Mark & Kristina

Lakeland 2022

Previous Lakeland finishes:

2014 – 15:13:18

2016 – 12:28:43

2021 – 12:16:07

This year:

2022 – 11:58:07

The year my feet held up and I enjoyed it as good as from minute 1 to the last minute. Yes it was hard, it was always going to be hard but enjoyable sadist hard.

After coming back to ultra trail running in 2020 after a few years out, 2021 was a good solid year and I trained hard with my friends Ben and James. The Lakeland 50 2021 was hot, very hot and I made mistakes with my feet which made the experience somewhat miserable at times. Massive blood blisters on my heals and pain with every step made me want to finish my ultra journey there in 2021, with a PB which I was proud of.

Time heals, and I entered the 2022 event, with one of the main goals to see if I can keep my feet in decent shape. Out went the INOV-8 G270’s from 2021 an in came the Speedgoat Evo’s. Out went Vaseline as lubricant and in came Sudocream. Out went INOV-8 Trail socks and in came Injini Liners with a second thin Enertor Sock as an outer sock.

My feet finished the race in great shape even though it was wet, very wet for much of the run. I had 3 issues at the end, damaged big left toenail which may yet come off and a soon to be lost toenail on my second toe on my right foot. The big toe nail issue was from booting a rock near Mardale Head which resulted in a forward role and luckily no further injury. The other nail issue, I am not sure of the cause. My only other issue which was slightly painful is with my left foot little toe having a double blister as it rubbed on the 4th toe….my little toe does curl under the next toe…is that a case for wider shoes? Issue is wider shoes can equal more movement which can equal more blisters. Thats the low down on the feet and its so prominent in this review because without good feet, races are pretty miserable. I did look after my feet before the event, lots of use of a foot rasp (like Pumice stone) and lots of lotion.

So, the race. Conditions were wet with rain coming and going all day/night. It was not cold mind which was a blessing. Setting off with Ben and James we made solid sensible progress and kept talking and enjoying ourselves. We all reached Howtown together in 1 hour 56 and things were looking good. I had not set myself any goals, had not planned to cross check previous leg times and nor did I even think about PB’s until Ambleside, I think this helped. I had in my race diary set a goal of 11:59:00 but this was just as a course of entering a race in my schedule. I honestly was not chasing PB’s, I had not trained well for this event has I got ill (COVID and then Cough) after Manchester Marathon training over winter. So come Howtown I did not realise I was 9mins 30 down on 2021. That is significant but maybe I set off too fast in 2021. So on from Howtown we ticked the massive climb of Fusedale and it felt slow and steady but consistent, then High Kop and the never ending Haweswater section. James on this section decided to drop back due to his knee issues and eventually finished at Kentmere. Ben and I cracked on. Ben was well undertrained for this due to shin/calf issues but he is a soldier and a battler and even with a lack of fitness he pushed on. We ran together at times, we ran 10-15 meters apart at times swapping roles we marched up hills, we cruised down hills we just relentlessly moved forward. We both knew we would get into Ambleside as good as together and we did.

Checkpoint done and change of shirts we did separate a bit and I caught up with Danny Bruton running the 100, and we kept together for a few miles, well over 2 maybe 3 and I think that helped us both. I saw Ben in Chapel Stile as I was about to leave he had just entered. At this point I have to enjoy thinking about that beef soup, I maybe was not as good as the pasta and smoothy at Kentmere but it was pretty close. Leaving Chapel Stile I have to admit I had a bit of a wobble going up the sharp hill near Side Pike before Blea Tarn. It was one of those section which was pure concentration just putting one foot in front of the other and to keep the momentum going, although it was slow momentum. Unbeknown to me Ben was not far behind keeping his eye on me.

Headtorch like last year went on as I approach the woods near Blea Tarn. Left it as long as I could, and thankfully I did, ill come to that later. The section next to Blea Moss was wet it was like running through a shallow rocky river. This is how feet get messed up, but lucky for me my feet could handle this, this year. I was following a runner called Mariam in this section I saw her sink down to her knee just as I sank down to my knee, definitely the most yucky section. On the road from here is where my maths started to come in. I decided that I was on course if I worked hard for a 7 minute PB. I had no time to lose and I had to be as fast as I thought I was last year to get a PB. Time to role up the sleeves and push on. This section is road and is nice, but there are a couple of steep downhills and my quads were so trashed these needed to be walked (10-15 seconds or so at a time) but the rest was run, well jogged. I have never been this “fresh” at this stage of the Lakeland 50. Adrenaline pumping I was off. Running marching whatever it was full steam ahead. I then passed a 100 runner and give one of the normal ‘well done’ messages and as I got about 5 steps head, I twigged from the location of the number on the front of his shorts it was East Hull Harrier Captain Kris Hoppy. Asking if it was Kris got a ‘yes’ reply, so I dropped back to tell him how well he was doing…..because he was smashing it out of the park. After answering some basic questions like “what day is it” I got the impression he was a bit worse for wear. All he wanted was sleep but all I could tell him was no, that was not possible he had 5 miles to go and he was doing so well, don’t stop now. Loads of people will be dot watching and willing him on so just keep going. I think I spent about 5-6 minutes chatting to him not sure if to crack on and go for my PB or keep him company. Eventually I cracked on, with a heavy heart not sure how he would do. He encouraged me to do so which was nice, but I hated leaving him.

Tilberthwaite was a quick in and out, dropped off my £1 at Jacobs ladder and with as much focus as I could muster went as fast as I could. I passed 10 people on Tilberthwaite which I know well, but it always a challenge. Coming down the other side I got level with another 100 runner, who happened to be another Mark who I have known years. He was struggling with his torch and together we descended well over ½ of Tilberthwaite, chatting away and “enjoying” the tricky decent. By the time I was near the end my headtorch flashed to say my battery was running low, and on low battery you really can not see a lot. Good job it lasted….thankfully I had not wasted battery earlier on. I usually run on medium setting but had accidently left it on high, which really does burn through the battery. Lesson learned.

Running down into Coniston my legs were now hurting, downhill is so much harder than flat running, and flat running isn’t easy. Down the road where the school was I shouted of my wife to no response and then again. Unfortunately the supporters were under orders not to clap or cheer due to the residents which I did not know at the time so the finish was not like that of other years…..but I understand why. Picked up T-Shirt and Medal and then stood upright for a good 5 minutes waiting for food – that was a challenge in itself! Job done. What next?

So how did I do? A total of 18 minute PB to the second, beating 2021’s time.

Drugs. Ibuprofen x8 and paracetamol x4. Plus antibiotics for my ear issue.

It broke down like this:

Howtown – 9 minutes 30 seconds behind

Mardale – 1 minute 36 slower – 11 minutes 06 seconds behind

Kentmere – 16 minutes 38 faster – 5 minutes 32 seconds ahead

Ambleside – 6 minutes 10 faster – 11 minutes 42 seconds ahead

Chapel Stile – Same duration – 11 minutes 42 seconds ahead

Blea Moss Checkpoint – 57 seconds slower – 10 minutes 45 seconds ahead

Tilberthwaite – 1minute 35 seconds faster – 12 minutes 20 seconds ahead

Coniston – 5 minutes 40 faster – 18 minutes 0 seconds ahead

Hardmoors 60 2021 – 18 September

My review of my race day, including lessons learned (official time 15:17:57)

This was my first proper Hardmoors race after only ever having done Fryup Thriller October 2019 which is a 10k. I am not really sure why I have not got more involved, the lake district has been a big pull, but I must say I have been missing out on Hardmoors. There are a lot of differences between Lakeland50/100 and Hardmoors, but both are fully recommendable.

So my entry to this race with James Lundy was on the proviso that it was not a full on 100% A race, that was Lakeland 50, 8 weeks previously. I came into this race injury free but not having done lots of miles since Lakeland 50 had taken so much out of me, broken my feet and knees. That said I wanted to run this race well and run it smartly. I didn’t want to set off too fast, I wanted to leave some in the locker for later on. I was also hoping to run with James if that worked out. In addition, I sort of wanted to finish this race knowing I could go on, I wanted it to be a test for longer runs which I hope to do. That’s what I hoped for…but what happened?

One of the main reasons I write these blogs is for future reference, to help me in the future to remember what I know I will forget. The future me is my audience and I guess anyone else who reads, so please forgive some of the below.

So having woke at 3am, having gone to bed at the same time as my 4 year old son, I picked James up at 4am and arrived an hour early for the bus in Filey, the day had got off to a good start. The journey to Guisborough took about 80 minutes but I had the deep sinking feeling thinking I needed to run back, 60 miles is actually quite a long way on bus, you have time to think. I was fully hydrated had a nice chicken stuffing sandwich on the bus and aside for a quick bathroom stop all ready to run by 8am.

The race set off everyone buzzing and the paths quite full. Lots of sharp hills in the first few miles and James was up them like a shot. I’m slower on the up hills and I was fully aware my heart was pumping. My achilleas were also letting me know it was an up hill start, they always like to remind me they don’t like up hill starts so I was determined to give them the odd minute walking after the sharp up hills to allow them to behave, and thankfully they did the full race. It was around this time I was trying to slow James down a bit aware my heart was pumping hard and it’s a long day out there. I set off on my normal routine of jelly sweets 30 minutes past each hour and gel on the hour, this did last for 3 hours then become more sporadic. I should try and keep that lasting longer.

It took 1 hour 47 to get to Saltburn by which time I was desperate for the loo, so I took advantage of the public loos there. James carried on and I was a good 4-5 minutes behind him. I felt good having been to the bathroom, it had been playing on my mind. Setting off from Saltburn which was looking like a beautiful seaside resort in the middle of summer, this should have been a warning to me, it was going to be a hot day and at around 10am it was still early.

The views out of Saltburn and beyond are stunning. I have never walked the Cleveland way and I really wonder why not, it is just so beautiful. It’s open to the elements and I am sure it’s brutal on a wet/windy day but on a nice day it really is spectacular. I have to mention Staithes, how beautiful is that place, I will be visiting for a leisurely afternoon one day. A true gem. That was the beauty, the beast was the fact my water was running down. It’s a long section from Saltburn to Runswick Bay and even though I saw a club mate Adrian handing out water, I felt it more appropriate to make a joke then fill up my water bottle, what a mistake that was! So yes my water was rationed for 4-5 miles then it ran out, Runswick bay was more than the advertised 21 miles in and by the time I got there I was goosed. I sort of had been and sort of not been trying to catch James. I had seen him a few times on the climbs here and there in front of me, but he was too far to catch and if I am honest I was not 100% sure it was him. Red shirt, dark hair/cap, dark shorts….but was is James? Turned out it was, he got to the checkpoint 5 minutes or so before me so we were similar speed on that section. James had had 5 minutes to sort himself out and having had a tough section himself was starting to feel better. I needed lots of liquids and my sandwich and a bit of time to get my head back in the game, which I did. Having set of slowly from Runswick bay with James I came around and felt a bit better. I always say to myself when struggling that it’s ups and downs and one follows the other, I say it when I feel good too. So we cracked on. We both realised we had set off too fast, that it was way too hot and we both just wanted to finish and the time did not matter. So we progressed, bit after bit and talking to a few people the time flew by. Sandsend was the next checkpoint and my wife Kristina was there which was lovely and although we were tired we were doing ok. A walk for a minute or two out of Sandsend with Kristina was nice and it wasn’t long before we could see Whitby in the distance. The stunning views kept on coming and the temperature did drop a little, although it was still hot. I remember when we were approaching Hornblower which is an old (is it still in use?) fog horn station, all I wanted was a cup of coke, but all that was on offer was water. Still, I filled up and drank away and we progressed. The marshals at Hornblower were funny and pleasant, but when they said it was 8 miles to Ravenscar I was not laughing, it felt like a long long way. It was nice to see Kristina in this section too, a bright happy face and Oasis of joy, it helps lift spirits!

James was determined Ravenscar would be the place we regrouped and gained our strength for the final 20 miles or so. It was a wise plan. I had another sandwich, 2 cups of lush tea and a pit stop in the bathroom, again much needed. Leaving Ravenscar I saw Kristina again briefly, I think she had had a nap, how lucky was she! On we went next stop being Scarborough. The darkness fell just as we approached a makeshift water station. I think there were two if not three makeshift water stations on route, both very much needed. Headtorches on and we picked up a random who had got caught out on the trail without a headtorch. Run walk march strategy worked well, bit of chat with the random chap and we arrived near the Sealife Centre in Scarborough. Lots of cheering going on, bit of a laugh with the crowd and onwards around North Bay then South Bay getting a few runs in between the longer walking sections. The heat had dropped by this stage and if I am honest I was feeling much better. Seeing Kristina in Scarborough again was nice but she spoilt it by saying she had to go as she was off for tea! Nice….well it would have been if she shared some chips!

From Scarborough you go up at a place called Black Rocks and follow the coast slightly inland. It’s pitch black by this stage and we had 7.8 miles to go from the little water station to the finish. By this time I was seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and I had some running in my legs, it was pitch black but I felt better than I had for many hours. I am not sure James felt as great, but we pushed each other along and one step after the other, one little run after the other we got closer and closer to the finish. We had a red dot light on the back of someone’s head in the distance and that was a bit of a target to chase. James was leading when we went up a short sharp hill, I had my head down trying to keep up then at the top I had to give James the news we were off course. James had followed some head torches which had gone the wrong way, and so had we. Back down we went and back chasing a chap we had previously overtaken with that red dot. This is what happens, you can’t go back in time and change it, just accept it and carry on. We passed a few caravan parks and at one of them we hear a chap behind us who sounded like he had a Newcastle accent. We all passed a man in a field who told us it was 2 miles to Filey (he was wrong it was 3.5 miles) then the man behind us then said “did you guys see that chap had his trousers around his ankles” my answer was ‘no’! Anyway we have a race to run, no time to ponder what was going on there.

I love the Garmin when you put a route in and it tells you how far you have to go. Over the last few miles I loved seeing the miles tick on down. To be fair I started the count down at 26.2 miles. Each and every run making progress and if I am honest aside from a slight concern with my groin hurting when we ran 0.5 mile or so sections I felt great, except for blisters. My left foot had blisters all over the little toe, blister in the webbing between big toe and next toe, on my heal and a big one on the outside corner of the heal. My right foot was better just one on the outside corner of the heal. Blisters hurt, but they were nothing like Lakeland heal impact blisters so they were manageable. That said I need to find a way to stop them. Using Hoka Speedgoats worked OK, certainly better then INOV-8 G270’s in the Lakes but the Lakes has much rougher terrain. I used body glide on my feet for this race, I added Vaseline at Ravenscar but I probably should have changed socks too. I must overcome the blisters. I must note too that my knees were 100% fine.

Running into Filey was nice, there were 4 of us and we ran across the beach and up the ramp, James’s girlfriend Emma and her mum were watching, I only realised when the word cider was shouted. Kristina was at the very end and filmed us in. We went over the line together, except James nicked it by a second – the scoundrel!

Hot day, very hot but a great day. My worst point by far was 21 or so miles in before Runswick bay, that has to be a lesson, a big massive lesson. You should not be at your worst 1/3 of a way into an Ultra. I know better than that, well I thought I did.

Things I have forgotten to mention and not sure where they happened:

– Adrian Kamis with the satsumas – thank you Adrian

– Thank goodness I packed an Imodium – that sorted me out somewhere in the 2^nd half

– I think I drank about 10-12 litres of fluid on the run and about 12 gels

– 2 Cheese and Onion sandwiches did the job at the drop bag points.

– Even though Ben was not with us on the run, we thought of him and sent him a picture of Whitby Abbey. Ben was following and we appreciated him from afar

– For once neither of us fell over, but James did kick some (invisible?) rocks.

– Last outing for the 2019 Ultimate Direction Adventure vest. String frayed and broke about 7 miles in and James knotted what he could and it got around

– Kristina was at the second Scarborough checkpoint, I knew because she yelled at me as I left, she had been too busy eating her food

– Kristina was also at another point on the way, I know because I saw my car but not her

– Robin Hoods bay was nice, we went the long way around at the bottom but not a big mistake.

Lakeland 50 2021 – 24 July

My review of my race day, including lessons learned (official finishing time 12:16:07).

Staying in The Sun Hotel and having a breakfast of teacakes (2) crumpets (2) and corn flakes with tea and coffee I thought was a sensible start. What wasn’t sensible was leaving the hotel at 9.30 getting stuck behind the traffic chaos near Ambleside caused I assume by the event buses, at least I wasn’t on the bus we passed which was broken down!
It was not a relaxed journey to Dalemain, having got there at 11:15 and the start supposedly 11:30. At least I didn’t do what I saw from a few runners, who got out out of their cars in the queue to Dalemain and run to that start. Once there I got myself into one portaloo but had no paper, but the second one did…but me trying to poo fast is like asking Jenson to eat his breakfast fast before school….

So at 11:49 my race started, which I later found out was 7 minutes behind my club and training mates Ben and James. The weather was warm, due to reach 23 degrees or so, but with little cloud cover at this point it felt like it was going to be a real hot one. The loop of Dalemain went well, as I had started so far back in the pack there was a lot of traffic but it was nice to be passing people having the odd word here and there. I walked the odd bump up hill and felt I was making fair progress, there was no thought of trying to catch Ben & James I had resigned myself to the fact I probably would set off slower than them anyway. Seeing Kristina, Jenson and my mum and dad with Coco as I passed Dalemain was nice, also saw Hannah, Alex and Leo and Alex gave me a big Hi-5 which was great. I was told I was 5 minutes or so behind Ben and James at this point, again too far to contemplate catching.

Running past volunteer Gary Forrester at the road crossing was great too and it was around here I got chatting to Danny Brunton from Bridlington, Danny has been my physio previously and having a chat about his running shoes (Inov-8 G300) and my dodgy left knee amongst other stuff was nice. My left knee nearly stopped me starting this event. After having to stop on the Halo race on the 19 June due to a pain on the outside of my left knee, my running since then has been very limited, 4 miles being the longest I have run. That’s 5 weeks of rest but also 5 weeks of losing fitness and belief. Danny did seem to agree though that rest was probably the best thing I could have done. Danny and I drifted apart, I didn’t want to run too much slower at this point and as he was running the 100 it’s important I didn’t make him run faster than he needed to. At that point he will have been about 60 miles in where I was less than 5. Around this time seeing all the 100 runners still strong still progressing at pace is great to see, I just could not imagine being able to do that. As you will read at the end of this review, after 50 miles I’m broken, these runners 60 miles in with 45 to go still progressing at pace I find inspirational.

Pooley bridge was lovely to run through, I saw a glimpse of Jenny Rose as I passed her and Trevor on a balcony in a pub having lunch I assumed. Trevor had been to Keswick to run parkrun, the first day back for parkrun after the COVID-19 pandemic. There are lots if families and supporters in Pooley bridge and why not. On a beautiful summers day it’s an awesome place to be, especially with all the runners running through, what a sight it must be watching having a morning coffee. Out of Pooley bridge the road starts to ascend to the point where walking is sensible. I got my marching legs out and off I was away into the fells. It now feels like you have started proper, over 10% into the event, the crowds are behind you and it’s now just internal desire and willpower powering a runner and not the family and supporter power. 5 plus miles in you know you have started but shouldn’t be tired and as it flattens out it’s time to get running.

There is a nice flat/downhill run into Howtown and looking back at my Garmin trace I seem to have got a wiggle on. It was along this section I could spot Ben in his red East Hull Harrier vest. It was quite crowded around here and took a good 5 minutes to pick my way through and make Ben jump a little as I made him aware I was there. I did make a hash of trying to sing “The Sun has got his hat on hip hip hooray, the sun has got his hat on and he has come out to play”. Maybe showing the spirit I was in at that point, and unbeknown to me James was just a runner or two in front. Great I thought, ‘the band is back together’, the three of us at least were to spend sometime together on this race, but I did wonder if I had gone out too fast. To catch them up around 7-8 miles in after setting off 7 minutes late was surprising, I had thought they would set off too fast as this was there first Lakekand 50 and I know what especially James is like. What was I doing catching them up? This was a bit of a concern in the back of my mind.

Into Howtown we all went, filled up my empty water bottles, grabbed some flapjack and 2 minutes later after negotiating the small queue I was out of there. Most of that 2 minutes was spent queuing for water, all I had to eat was flapjack. The run into Howtown took 1 hour 47 which was 13 minutes faster than 2016 (current PB) so that certainly tells me I set off fast, too fast maybe? Well maybe, I am not sure even as I write this.

After Howtown is the big climb, the really big climb with two sections. The second section I forgot about and having climbed the first it was such a blow to see what was to come, false summits don’t you just love them? That said I was head down and push up as best as possible, James lead the way, Ben just behind, I just followed. Worked hard in the heat, kept on drinking and trying to eat a gel or sweets every 30 minutes. Getting to the top felt good, it’s so nice to both see the views and to know you have mainly flat and down hill to enjoy next. My problem to come was about to become apparent as my left knee did not like steep down hill, this is an issue as this section is mainly nice ground and is runnable as proven by Ben and James who ran out of sight. 12 or 13 miles in or so is not the time to develop knee issues and issues which have been of a long standing nature, I was worried my race was run. I know not everyone will agree with this approach but I took two ibuprofens and about 15 minutes later I took 2 paracetamol. The paracetamol seemed to help more than the ibuprofen. After the downhill where I struggled, on the flat I was able to catch Ben and James back up and managed to hold onto them with James setting the pace around Hawswater. This was one of those times just to follow and hope to keep up, the pace was not traditionally fast for running but it was certainly faster then I ran this in 2016. I wasn’t complaining mind, I felt we were making hay while the sun shined, and it was certainly shining. The last mile into the checkpoint at Mardale Head I took the lead of us three and marched to the checkpoint it seems, as it must have been mentioned about 10 times by different people how fast my marching was, James certainly had a word how fast my marching was! On this section the final scores were posted as far as I am aware, Mark 1, James 1, Ben 0 for number of falls on the whole route. Considering in 2016 I think I had fallen over about 5 times by this point I must be more stable on my feet in my old age!

Out of Mardale head there is the second biggest climb on the route (Gatescarth pass), it was still hot, really hot and the climb is challenging. This is a good point to mention I was still drinking loads but had no salt tablets with me in my bag, I left them stupidly at home and salted crisps were not doing the trick, I was starting to become worried how much I was sweating and knowing I was not replacing the salt. I was also aware how much a lack of salt was affecting James amongst other issues he was having on this climb. On the route up this hill we kept tracing places with a lady 100 runner who just kept to one pace, very slow…but it worked. One foot in front of the other. Just keep moving. Needless to say the top comes, there were 3 Lakeland100 volunteers stood at the top watching all the “runners” not running up the hill having an encouraging word or two which was nice to see and hear. Once we got to the top we got moving a bit faster and headed to Kentmere. I think Ben got some painkillers in James around this point while I got chatting to a lovely lady all the way to Kentmere. Apparently we were the only ones running up the little hill to the town hall. I must have been feeling good. As good as I was feeling that was about to change.

In Kentmere village hall they serve fruit smoothies. This was my downfall, I had been thinking about and dreaming about and salivating over these for miles. I got my cup out in great anticipation and they only filled it half full! This was not what I wanted, I downed it and asked for more, then more, then more. I probably had 7 or so portions, they were lovely and I was thirsty. I also had a small bowl of pasta and more water. This was a long stop, 16 minutes in total, which compared to other checkpoints of a couple of minutes or less, is something I have noted. The band were back together inside the checkpoint and I left with James having a plan to have a pee just while Ben finished off in the checkpoint. We all subsequently got moving again, not too fast but moving. My stomach was not happy. I felt bloated I did not generally feel good at all and at about 27 miles in I was starting to go through a rough patch, possibly due to my over indulgence at Kentmere. That said the body can’t process food that quick. About 1.5 miles after the checkpoint and around 6 miles to Ambleside I needed to ‘go’. This was a serious issue as this is not something I am practiced in and the last time and only other time was 10 years ago. I had spent half a mile looking for locations and it was getting worse. I let Ben know my issue and he pointed out a spot, at this point we were half way between Kentmere and Troutbeck. It was not a great spot! Job got gone and covered, I know it’s gross but I honestly had no choice. The next part of the course was the run down into Troutbeck and try as I might running fast on the rugged ground I could not see Ben and James. I estimated I was around 3 minutes behind them, could have been more or less, I wasn’t exactly timing my diversion but how long did I have to run for to catch site of them, I’m guessing they got a wriggle on. Part of me was happy we had been going quite slow out of Kentmere and this was getting time in the bank, but the tired run down version of me wondered where they were. I passed plenty of people each time thinking….I bet you know what have just done….until I knew I must have passed more and then some of those who passed me while I was diverted. Troutbeck has some walking hills coming into and leaving the village and that’s where I spotted them both and with the use of my marching power I caught them up. That whole section took it out of me, that diversion was costly. That diversion and resulting hard running on the downhill jagged rocky section certainly hurt my feet and knees, both my bad one and good one started to feel it. I’m sure I had some more pain relief around here too but not sure where. The climb out of Troutbeck was hard work then we got moving down and through Ambleside. My knees and feet were now a problem but I made sure to look good for the cameras coming into Ambleside. Tried to line the three us up and get us smiling…..

It was so nice to see Jenson, Kristina and my mum as I walked on after a super short checkpoint stop. I would have loved to have changed my socks into something thicker and change my shirt, something I did in 2014 but I didn’t carry the items this year and I regret that. Seeing Ben in his changed clean shirt, feeling the pain on both my heels where the (blood) blisters where working there way up to bigger than a £2 coin, I regretted my decisions. I carried extra things I didn’t need or use, but didn’t carry things I now wanted. Spare water bottle, Echo Dot ear phones, sweets and gels not used, I’d have swapped all those for a shirt or socks.

After Ambleside we were all happy to go our own pace, even more so than previously. We hadn’t promised to stick together but we all sort of wanted to if it worked. Ben took longer in the checkpoint than I, but soon caught me up and powered by. He said he was fresh and it showed. I wasn’t too bad at all energy wise, but three things were slowing me down:
– Blisters on my heals
– Knee pain on both knees
– Lack of salt and fighting off potential cramps.
I ran/walked from here to Chapel Stile not going too slow but not going as fast as I wanted too. I had energy still but could not use it, the heat of the day had as good as gone but my body was in no state to do what I wanted. It was lovely to see the family again at Skelwith Bridge but from that point on it was me and just me on my own with fleeting words with runners I passed or who passed me.

Chapel Stile checkpoint has nice comfy chairs, soup and other luxuries. I stood on my feet, ate Watermelon with salt sprinkled on it and got on my way. I asked a volunteer to get my torch out my pack as I knew it would be needed before long. This next section I know well, in the past it’s always been done in the dark but this year I could see the stiles and the woods to aim to the left of, I could see the camp site below and everyone having fun and eventually the zig zag climb. This was hard, it was always going to be but had to be done. Head down step by step, not fast but got there to the top, head saying just one last big climb to go now. Head torch went on before the woods as the side of Blea Moss, just as a guy who was running complimented me on my march being as fast as his running. This is my one hope if I ever go for the hundred, can I march fast enough to cover big sections and not wreck my body? Across the side of Blea Moss is never nice, so rocky and so easy to put a foot wrong, which I did do a few times but not costly. Each time you kick a rock though you wonder if it is going to send your leg into cramp or smash a toe, I must say the Inov-8 G270’s look after your toes in this situation….I know they work. A few marshals at the old self dib checkpoint made sure I and others cut no corners and in the thick of night, with a full moon trying to shine through, the light cloud off I mainly walked to Tilberthwaite. It’s got some gradient to it but it’s not severe but there was only the odd shuffle along here mixed with marching. At 45 miles I said to a chap passing, I just want this to be over. I was starting to get properly tired now. I wanted it to be over. Blisters, knees and worry of cramps plus a depleted energy source I was close to being done, but carry on I must.
Tilberthwaite was nice to see, I dipped in for a water fill up and piece of flapjack and away after less than 40 seconds in the checkpoint. £1 into Jacobs ladder fund and up the steps. Asked to pass to other 2 other runners and up I went. I felt so slow, my body was pounding, possibly not helped by the 4 paracetamol and 6 ibuprofen I had taken I earlier that day, with another 2 paracetamol taken at the top of Tilberthwaite I think that’s more than enough but knee issues meant I needed too. The climb up Tilberthwaite was slow, but the decent which really should be faster was I think slower. I was in a mess with my knees and I know if I cramped up I would be in danger of sitting down and not being able to get up. Touching distance from Coniston this had not to happen. I was holding onto rocks and oooowing and arrrrring all the way down. It took forever, I knew I was on for a PB but it was getting smaller all the time. Even the downhill road section I could hardly run on, and when I did it was on my tip toes. My heals had been so painful since Blea Moss all my running was not as a heal striker but on my toes. Maybe this is how to learn how to run like we all do in bear feet, like we were ‘born to run’ without trainers? State of my heals days after the event are proof that I maybe need to practice running on my toes more!

Once the gradient flattened out I could run into the checkpoint, as I passed Black Bull, a young man on the bridge passed me a can of Stella and said I deserved it, what a legend! Random stranger giving me a beer, I thanked him loudly as I ran onwards. Running down the street I dipped my head torch, shouted out Kristina’s name and got cheers back from Kristina, my mum, my dad and Kristina’s mum Jenny. What a great way to finish. Stood over the finish line I was spent. Totally done in. Empty. Finished. Happy,

Escorted into the tent for my medal, T-shirt, photo and then to crack open that Stella. My third and hopefully not my last Lakeland50, but I need to sort out the knees and feet. At this point I want to thank James and Ben for great training over the last 9 months or so. It’s been hard at times, the early mornings most Saturdays and pacey running certainly helped. I think my injury lay-off of 5 weeks before the event helped my energy levels and mind-set going into the race, but obviously not ideal in other ways. Having them both around for over half of the 50 miles was a blessing too. I want to thank my wife Kristina and son Jenson for being there and putting up with all my endless running talk! My mum Carole and dad Keith, Jenny and Trevor Kristina’s folks and certainly Coco too. Her face at Skelwith Bridge as I ran by she looked amazed/confused if dogs can look like that, if only she could run with me, at least she will get to do that at parkrun soon.

Major lessons for any future go:

Salt tabs
Knee issues
Blister on bottom both heals
Having to ‘go’
Stones in shoes x2
Setting off 7 minutes later than those I was running with

2016 vs 2021 analysis

2016 / 2021 / difference (times are time leaving checkpoint)

CP1 2hr00 / 1hr49 / Total time up 11 minutes
CP2 4hr38 / 4hr15 / Total time up 23 minutes
CP3 6hr24 / 6hr22 / Total time up 2 minutes
CP4 8hr17 / 8hr11 / Total time up 6 minutes
CP5 9hr38 / 9hr27 / Total time up 11 minutes
CP6 11hr23 / 11hr10 / Total time up 13 minutes
Finish 12hr28 / 12hr16 / Total time up 12 minutes

Conclusion, I was well up after 2 legs vs 2016 but lost that time, only to get some back later on.

Time spent in checkpoints 2021 vs 2016:

CP1 – 2 minutes 1 second / 2 minutes 13 seconds
CP2 – 7 minutes 56 seconds / 4 minutes 34 seconds
CP3 – 16 minutes 10 seconds / 6 minutes 44 seconds
CP4 – 1 minute 20 seconds / unknown
CP5 – 3 minutes 51 seconds / 5 minutes 24 seconds
CP6 – 39 seconds / 32 seconds

Conclusion, I was generally slower at checkpoint this year, significantly so.