Montane Spine Challenger 2020

Montane Spine Challenger 2020 

 

I was delighted to finish the Challenger last year, but I knew I had to go back again for two reasons. 

·      Firstly, I had some pride to regain. Yes I was proud to finish last year, but I also felt I only managed to finish because of others. I wanted to be able to do it solely with my own strength – mental and physical. 

·      Secondly I had a longer term plan about the full spine race, and I wanted to see if my performance in the Challenger this year meant I was ready for a Full Spine. Part of that was setting myself a goal of completing the race in 44 hours, so that if I were doing a full Spine I would have time to sleep at Hawes in the dark before moving on, on the third morning. 

 

So with a sense of deja vue I was on the station platform with the traditional Big Bag, Little Bag combo and on my way. At St Pancras station I met with my near neighbour Ian and a mutual friend John. Quite a few Spiners were on the same train and my seat reservation was next to Henry who was in his first Spine Challenger attempt. Ian joined us and we chatted over logistic, the journey went quickly. 

 

At Edale there was the usual kit check and registration process. It was a bit frustrating that the briefing and kit check venues were reversed this year as it meant carrying all the kit to the Peak Centre, it didn’t seem quite as smooth a process as I remembered it. I then spent a pleasant hour or so in the pub for dinner and a chat, then headed for the YHA. I seemed to faff at the YHA less than last year, I think I was more organized and had employed more little plastic bags to separate things, so felt relaxed before heading to bed at 9.30 ish. 

 

I slept badly though! My mind was active, and I think I saw most of the hours of the clock and eventually got up at 5.45 with my two room mates. Although a bit frustrating I wasn’t actually tired, but reminded myself that I now had an extra reason to stick to my plan to sleep at Hebden at CP1.  I got dressed then had breakfast before the final preparations. I took my drop bag down to the lobby of the YHA and handed it over, then went to get my pack. 

 

I was about to walk out of the Hostel when I suddenly realized I had not filled my hydration bladder. Kicking myself for a near mistake, I filled it. However as I then inverted it to push the air out, I noticed a fine pin prick stream of water spraying out of the side of the bladder.Disaster! This was a serious. I had no way of finding a new bladder, and running out of water could be a race ending event. Duck tape! Oh no, I’d left my Duck Tape in my drop bag, and by now that was on the way to Hebden. I spotted a roll of tape the guys sorting the bags were using and asked if I could use it. As any man will tell you, duck tape can be used to attach anything to anything, but it seems hydration bladders are made of that rare material that doesn’t allow duck tape to stick to it. I did the best I could and shoved it in my pack crossing my fingers the bladder would not leak too much, and I wouldn’t end up with a soaking pack and no water to drink by the time I reached Snake Pass. 

 

Having redeployed my faffing skills with the bladder, I had missed the shuttle bus to the start, and was waiting for the next one when Liz appeared and offered me a lift in her car. I eagerly accepted and we chatted about her experiences on last year’s Challenger, and also her successful Flare last summer. 

 

I wished Ian and Henry good luck at the start, and John, who was about to attempt the full Spine the following day. 

 

The race started. We set up the road towards the start of the Pennine Way. I wasn’t comfortable with the pace initially. I failed to find any kind of rhythm, and didn’t really enjoy the climb up Jacob’s Ladder. Its hard to put a finger on it. The conditions were quite benign this time, mild and dry, and not especially windy and it should have felt easier and more natural. I worried about my hydration bladder, and found my mind wandering on to possible fixes if the leak was bad. I had a few bits of small-and-unnecessary-but potentially-useful things in my pack, and came up with three ways of sorting my bladder issue. It was just about then that I tried to suck on the pack, and nothing came through. It seemed to have emptied in only an hour. I hoped the SST (safety team) at Snake Pass had water on offer, I was mulling over how they would react if I told them I had run out of water and therefore technically had no ability to carry 2L, as the compulsory kit list demands. 

 

As it happened the SST greeted me cheerfully asking if I needed water, I pulled out the hydration pack and was surprised to see it still about a third full. I realized the valve on the hose was in the closed position, so that was why I thought I was out of water. I felt the bottom of my pack and it felt dry, so reassured myself the leak must be tiny and not an issue at all. 

 

Last year I had soup at Snake, this year I didn’t bother, so moved on quickly. It was still dry with excellent visibility compared to last year. It was a bit blowy, but the wind was predominantly from behind, so not really an issue. Bleaklow didn’t seem too hard or too long, although I nearly made a navigation error following a pair who had headed down the path towards Near Black Clough. They realized and I spotted them, and headed down the correct route. The official path towards and above Torside Clough is pretty good and I managed to follow the correct route all the way. Last year for some reason a group of us ended off the route, descending down heather which was really slow. 

 

Arriving at Torside I saw my Dad waiting for me, I was delighted he managed to make it. We went under the Glossop MRT canopy and were offered a cup of tea. It was lovely sharing the experience with Dad. As I explained to the MRT it was he who had got me in to all this in the first place. “Not this”, my Dad protested, but the truth is taking small children up big hills does plant seeds of adventures. I had a quick snack of Apple Crumble rehydrated food. I intended to open pasta bolognaise, but the crumble was pretty good. I put my pack on and shouted thanks to the MRT before heading off confidently in completely the wrong direction. Slightly embarrassed I had to run back past the Team’s canopy, hoping they would not decide my navigational skills were rubbish and pull me from the course. 

 

As I climbed up towards Black Hill the wind started to pick up. It was still clear and dry, but I knew the rain would come before long. Foolishly I tripped and fell somewhere around Sliddens Moss (great name). My left calf instantly cramped up, although I quickly caught it and stretched it out. It felt not too bad, but I walked a short distance before jogging again. It felt a bit tight, and I worried it might cause problems later. As I approached Black Hill summit I saw a couple of figures next to the trig point. They were wishing us on and handing out small packs of Haribo’s, which was a real boost. It was probably gale force wind and can’t have been easy for them standing there. 

 

Arriving at Wessenden were an SST who were warning us to wear goggles, although the wind had been mostly from behind. Just after the path starts to head west, into the wind, and it was good advice. I met up with Robin at this point, who was over from Holland for the race. We chatted, mostly comparing notes around the UTMB races – those summer alpine races so difference from this winter Pennine one. There was an MRT on the layby at Harrop, which was a welcome sight, complete with amazing home made scotch eggs. I remembered the location as a year ago I had stopped on Round Hill to put on an extra layer and my head torch not realizing an SST was only a few hundred meters further on. I still had at least an hour of light in the sky, and it was good to know I was ahead of my previous year’s schedule. 

 

Robin and I ran on together at a comfortable pace. It started to rain and visibility with goggles and the dusk started to be a bit of an issue. At the A640 crossing there was a chap with a van and a couple of racers crouched behind it. I joined them not knowing if it was an official team or a well-wisher. It was the latter but he was friendly and happily allowed us to hide from the wind and rain. We put on waterproof bottoms and head torches to be ready for the night, then headed off again. As we headed up White Hill I felt cold and realized I had forgotten to put my merino base layer on, as I had intended to at the stop. It was too wild to stop so I hoped the exercise would warm me up instead. 

 

The SST at the M62 layby were friendly, but we didn’t stop except to give our numbers. I knew it was only a few miles now to the White House MRT stop where I planned to have a proper dinner break, so I ran on with enthusiasm, failing to spot a large rock slab just away from the layby. I slipped on it, falling with my whole body weight on to the rock on my left side. It really hurt, and whilst I got up straight away and reassured Robin I was fine, I worried I had done some damage. All you can do is pick yourself up and carry on. 

 

It had suddenly got really cold. The rain was heavy and cold, with strong winds whipping it around. I was only wearing a string vest and a thin base layer, which was a bit inadequate, although I was starting to appreciate the quality of my new shell jacket. I only really appreciate just how heavy the rain was when we arrived at the MRT stop at White House. We were invited into a camper van to warm up. I got out my duvet jacket, then warmed a meal and accepted a cup of tea. I decided to put on two more layers for the night – my merino and a fleece on top. As three of us sat in the camper van re-heating and eating a Spine race officer opened the door and asked us “are all three of you retiring?” We looked bemused and explained we were just eating, but the suggestion was a little tempting. 

 

We didn’t stay too long. I finished off the rehydrated meal on the go as we walked past the reservoir. 

 

As we climbed towards Stoodly Pike we were joined by Mark again, and a group of 4 of us made our way to the monument, which never seems to get any closer, no matter how quickly you walk. We jogged the firmer parts of the descent down towards Hebden, the grassy parts being really slippy in the wet. 

 

I hate the section from Charlestown to CP1. I stopped to get my poles out, and Robin kindly hung back waiting for me. It’s a steep climb with annoying narrow and twisty sections of path. It always seems to take ages and this was no different. Robin and I eventually arrived at CP1 at 21.49 which seemed pretty good. 

 

I had a firm plan for the checkpoint, and was not in a mood to argue with myself about sleeping there, as I felt pretty exhausted. I did fear not wanting to leave again. I changed completely, except for my top base layers. I don’t have a spare string vest and rate it as one of my best bits of kit. I was a bit reluctant to change my compression leggings for normal leggings, as I also love the compression, but they were filthy and I also needed to change my pants and work on anti-chaffing measures. 

 

I ate then went up to the bunk rooms. Sleep was the big change this year compared to last. I had done two 24 hour races before the Challenger last year, and was confident I could push through the first night, so just stopped at CP1 to eat. What I hadn’t appreciated was the toll that no sleep would have on an exhausted body as I entered hour 30 and beyond. 

 

Psychologically the problem with CP1 is that it isn’t even half way. You arrive there exhausted, and the idea of then sleeping is counter-intuituve as you feel you will wake stiff, knowing you havn’t even gone half way. I suspect this is the reason so many people retire at CP1. If the CP was just 6 or 7 miles further on, it would be beyond halfway and that psychological barrier would be gone. This time I had decided I would sleep at CP1, for at least an hour. 

 

It was 10.30pm, so I asked the bunk master to not allow me to sleep beyond 1am, so I could leave by 2am at the very latest. That would give me confidence to maybe make my 4am target at Hawes, as it would leave 26 hours to cover around 60 miles. I popped in my new secret weapon, Pluggerz Uni-fit ear plugs. I struggled with ear plugs last year, they were uncomfortable and fell out. The Pluggerz are just brilliant. You can lie on them, they don’t feel huge, and they seem to keep enough noise out. 

 

I day-dreamed for a little while, in reasonable comfort. I couldn’t lie on my left side because of the bruised hip, but was very comfy on the other side and soon fell asleep. I woke suddenly and on checking the time it was five past midnight. I felt awake and fresh. I had had just over an hour’s sleep – perfect. 

 

I tiptoed out of the dorm, thanked the Bunk Master, and was surprised to find my legs feeling fairly fresh and not too stiff. I managed a few meters jog on the way to the drop bag room, left my sleeping bag and then went in search of more food. 

 

Second Food was the other rationale for stopping so long. Why eat just once at a checkpoint when you can refuel twice? I couldn’t face Chicken and Rice a second time though, but Rice Pudding had appeared on the menu, which was perfect. 

Following my check list, I then had a look at my feet and got the tape out. They were looking pretty good. The preventative taping had generally worked well, and I had little damage around the inside of my big toes. I had one really sore area which was a blister on my right little toe. I re-taped the big toe bases as well as the blister on the little toe, and some other hot spots. I changed my GPS batteries and the head torch battery and restocked my food. 

 

Mark and Robin were nowhere to be seen. I assumed they had left before me. I packed and was out of the door on the road by 1am. In total I had been in the checkpoint for two and a half hours, bagging an hours sleep, two meals, and a full clothing re-fit, which I was pretty pleased with. I headed out of the CP, and slowly up the horrible muddy path. I went slowly. I was not expecting to run at all overnight, and had put on my ME Hoody before leaving, my favourite “security blanket” for long nights. It is heavier and bulkier than a synthetic fleece, being part wool, but so warm.  If I started to move quickly up the hills I soon would overheat, so it forced me to keep a steady pace and not use up the energy I had gained in the CP through over-enthusiasm. 

 

I passed one other athlete as I headed on to the open ground beyond the CP, then I was alone. I spent the next few Km happily navigating the mostly flagged path, keeping an eye on the GPS to make sure I didn’t go the wrong way. 

 

Somewhere just above the reservoirs I caught up with another runner who had stopped and seemed to be having some admin issues. We had a brief chat and I wished him well then moved on. I suspected he was fading and didn’t expect to see him again. However as I climbed higher towards Top Withins a head torch seemed to keep up a few hundred meters behind me. I stopped at the ruin and took some Go Pro footage. The light approaching me looked good in the dark and I waited and greeted the runner who was the person I had passed earlier. Pascal and I introduced ourselves, had a quick look at the ruin, then headed off once more. I didn’t appreciate then I would spend most of the following fifty odd miles with him. It was quite nice having human company after a couple of hours alone on the moor and we jogged the easy bits of trail and kept a good walk pace on the rest as we descended towards Ponden. 

 

We passed the SST at Ponden and a couple of other runners there without stopping and started the climb towards Ickornshaw moor. As we journeyed up and over the moor a pattern was emerging with Pascal being stronger up the hills, whereas I was more confident on the descents. The disadvantage of partnering up with someone else is that you can feel either dragged along by the other runner, or that you are doing all the hard work – navigating as well as moving on. Pascal and I quickly developed a way of working that suited us both. All I had to do on the ascents was get up the hills, following Pascal and all he had to do was stay on his two feet when going down, following me. It made it so much easier. On the flats we would walk alongside, chatting and navigating together. My Garmin 64s was excellent to check positioning in detail, with Pascal’s wrist watch GPS giving a great real-time heads up on approaching turns and junctions. 

 

A diversion on descending to Cowling confused us. The latest GPX files issued just before the race went straight on, along the Pennine Way, whereas diversion signs took us on a road loop. We followed the diversion (correctly) but it seemed odd that neither CP1 nor the SST had flagged the diversion to us. We assumed it was due to flooding but never found out. 

 

We were met by the amazing team from the volunteer aid station at Lothersdale way before arriving there, and our orders for food and drink were radioed ahead. It was such a boost arriving there, especially as it started raining really hard just as we did, and we had shelter under the gazebo. I was surprised that Mark arrived not long after us, it turned out he had also slept at Hebden, which I am sure was tactically the correct thing to do, although Pascal amazingly had carried on – although lost time on trying to find then replace lost goggles. 

 

After Lothersdale was the trek to Gargrave, easier and shorter than I remember it from a year ago, when I had been in a really dark place and about to quit. Pascal was keen to go to the coop. I was keen to refuel at the café. We did both! As we shuffled in to the café I gently explained to the ladies working there “Do you know we’re in a race, and is there any chance you could possibly serve us really quickly?” They were brilliant and made us toasties in record time, then we were out of the door. 

 

We now had another target, which was to get to the top of Malham Cove whilst it was still light. I remembered the path up and over the cove as tricky, and I didn’t want to be doing that in the dark. We made good progress and went straight through Malham village. I was a little nostalgic for the pub Mark and I had used as an unofficial aid station last year, but we had no intention of wasting daylight and stopping was never considered. Malham is busy and it seemed surreal trekking up towards the Cove after over 70 miles of trail, with large groups of walkers and families with daypacks heading back to the village the opposite direction oblivious as to our long day in the hills. We quickly reached the top of the Cove, navigated around the limestone pavement and headed up towards the tarn. 

 

The path to the field centre is indistinct and darkness fell just before then, we avoided any navigational problems and arrived without drama at CP 1.5. 

 

My right little toe had been hurting fairly badly since Gargrave, so I asked the medic at the checkpoint if she would have a look at it. She did a great job draining the blister and redressing it, and it felt much better as a result. I had some pasta and a cup of tea, although the foot issue had distracted me and I didn’t really take as much sugary food as I should have. I also popped to the loo to re-apply Vaseline to help chaffing. The checkpoint team told us we were “top twenty” which we found hard to believe but it was great news psychologically. 

 

Back on the trail the climb to Fountains Fell was uneventful but I found it pretty tough, and I think had a temporary sugar low. I joked with Pascal that I hoped and expected him to be equally “useless and pathetic” in return before long. I did feel that though, and all I could do was follow Pascal as he showed the way to the summit. By this time I had recovered though and led the tricky and slippy descent to Dale Head. 

 

The climb up Pen-y-gent seemed easier than Fountains, and I enjoyed it especially as I had missed out on this a year ago as we were diverted due to wind. The upper sections are technical and I can imagine how tricky they can feel in wind, rain or ice. Whilst it was a bit blowy we were lucky that the weather was fairly benign at the time. 

 

On the descent to Horton we were met by a friend of Pascal’s who was working for the Spine Media team. He took some video of us for the facebook live feed, although I haven’t yet managed to find it. We made the decision not to sleep at Horton, as the finish seemed so close now. It was around midnight and we calculated that 6 hours or so should see us home, which would make for a pre-dawn finish. In hindsight this was a significant error, I now have a modified sleep strategy. 

 

We set off with enthusiasm knowing it was “next stop Hawes”. Everyone talks about this being the “Cam High Road Section” but there is actually a huge chunk of twisting turning track before you even get on to the Road. I quickly started to get tired and sleepy, meaning I was meandering over the track, occasionally putting a step on to the verge, and occasionally stumbling. It was not good. Pascal pulled ahead a little, and I desperately tried to wake up, undoing my jacket to let cold air in, thinking strong thoughts “WAKE UP”. It had limited effect. I pulled my phone out. I have about 10 songs saved on my phone and I starting playing one. I think this surprised Pascal, but he seemed to appreciate it and we went through the tunes until they were exhausted, David Bowie with a little Queen seemed the best at that hour, so Heroes and Under Pressure seemed to fit the bill. It worked a bit, and we carried on. The delusions set in a bit. A rock turned in to a dog. A tree was a lovely barn which we could sleep in for a while. The scariest was being startled by a child standing at the side of the track. It made me spin around to see the upright mile stone staring back at me in the torchlight. Progress was slow. 

 

It was difficult to see exactly how far we had to go from the GPS fix and the wind meant getting the map out was not an option. All we could do was trudge on. As we reached high up on the Cam Road despite the now strong wind, I was still sleepy and suggested to Pascal we find some shelter for a brief power nap. There really was no shelter though, not even a wall. We made a significant Nav error at one point and started to descend the wrong track. I think that focused our sleepy minds and we agreed finally to find a nap stop. We found a cairn by the side of the road that gave shelter, just, to one body. With suprising rationale given our mental state we decided that both napping at the same time risked a big over sleep in exposed terrain, so we agreed to take turns. I jumped in the bivvy bag first of all and lay behind the cairn with my eyes closed. Images flashed through my brain like a movie on highspeed rewind. I didn’t sleep, but after a few minutes I felt much better and sat up. “That was just 5 minutes”, he said. I felt ok though, so we swapped over and Pascal had 10 minutes shut eye. He deserved the extra 5 minutes having had none on Saturday night. The brief rest was hugely beneficial. We strode on with purpose now, at a proper pace. 

 

As an aside it is interesting how rarely we practice emergency techniques like bivvying, nor think about the logistics of it. Ideally we should have jumped in a sleeping bag inside the Bivvy bag, but neither of us wanted to take our boots off. It wasn’t an “emergency” so trashing the sleeping bag with muddy boots would not have done. However when you look at it objectively, being exhausted and a little cold high up on moorland in the early hours of the morning could potentially develop in to something very serious very quickly. My learning from that brief episode is there is really no clear difference between “need” and “emergency”, they blur. I manage out risk and failure as much as I can in my events, so the small addition to my kit list in future will be two small plastic bags and elastic bands so I can get in my sleeping bag without taking my boots off without worrying I’m trashing the bag. 

 

Not long after our micro nap the tarmac part of the Road abruptly ended and we turned left. I remembered the tarmac section as being huge, so I was convinced we had not yet reached the “proper” tarmac section, but as we went on the path started to descend and a wall appeared to our side and I realized we had started the descent to Hawes. We were elated. This really was the final stretch. It was a long stretch though. Frustratingly we missed another turn as the PW forks away from the descending Cam Road track at Ten End. It was misty and we only noticed when our track seemed to deviate from the GPS one. 

 

We realized our error when we saw another couple running much higher up the moor, and retraced steps. The junction finger post when we found it was pretty big and it was surprising we missed it. The final, final section down to the tarmac tracks of Hawes was horrible. It was sodden and muddy and hard going. As we entered the town we were met by a couple of the Spine crew and, as seemed to be the tradition this year, had our moment on the Spine live feed on Facebook. We spotted the finish and I suggested to Pascal we jog the final meters. 

 

Arriving was lovely. The Race Director said nice things about us. We had finished in an unbelievable 18^th place, and we didn’t care that our time was either 2 or 4 hours beyond are target, depending on which target we remembered. 

 

The finish venue was spacious and there were only two other runners there, the two that had passed us on the descent. I didn’t stay long at the venue though, choosing to get a lift to the YHA for a shower. After the shower I was offered a sleep, and was tempted, but I really wanted to just go home. I was given a lift to the station, then slept most of the way back to London. 

 

I enjoyed this Challenger. Last year was special too, but I felt I had run my own race this year and that I’d reached the end under my own steam. However I hadn’t quite made the grade I was looking for. I had promised myself that if I made Hawes by 4am, I would enter the Full Spine in 2021. I was several hours short of that. More importantly my feet were a bit of mess at Hawes. I had multiple blisters which would have been the route to a DNF had I been doing the full race. I decided on the walk down to Hawes “I am done with this Spine stuff”. What I meant by that, feet aside, was that I saw no point in trying to carry on for another 4 or 5 days when I felt as drained as I did at that point. It would just be misery on misery for an arbitrary goal. 

 

That was Monday. Its Wednesday now. The thoughts have evolved. What I know is:

1.     I need to be fitter and lighter to go further than the 108 distance

2.     I need a better feet strategy

3.     I actually do want to do a Full Spine, but I want to be able to enjoy at least days 3 and 4 as much as I enjoyed days 1 & 2 this time (quite a bit actually). 

 

So a plan is evolving. Its not quite there yet, but it will involve doing a few more big distance races, possibly getting more insight in to the Spine, and probably entering a full spine in 2022. I won’t compete in 2021. There is no point repeating the Challenger again then, and it will be too early for a full Spine. I’m hoping to be a blister patcher with Exile rather than blister sufferer, so look out. 

 

Footnotes

 

Flask

I’m not going to carry a flask on ultras again. I did last year, and a few people do. The theory is it allows you rapid access to hot water without bothering to boil a stove. My experience last year was that the water cools too quickly in a small flask, and given flask plus water weighs in at around 1Kg I just don’t think its worth it. 

 

 

Anti-chaffing

So for some reason this seems to not get talked about much. I have no idea why not. Last year on the Spine I got really horrid buttock chaffing. In fact it was so bad I think it could have been race-ending on a Full Spine. I’d never experienced it before and suspect it really is a 24hr+ issue. A couple of guys I met at the end had similar problems. This year I used Vaseline before the race, and at CP1, Malham Tarn, and Horton. It still felt sore, but much better than last time. I need to continue to look in to this one. Its tricky as I don’t know how you can simulate something that only happens when you exercise for over 24 hours. Share your tips please!

 

 

Drop bag warmth. 

You need to warm up when you stop. I had my Mountain Equipment Lightline in my drop bag, which is worth its weight in gold. Putting it on is like wearing a 4 season sleeping bag. You instantly warm up and remain incredibly cosy. It is a bit bulky to carry on the trail, although I would do so if the weather was sub zero

 

 

Blisters

K Tape was brilliant and definitely prevented damage. I was aware of hot spots on my feet though and ignored them until CP1, then taped the hotspots but I think by then it was a bit too late. 

I changed my socks twice in the race, but I wonder if an additional change, combined with a foot check and tape, between the start and CP1 would have been worthwhile. 

The Injinis are good socks, but I wonder if the light versions are just too light, and whether their thicker ultra versions, still under a waterproof sock, are worth trying

I need to explore alternatives to the Sealskins. I wonder if the Sealskin Outers were just a bit too thick.

I also need to look at lubricating the toes and more prevention taping.