2016 Endurancelife CTS16 South Devon
|
||||||
Official Results |
||||||
|
After a few weeks of cold crisp weather the elements suddenly changed for the
worse on the day that I decided to tackle my first Ultra of the year.
I made
my way to Beesands on the South Devon coast, just south of Slapton Sands at
06:30am on Saturday morning in torrential rain and gale force winds which made
the drive down the country roads tricky enough.
Along with 100 other
Ultra runners we prepared ourselves for the 35 mile challenge that lay ahead on
the exposed South West Coastal Path and following the briefing we lined up at
08:30 ready to start. Immediately we headed up hill and then dropped down to the
coastal path before gradually climbing the rocky trail that snaked along the
coastline. Running into a strong headwind right from the off we were given a
taste of what we would be in for as the paths were already saturated, boggy,
slippery and dangerous, so much so that five people in front of me slipped over
within the first 1km.
Being the lightweight chap that I am, I don't
tend to fare too well in the wind and several times I came close to being blown
off the cliff edge which wasn't much fun. The scenery was beautiful and I would
of appreciated it even more if I had been brave enough to look up from the floor
as I was running, but with the first 11 miles into the wind and rain that was
never an option, especially on rocky and technical trails.
After the
1st checkpoint which I reached in 2nd place we headed inland for a mile which
bought some welcome shelter before we rejoined the coastal path heading back in
the direction we had come... now having to negotiate oncoming Ultra Runners as
well as the Wind and a very narrow path. Thankfully at 14 miles we turned inland
once again climbing a huge hill to the second checkpoint. Now in first place I
was destined to run on my own the rest of the way in what seemed like a solo
battle of Man vs Weather and Trail.
The fields and paths were by now so
sodden that grip was impossible and several bambi on ice moments ensued. At one
point I actually slid down most of a hill at about 18 miles as there was no
chance of running down it. I can only describe it as trying to run on chocolate
mousse!! Thankfully after the 'mousse' field terra-firma took over and a
majority of the next five miles were on country lanes with a tail wind towards
the most northerly end of the course and Slapton Sands.
Here at the 25
mile point I turned south again on the coast and as you can imagine straight
into the driving rain and unforgiving head wind. I was now running but hardly
feeling like I was moving. Still in 1st place I ploughed on, but at times I was
forced to walk and even stand still as I waited for the gusts to abate. There
was just no point wasting energy trying to move.
Having completed the
1st loop of just over 28 miles, I continued through Beesands to complete the
10km course which meant heading along some of the same paths that I had run on
earlier that morning. Now though they had been trampled by 10k, Half Marathon
and Marathon Runners as well as battered by the elements which made them even
worse. The wind was also stronger and the rain was unrelenting. So much so that
the organisers cut the course short by 2 miles as it was too dangerous to
attempt to run round Start Point for a second time. To give you an idea of how
bad visibility was at 1pm, the National Trust lighthouse at Start point was
functioning at the time, where as when I ran past it at 08:45 it wasn't needed!
Looping back I began to catch runners who were finishing the half marathon
and the 10k course who had set off sometime after us. The course and conditions
were so challenging that many people were walking completing these distances.
Finally I saw the sign that said 1 mile to go and spurred on by the thought of a
hot cup of tea or twelve I put my head down and pushed on. Miraculously I
managed to finish the event, although I was in a pretty poor state come the end
as I had been cold for the last 4 miles and unable to get warm as well as being
totally soaked through.
Somehow I had won the battle with the elements
and come home in 1st place, but it was a brutal event on an unbelievably tough
day and I admire anyone who competed in those conditions, whichever distance
they were attempting to conquer.