Well I couldn't do the Bullkock Smithy this year due to having a friends wedding to go to, but the second biggest race in the local calendar is the High Peak 40. Starting in the centre of Buxton it is a 40 mile course taking in the Goyt valley, Rushup Edge, Mam Tor, Cavedale, Tideswell, Monsal Trail and Deepdale. There's a fair amount of climb on it at 2000 metres in total. Results:
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Position Time
79 out of 160 8:25:32
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Well my build up to this had not been ideal. A good training month in July gave way to a patchy training month in August when I had two holidays, and then September was even more of a struggle with weddings and stag do's every weekend.
Turning up at the start there was a welcome surprise of loads of faces I knew with Nick Ham and quite a few other Stockport Harriers lining up plus the support driver for one of the female runners I'd met at last years Bullock Smithy. The whistle was blown without much of a do and caught many of us by surprise and we were off!
Start to Bonsal Incline - 023751 - 3.1 miles in
Leaving Buxton I took it easy as there was a long way and I was trying to conserve my energy as much as possible. I was probably a little dehydrated to start with which wasn't a clever move, but overall feeling fine. There was a short climb and then onto a dismantled railway section through to the checkpoint
Checkpoint 1 to Taxal Layby - 009799 - 6.5 miles in
Having stocked up on water we hit a dream stretch for me... a long downhill on road! I got a little carried away and flew down this. At the bottom I ran along Fernilee Reservoir and then into a rougher offroad section along the River Goyt. Reaching the checkpoint I felt OK and adopted the Jeff Lapham checkpoint etiquette of just push on through as quickly as possible!
Checkpoint 2 to Digleach Farm - 044810 - 9.2 miles in
A difficult to navigate section followed with plenty of tight twists and turns and thankfully it was well signposted but there were one or two points I thought I'd lost contact with people. After crossing the railway bridge I had a long climb and at this point caught up with Paul and Jonah from Stockport Harriers. These chaps are great long distance runners so I was worried I was going to quick but if I had the damage was already done so I thought I'd stick with them for a bit for a bit of company.
Checkpoint 3 to Beet Farm - 059835 - 11.5 miles in
Stocking up at the checkpoint with some flapjack I continued down the road onto Charley Lane. A long climb began as we left New Smithy and I was beginning to feel my back starting to ache a little which was a little disappointing so early into the race. The heart rate was knocking around the 160 bpm which was a little high at this stage in the race really as the adrenaline effect should have worn off.
Checkpoint 4 to Rushup Edge - 092825 - 14.4 miles in
As we left CP4 (with some more flapjack in my mouth!) there was a more gradual climb until we hit a footpath section along Rushup Edge. This section lasted a long time with plenty of ups and downs, and I started to feel my legs fading slightly and so I decided to let the rest of the Harriers go. I was pretty glad to see the checkpoint when it eventually arrived, as my back was still aching and the legs were starting to feel a little more sluggish, but the heart and lungs were still fine so I was happy. At Checkpoint 5 I overheard a funny conversation from a group of hikers hanging around watching the race...
Hiker 1: "So they've run nearly 15 miles up to this point."
Hiker 2: "Yeah, that's a long way!"
Hiker 3: "Its the marathon they've still got left to run that I'm more impressed with!"
It made me laugh!
Checkpoint 5 to Castleton - 148835 - 18.6 miles in
Leaving CP5 I knew I had one tough section ahead of me. Luckily we were already high up and even with having to descend to get to the path to go up Mam Tor, the worst part of the climb was bypassed. Climbing up Mam Tor was still tiring though with the back ache still there and the legs now quite tired. Fellow runners were starting to over take me now which was a little disappointing as it meant I had set off too quickly. Descending from Hollins Cross was a tricky descent and on training runs I've stacked it once or twice on this path so I kept it calm. However part the way down the Irish chap from the Lincoln Spires & Steeples marathon came past me! I had a quick chat with him but it was clear he was still strong and he quickly pulled away.
Checkpoint 6 to Bushy Heath Farm - 148786 - 23.1 miles in
Castleton, situated in the bottom of a valley, so that would mean more climbing! Cavedale is a beautiful climb, but it is tough. I was very tired by the time I got to the top of Cavedale and I was breathing heavily, so my heart sank as the footpath in the direction of Bushy Heath farm went up another hill. A small group of chaps kept leap frogging me due to me dropping to fast walking, but after a few minutes ahead I'd catch them up as one of them was suffering from cramps and had to keep stopping, his mates were clearly too eager and in his troubled state this chap couldn't keep up. It was good to get to Bushy Heath farm but I'll admit to feeling in a bad state with some concern about completion at this point. Looking back, it was probably the near 4.5 miles of constant climbing, but at the time I didn't put two and two together.
Checkpoint 7 to Tideswell Dale - 153743 - 26.2 miles in
What goes up, must come down as a wallpaper advert from long ago said, and so this stage was a long downhill! It would have been a real shame to waste a long downhill on the road walking, so I started jogging. Amazingly I started to feel better the longer this stage went on. I'd never been to Tideswell before and it turns out that it is a really beautiful village, definitely somewhere I'd like to go for a pub lunch sometime. Reaching Tideswell Dale picnic area checkpoint was great, but I quickly pushed on.
Checkpoint 8 to Upper Dale - 178719 - 29.2 miles in
This stage was mostly flat and followed a valley. I had a brief chat with a chap who turned out to be a triathlete on his first ultra who was doing really well, so well in fact that it was obvious he was feeling stronger then me and so I told him to push on. The scenery was very special along the Monsal Trail and as we entered Miller Dale I stopped to ask for directions off some friendly hikers, and back on the correct trail I headed up some stairs onto the disused railway and then the next checkpoint.
Checkpoint 9 to High Low - 158685 - 32.2 miles in
With approximately 10 miles to go I was feeling positive. My back was hurting less my legs felt tired but alright. A marshall directed me down a steep set of stairs by the by the railway viaduct and onto a grassy plain that ran by the river eventually crossing the road that led to a long climb up Deep Dale (or Deep Dale 1 as a lady who was running with me at this point called it). I was tiring by this point and and the long climb on uneven terrain made it worse. During this most unwelcome climb, I was talking to a chap who had completed the Lakeland 100 (that's 100 miles in the Lake District folks!) and it was fascinating to hear his experience. I was glad to eventually reach the top and the next checkpoint
Checkpoint 10 to King Sterndale - 093717 - 37.2 miles in
A long flat road made up most of the route to the next checkpoint. This became very hard on my knees and I was reduced to walking for a half of it. With the next checkpoint in sight the ground suddenly fell away to reveal a really steep valley in the form of Deep Dale 2 (a different Deep Dale) that I had to cross. The really sharp climb even had a race photographer on, and the cheeky chappy started laughing as he caught me up on down hill carrying his big camera... his smile disappeared on the sharp uphill though :)
Checkpoint 11 to Finish - 053726 - 40 miles
This was a short stretch, and a lonely one. I didn't see a single competitor on this section as I jogged / walked along. I decided to keep what pace I could up as I didn't want any more people overtaking me this close to the finish. Running up the final straight at Buxton Community School I was cheered on by the Stockport Harriers from the early points in the race. It was a huge relief to cross the finish line as by this point everything was hurting! My watch said I crossed the finish line in 8:21:28 rather then the official time.
I really enjoyed this race overall, and was over the moon with my performance. My training had been less than was needed really for a race of this distance, and I think the main reason I got away with it has been my prolonged period of high mileage over the last year and a half. The race organisation was superb so a huge thank you to them. The food I ate provided by them on my way round probably cost the race entry fee! :)
Cheers
Andy
