Running 2:07:57 [5] 23.0 km (5:34 / km) +1350m 4:18 / km
slept:8.5 shoes: Inov8 x-talons 212
Langdale Horseshoe, my first Lake district classic fell race, 14 miles, 4000'. Having heard stories of difficult route finding and technical descending, I had planned to stick in the pack and use more experienced runners to show me the way. Funnily enough, my plan didn't really work out...Rhys and Callum set off like rockets up to Stickle Tarn and I went with them. They peeled off the Dark Peak peleton before the top and I found myself at the front of the pack with a small gap at checkpoint 1.
I kept up the same sort of tempo on the tough climb up Thurnacar (in my head I was measuring the climb in 'Kinders' - as in 2 Kinders up to Stickle Tarn and another Kinder up to Thurnacar) and my gap was about 1 minute by checkpoint 2 at the summit. At this point I was still waiting for the rest of the pack to close in on me, but when still had a decent gap at Langdale Comb I decided to change my tactic and pull out as big a margin as possible by the top of Bowfell, to give myself a buffer for lack of local knowledge on the second half of the route.
I felt good all the way to the top of Bowfell and couldn't see anyone behind me on the ascent so I took the time to have a bit of sports drink and a few jelly babies. Then came the technical part of the course, and straight away I lost a chunk of time coming off Bowfell when I strayed way off the main path. Back on track by the col, and I took the best line I could find to the West of the Crinkle Crags ridge, but it was rocky and undulating, so I think it could have been better. The climb up to the summit of Crinkle felt big, and I knew I was getting tired.
I somehow managed to miss out the Bad Step off Crinkle and came down a rocky gully instead, then ran hard on the fast descent to Blisco. I knew that if I made it to the top of Blisco with a gap then the race was in the bag, but I could feel the cramps coming on in my hamstrings. I stopped for a stretch at the col and looked back to see an empty hillside, then set off up the last big climb. Both hamstrings were cramping, but I ran through it and felt good again by the top. I switched to Bilbo's Blisco o map for the final descent and navigated my way down the racing line taking care not to go astray (as did plenty of the field behind me).
My margin was down to not much more than a minute on Mark Palmer by the finish, so he must have run a much better descent than me. Rhys was an excellent 4th, he is on good form at the moment, and Dark Peak took 1st and 3rd in the team prize, much to the annoyance of the Lake District clubs. A great day out, and I actually enjoyed every minute of the race, it doesn't get much more fun than this!
Running 15:00 [2] 2.0 km (7:30 / km)
Very short warm up and a hobble down with Tom Edwards in the sunshine.