Written by Robbie Britton - http://robbiebritton.co.uk/

It's midday on Saturday 26th April and 38 people are running around Crawley Athletic track at the K2 Leisure Centre and we are watching something special happening, although none of us actually know it is happening. A British record is in the process of being broken, smashed even. 

The Crawley 6 & 12 Hour races organised by Pam Storey have been running since 2006 but this year sees the strongest field yet, with the Team GB 24 hour squad organising their team to coincide with the event and give some of their athletes a chance to prove that all the hard work over winter is paying off.

The 12 hour race sets off at 07:00 and the tall figure of Marco Consani is soon gliding along out in the front, clocking up his laps with a smile on his face and relative ease in his stride. Marco's better half, Debbie Martin-Consani, is moving steadily too, with fellow GB athlete Karen Hathaway in close proximity.

It is not the front runners who are the most inspiring at Crawley today though as Keith Scrivener, a regular at the event, is moving steadily around the track, a bit slower than others but with all the grit and determination in the world. It is only 8 months since Keith suffered a stroke which greatly limited his movements but, an owner of a 100 marathon club vest, Keith is powering through and showing the others what it truly means to push to your limits.

ImageThe 6 hour race starts at 10:00 and more runners are unleashed onto the track, with Adam Holland flying off at 6 minute pace, evidently with records in his mind. The fantastic trio of Emily Gelder, Sharon Law and Fionna Ross set off at a more reasonable pace, bearing in mind it is a 6 hour race.

Time passed and the crowd, consisting of family, friends, former World Champions, Spartathlon winners (although one of them was racing too) and lap counters, got to see the excitement of the turnaround at 1:00 pm, when everyone starts running in the opposite direction to prevent them leaning over too much!

Adam Holland has slowed dramatically from the start and Emily Gelder is burning up the track in pursuit, showing a brilliant display of pacing that you would expect from a 24hr racer. Fionna and Sharon are not too far behind but the question is will there be enough time for Emily to catch Adam or will his early burst have been enough?

Keith has clocked a commendable 17.6km (10 miles 1648 yards) and he will go from strength to strength in the future with his brilliant work effort towards recovery. The Scottish husband and wife team are still going strong in the 12 hour race and Debbie is on to break the Scottish record, whilst Marco wastes half his energy waving and thanking everyone for their support each lap and still he is on for the course record.

ImageAdam (72.9km/ 45 miles 520 yards)) grits himself to keep moving forward towards the end and follows in the footsteps of Debbie for the final couple of hours to just about hold Emily (70.9km/ 44 miles 520 yards)) off but it was merely a matter of time before she would have caught him. The longer the race the better the ladies are at beating us hot-headed chaps who shoot off too fast!

It's not until the final hour that one of the Team GB crew decides to check what the British record for 12 hours is and, seeing as the current holder, Eleanor Robinson, has just gone home, there is some excitement when we realise Debbie is on course to take it! All day something fantastic has been happening and nobody even knew!

ImageIt goes down to the wire, one of Debbie's toenails protests and causes some issues and Marco tries to help with some distant pacing just ahead, but Debbie is strong and moves well past the 128.4km record and runs 129.171km/80 miles 463 yards before collapsing to the track as any true runner should! Karen Hathaway isn't far behind with 127.304km/79 miles 181 yards.

Marco looks really comfortable after his 145.570km/ 90 miles 797 yards effort, enough for 2nd in the World this year and making him a really great prospect for the World Championships in Soochow in December.

ImageIt's a great day for team GB and for everyone at Crawley with solid performances throughout the field. To keep moving for 6 or 12 hours around a track takes great mental and physical strength and this was shown in abundance. Pam Storey is devoted to seeing British ultra running go from strength to strength and to see such strong performances at one of her events is fitting to the effort Pam puts into organising races.

If anyone wants an even greater challenge Pam is organising the Gloucester 24 hour track place which is taking place on the 14th of June. We could do with a couple more gents for Team GB if you can make the qualifying standards! 


Entries can be made via the race website www.gloucester24hourtrackrace.com

Robbie Britton

Written by Mark Griffiths - http://cardiosaurus.blogspot.co.uk/

This post unfortunately has been a little delayed due to scrambled brains.
It has taken me nearly a week to get my head together as I made an unexpected hydration error at last Sundays Fairlands Valley Challenge. More about that in a bit, first lets get to the challenge itself....

Sunday the 20th July was a pretty hot and humid day already by the time we pulled into the car park for registration at 7:30am. The first part of the challenge for the day was to actually locate the reception of this massive school we found ourselves walking around. Luckily my Mum (Mummysaurus) and I were helped out by some folks who had clearly done it last year.
I walked in to find no queue at the registration table. Great! Within a minute I was in and out with my number and 5 pages of instructions which left me loads of time to locate a toilet and then just wait for the start.

This type of starting line was not really something I was used too. The thing that made it unusual for me is that each length race option had a different starting time, making my starting group relatively small.
That`s right, you can pick your distance and still pay the same price! The options were 12 mile, 18 mile, marathon and 50k ultra. It seemed rude not to pick the 50k! ;)
As an added bonus we got a free burger at the end and they even had a bar at the finish all for the princely sum of £17!! Bargain!

94 of us who picked the 50k option lined up for the 8:45am start, the 50k walkers had started 15 minutes earlier. With not really any kind of fuss or fanfare we had a short countdown and then we were off!

I took off at a steady pace with my trusty Luna "Mono" Sandals with some socks stashed in my bag for later. Within about a mile we came to a steep grass bank and for the first time in about 2 years I slipped and slid down the bank on my ass. Stylish.
I picked myself up, brushed off some of my pride and caught back up with a small group. After a little while I was finding myself between groups needing to take a look at the instructions.

Running and reading as it turns out is actually pretty hard. Every turning I had to slow to a walk to try and work out where I was as the instructions were all abbreviated and the coarse was not marked. Quite a few times very early on as I got used to the instructions, I would start to dash down one path to thankfully be called back by someone just behind me. It was a little frustrating to be so stop start as I felt really good and wanted to push a little today.
Check point one came about pretty quick. I grabbed a small piece of bread pudding from the table and headed back out, happy with the way things were going so far.
A few more miles in and it got a bit more hilly. Fine, I love hills. I sipped at my Chia seed and coconut water mix and was really enjoying my surroundings. While hiking up a steep hill I caught up with a lady who I figured was either training for something bigger or moving house. She was hauling a LOT of gear, enough in fact that I just had to ask what she was up too.
We chatted away and she let on that she was using this event to test out her 8kg pack for T184!!! For those of you who may not have heard of the T184 its a little trip along the river. The Thames to be more precise, oh and did I mention, its ALL of it?! 184 miles from the Thames Barrier in London to the source of the Thames in the Cotswolds!!! Not impressed yet? Ok its also, with the exception of water, completely self sufficient and you have just 80 hours to complete it........yeah, PHEW!

Back to the story...

It was around 10:45am, Nina and myself were just coming into check point 2 which happened to be check point 1 as well as the 50k started with a loop. We had a quick stop to grab some water and I took this opportunity to add my socks and shove some more bread pudding in my face.
At this point I looked over to see a couple of fellow Monkey Tag Runners, (a group I set up at the start of the year on Facebook) we shared a few quick hellos and waves before heading off our separate ways as we were all doing different distances. Hope to catch up with you guys soon! ;)
We headed back out the way we had just come and started up yet another hill keeping at a good pace, now around 11 miles in.
The sun got hotter, the air was like breathing soup, the terrain got a bit more challenging and so did the instructions. On a few occasions we had to stop and really try hard to work out where we were. This was eating into our time a lot but we had no choice, also deciding very early on that we would both rather take an extra minute to double check rather than double back.
This process went on and on over some very pretty scenery which to be honest I wasn't expecting to see today. In a way I really wish the course was marked so I could have spent more time enjoying the view rather than translating a piece of paper.
Nina was great company and we chatted about all the things we love and hate about running and the types of people you get over different distances. You know the ones. The ones obsessed with time and position, they are easy to spot, they normally look grumpy. I think we may have established a rule... it appears the size of the smile and attitude of the person is directly proportional to the intended distance of travel....short version? The people running further seem to have more fun!

We pushed on, chatting and checking on people on the way round like most folk do in ultras. This was the other observation we made about the people not doing the same distance. They looked a little confused that we were talking to them! I guess only having done the one official marathon then just doing ultras, I have got used to the attitudes of the ultra world. A friendly bunch with a mutual understanding that we are all quite possibly one GU short of an aid station! We laugh, we cry, we understand each other, we now what is on the other side of that mental barrier and I think that is what makes us look out for others.

At times it felt like we were the sweepers with no one behind us and people struggling a little up ahead. We stopped to check on a guy sitting under a tree who had sprained his ankle. He was fine and had already called for help. We hung around for a couple of minutes and he assured us he was fine. Just as we left him to chill under his shady tree the ambulance passed us to pick him up.

We were aware now that any hope of a "good" time was out of the window now due to double checking the instructions so much and the humidity. It was relentless. You could feel it pick up every time you got to the bottom of a hill. The breeze would drop off and the air would get so thick it would almost choke you.

All part of the challenge I guess!

A funny moment around 20 or so miles came in the form of a little cow. The rest of his mates were either laying under a tree or having some grass next to a very shallow stream. Not this clever little dude. Nope! He was IN the stream, up to his shins, by the other bank in the shade munching on the hedge row! Genius! :)
He looked like the most content being on the planet at that moment.

Once again we were back at the instructions trying to work out if we were going the right way. We were but it was a little hard to tell. We were both a little fuzzy headed at this point so reading the already slightly challenging instructions became, well, a bit more challenging.

One section that took forever was due to our instructions being different! Nina had printed her copy from the internet, shrunk them down and laminated them (brilliant idea!) and my copy was the one I was given at registration. We were in a field that didn't really read quite right and both sets of instructions were somewhat vague. Eventually we decided to ignore them and just head for the sound of the road as we were looking for a bridge to cross. We found the gap in the hedge that was mentioned but then come out onto a busy road.

Hmm?

Having both done ultras before we didn't think a race organiser would want anyone crossing something quite this busy so started looking around, it was then that I spotted the bridge. We figured by this point that if it wasn't the right one at least we would have a good reference point for a quick satnav check on the phone!
Nina did a quick satnav check then we backtracked along the little trail and met up with the road where now the instructions made sense again!! PHEW! Onward!
On and on with the aid of hills and more hills the time slowly slipped away from us. We didnt really care, it was about getting the job done. We both commented on feeling a little fuzzy and sometimes a little sick and this turned into a chat about when this normally happens. Nina said she has a bit of a wobble around 20-23 miles in and again at maybe 40, we both put that down to maybe Glycogen stores running low and the body switching over to fat. I said I tend to get a very low point around 30-33 miles where I feel like I have gone down a rabbit hole, probably for the same reason. Today however I felt a little different. We were around marathon ish distance and I was sometimes feeling a little dizzy but put it down to heat. Every now and then I felt a little sick but put it down to too much cake. My throat was sometimes dry, I thought maybe im drinking a little too much so backed off for a while. A few miles later Nina noticed I didnt seem to be sweating so I started to sip again and within 10 minutes I was sweating again. "Brilliant" I thought but still felt a little fuzzy.
I put it to the back of my mind for now as we were now so close to the finish.
It had been a long, long day but we finally came up the road and could see the entrance back to the school to the left of us!
We rounded the corner to see people clapping and could see the finish line!! It was nearly done. We picked up the pace (as you do) and bounded down the road like we were finishing a 10k, my legs briefly forgetting the last 30 odd miles. My intention as a way of saying "thank you for dragging my sorry butt around" and to show utter respect for the fact that she had just done that with an 8kg pack was to stop before the finish line and let Nina finish before me. So I put the brakes on with about 30 feet to go. So did she!!! I waved to say GO! GO! but she wanted to cross together. Respect! :)
We collected our bling and had a sweaty hug then stood around for a bit chatting with my mum and some folks she had befriended before heading for the free burger! Wooo!
As it turns out we finished joint last for the 50k ultra with 6 runners behind finishing up the marathon. The time? 8:19 something, but who cares about the time right? ;)
My mum led me inside to also grab a pint at the bar, best day ever right?! So there I am outside on the grass trying to clap home the final runners with a burger in one hand and a pint in the other. I polished them off while chatting to my mum about the days events and felt pretty good, a little fuzzy but good. Fuzzy was to be expected I thought as I had just spent the last 8 odd hours out in the sun.
We headed back to the car. A quick half hour drive and I was home. We said our goodbyes and I headed inside for a nice shower.
Shower done, it was time to kick back with a couple more "recovery" beers then off to bed ready for work in the morning.
Walking to work I couldn't seem to shake the feeling of being a bit disconnected, like I was daydreaming. I put it down to maybe smashing my calories but it felt different.
Work was hard, I found myself staring blankly through the screen. I didn't feel like I was really there. I felt blank and confused, even trying to talk to people was an effort. It was at this point that I realised the fact that not only was I concentrating very hard on communicating but I was messing up my words (more than usual) and sometimes even skipping a word!
Something isnt right.
Here is where we get to the bit I was going to explain at the start.
I contacted some very experienced ultra runners on Facebook to see if anyone had any ideas of what was going on. The response suggested that it sounded very much like very mild Hyponatremia.
Hyponatremia is a reduction in the salt level in the blood normally caused by over hydration. So my absentminded sipping while looking at instructions was the start. The big problem is that most of the signs for over hydration are the same as dehydration so on a hot day it can be very easy to mistake a dry throat for a thirsty one. The foggy head, the feeling sick, the dry throat were all subtle signs I had actually drunk too much water. I had caused an electrolyte imbalance which in turn had signaled my body to release and anti diuretic hormone to try and retain my salt by stopping me peeing therefore retaining the water. With the water having nowhere to go it can swell the organs and brain and can cause all sorts of problems. For me it was the clarity of thought. I guess thankfully the race wasn't any longer or this may have been a very different story. I stopped drinking anything else by around 9:30am and by about 11am I needed the loo, signalling that maybe my body now thought it was safe enough and could start shifting some of the water. This also confirmed to me that the thoughts about it being Hyponatremia were on the right track. (Thanks guys!)
I decided to take a trip to the GP just to be on the safe side that afternoon. She listened and agreed that it sounded about right and suggested some blood work just to make sure. She did a urine test as well and I explained that I had actively dehydrated myself so that explains the concentrated levels.
She seemed happy enough and said I could just return to normal eating and drinking.
I have continued to feel a little disconnected, even while I am typing this over a week afterwards, I am finding I am making more errors than usual but on the whole I feel fine.
It was a very large reminder to me that I still have a lot to learn about my bodies responses but it still leaves me fascinated to find out more. With that in mind I have started reading Waterlogged by Tim Noakes and so far it is a real eye opener. Anyone who is even semi serious about any kind of endurance sport should have a read. I shall be doing a review of this once I have finished it for sure!

Pretty sure the blood test results will be fine but better safe than sorry eh?! I ignored my body once, never again!

So there we have it folks, listen to your bodies regardless of what you think you "should" do!

Thank you once again to my mum for all the support and driving. To Nina for the company and a great day out, see you at NDW100! ;) A massive thank you to the guy who shared his story with me and quite possibly saved me from further damage (you know who you are)

Phew that was a long one eh?! Still with me? Good, good!

Time to get back to those miles ready to pace Dennis (you remember him right?) for the second half of the NDW100 on the 9th!! 50 something miles over crazy trail, sounds like my kind of night out! Lets get you that buckle buddy! ;)

Last but not least thank you dear reader for taking the time to read to my ramblings!

Love and coffee
Cardiosaurus

P.S I think you could probably forgive some mistakes in this post!! :D

Written by Ian Walker - http://bamboobadger.blogspot.

The Swissalpine K78 bills itself as the "world's biggest ultramarathon and an ultimate challenge". At 78 km and 2660 metres of climbing, the race quickly grabbed my attention when I looked around for an ultra within reach of the French town I would be staying in for my summer holiday. The event also came highly recommended by a nice chap called Richard from Leeds, with whom I ran most of the Oldham Way Ultra back in March. Richard had run the K78 four times after getting interested in ultrarunning and couldn't speak highly enough of the event. This was quite a relief, as I'd already paid the entry fee by the time I met him. Speaking of which, I'll say up front that I thought the Swissalpine wass really good value for money, particularly as the entry fee includes not only a huge number of aid stations but also a return train ticket from anywhere in Switzerland to the race start in Davos. This encouragement to use public transport both to and during the race is a great move by the organizers, and must dramatically reduce the number of car trips involved.

Early morning, at the start

The K78 was not the only event held on the day - it's actually just the longest race in a series which also included the K10 (10km), K21 (half-marathon), K30 (30km), C42 (very hilly marathon), and K42 (even more hilly marathon!), as well as a series of walks and children's races - the weekend is very inclusive and caters for all abilities. The K21, K30, C42, K42 and K78 all use the same route and just start and stop at different points. The K78, as the longest race, does a full loop out from Davos and back again; the K30 starts in the same place and stops at a town called Filisur; The C42 ends at the next town along, Bergün, which is also where the K42 begins. Again, the rail system is used really sensibly, and those starting and ending part-way round the K78 course are shuttled up and down the valleys by Rhaetian Railways, all included in the entry price.

But there was to be no shuttling for me, since I was doing the full K78 from Davos back to Davos (thereby, technically, meaning I would run at zero kph no matter how well I performed). I was joined at the start line by my friend Vince, who a few weeks earlier decided he would come along and have a go at the C42 marathon, despite never having run more than 5 miles before. He's not one to shy away from a challange is our Vince.

Vince at the start line. He'd later regret carrying those sunglasses

At the start line

After our glorious ride across Switzerland the day before, the weather had dawned wet and grey on race day, and it would go on to rain almost all day. As we stood on the starting line, the announcer told us that it was forecast to get to no more than 7 Celsius on the Sertig Pass that day. I was glad of my arm-warmers. A guy with about 15 race medals jangling round his neck bounced past us waving a South African flag.

"I'm looking for South Africans!" he shouted.

"I'm married to one," I said. "Does that count?"

"We're hard work, aren't we? Have a great race!" He bounced off again like Tigger.

View from the start line

The race began right on time, with around 1500 runners bursting out of the sports stadium and onto Davos's streets. There was plenty of room to find your own pace, and Vince and I quickly settled into 5 minute kilometres as the route took a long loop through the town, the streets lined with cheering people who were undeterred by the rain. The staff of all the local bakeries were out waving and shouting.

We ran under the railway lines and then were out into the countryside - roads then tracks across rolling green fields hemmed in by dramatic mountains. Up through villages full of clanging cowbells and people shouting "Hopp! Hopp! Hopp!" to encourage us on. I was particularly impressed with one village where they had an automated cowbell-ringing machine - perhaps the most specialised labour-saving device I've ever encountered.

Between about 10 and 20 km, the route ran up into woodland on the lower slopes of some mountains, much of the way on singletrack full of tangled tree roots that required much vigilance. I pulled slightly ahead of Vince here, and last saw him still looking strong as I switchbacked downhill off a road just after Monstein.

Through Monstein

From Monstein we dropped steeply down through the scented and dripping pine forests, the rain drumming on our heads, to the Landwasser river valley. Leaving the woodland, the next 10 km saw the route hug the valley-side on a track high above the river. I ran through dramatic dark tunnels bored through the rock, unable to see what I was stepping on.

This valley was dominated by the river and by the railway hacked into the hillsides above it, occasionally crossing from one side to another on astonishing viaducts. I kept hearing the distant mournful sound of the train whistle echoing from the rock walls. The route took us on a narrow walkway over the Wiesener Viadukt, where the runner in front of me was so stunned by the sight of the river crashing below that he just stopped and muttered "WOW!". From there we dropped down and down to pass at river-level under the towering arches of the famous Landwasser Viadukt, which graces almost every tourist poster for Davos and the surrounding area.

On Wiesener Viadukt

That's the foot of the Landwasser Viadukt behind

From the viaduct it was a short run into Filisur, where the 30k race ended. Filisur, like most of the towns, had a flock of enthusiastic Swedish supporters waving a huge national flag. The Swedish supporters were easily the most vocal of the event, and would give a massive cheer if you even looked at them. They were great for morale! Sweden seemed to have the greatest number of entrants after Switzerland, most notably Jonas Buud, who had won the K78 every year since 2007. He would go on to win again today, with an astonishing time of six and a half hours.

Although nominally the difference between the K30 and the K42 was just 12 kilometers, in reality the two events were far more different than that. The next stretch, to Bergün, dropped right down to river level before firing up a long long twisting slope that climbed nonstop about 500 metres. I couldn't help but feel for Vince, who would soon be climbing all this on his first ever marathon.

I ran this leg in increasing distress. I had tried to kickstart the old digestive system that morning with two big coffees and a can of Red Bull. None of these had been enough to get the chew-chew train moving out of the station, but as I'd run into Filisur I had felt the terrible downward force of the Bowel Express working up to full steam. "Is there a toilet here?" I'd asked a woman at the Filisur aid station. "Just keep going," she replied with a gesture down the route - cruely failing to add "for another hour and a half" to the end of her sentence. All through the pre-Bergün climb I was eyeing up bushes for suitable hiding places but just about managed to hold disaster at bay. I burst into Bergün at high velocity, clocking a marathon time of 4:31:57 - fast enough that I would have come in 30th place if I'd been doing the C42! It just shows what alimentary distress and desperation can do for a runner. (If 4.5 hours sounds slow for a marathon time, you have to remember that this is with about 1200m of climbing on trails.)

Manfully masking my distress on the final descent to Bergün

Refreshed courtesy of a portaloo and nibbling on a bread roll, I started out of Bergün on the more difficult part of the day - into the high mountains towards the Sertig Pass. The route followed a sloping track of about 10% gradient alongside a mighty glacial river that crashed down its wide rocky bed. For about 6 kilometres the road sloped unremittingly up the river, and I made good progress up the ranks using a walk-run strategy whilst almost everybody else around me walked the entire way. With the C42 people gone, the overall pace felt far less frantic until the K42 runners started to appear later on. Everyone around me here was in it for the long haul.

Eventually the route left the river and started to climb even more severely - firing up a ridiculously steep and muddy track that seemed to go on forever. I counted my paces backwards from 100 to distract myself. The chill increased as the rain strengthened, and I slipped my arm-warmers back on. My watch was reporting gradients of over 30% (later confirmed by Strava) and my pace fell as low as 18 min/km up some of these paths - and I was going at least as fast as most of the runners around me. The long climb to Bergün now seemed like a happy memory!

At some point, without quite knowing how, I realised I had emerged above the tree line and was up in the alien world of the high Alps. Knots of tiny alpine flowers scattered the sodden grasslands; the ground was filled with streams and rivers over which we had to hop on makeshift stepping stones. Wet feet were inevitable. Everywhere there was the roaring sound of glacial meltwaters crashing down towards the valley below. The altitude was over 2600 metres and I was actually starting to feel some shortness of breath from the thinning air as a final steep and rocky ascent took the race to the Ketschhütte refuge.

At the Keschhütte

The temperature was cold up here, especially with the constant rain and drizzle, and the race organizers were handing out plastic ponchos. "Are you okay?" one of the helpers asked every runner, in very serious tones as she stared into their faces. Clearly she was tasked with looking out for any signs of hypothermia. Who'd have thought that we'd be worried about this in late July?!

Two thrilling kilometres of technical descent saw us begin to climb again to the highest point of the day - the remote Sertig Pass at over 2700m. Still fording streams and hopping rocks, the slope went up, and then up even more steeply, until finally, breathless and surrounded by the clanging cowbells of tiny grey Alpine cattle, I stumbled up to an organizer at the crest of the pass and called "Es gibt kein Luft hier!". "All downhill now!" he shouted back with a big smile.

I had a quick cup of warming soup from the aid station and then began the challenging descent to the valley. The path was steep and rocky, at times crossing ankle-snapping boulder fields and even a couple of patches of snow. I tried to focus on "flowing like water downhill", and really found myself in the zone, shooting past more cautious runners on the occasional points where the narrow track allowed passing. This whole section was enormously exciting as runners slid, stumbled and glided down 25+% slopes in a rolling mass of bodies.

Eventually we were on lower ground, with about 12 km to go to the finish line. Although at this point I was happy to start admitting to myself that I would finish, my legs really started to feel heavy. As the route took us on long rolling singletrack along forested hillsides, I felt myself bonking and was reduced to walking some sections until I could get more fuel in - clearly I'd not been hitting the gels enough. To force myself to run more I kept reminding myself of the most fundamental rule of ultrarunning: if you're wearing more than one piece of Salomon Exo clothing you look like a prat if you're not trying hard! Luckily the sugar replacement finally started to kick in around Sertig-Dörfli, as you can see from the photo below...

Sertig-Dörfli

By the time we were 2 or 3 km from the finish I really started to feel that second wind, and actually knocked off one of the fastest splits of the day as the track sloped down through the woods above Davos, crossing ski slopes and cable car routes. A final little uphill slope through the town and there was the sports centre ahead of me! I ploughed through the entrance, the crowds cheering all around. As a victorious Vince burst from the trackside to run in with me, the announcer called my name and I crossed the line in 10:19:01, punching the air with a massive smile on my face. Today had been about having fun. And although I secretly would have liked to have got back in under 10 hours, and my failure to eat enough had scuppered that, I didn't much care. It wasn't a serious ambition, and being fast really wasn't the point of the day.

Approaching the finish line - That's Vince with his medal in the background

So overall, the K78 was a fantastic run. The organization of the race was superb. The entire route was marked with flags and tape and there was no danger of getting lost at any point. There were aid stations about every 5 km or even closer, meaning you could happily get away without carrying water if you wanted. Each had a different selection of drinks, many had snacks, and towards they end they even started stocking flat Coke (for which I'm eternally grateful).

Perhaps the only negative point of the whole day was that there was far less conversation than I'm used to. Having mostly run ultras in Britain so far, I'm used to spending long stretches chatting to my fellow runners. Here, I hardly spoke to anybody all day. I don't think this was just me either. I tried starting conversation a few times and got little more than polite single-sentence replies; I didn't hear many other runners talking along the way either. Perhaps it was a feature of the international field (there were over 60 nations represented) or just a cultural difference, but the effect was that, without the usual distraction one can find from conversation, I spent 10 hours in my own head with little to think of except running and which bits of my body ached. Thank goodness the views were so extraordinary.

But that's a minor thing, and was really the only downside to the whole day. Otherwise the race was superb and I would happily recommend a running trip to Davos to anybody next July. And to emphasize what value for money the race is, I don't need to point to the inclusive train ticket, the lovely medal or the stylish finisher shirt - I just need to tell you how, now I've checked my GPS track, I see that the 78 km route with 2660 m of climbing actually gets you 79.5 km and a full 3192 m of climbing. Honestly, those Swiss race directors are so modest about how much they provide!

Written by Paul Ali - http://ultraavon.com/

The Background

Firstly an admission, I don’t really enjoy running. So why was I lining up at the start of the 2010 Grand Union Canal Run on an overcast Saturday at 6am in the morning and 145 miles away from the finish?

Stupidity? Maybe, but I like a challenge and ever since I broke my ankle in 2007 playing football, I wanted to complete a challenging event to prove the injury was behind me. I was joined by my friend Paul Stout (Stouty). We had both completed the Thames Path Ultra in Jan 2009 without any real experience of distance running (having only run a Half Marathon distance beforehand) and then spotted the Grand Union Canal Race, when it said it was the “toughest non stop running race in the UK” we just had to do it! Stouty’s friend Shane Benzie also joined us on the run.

Both Stouty and I had also decided to raise money for Charity. I was supporting Cancer Research UK which I have supported in the past and Stouty was raising money for the The Children’s Hospice.

Preparation

We needed to up our training from the 50-mile distance to even have a chance of finishing the race and to be honest with a high failure rate; we just wanted to finish and knew that we would end up run/walking at some stage. We training solidly for 5-6 months beforehand and were both covering an average of 50 miles per week. We also had decided to run the Thames Trot and Compton 40 as warm up races aswell.

I knew this was nowhere near the mileage some people run in preparation but I reasoned we were just a couple of amateurs training to finish.

Stouty and I had also planned to run the race together. We complement each other quite well I think as I like to organise and plan the logistics and races and Stouty is the better trainer and runner, so he keeps me going during the race.

We enlisted the aid of a few people to act as a joint support crew. First in was my dad (Baz) and his friend Cliff along with a couple of my friends Alan and Matt. In addition, we were also going to be joined by a couple of buddy runners EJ and Nina who run regularly with Stouty. Finally, Stouty’s family (Dad Stuart, Wife Vicky and In-Laws) would also be meeting us at various points for support.

We organised some rooms at the Maypole Travelodge for the Friday, the Premier Inn in Milton Keynes on the Saturday (obviously not for us runners) and a backup Travelodge room for the Sunday night in London (which we didn’t end up using). The £10 Travelodge room deals came in handy to keep costs down.

In terms of equipment, we had several changes of kit including rain gear and the usual maps, head torches etc.

In each of my previous Ultra runs I had always suffered blisters and this was going to be my biggest obstacle. I had tried various methods to help manage this and settled on a using compeed plasters on my heels on the obvious blister points, strapping the toes and using sealskinz (waterproof) socks. This had worked well at the Compton 40 where the only blisters I suffered were on the toes; so two larger pairs of trainers to change into when my feet swelled up in size would also come into play. My tactics partly worked with my heels not really affected by blisters but my toes really suffered during the race so it was only a partial success overall.

In terms of food, we went to the extent of working out a rough menu with the support crew in advance and supplemented this with lots of things we could pick at. Our menu for the day started with porridge prior to the race (simply add water), followed by sausage sandwiches and then pasta (all made in advance). Towards the end of the day we had tinned fruit, pot noodles and a burger from a nearby pub. The next day was more of the same starting with porridge, then fruit, a burger and lots of snacks including some home made cake, flapjack, jaffa cakes, crisps, mars bars and tuc biscuits. We didn’t go hungry!

Saturday Day 1

After checking in at the Red Lion Pub on the Friday and collecting our race numbers we headed back to the hotel for some food (there was an hour wait at the pub). Our Friday night meals were a subway sandwich and a pot of pasta from Sainsburys.

Unfortunately I didn’t sleep too well and I awoke at 3am on the Saturday and after trying to drop off again, got up at 3.30am and started to get my kit ready.

A couple of hours later we were making our way to Gas Street for the start. I was yawning already and feeling tired before we had even started! As we pulled into Gas Street we saw at one end keen Ultra Runners unpacking their cars. This was in stark contrast to the other end of the Street where revellers were coming out from the Gas Street Basin club, one day ends for some and another one starts for others!

As we made our way to the start we bumped into Mimi Anderson, whose website we had come across a month before and from reading her achievements was a real inspiration to us. Mimi, gave us a confident “Morning Boys!” looking every inch the professional runner she is as she made her way to the front of the pack as we made our way to the back of the grid, that was probably the last we would see of her.

Despite not expecting to see any other recognisable faces, I did spot Anna Finn (didn’t know her name at the time) who we had seen doing the Thames Trot in February.

Just before 6am, Dick Kearn the organiser said a few words and then a few minutes later we were off in overcast conditions. We followed the pack along the Canal Paths in Birmingham and as the minutes wore on the pack began to spread out.

We had planned to run together and meet our crew at each major checkpoint and once in-between major checkpoints after Hatton Locks. Despite our aim being just to finish, we had estimated a finish time of about 40 hours for the purpose of planning meeting times with our crew. Our first stop was Elmdon Heath (9.7 miles) due to the checkpoint colour restrictions and we met the crew here at about 7.45am where we wolfed down some sausage sandwiches.

“Where’s Mimi?” we asked. “She came through half an hour ago”, came the response.

We then carried on as it started to rain and continued past the Catherine De Barnes checkpoint long enough to log our numbers and headed towards Hatton Locks (22.5 miles) at a reasonable pace. We arrived here at about 10.30am, soaked but an hour ahead of schedule. Thankfully, the rain started to ease off slightly at this point.

It started to rain again as we continued running and met the crew briefly at Fosse Road Bridge (31 miles) and before arriving at Stockton Bridge (35.1 miles) completely soaked through at around 1.15pm, still making good time. We had some lunch here (pasta) and I needed to attend to my ankle (padded my heel to stop this rubbing). I had already changed my shoes earlier to ones, which were half a size larger for extra comfort as my feet had began to swell up already.


As it was still wet, it didn’t seem worth changing kit yet so we carried on, met our crew at Braunston Marina (44 miles) and then stopped at the Heart of England Pub (53.1 miles) where a tin of fruit (pear) went down very well. My feet were getting sore at this point but nothing major and so we carried on. I also changed my running shoes into the largest size (my so called “clown” shoes) for comfort. We had now passed the 50-mile mark (the distance of our previous couple of Ultra Run) and were in unknown territory.


We bumped into a couple of runners (Gary – a vet of several GUCR runs) who was having an ice-cream at a shop just as the rain had eased off and it looked like a good idea so we stopped for an ice-cream briefly before going on.


I think it wasn’t much past this point where we saw a lone runner standing underneath a bridge. “Are you all right mate?” we asked. “Yeah fine, just waiting for my Chinese to be delivered!” and as we carried on we saw a lady with a bag of Chinese food walking to meet him at the bridge. Excellent.


Gayton Junction (60.6 miles) was our next meeting point, but at this time we had slowed down to a jog/walk and with some stops being longer than planned we had eaten into and time we gained so far and we now not too far off our original scheduled time. We arrived here around 8pm ish and we picked up our head torches and I changed into some comfortable night gear. On reflection, I should have worn something lighter as the light canvas trousers were difficult to run in and the weather despite being wet was quite mild.


The next stop was Navigation Bridge (70.5 miles) and we were looking to arrive at 11.30pm ish which was about 1hr 30 mins ahead of the cut off point at 1am. At this point, Stouty was struggling with blistered feet and I was struggling to keep my eyes open. There was little conversation between us at this point as we trudged onwards. As we arrived at Navigation Bridge, we saw some people with flashlights overlooking the path. Stouty thought he saw Shane’s wife Trudy and so I shouted “Trudy” and waved at the top of my voice. Unfortunately, it wasn’t her, but the contents of the pub poured outside to give us an amazing cheer as we approached.


We checked in and met Alan Turner, EJ and Nina who had travelled up on Saturday to help crew/buddy run the next day. Matt had stayed on with them as Baz and Cliff had retired earlier to get some sleep as they were doing the morning checkpoint. From talking to the crew, they had expected a lot of sitting around and waiting for us and were quite surprised by their eventual level of involvement. It was good to hear they all got involved in the spirit of the race and were encouraging other runners, talking to other support crews, giving other supports lifts to other checkpoints and generally offering assistance when needed. They guys and girls all did a fantastic job for us and enjoyed their experience.


We had decided not to ask the crew to meet us during the middle of the night so they could all get some sleep, so the plan was for us to get past Bridge 99 (84.5 miles) and meet at the Grand Junction Arms (100 miles) in the morning but we were already an hour behind our original schedule at this point so we probably needed to revise this. We agreed to speak to them in the morning to check how far we had progressed in the night and organise a meeting a point later. Again, we stopped here for longer than we needed to but I wolfed down some food grabbed a clean jacket and we were off again, our toughest stretch was ahead. The night phase would make or break us.


Sunday Day 2


Progress was very slow during the night and we mainly walked. I remember there being sufficient light at night to navigate almost without your head torch but we kept these firmly planted to the floor to watch out for loose stones, rocks or any obstacles on the floor. As the hours rolled past, we became more and more tired to the point where I was trying to keep one eye open and one eye closed. Stouty appeared less tired but blistered feet were causing him some pain. We got to the point where I needed to stop and rest my eyes, so we would stop for a minute whilst I just sat their and shut my eyes after which I felt better for a few minutes and we carried on. I don’t think we saw many (if any) people at that point.


We were “encouraged” at one point near the Milton Keynes area by a young man, half cut, half dressed, hanging out of his flat window with a “WelldoneGoodJobMate” shout or something like that.


During the darkest hours we both started to imagine things such as flickering shadows becoming people in the bushes and found a grass snake to be just a stick in the ground. However, we both recognised these as just tricks of the light and carried on.


Finally, dawn began to break from around 4am and we plodded into Bridge 99 (84.5 miles) at around 5am where we stopped for a while whilst Stouty had his feet strapped up by one of the marshals Andrew Smith (A Runners World hello) and I just sat in the chair taking the weight off my feet. Again, the stop was longer than planned but necessary at this time and a cup of tea was most welcome. There were a small handful of runners here who we spoke briefly including “Norseman” Dave who we had chatted to briefly on the run.


The only problem with sitting down is that you have to stand up again and it really does take 5-10 minutes to get your feet and legs to work again. We started off at a stagger and then carried on. We were now about 2 hours behind our scheduled time but still had 3 extra hours allowance before the 45 hour cut off point. My concern was that we were getting slower and slower.


I received a call from Baz and Cliff not long after, who were awake and ready to meet us. So we arranged to meet at Soulbury Three Locks where I changed into a clean set of kit, got rid of the light canvas trousers (which had been annoying me) and also, let us say used the facilities as Stouty ploughed on ahead.


Let me just pass on one bit of advice. If you have to use the “facilities” on the run, then make sure you make a good job of it otherwise you may find yourself sore in the rear. I’m not admitting to anything but needless to say both Stouty and I did request use of sudacream more than once during the run.


I trotted on and caught up with Stouty who was maintaining his staggered march but was not looking too good. I felt extremely tired and wanted a power nap at the next point to see if it would make me feel better. I suggested the idea to Stouty, but he didn’t want to stop as he felt he wouldn’t be able to get going again. Therefore, I decided to run ahead and build up some time, try and get a power nap and then catch him up.


I met Baz and Cliff at Tesco’s and tried to have a sleep in the back of the car with the instructions to wake me after 20 minutes maximum. After laying their for10 minutes I couldn’t drop off despite feeling extremely tired and decided to carry on.


The weather was really nice on the Sunday morning with sunshine and warmth and this seemed to keep us going. Another day in the rain and that could have been the end of the race for us!


We heard that Shane had got to Navigation Bridge just on the cut off time and had carried on, then felt extremely tired and fell asleep on a park bench and awoke when his mobile went off. Needless, to say he retired at that point but it was a good effort to get 70+ miles after minimal training and having just arrived back from South Africa during the week.


I caught up with Stouty and ran ahead to Slapton Lock (94.2 miles) where I tried to power nap again, but again I couldn’t drop off. So I ran on, spoke briefly to a runner I caught up with and pressed ahead and finally caught up with Stouty.


It was a beautiful Sunday morning by now, warm and sunny and we sat down briefly next to some unnamed lock on a park bench. I did my usual thing of shutting my eyes for a minute and Stouty did the same. All we could hear then was the sounds of the birds twittering away and the sound of running water as we gently drifted off almost (almost!) in each others arms as a barge sailed past with the owner giving us a strange look. Then we snapped to alertness together, realising that we both could have fallen to sleep at the moment. I splashed some cold water from my bottle into my face (another tactic to keep me awake) and we plodded on. That moment there could have ended the race for us if we’d fallen to sleep.


We bumped into Brian New running with someone. I had seen Brians website and knew he had some great personal motivation for running the race, so I shook his hand and wished him all the best.


We got to the Grand Junction Arms (99.8 miles) at around 10.30am and met Baz and Cliff and then had porridge for breakfast (just add water) and a cup of tea and despite knowing it would pain me to get out the chair. As I sat down, one of the marshals was doing a good job of keeping the runners going and was virtually ejecting one guy from the point (presuming he was hitting the permitted time allowance at each checkpoint). It was time to go as Stouty and I would have been chucked out next. We were probably 2 ½ – 3 hours behind schedule now but we had just about made 100 miles only 45 miles to go. I had a thought at that moment that the leaders had probably finished about now and we still had a third of the race left.


I think it was round here, when we passed a barge slowing down to a stop as they approached a lock in the opposite direction. The owner of The Naughty Hobbit barge saw the numbers on our vest and asked what we were doing. We explained we were running from Birmingham to London and after indicating we were both running for charity, he kindly gave us £20 cash on the spot as a donation! Stouty took a picture of me shaking his hand and thanking him (alas it was under a bridge and was too dark) but we were overwhelmed by this kind act from a complete stranger and it kept us going.


Around here my feet were really sore (feet were severely blistered around the toes now) and I was extremely tired. Having made the 100 mile point was an achievement and felt as if I could just lie down on the grass and sleep. However, there were charity donations on the line along with people’s expectations and I could not stop not even having completed the event (no disrespect intended to those who did not make it for various reasons – it is a tough race). Call it determination or drive (or some might say stubbornness and being bloody minded) but jog, run or crawl I was going to finish this damn race.


We carried on slowly and then met all of the crew at Boxmoor Bridge (108.5 miles) where our buddy runners Nina and EJ joined us for a couple of legs. We both benefited from having other people alongside us to keep us going and we even ran some of the distance here. As a result of this, we managed not to lose any further time and maintained the time at 3 hours behind schedule.


We got to Springwell Lock (120.3 miles) at around 5pm ish where Baz and Cliff were going to depart after a fantastic effort crewing and Nina and EJ would also be leaving us aswell. I had to sit down for a little while as Stouty received further treatment on his feet (thanks Runners World, Lurker). 


However, Matt Brown was going to join us at Cowley Lock for a leg or two as Alan would meet us at the checkpoints. Stuart (Stoutys Dad) and Vicky (Stoutys Wife) had been stopping at several checkpoints on the Saturday and would also meet us at the checkpoints on Sunday aswell.


Stouty had an embarrassing incident as he grabbed the sudacream at the checkpoint and to spare everyone’s blushes nipped under the bridge to apply it. However, he failed to see a complete stranger jogging in the opposite direction who had got a startle as she ran past Stouty with his leggings pulled down to his knees to our laughter.


We both ate a burger, loaded up with water and then set off for our next checkpoint Cowley Lock which was about 127.5 miles distance. We met Matt and Alan here and Matt was ready to act as our buddy runner (walker) for the next leg or so.


At this point, we both knew we would finish but every mile seemed more and more of a drag and every checkpoint seemed to get longer and longer. I also remember the ground being quite stoney and my feet were almost screaming out with every step we took. We had both been taking some Ibuprofen tablets which thankfully numbed some of the pain and made it bearable.


Matt did his best to keep the conversation going and keep the pace up to a quick trot. At this point, I just wanted to settle into my own little shell and was quite happen to tag along behind Stouty without saying a word in a world of my own and just focussing on taking the next step and the next step.


We had an eventful encounter with a barge owner who had got themselves stranded in the river and were unable to move and needed pulling to one side. He gave the three of us a call for help as we were proceeding past him. My arms were ok, so I thought “What the hell, a few minutes helping someone is not going to kill us” and we stopped to assist. Unfortunately, the barge owner couldn’t throw this rope far enough to us (about 20 feet short) and he beckoned us to continue and would wait for another barge to assist him. We reluctantly continued.


We arrived at Hamborough Tavern (133 miles) at around 9.15pm ish as it started to get dark. We had caught up with a few runners around here including “Norseman” Dave again and a couple of the Norwegians. We met Alan, Stuart and Vicky here and Stouty had to comfort his lad Alex who was very tired and upset his Daddy was going again. We spoke briefly to Andrew Smith who was marshalling here, he was encouraging people to get a move on, only a half marathon to go and you’re there. It sounded easy until I worked out that at the pace we were going, we would take about 4 hours to get there!


We moved on with Matt leading the way. He took a video clip here where we both look absolutely shattered and he asks us whether we would do this again. We both responded with a “No”, so it must have been a bit of low point for us despite getting closer to the finish. There was a diversion in place here which meant we had to go through the streets. I pulled the map from my bag, squinted at it trying to make sense of it and then handed it to Matt, “You lead the way and we’ll follow” I said. Matt led us through the diversion and we eventually got back onto the canal which was a welcome relief and we carried on.


We met Alan at Piggery Bridge (139 miles) at around 11.30pm ish and Matt joined him to drive ahead to the finish. We had been leap frogging a few of the runners now and could see a group of about 6 or 7 of us all finishing around the same time. We stopped here for a bite to eat (I was hungry) and then carried on, only 6 miles to go!


With one final leg to go we were nearly there. We were both determined to get there as quickly as we could and set off a brisk trot. I think we overtook a couple of people, said a few words to them and carried on. We decided to try and avoid stopping now and just keep going. Sleep deprivation was having an affect on us now as I started to stagger a bit as I walked but we just locked arms together (in a manly way you understand) and walked on together.


I remember that last leg seeming to be never-ending, we saw the Paddington signs and then started to look for a light or group of people to indicate the finish point. Every corner we walked around, we thought we were home but weren’t and we both started to get a little irritable as metres turned into miles. Honestly, 6 miles has never seemed so long.


At around 1.40pm we eventually saw a light and a few people ahead with a finish sign. We had been pre-warned it was a low key finish as many barge owners were asleep and as we made the last few steps, we walked in together finishing the 145 mile distance in 43 hours and 46 minutes. We had finished! How did I feel, well relieved more than elated to be honest.


Dick Kearn was their to greet us and give us the medal which I can only describe as an iron horseshoe and after a few congratulations and handshakes I slumped to the ground with a cup of tea feeling really weary. I was starting to feel really cold and started to shake as my body was no longer exercising and keeping the heat up, so I spoke to Alan and said “Let’s go home”. Stouty was getting a lift home with Stuart and Matt and we said our good-byes and departed. I would liked to have stayed to see the last few people in but I was cold and tired and just wanted to get home and sleep.


Alan had kindly cleared the back seat of the car as we drove back to Reading. I apologised in advance for not talking to him as I crashed out in the back of the car to wake an hour later when he dropped me at home. My legs had started to stiffen as I staggered into my house with Alans help and then my wife Sal awoke and helped my get in and out of the bath. I felt much better after a bath although my feet looked a mess which I couldn’t be bothered to deal with at 4.30am so I put on a pair of socks and went to bed.


The Aftermath


I only managed to sleep for 5 hours that night which surprised me and I only managed a similar amount of the next night. I guess I was still pumped full of adrenalin as despite feeling tired, I just couldn’t sleep.


Physically, my little toes were shredded and looked like two little red stumps and I had blisters around my toes which were all painful. Thankfully, my heels were relatively fine and the patch up job I did before the race had worked. My right calf was sore for a day but the rest of my legs felt absolutely fine.


I limped about for a couple of days (I had planned to have the week off work on holiday) and then got some decent sleep towards the end of the week.


Summary


So how was my Grand Union Canal Race experience? I thought the planning went well and we didn’t need anything we hadn’t thought off. I was glad Stouty and I ran this together with a support crew. I would like to thank Baz, Cliff, Alan, Matt, EJ & Nina along with the support from Stouty’s family, we wouldn’t have managed this without them. All credit to those who ran this unsupported, that has to be tough.


The other competitors I found all friendly and happy to have a quick chat and the marshalling was good with a nice mix between assistance and encourage to keep you going. Getting started after stopping for too long is a real danger.


It was tough on the feet and on the mind particularly when I was trying to keep myself awake at night. Some good nights sleep is essential in the week before as you won’t sleep the night before then run and you will also be tired from getting up early.


To be honest, I was a little disappointed to have finished a few hours over our scheduled time but when I think of how tired I felt and the pain I was in with blistered feet I can take solace from the fact that I did manage to finish the race particularly when the attrition rate was 50% (that in itself was a better result than previous years). Our tactic of taking it easy worked reasonably well, we still had energy on the second day to run (feet permitting) and we just about kept ourselves awake. Our race plan had been to break up each leg into 10 miles between meeting points which worked well as we were never too far away from our next meeting point. The buddy runners also really helped on the second day to keep us going which meant we could finish comfortably within the 45 hour limit without having to push it later on which could have been a struggle.


In addition both Stouty and I had raised over £1,000 each for our respective charities, so our efforts meant money had been raised for some very good causes.


Thanks to Dick Kearn and all the marshals for hosting and supporting the event, it’s definitely tough and something I would never have believed I could have done a few years ago when I started running. My “horseshoe” medal is definitely one I’m proud of. I’m glad to have done it once but I’m not sure I’ll be back!


Paul Ali

Written by Murray Turner - http://getoutmoor.blogspot.co.uk

Chinnor: Start of RTTS Traffic. Lots & lots of traffic. As Rachel {who was running} and myself {who wasn't running, but should have been, but was told not to due to injury} headed north up the M5 and then East along M4, all we  could see was traffic. Cars , lorries, caravans, vans. Stop.Start. Stop.  The shear volume of motor vehicles - and idiots who think it is their divine right to drive in the middle lane and not on the left. Sorry, had to get that off my chest. This is a blog about Rachel's superb effort at her inaugural 100km Ultra and my inaugural attempts at support crew Five hours after setting off we reached our base camp for the week end, Blackland Lakes Campsitein Calne. Pitched our tents and started last minute preparations for the big day tomorrow. So far so good, except Rachel realised she had forgotten her purse. Too late now, and it's not like she would need it for the run. Plans for a good nights sleep were shattered by several hours of violent and very loud thunder storms and rain. So after only a couple of hours sleep, it was coffee time at 04:00hrs. As this was a 'one way ' race,  we had decided that it would be better to stay near the finnish {Avebury}, than the start {Chinnor}.  Precise and detailed pre planning had calculated that it would take us 2hrs to get to Chinnor. Plenty of time to park and register. No worries. So off we went at 05.00hrs. Best charge you phone as we drive I said.  Oh, no phone [required kit], so a quick return to campsite to retrieve said item. Ok, no worries, plenty of time. It's all in the planning. Motorway was , thankfully, quiet {yet there were still vehicles driving in the middle lane on a virtually empty motorway}. Route was planned with military precision. Half hour to go, turn off motorway, head north to Chinnor. Oooo, something is wrong. This doesn't look right. Let's stop and look at the map. Ah, problem solved. We had been on the M4 and not on the M40, where we should be. Ooops. I wont say whose mistake that was Rachel, OK? Time was now running tight. Don't panic. We can still do this. And so we did. Just. There was a last minute panic as traffic was backed up all through Chinnor, but I guess thats what happens when you arrange the start in a small rural town with no transport links and expect 1600 people to turn up at the same time. So Rachel got out of the car and ran to the start. What's a few more hundred metres when you're about to run 100km? Registration completed. Last toilet break. And relax. We had made it to the start, not just on time- but with time to spare. Now all Rachel had to do was run 100km. The start was late and the safety briefing was inaudible for a lot of us; but at least it wasn't raining yet {the forecast was for major storms}. Last good wishes and then it was off. Good luck! My job for the day was to drive around and meet Rachel at certain places along route,  and make sure she was OK. Race to the Stones is an Ultra Marathon along The Ridgeway. One of Englands oldest trade routes, it is over 5000yrs old and stretches from the Dorset to the Norfolk coast. A route as important as this needed to be well defended- and it is. There are several magnificent Hill Forts along its route as well as other important sites, such as the Uffingtom White Horse . The runners and long distance walkers would be following the Ridgeway from Chinnor - Avebury.   Our first rendezvous was along the Thames Path, some 20km or so from Chinnor. I had the luxury of driving to South Stoke {and other sites} and ambling along the Thames and its countryside. The runners had to run it! So I ambled and took photo's and ran a bit, cheering along other runners and meeting up with Rachel. We ran some together before reaching the Aladdin's Cave Smorgasboard of the boot of the car. The weather was very , very humid , so I ensured that Rachel drank extra electrolytes. As well as eating plenty of Marmite Cheeses. Food of the Ultra Gods. A little sock faff and that was it. Next stop was in another few hours around the 50km mark. Time for a spot of lunch and chat with other support crew /spectators / family / friends in the sun before a little stroll to meet up with Rachel      again. I came across her near one of the check points [4 or 5?]. She was looking very sprightly. Toes looked a bit odd, I discovered as shoes and socks were changed. Tapped up, Patched up and go. But not before more cheese & electrolytes. The weather so far had been kind. OK, it was humid, but there had been reports of major thunder storms. And just at that point the first rolls of thunder were to be heard. Ho hum. Maybe a little rain would cool everyone down. I didn't say that too loudly in front of any running though. Time for a little sight seeing for me know One of the next stretches of the Ridgeway contained Uffington White Horse, Uffington Castle andWayland's Smithy. I was quite excited about this, but just as I arrived at the site of Uffington Castle, The Weather arrived. Temperature dropped, big black clouds, high winds, torrential rain, lightening, thunder and then hail. BIG hail. Large pebbles of ice being thrown out of the sky with some force. Then the sun came out again. I was still in the car, but I did fear for the safety of those runners.  Slight delay, but there was still plenty of time -based on previous contact & race pace - to have a wee look around Uffington White Horse and the Hill Fort, before meeting Rachel again. It is easy to see, even now some 3000yrs  after it was first constructed, why it was. Sitting on the Ridgeway, it not only guards the trade route [which actually predates the fort], but also holds commanding views. In medieval times, scouring of the neighbouring chalk White Horse was accompanied also by a massive community party in the remains of the hill fort.         A quick circuit of the Hill Fort, a couple of photo's , and back on the Ridgeway. I ran a fair section of this bit, in opposite direction of race, so as not to miss Rachel. Taking in the atmosphere, admiring the views and shouting words of encouragement at the participants. But after a while I began to suspect something was wrong; there was no sighting of Rachel. I had passed all the usual suspects who over the past few hours I had confused by running past them in the opposite direction several times, and knew were running at about the same pace as Rachel, and started to see new faces. I was now worried; she shouldn't be this far back unless something serious had gone wrong, so I decided to stop and get my phone out, to check if there had been any messages. Lo and behold there had.  A text from Rachel saying she had just seen the car parked up. This was sent at 19.05hrs. Time now was 19.45hrs. Rachel was now ahead of me. I had one job to do. And I blew it. Whilst having a jolly around Uffington Castle, Rachel had gone past. I hadn't seen her and had set off in the in the opposite direction intending on finding her. Ooops. I'd had a nice time none the less, taking in the views and archaeological sites; even had a nice little run. But that wasn't why I was here. It would be unlikely I would be able to see Rachel again before the end, so I hope she didn't need anything from the car. I did feel bad.         My drive back to Avebury was a slow one, racked with guilt about my failed mission, hoping it hadn't messed up Rachel's race. Parking up at the finish, the sun was just setting. A beautiful sunset over the Wiltshire countryside. I hope the runners appreciated it. As I had missed Rachel in broad daylight, I decided against running back out on the Ridgeway in the dark looking for her. Probably a sensible move, as I would also have been running into oncoming racers and blinding them with my headtorch. After 14hrs on your feet, you really don't need someone shining a torch in your face, however well meaning and accidental.          So I waited in the 'stones' section of RTTS, the one short section of Avebury stone circle that the race covers, cheered in runners, looked at the stars and messed around trying to take some arty photo's. Avebury  is an interesting village, springing up amidst one of Europes most spectacular Neolithic stone circles and ancient spiritual landscapes. The stones themselves being largely abandoned, destroyed or buried, either deliberately or through pure neglect, until the Victorian era. Leaning against one of these giant monoliths, head tilted upwards, a glimpse of the MilkyWay, transported back millenia, my inner hippy was awakened. Just why was Avebury built? How bright the sky must have been 1000's years ago! Where's Rachel? Ah there she is. Nearly missed her again!   After over 15hrs of running, Rachel was nearly finished. Less than 2km to go. I ran the last leg with her [and her new Ultra friend whose name I forget, sorry] and there was still life in the legs for a sprint finish. Outstanding. Collect medal. Get results. Sit down. Eat melted ice cream [long story]. All that was left was the short drive back to the campsite.         The day dawned on a new day and realisation that she was now an 'Ultra Runner'. Respect. Returned to Avebury for a touch of sight seeing and a photo opportunity. Wear that medal with pride.You've earned it.         Post race thoughts:    Rachel finished 255th / 594 finishers. Almost 100 DNF.  {Full results}. That's pretty damn good in for a first 100km. She enjoyed the route and said the official support and pit stops along the way were great. Special mention she said should go to the crew at pit stop 6, who rescued many a runner from the hail stones, held the tent down AND still served hot drinks.