Where do you start with a race report for Man v Mountain? Well the same as the event itself you just dive in and get through it…. As with most of our great adventures it started at Wookiee towers, where I met up with Eliza, Michelle and of course Daemon (he lives here too…). It was to be a long journey, we needed to drive to Mount Snowdon, Register, Do the Abseil Course and set the tents up on the Friday. Eliza drove the first part of the Journey in the Wookiee mobile up the M5, we turned off prior to Birmingham in order to avoid the traffic. I took over to try and make some headway down the many many miles of country lanes. It was an arduous drive where we were held up by caravans, coffin dodgers, tractors and even for a number of miles a hearse. But we finally got there and got registered. Then we started on the great trek to find the abseil training. It was 8 miles from the start point somewhere near the finish and campsite. We hooked up with other people looking for it and drove round that darn village endlessly. Finally just as we were giving up we located it and were trained how to actually abseil (Michelle having done it before…). Not before the instructors accused us of being the special needs group Then up to the campsite, it was more of a welsh leisure park (sheep were everywhere ;) ) and it was on the side of a hill. With a bit of effort we located a vaguely flat area and pitched the tents. Settling for the night the team RFRC supporter arrived in the name of Rob Murr… The long drive on his own had obviously sent him potty as he proceeded to spend the remaining hour or so of the day drinking cider and prattling on about elephants, which appears to be a new fixation of his. As mentioned the campsite was about 8 miles from the start point. We actually got to start from inside Caernarfon castle. Rob was kind enough to drive us down there. So there we were, no of us had prepped, we were tired achy and wondering what we were doing. But we were there and we had our mandatory kit. All four of us lined up Nellie, Nellie, Nellie and of course Nellie (the elephant fixation had reached epic proportions). At this point we should tell you about Man vs Mountain. It’s a 20 mile run from Caenarfon up to the summit of Mount Snowdon. You then go down the mountain to the obstacle section of the event… So 900 or so competitors line up on the castle green and there is a small doorway for us all to get through. The organisers thankfully are aware of this issue and start us in three waves. The timing also started as you leave the castle. The first few miles were roads uphill, blond Nellie set off at a frightening pace, hairy Nellie and young Nellie stuck together to pace themselves and short Nellie seemed to get lost in the masses. As the course wore on the scenery just got better and better. We were soon trail running and going up steep hills. Figuring this was the foothills of Snowdon we plodded ever onwards at our target pace. Sometime after the first (very well stocked checkpoint) the course suddenly went downhill, at that point I got a shooting pain in my right leg and couldn’t go down at any good pace. Feeling I could run it off I carried on. Then we started on Snowdon itself. Going uphill the leg seemed to ease off and progress went well. Finally at about 11.5 miles it got steep, very steep, 1000ft of rocky climbing over less than a mile. At this point Daemon disappeared off in to the distance. The next mile wasn’t as bad but was punishing none the less, the leg pain was back now. Eventually though I got to the summit and it was time to go back down. At this point each step was very painful, it seems to be ITB pain. I didn’t run another step of the whole event and still had 10 miles (7 I thought) to cover. I stopped to strap my leg up which had some effect but not a lot. About a mile down the track I found a nice girl from Wolverhampton who was equally in trouble and we decided to tough it out together. The way down followed the train line, it’s a nice route and if you can run is lovely off road downhill running territory if you like that kind of thing (and usually I do). Mile after mile just ticking them off thinking I’m going to finish this event even if it kills me. Finally we are off the hill and at the bag drop (you are going to be getting wet so can lose your kit to pick up at the finish). We are now at the foot of the “vertical kilometre”, boy that was a slog, it would be tough if you were and fell runner and feeling fresh. When each step is agony and you are shattered it’s not good at all. But we made it up, it was a steep climb and included a huge number of steps. With that out of the way and 18.7 miles on the Garmin we figure we can’t be far from the abseil and water events. But we are very high up and not going down fast. People are flooding by as neither I nor my new friend can walk at any pace at all…. 20 miles comes and goes and there is no sign of this darn abseil and we are still high up… how long is the abseil?? They said it wasn’t bad…. 21, 21.5 finally we found it. We get kitted up and step over the scaffolding, I’m halfway down when I suddenly realise I am going down a bridge and shortly I get to the gap where there is nowhere to put my feet. I shout a few friendly expletives at the person above who responds that I just need to let my feet drop and “sort of lower yourself down mate” &$)(*^%$ %$(&^ boy did I not like that. Thankfully it didn’t turn my legs to jelly as they already were. We slowly proceeded to the next obstacle. Only to find first we have to climb up some steps to drop the abseil gear off. Damn then that hurt. The first water obstacle, I trudge up and climb on to the platform (the made us wear a floatation vest). A 15ft drop in to icy water, quick swim, dive under a gate and back out. As I climb to the top I hear rob (there are a few spectators there) stood at the side shouting me, “go on Nellie!” im in and soon back out again. So I limp to the remaining obstacles, the floating doughnuts that you have to climb through, pass under and obstacle and then the water slide, finally at the river crossing. Robs walked round them with me. He can’t get round the river crossing so now I’m back on my own again. As I get to the walls (apparently 7.5 foot high) a team is there and after helping most of them over the last one gives me a leg up – landing the other side is intense agony. The guy who helped me over leaps, scrambles and makes it over. We repeat on the next wall and then up the final slope and jump down. Barely able to move I stumble through the finish line. Michelle and Daemon are sat there waiting. She stormed round the course in a fantastic time, rumour has it they had to rebuild the walls after she went through as she just ran straight through them. Daemon was suffering a cold but still did remarkably well, by the end though he was not in great shape. Not long after I go in we looked across the water, Eliza having fallen at one point on the course is at the top of the water slide, after a few nerve wrecking moments she is down and Rob even waded in to help her out. She was soon at the river crossing and on our side of the lake. Rob sprinting around the outside to be there as she came through the finish. Michelle gave her a boost up the walls and I helped her down the other side. Looking quite a state Michelle helped her in to some dry clothes while Rob continued to mumble about elephants. The rest of the day was a bit of a blur. Moving was (and is) painful and I have already given up on the idea of my next triathlon as I need to focus on getting better for the Brecon ultra. We made it out for a curry and then a relatively early night. In the morning we packed off and headed down through wales, me and eliza sharing the driving in the wookiee mobile and Rob following along presumably chuntering to the imaginary elephants in his head. We came, we saw and we conquered that course. But I for one am going back next year for revenge, I want to run down the side of that mountain.
Posted on: Sun, 07 Sep 2014 20:12:28 +0000
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