Snowdon Ultra 100 Mile Race Report

Snowdon Ultra® 100 Mile.

It is always the same with my long runs.  I am concerned all week, and then when I wake up on the day, I always feel very calm.  The first 18 miles went well, chatting along the way and finding pace.  Enjoying the atmosphere and generally thinking about how strange it was to have other people to run alongside.  Usually I run long-distance solo, so this was bizarre.   After coming up and over Heather Terrace and getting a good, fast and fun descent down to PyG, with a busy time up on Snowdon, it was nice to make it to a far quieter section of the Miners Track, with just a few spread out runners dotting the trail, in-between downpours.

It is incredible how much you focus on the two meters in front of your feet.  Looking down as you run along tough terrain for hours at a time requires some concentration.  I had heard some bad news the previous day, and suddenly found myself letting a single thought creep in.  I was heading down to PyG from Pen y Pass at the time when I caught my toe at speed.  I found myself flying, waiting for the inevitable impact on the rocky path below me.  The impact was as painful as I had anticipated with an instant deep pain to the knee, with gristle exposed through the skin.  I could also see blood under my waterproof to my elbow, although decided not to investigate.  Sitting in the stream that had formed down the path I assessed the damage, as I was sure that I had shattered something.  All I had in my mind was ‘No – this is to soon into the day to have to bail’, so I got up, and tentatively began firstly weighting my knee, then walking, before carefully jogging to a run.  I was up and off, and onto the next section – the Glyderau to the Carneddau.  Sometimes you just need to deal with it.

I took it easy up to the Glyders, hiking with two guys that I had met earlier on the way up Snowdon (Jasper and Steph) along with another small team.  It is quite a slow section up to the top here, although I love this initial area.  Not much in the way of running to be had, although when you reach the top, the descent to Llyn y Cwm (despite being technical) is a relief for the legs.

A good run along the shores of Llyn Idwal led to the Checkpoint before the dreaded (although awesome) ascent up the South West face of Pen Yr Ole Wen to enter the Carneddau.  I was met with amazing support from the volunteers and my crew here (Ellie, Adam and my Dad) with a foot dry-out, Vaseline and a dry pair of socks.  A couple of Beef Tacos later, it was time to hit the next climb.  I had my first dark moment around halfway up the mountain side here.  This was the first time I began to feel the mental challenge (maybe 30 miles in), and for some reason I let myself think about the second loop, before I had even finished the 50.

I had run with quite a few 50-mile runners that day and was starting to really feel the severity of the undertaking.  These guys would already be done, way before my real race had begun.  I really had to have words with myself here, dig deep, stem the self-pity, eat and move on.  I had not trained for so long, and for so hard, to give up now.