apart for 30 minutes as Ryan cruised away from me having spent 40 minutes trying to catch him (there is definitely some psychology in that!).

I somehow managed to hold it together through the woods and got myself in a better place once I was back down on the track to Auchertyre. A few more difficult maths calculations and I thought I could still make the 9 hour target, so no time to wallow in self pity after a rough patch. The two drunks near the main road underpass gave me a hearty cheer and offered me a miniature of vodka (did anyone else see them or was it just some sleep monsters?). It is always surprising how your body can kick in with a good finish once your brain takes off the self-preservation shackles and I was soon turning into the campsite and the superb finish area.

High 5's

I crossed the line in 8:56:10 hours, a PB by 22 minutes for 21st place - a very happy bunny!! For once I wasn't in bits and was able to (just) about suffer a massage and be sociable instead of hiding away in a corner in some kind of self-preservation coma.

Going back to my original dilemma, I think I just about got things right - a nice steady start followed by a great confidence building blast along the loch and a good finish in a new PB without totally wasting myself. Just about ticked all the boxes;-)

Thanks to all the organisers and marshals that surely make this one of the best events on the calendar. Once this is posted it's time to crack open one of those chilled beers they were passing out at the finish (just cannot quaff on straight after the race) and remember the good times skipping over those boulders on the loch shore. Eight weeks to the big one!

Hoka Highland Fling Race Update

A distinct lack of blogging over the last couple of weeks due to a house move (and lots of building work) and no t'interweb.

Now that we are back in the correct century, I can at least give a quick update on the Highland Fling as we have just got back from Scotland.

I was a little worried about how the house move might have affected my run, but I managed to put together another good race, breaking my PB for the course by 22 mins, finishing in 8:56 hours for 21st place.

I'm delighted with that result and am looking forward to a nice recovery week before the final push of training up to the West Highland Way Race in 8 weeks time.

Full race report and video to follow.

Highland Fling Race Video

I've put together some video clips of my race last Saturday which, I hope, gives some flavour of how things unfolded for me. Enjoy!

Good tired

Everything has gone to plan this week. I intended to make this one a fairly full-on week of training, my last before I start a two week taper for the Highland Fling Race. I'm just about to go out and put the finishing touches to the week with a nice steady 7 miles round the trails below Latrigg Fell which will take the week's total up to around 60 miles (all off road). Those that know me and my training routine will be well aware that this is a huge total for me but I have coped well enough and just have the "good tired" feeling in my legs, which the taper will sort out.

The stand-out sessions included, on Wednesday, catching the bus out to Buttermere valley (not a journey for those prone to travel sickness) and running the Lakeland 100 route back to Keswick. The last time I did this route was with John Kynaston back at the beginning of March in the snow. How different everything looks now.

On Friday I did a sustained tempo run on trails for 1:15 hours. Having done no speedwork of any description this year, it was great to turn up the revs and feel that there was something in the tank, a bit of the old magic is still there. Interestingly, having spent the last four months improving my running style, I was pleased with the way I could cover the trails at speed but remain smooth. Regardless of fitness levels, I know I am running with greater economy than I was this time last year.

Yesterday was a longer, steadier affair, with 15 miles round the west side of Derwentwater, down Borrowdale valley to Rossthwaite, climb over to Watendlath and back to Keswick below Walla Crag. I would normally run every step of this route, however, I decided that I would treat each climb as if it were part of an ultra and walk, working on my walk to run transition over the top. I always try to give each session a focus rather than just running and I felt this made the run far more race specific.

Tracey and I had a walk this morning round Gowbarrow Fell, partly because it is a great trail with wonderful views over Ullswater, and it would give me another opportunity to check out a part of the Lakeland 100 route I'll probably be running in the dark; just making sure I have got all of the small turns visualised properly. Perhaps someone could answer this question; why does walking make me so tired? If I hadn't got up off the sofa to write this, I would have gone to sleep for an hour or so!

On just about every run now, I am thinking about the Highland Fling Race, how I am going to approach it, pace, clothing, nutrition, etc, etc. I feel that I am ready now and can't wait to get on the start line. The one decision I have made is that I am not going to run and simply smell the roses along the way; I want to try and get a new PB (sub 10 hours). My next job is to sit down in front of a spreadsheet and put together a rough plan of attack to at least put me in a position to achieve this goal without going off like an idiot at the start.

The Cappuccino Tour

My legs felt fine after the long Lakeland 100 recce with John, which is always a good sign that things are going in the right direction. I had intended to do a longer report on our day out in the Lakeland sunshine but as Tracey and I were going away for the the week in our campervan, I thought I had better make some kind of contribution to the packing. The video summary from my previous post gives a good flavour of the day and for those that want a more detailed view, check out John's videos.

For the last week, Tracey and I have been doing some walking, based around Tyndrum and Glencoe. Over the years, Tracey has seen snippets of the West Highland Way, basically any part where she has dropped me off or picked me up, so we thought we would check out a few sections together.

The weather did not live up to the previous week's high standards and, in fact, threw us back into winter with a drop of snow, but it did make for some amazing views.

We arrived at Tyndrum on Monday evening and awoke on Tuesday to snow. The low-lying layer melted quite quickly, but up on the hills it was a different story. We caught the bus to Drover's Inn and walked back to Tyndrum and it was quite simply a stunning day - impossible to take a bad photo! My mind is never far from racing mode, so I thought I would try and get my head around the ups and downs of the woods above Crianlarich. Whenever I have raced through the woods, I have never managed to visualise the route correctly, so we came up with a system to split up this section; 4 climbs, long descent, 5 climbs, long descent, 3 climbs, long descent. So the mantra during the Highland Fling will be "4:5:3".

On Wednesday, we walked from Tyndrum to just past Bridge of Orchy and again caught the bus back to Tyndrum. The vote for best cappuccino of the tour went to the Bridge of Orchy Hotel. I wasn't really sure whether I would do some training on this trip or not, but after a day out walking, I figured a run on tired legs would be good training and get the blood flowing, so I did an easy hour in the evening and felt surprisingly good.

We left Tyndrum on Thursday morning, parking at the Glencoe Ski Centre so I could give Tracey a small taste of Rannoch Moor. The temperature was a bit warmer today and the low cloud made for some dramatic views. In the evening, we booked onto Invercoe campsite in Glencoe village, which had wonderful views down the loch. I went out for a run to check out a path that "might" take a route to Kinlochleven for Friday's walk. As I discovered, not a path for a nice relaxing walk; steep, rocky, muddy, etc. I did, however, come across Glencoe Locharn in the woods just above the village.

On Good Friday, after a much warmer night, we had a walk down to Kinlochleven and a look in at The Ice Factor climbing centre, The Aluminium Experience (a small museum attached to the post office; obviously) and a small bit of the WHW as it drops into the village. Surprisingly good cappuccinos in The Ice Factor, just for interest. Another run in the evening, followed by a SPECTACULAR sunset! This is why we got the van!

New screen saver on PC at home!

After a great week away, I feel like I have put many more hours into my legs without punishing them. I'm well recovered from last week's long run and ready to put in one more hard week of training before starting a two week taper for the Highland Fling 53 mile race. The thought of standing on the start line of a race again (14 months since my previous race!!) is just so exciting. Still haven't really formulated a battle plan yet. Do I just go out and smell the roses or do I push for a sub 10 hour PB? I know which way I am erring towards!

Race plans for 2012

Seems a bit strange to be doing this post now. Last night I managed a 3 mile session, walking 2 minutes, jogging 2 minutes, repeat, along the old railway. My legs feel a bit heavy today, but this has to be expected as I have not done any running for SEVEN MONTHS. I did feel that I could have run longer, however, I don't want to overcook things yet.

In order to celebrate running for 2 minutes, I thought I'd commit to my racing plan for 2012. All this is obviously dependent on my tendon, but I'm being positive and looking forward to next year.

Those that follow John Kynaston's blog, will already have a heads-up on my number one target for next year. Even before my injury problems, I had decided that in 2012 I would do the Lakeland 100, rather than attempt a quicker time on The West Highland Way Race. I know I will return to the WHW race at some time as the race and everyone involved make it such a special occasion. Getting under 20 hours for the WHW race is still an aim I have tucked away after running 20 hours and 21 minutes in 2010. I want, however, to have a good crack at my "local" race so this will be my focus for next year, having the added bonus of being in my summer holidays so I can rest up properly beforehand.

John is also doing this race and we intend to do some significant training/recces together over the first half of the year. I might be able to run with him but I certainly can not keep up with his blog reports!

By missing the WHW race, it frees me up to have a "proper" go at running the Highland Fling at the end of April. If you have read my thoughts on training for the WHW Race you will know that I consider the Fling too close to the big race to give it my all as I know I do not have enough time to recover and train again between the two races. My two times for the Fling are around 10 hours, so an obvious target is to get that time lowered down to something like 9:30.

At some point in May or June I would like to go off the grid and spend a weekend doing the Bob Graham Round mountain marathon style over two days with a wild camp overnight. I completed the round proper in 2007 but have a hankering to do a more "pure" round without support, whether that be solo unsupported, unsupported but with a friend or two, mountain marathon style or even a winter attempt. The start is about 500 yards from my house so I can just wait for a nice weekend and go for it. Lucky git!!

Three weeks before the Lakeland 100 is Saunders Lakeland Mountain Marathon which is a great two day event. The elite class (called Klets) is a solo category and offers a great deal of route choice as the controls can be taken in any order. I think a personal best may be just out of reach as I hit my zenith in 2009 when coming 2nd in the event based at Coniston. I think that weekend will lead me straight into my taper for the Lakeland 100 so, although I'll give it a good shot, I will keep those following three weeks in mind. The Lakeland 100 is the priority.

I'll give myself lots of recovery time after the Lakeland 100; I think it took me two months to recover from the WHW Race! The latter part of the year will be the build up to the Original Mountain Marathon which is the biggest and most prestigious of them all. My racing partner (Simon) and I came 9th on the Elite class in 2010 on Dartmoor, so another top 10 finish is the aim.

The dress rehearsal race for the OMM will be the RAB Mountain Marathon at the start of October which is a superb event with a lovely laid back feel to it. If you are wanting to have a go at your first mountain marathon I can fully recommend it and it has that extra navigational twist, in that all classes are done as a score event (collect as many points as possible in a time limit, rather that the traditional fastest round a set course). Again, Simon and I have been the bridesmaids at this event in 2008, finishing 2nd when it was held on the Back o'Skiddaw area to the north of Keswick.

Depending on how I feel after that year, I may have a run out at the Tour de Helvellyn which takes place in the middle of December; if so, it would be as a means of kick starting the winters training for 2013. I will leave that decision to much later in the year.

As I type this, I'm smiling to myself. Last night I ran for two minutes at a time and here I sit detailing racing plans for seven events with a total running time of about 105 hours, or 15 hours per event! You've got to love the capacity of the human brain to ignore the reality and focus on the fantasy!!