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Race Review

Race Review: Pen Y Fan Race 2012

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My previous post was a brief preview on the Pen Y Fan race and what it entailed, now its done and dusted how did it go and what are my thoughts?

Race Day

Arriving at the race start the weather was appearing to be in our favour and although there was a substantial amount of low cloud the rain was holding off. Heading over to the registration tent we queued for our race numbers, collecting mine (176) it was also reconfirmed that due to the variable weather conditions all runners were required to carry the mandatory kit; full windproof body cover, compass, whistle and map all in a rucksack or bumbag. Having sold my Inov8 bumbag and not wanting to use my Salomon S-Lab because it’s not waterproof I opted to use my OMM Ultra 15 which might be a bit large size wise but I had taken out the foam padding and compressed it right down.

With the 11am start looming I was contemplating my objectives for the race. Last year I completed the run in 1:05:38 which considering it was my first proper fell race wasn’t too bad, but given the record time of 00:30:00 not a winning time and in I finished second to last in 2011. Given how the weather had been I was preparing myself to being slower, remembering how punishing the climb was and how difficult the descent would be.

Trying not to dwell on the prospect of finishing worse than last time I waited for the race briefing to be completed and for the starter to kick things off. At 11:05 we were off and immediately the lead runners were off at a pace I can only dream about. I on the other hand was plodding along, Gareth had a good start and was a head of me and increasing his lead. I fell into the pack and ran until the climb started getting steeper and fast walking was the more efficient method of progressing. Eventually crossing the stile the real climb began and the sweat was pouring off me. Gareth had now opened even more gap and I was moving as quickly as I could but keeping pace with those in front of me, with some conciliation taken from the fact that I wasn’t last and had a few people behind me.

I am not going to lie, I found the whole uphill section hard going, despite all the running I have been doing the relentless uphill just took the strength of my legs. The year before in preparation we had been on the treadmill with 10kg in a backpack and the incline ramped up, this year I had done none of that and it was showing. I hit the summit in 00:43:06, 16 seconds slower than last year.

Already I was slower and I still had the descent to come, which I had already anticipated being slower than last year. Running towards the cairn and following the marshalls instructions to drop to the left I hit the downhill. As you will be able to see from the hill profile at the bottom of the post this descent is steep. With no path to speak of it’s just trying to find a route down on the grass as quickly and safely as possible. I can’t recall how many times I slipped over onto my bum, each time thinking to myself  “don’t break your ankle!”. One guy decided that trying to descend on his feet was too much and slid about 50 meters on his bum, overtaking about 4 people as he went. He got up find and carried on, but this is not a technique I was going to adopt.

I continued down, aware that I needed to make up time on the climb but knowing there was only so much I could do. Not being a seasoned fell runner I simply didn’t have the experience or the bravery to go any faster than I did. Eventually it leveled out and it was then a case of navigating through the boggy grass back onto the route we took up. Continuing down I was finally able to break out some speed (you will see on the pacing chart) and actually did some running!! It was here that I managed to re-take some of my lost places on the descent and passed about 3 people on the final sprint finish.

Surprisingly I had finished the race in 01:01:55, about 3 minutes 30 seconds quicker which I was utterly surprised at. The descent had been done in about 18 minutes which rather than the 22 minutes the year before.

As you can see, its a lot of up and a very very steep down!
A birds eye view of the route
A chart detailing my speed vs elevation, you can see that its pretty slow until the point the descent levels out and I feel more secure in my footing.

As an Event

As an event the whole thing is great, from the simplicity of signing up on the Brecon Fans website (link at the bottom of the post) to the value for money (who can argue with £4.00). Organisation is really good and the people are all very friendly. I was most pleased with the return of the beer and flapjack at the end of the race. I would say if you are looking to add a fell race to your calendar then this one is a must.

So what have I learnt?

First and foremost, I need to train on the descents. I just can’t seem to go as quickly as the other runners, I know I am not going to be as quick as the top end runners (9 minutes anyone!) but if I could shave 4-5 minutes off I would be pleased. Part of me thinks the shoe choice could play a part, but that must only a small one at that, it has to be mainly in technique and confidence.

If anyone who reads this post has any suggestions, training or technique then feel free to leave a comment as the advice will be most appreciated.

Link to Breconfans website: http://www.breconfans.org.uk/home

Picking up the speed for a sprint finish
Another shot of the sprint to the end
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Pen Y Fan Race 2012

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So another year passes and it is time again for the Pen Y Fan race, a short sharp event that takes you to the summit of the mountain and back down again. Spread over about a 6 km distance the climb works out at about 588 meters for the first 3.5km then the same again for the decent but over the remaining 2.5km.

I have taken the below description from the Brecon Fans website (see my links on the main page)

The race starts from the bottom of the field just beyond the last farm building (now a school bunkhouse). Please note this is about 10 minutes walk from registration, so give yourself plenty of time.

The first quarter of a mile or so is on an old cart track, or to the left of the trees through the field, then out onto a grassy slope getting steeper up to a fence and stile. After the stile, a walkers’ path keeps to the right-hand side of the valley, climbing steadily and narrowing towards the skyline. The path levels out as you reach the main scarp, passing the obelisk in memory of Tommy Jones, a small boy who got lost and met his end here. You will probably be feeling like joining him by now, but please give a cheery wave to the marshal anyway.

NB do not take a sudden left at any point from now until after the summit of Pen y Fan – there are precipitous drops.

Now the steepest part of the climb begins, about half a mile up the man-made path up to the summit of Corn Du. Another marshal will be at the summit cairn (cheery wave please) – you should keep going straight on across the summit plateau (remember… no left turns, but don’t turn right either unless you want to go to Merthyr). Then a loose scrabbly descent takes you to a large path across to Pen y Fan, climbing on a man-made path onto the large summit area. Keep eyes peeled for the rather nice sandstone ripple-bedding, and then give a lovely smile for the marshal at the summit cairn. Note in passing that the cairns on Corn Du and Pen y Fan are Bronze Age burial mounds, each having several stiffs within (possibly eminent fell runners of the day).

At the cairn, you may now turn left, in fact you must, while making a mental note that Keith Anderson descended from here to the finish in 7 minutes. Try to leave the loose eroded path as soon as you can, in order to take a straight-line grassy descent. If you get off the path within 10m of the top that’s fine, but it is quite steep. You can go further on down the path and ridge if you want, but if you go too far before turning left you run the risk of having to cross the valley where the stream turns into a ravine.

The descent is steep and a bit tussocky, with enough sharp stones to make you think twice about rolling down. Head straight down the slope, until it levels out, when you should bear a bit right across the rougher ground.

I’m not sure how to find the perfect line across here, but if you head for the right-hand end of the hills on the opposite side of the valley, you won’t go too far wrong. This bit can be marshy, with a couple of small streams to cross, but you should find yourself re-joining the outward route not far above the fence and stile. From there it’s about another half mile to the finish – many runners stay in the field to the right of the line of trees, instead of following the track.

As you can see it’s a pretty hard going event, rated as “AS” or in the words of the website “brutal but it doesn’t go on for long”. Last year I came second to last place with a time of 01:05:14 (although had I done that time the year before I would have been mid to back pack as the longest was 1:38ish). I would like to say that I am looking to improve the time over last year but given the weather we have been experiencing across the UK I can see it being longer, if it goes ahead at all!

Fingers crossed we get a bit of dry weather, if not a little bit of rain and not the deluges that have been occurring recently. The race has mandatory kit requirements so I will be packing a variety of jackets from my Salomon light jacket to my full mountain ready Berghaus Goretex Paclite jacket and waterproof trousers (god I hope these aren’t necessary). If it’s the latter I will probably need a backpack but I am not sure the Salomon S-Labs will be able to fit it so it may have to be the OMM 15litre which is a bit overkill but its all I got.

I will try and get some photos for when I write my race report, but for now below is the hill profile of the race “gulp!!”

image

Training Updates

Training this week: 02/07/2012 – 08/07/2012

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So following the recovery week after the Trail Marathon my running has been somewhat limited this week. Tuesday morning I completed a 4 mile run, running at an 08:37 pace so not too speedy but a reasonable pace to ease back into it. Tuesday evening I went to the gym with Kev to do a weights session.

If I can remember the exercises correctly we did 3 sets of Skullcrushers, then 3 sets pullup, 3 bent over row and 3 deadlift with some leg raises and planks thrown in. I did notice how the lack of weights has effected my strength and I was lifting noticeably less than I used too before the running training took over.

Wednesday was a rest day, the DOMS were quite bad but bizarrely it was good to be feeling them again. Thursday was a longer run at 8 miles and I was feeling the aches from Tuesday so the pace was pretty slow at 09:40/mi. My usual long run on the Saturday was replaced by another strength session at the gym with Steve, which focused on the legs. This seemed to be a sensible decision as the weather was absolutely terrible and had I been outside I would have ended up a drowned rat!

Diet wise I have been focusing on increasing my protein intake as well as increasing my meals throughout the day to try to keep my metabolism working throughout the day. I am still trying to drop body fat but trying to balance reducing calories and maintaining the energy levels for the running can be quite tough, but it seems to be working with another 1/2 pound gone this week.

Next week I will continue with my weights and running, hopefully getting a Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday run in before the Pen Y Fan race on Saturday.

I mentioned training with Steve on Saturday, he also writes a blog on weightlifting, nutrition and general fitness and has made some impressive gains. If you want to read more follow this link: Stevesgymblog

Also, if you want more details on the Pen Y Fan Race follow: Brecon Fans Racing

Total Distance: 12.34 miles, Average Pace: 09:19/mi, Total Calories (excluding weights) 1596

Running: How to get started

Running: How to get Started, “Ok, so I know why I am doing it, what next?”

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Ok, so I know why I am doing it, what next?….

Next up will probably be getting some running gear if you don’t have any already. I would say that depending on what you’re going to do, don’t worry about spending a load of cash on tops, shorts etc. I started out with some running stuff from Sports Direct, nice and cheap and pretty functional.

Now the next thing you will need is trainers;

Choosing a pair of trainers is an important step and while you can be lucky and find the perfect pair of shoes on your first try (a guy I run with picked up a pair of Adidas Kanadia and they were perfect for him, now he is on his third or fourth pair and has no desire to change to another brand/style) it may take a bit more effort than just hitting an online store and clicking add to basket.

What I would suggest is heading down to a running shop, preferably in the afternoon as your feet swell throughout the day and getting a fitting in the afternoon will ensure the sizing is right. Once there it is a case of getting your gait analysed by one of the staff, usually they will get you running on a treadmill and video how you run. I would then expect the member of staff to ask the following questions:

  • How much running experience, if any, do you have?
  • How many miles a week do you run?
  • What type of surface do you run on?

What they should then do is give an explanation of your gait and the type of pronation that you have (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foot_type for more detail) . Usually if you have your gait checked in this way and buy a pair of trainers you can take them away and give them some test runs (on a treadmill) and if they don’t work out take them back (check this at the store and if they don’t offer this then I would try to find another store to get the analysis done)

Lastly don’t be led to believe that you have to spend £100’s to get a decent pair of shoes, mine were £35.00, the afore-mentioned Adidas were about £40.00 so it doesn’t have to break the bank to find some trainers you like.

It may seem like a lot of effort, but trust me finding a pair of trainers that work for you is worth the effort and you will notice the benefits as the mileage starts increasing.

I myself run  in a minimal pair of trainers with a low heel to toe drop of about 4mm, which has worked for me and thus far I have managed to avoid any real niggles.

My NB MT110 trail running shoes
Running: How to get started

Running: How to get started “So I want to start running”

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I have been thinking about trying to put some of the things I have learnt since taking up running, going from not being able to run one lap of the park (2.5km) without stopping to where I am now, so this is that post. I should probably say that the below is all my own opinion, obviously I would never intentionally give any bad advice but at the same time I am not a trainer, I don’t have any qualifications etc I am just basing it on my experiences, mistakes and on bits of information that I have picked up on my way.

I actually was going to do the whole thing as a single post but the next section that I was writing is looking quite substantial so what I have decided to do is break them up into a series, each under the same category for ease of viewing.

So I want to start running….

I have mentioned in the “about” section that I started running because of signing up for the Grim 2010, this was my way of getting motivated to go out and run. Now participating in a race within 4 months of starting out may not be everyone’s cup of tea (I did have a base level of fitness to work from, not that it felt like that on the first few runs) but the premise is sound, have a goal, an objective, something you want to achieve.

This can be losing weight, raising money for charity, getting fitter or as above having a race/event. The reason I say have a goal is that from my experience, getting up on a cold wintry morning to go for a run can be tough and by having something to work towards can really give you the kick up the bum to get out there and do it.

Another way of getting motivated is joining a group of like-minded people, I would say that if you are thinking of getting out and running and are looking for other people to run with, then I would recommend joining a Parkrun. Its free, there is probably one near you and it happens every Saturday. There is no minimum ability required and it is a perfect environment to get you started.

The website is http://www.parkrun.com/home and all the information on how to join is on there, as well as a directory to find the nearest one to you.

So, you have a reason to run, not you need some running gear and this will be the topic of my next post.