Training Log Archive: Mark3

https://www.mdoc.routegadget.co.uk/rg2/#329&co...

I definitely can't compete with the actual elites on this kind of terrain! Good fund to try occasionally though. In general, the routes I took were too safe; knowing exactly where I was for the whole leg, rather than running straight only looking at the high level detail and only using the minutiae when nearer the control. I did do that okay on a couple of legs but they tended to be the ones where straight was a bad choice!

Really don't like 1:15k as the magnifier messes with my distance judgement - hopefully this was my last M21E event (at least at non-urban) and so I can avoid it in future.

I was quite pleased with my run (ie, slow and careful but no big mistakes) until #14 when I relied too much on the ride and not enough on any of the other features , and then totally failed to read the contours and had to go all the way to the top of the hill to relocate - actually did this pretty well but it took ages.

My other big miss #18 I feel as I was genuinely unlucky as I was in the right place...actually looking at the descriptions it does say knoll SW side; think I was looking at the NE of it and assuming the control wasn't there...I never tend to use that columns for non-urbans #lessonlearned.

Forest orienteering is not my forte. Enjoyed the first 90 mins or so, then just looking forward to it being over really... the good sign was that my legs were basically fine from 11 hours and 4000m ascent the day before. Ultra running definitely my strength.

The plan was to do legs 3 and 5, but I thought 3 and 4 would be a better training run.

Left house at 3:15am to drive to Keswick to meet Wendy to get lift to Dunmail for c.7am start, Matt had lost 13 mins on L1 and another 5 or so on L2 so he was a bit behind. Strong on first two summits tho. Tom took a good line to Calf Crag which I'd copy - trod which begins by going diagonally across a marshy area towards a lone fence post, just after you go around to the right of a little summit. Looks like it's going to be too far left but isn't.

He also took a good line from Thunacar Knott to Harrison Stickle, I've always been left before on the rocky path, but we went right of the protruding summit instead and picked up a trod, and it was much quicker.

On the Bowfell line I realise what I did wrong last time, there's one place where the trod splits and one contours and there's a scree slope upwards, and it's the scree slope you want. It's really clear from there.

Matt was struggling about Esk, slurring his words and talking about quitting. We were outwardly buoyant but inwardly worried. He was ok on Yewbarrow but struggled on Red Pike - I went the non-standard route via Gosforth Crag and was 43:13, which was 6:51 quicker than them. Need to compare this with my other times, think I did a spreadsheet somewhere...

Tom also contoured around the rocks to Steeple and came out at a lower stile, I think that's a good route too. The way down before Looking Stead is to get down to the R path asap, and I got that right this time.

From here Matt was flying, I struggled to keep up on Kirkfell and Gable. We implemented the good route down Gable perfectly. Easy from there to Honister (R-most spur).

Good day, but I definitely had a bad patch around 9 hours. Need to keep getting out on longer runs.

Too much to do and got to get an early night!

C • Sunday 2

Bit disastrous really, tried a new loop but stymied by multiple cow encounters and newly-mown fields.
Doubt I'd take a group that way again!

C • Cattle 3

Easy loop in the heat.

Ended up being tough for an evening run, although my own fault since I planned it. Warm evening. Somewhere in the middle of the group but noone else had run for 7 hours yday, so I was happy.

Been wanting to do this for a while but it needed a car at the start and the end, and there's surprisingly few people who fancy a 7 hour run.

16 peaks on this one although the three in the middle somewhere, two of which are unnamed on the OS map, are within a few hundred metres of each other. The BG this ain't.

Fairly obvious up to Carnedd Moel Siabod, wouldn't make any changes there. Coming off it looked like NW for a bit longer before W down to the stile would avoid some of the rocks.

Nice ridge all the way to Bwlch Clorad, only issue was there was remembering it was a summit. Then just fence line (lot of that on this leg) to Carnedd y Cribau.

At Clogwyn Pwll Budr there was a steep downclimb which Rob wanted to find a way to avoid so he went way off W; it actually looks like W just to the first re-entrant (about 30m) then down and back to the fence would be sufficient.

Cerrig Cochion was the only real mess we made - I'd tried to follow the Kim Collinson (record) time from his tracker, but I don't know if it lost signal here or something but it left the fence line and went up and down a load of thick heather and steep entirely unnecessary slopes - and hence, so did we. Sticking to the fence line here would've been better no matter what it was like.

More sensible choice to Moel Meirch although we could've stayed on the fence even longer and just cut out and back at the last minute.

Next summit Ysgafell Wen and then one that's not named on the map but seems to take the name of the tarn, so Mynyyd Llynau'r Cwn, straightforward and close together. #8 was the only English named summit on the round 'Three Tops', which it did sort of have. Could cut the corner to that one.

Edit: Allen's book says Three Tops has a huge cairn on it.

Then Moel Druman and Allt-Fawr were straightforward too, we went North of the Northern tarn on the KC line again but I couldn't see any real reason for not going in between them. Coming off it though, we were way too S - best to go right up to and across the tarn on the ridge, then it's grassy from there.

Nice descent all the way down to the quarries but a steep climb up to Foel Ddu. Moel-yr-hydd very close by. Then a rocky contour (on an actual path!) to the col before steep out and back to Moelwyn Bach. Steepest climb of the day up Craigysgafn but then Moelwyn Mawr actually felt like a proper summit with a big cairn, and Other People (so far largely lacking in the beautiful BH sunshine).

Down to Llyn Croesor it would've been better to stay on the fence line for longer until the T of Tips on the OS and then go N - less rocky slope, less steep and less bog at the bottom making the sightly longer distance worth it. Through the sheepfold seemed a good line to the track, then NW across to the path and down to the dam.

Climb to Cnicht was tough at the end of the day - first ridge asap (we contoured for too long then had to climb steeply) then up the fence to the corner, then diagonally up for as long as possible (we climbed a bit soon I think) and straight to the ridge as soon as there's a grassy bit through the scree, then ridgeline to summit.

Worst part was probably coming off Cnicht to the SW. Don't think there's many choices but the top bit is very slow. At the one path junc there is, one went right of the ridge and the other went left. We went right which was dire. I'd go left in future (SE).

Edit: Allen's book says go left.

Some grassy options to the right a bit lower down.

Then a lovely grassy descent turning into track turning into road. Overall a fun leg. Some boggy bits but not deserving of N's characterisation of it as 'the boggy leg'.

I'll add my split times in at some point. Any PB attempt feels like it's going to be close to 24h though, it's much harder than the BG.

It was hot today. Drank nearly 3L and it was good training carrying that much.

(CP to outdoor centre) 04:40
Carnedd Moel Siabod 49:00
Clogwyn Bwlch-y-maen 18:12
Carnedd y Cribau 9:54
Cerrig Cochion 47:22
Moel Meirch 14:11
Ysgafell Wen 26:55
Mynydd Llynnau'r Cwn 3:51
Three Tops 6:59
Moel Druman 9:17
Allt-fawr 13:16
Foel Ddu 36:36
Moel-yr-hydd 10:36
Moelwyn Bach 25:23
Craigysgafn 12:12
Moelwyn Mawr 14:09
Cnicht 1:07:42
CP 1:00:47