Sky running Serbia - Bobija 56km +3000m

Whilst being over in Croatia for the 100 mile of Istria I thought I saw a race for the following weekend in the neighbouring country Serbia, turns out I got my dates wrong and it was two weeks after! Probably a good thing really. It meant that I had time to travel down Croatia and check out some potential locations for a coaching holiday and explore some mountains in Montenegro also, before flying up to Belgrade where the race organisers had arranged for me to meet some local runners who were traveling down to the race location on the Thursday night.

Before the race I'd been sent all the details of the race in English and everyone I spoke to was incredibly helpful and welcoming! The race itself begins in a small town called Ljubovija close to the Bosnian boarder and finishes at a mountain hut nearby so the race has a lot more uphill than downhill.  We arrived around 10pm and got registered which was quick and easy before I headed to my hotel up the road.

Before the race after looking at the course details, I'd thought anything just under under 6 hours should be a decent run considering the uphill nature of the course and considering it was likely to have some technical terrain. There was also a 26km run starting at the same time but turning off at a checkpoint about 15km in so made a mental note not to go that way! The weather on the morning was very low cloud and foggy, although I didn't notice it raining the ground was wet which I know doesn't bode well for the Brooks trail shoes I had with me.

From the start there was a group moving around 6 min miles through the town as we had a few kms before the first climb on a 4x4 type track. I sat just behind and just ticked along nicely as we started to spread out there was at least 10 ahead of me maybe 15. The funny thing about races with multiple distances is you can never be sure who's in what race... Sometimes the shorter races attract less experienced runners and all the 'competitive' ones choose the longer distance so they actually end up going faster than those on the short distance or.... Other times you get the fast ones doing the short distance and moving far quicker than those on the Ultra.... And sometimes it's just a complete mix!!!! Thinking about positions therefore fairly pointless!

The first climb was just about gradual enough to run and moving through the mist passing the first checkpoint I got my card stamped (prove you've visited the checkpoint) and passed two runners. Visibility was low and although the marking was great you couldn't see very far ahead. I could hear some footsteps behind on a couple of occasions over the next few kms as I was just doing my best to stay on my feet over some of the muddier sections.

Reaching the 2nd CP a volunteer pointed to turn left thinking I was on the 26km but when I said 56 they all told me right which is what the instructions said and also there was a big sign to direct us the correct way. This gave me an impression I must be near the front but still plenty of kms remain. A runner followed me the same way also doing the 56km and I noticed some fresh looking footprints in the mud.

It wasn't long before we hit the long descent, I was going as quick as I could with the slippery ground although it was quite rocky it would be quite straightforward to run in the dry. Suddenly I appeared behind another runner and the one behind me caught up also as we reached the bottom of the gorge together about halfway into the race. It was slippery single track through the gorge and then a good climb up to the next CP. I had to walk a couple of spots up here as it was slippery and quite steep in places but mostly ran. The route flattens out a little and the fog was thick. On one of the long switch backs I noticed there was nobody behind me and just carried on looking out for the up coming CP.

A few minutes later I heard a voice shouting although I had no idea what it was saying and thought nothing of it. The voice continued and after a minute or so I stopped and out of the mist came a guy gasping for breath. Turns out he was from the checkpoint and I'd run past before they were ready and he'd been trying to chase me after they saw the back of me. I had to run back with him to the checkpoint a few minutes away because he didn't have the stamp to mark my card. As we ran back a lady from the checkpoint had the stamp and I turned back around and continued on the route. I'd expected the two previous runners to catch me as it wasn't long since I'd seen them and after spending 3 to 4 mins there sorting out the checkpoint I must have moved much quicker on the ascent out of the gorge.

Some more climbing over an 8km section to reach the finish at 41km  but.... We have to do a 15 km loop from here before we really finish! I guessed by now I was most probably leading as the next checking was covered over and i caught the volunteers by surprise, although maybe not... I couldn't tell and kept the intensity up moving as well as I could between the occasional bit of skiing on the mud. I think I'd gone through the marathon distance around 3.40 from memory but I realised I was going to be far quicker than I'd expected unless there was something crazy ahead. I could remember there being a decent climb near the end but hadn't paid that much attention. Then.... The route began to descend... A long way.... This is only really going to mean one thing! I popped out onto a short road section just under 50km and reached the final checkpoint now rejoining the 26km route although they'd all passed through by now.

I checked the watch again and remember thinking there's perhaps a sub 5hr on the cards unless either a very steep climb coming up, like a scramble almost, Sure enough we turned off the road and the trail began to climb, quite steep but nothing crazy as we traversed a little across the hill.... Then there was a sharp right turn literally straight up the face of the hillside into the mist. Haha yes the elevation is coming alright! I pulled on trees, grass, dug my fingers into the ground to drag myself up the hill. It was an awesome climb and my body was feeling good for it as I pushed on. It did become more gradual near the top through the forest as I continued to run. I was passing a few runners from the 26km and knew that it must be close to the finish. It was all quite sudden as the mist was still lingering and then I spotted a building and the finish!

All over in 5hrs 8 minutes. I'd taken over 40 minutes from the previous record and arrived in first. I had a quick shower under a cold hose pipe to get all the mud and grit off before being whisked inside to where there was a hot fire and warm food. I spent the afternoon chatting to some of the runners also finishing and there were a couple of busses to get everyone back down the mountain to the town later on. Although a nice temperature for running I'm sure the views are usually much better usually.

I'd like to say a big thankyou to all the team involved with organising the event, I had a really good experience and was well looked after. Well done to all the runners of course and thanks for making my trip to Serbia a good one!

100 miles of Istria, Croatia 22hr 03min

170km with 7000m of ascent crossing the Istria region of Croatia, relatively close to the boarder with Italy and Slovenia nearby. The team organising the race have got things spot on logistically and looking back, I can't really think where you could improve the event. The finish is in a town against the sea called Umag and all the registration and finish ceremonies/ meals etc are here so it makes sense to stay here and take the bus to the start on the Friday afternoon to the start. After the Northburn 100 mile last month I wasn't approaching this with quite the same focus and intensity but was fully expecting to be faster here (3000m less elevation although a touch longer) with the same kind of approach it would probably crack below the 20 hour mark.

Sooooo.... Friday there's a fleet of coaches transporting runners to the start in Labin which has an old town square and hosts the start of the race. Lots of excitement here as the locals start to line the streets to see us all off.

I started near to the front within the top 20 as the path narrows within the first minute or two of running. I found myself behind a small group and moved ahead after about 15 mins when the path opens out. Probably now around tenth but just cruising along steady and settling into a rhythm. The only concern I really had was using new shoes and it felt as if my calves were working harder than normal although I was running OK, just kept at it.

Around 20km in the first big climb up to about 1400m and with a 4 PM start it meant the front end get to see the sunset near the top of the ascent which was pretty stunning! Beautiful weather for the whole race was forecast and apart from just throwing a jacket on briefly as I crossed the highest point of the course I ran in a vest.

The terrain in general is quite tricky underfoot with lots of small rocks, the most tricky I found were the sections going through rocky paths with long grass growing through although some sections going through woods with roots rocks and fallen leaves were also exciting! I was getting a little bit sleepy on a section of about ten km leading towards half way, maybe something to do with it being the middle of the night. The markings were incredible, you could literally always see the next marker and would pass more than one every minute.

Moving through the night in near perfect conditions I arrived with eventual 3rd place about a minute ahead at the 89km checkpoint which is the major halfway ish point and has drop bags and all that kind of stuff. Changed batteries in my torch and grabbed some more gels etc to restock my pack and was back out and moving well quickly.

Over the next section my legs didn't feel very lively, although the second half of the course is far easier on paper, overall I didn't feel I was moving that well between 100km and the finish. There are some shorter races taking place and joining our course and during the second half I thought I must have lost about 15 places although by the finish only 2 were in the 100 mile the rest were doing the 100km and 70km events I guess!

At one point I was running towards the 70 mile point and I hadn't seen a marking for about a minute! Normally in most races this isn't uncommon but having been so regular before this point I wasn't sure what to do. I decided as it  was a good track and there wasn't any obvious turnings I would carry on but checked the time and decided if nothing came up in half a km I'd go back. So half a km and I turned back... There was a runner coming towards me and he said we were OK but called someone and checked and we continued the way I had been going for about 5 minutes and the markers were back! All good i was happy to use those minutes checking the direction and it wasn't long before arriving at Hum checkpoint.

There are about 7 climbs of 400m or just less in the second half followed by a relatively easy final 15km. The day was beginning to warm up nicely as I picked off the next few checkpoints. Some beautiful old towns perched up on hills and all the volunteers were incredible! Time wasn't exactly flying by though I was enjoying the scenery and the weather couldn't be better! It wasn't long before I'd reached the final 30km and although it felt fairly slow I managed in about 3 hours taking me gently to the finish 18 minutes off 4 th position. There was a wide variety of countries taking part with 8 different nationalities in the top 10 which is great to see. Once again some fantastic organisation, everything was really straight forward and carefully planned!

I'm essentially building towards 170km in Andorra in July which had almost double the ascent of this so simply surviving it seems like a challenging idea. Once I get out there I'll have a better idea what I'm in for but anything much under 40 hours would place the top 10 in previous years for comparison!

Warrington Way 40 mile ultra 2015

Being from Warrington the idea of running an ultra that passes within a couple of miles from home was quite appealing. On the other hand though, part of me was thinking 'Hmmm... Do I really fancy running 40 miles around Warrington...?'

I had a look at the route map posted online and recognised about 75% of the route from various training runs in the past few years. I didn't really know any of the last 10 miles but went out and did a few recces in the nice dry, sunny Autumn weather. The first thing that struck me was how flat the route is (compared to my typical races these days). Also with the route being so dry even across the fields it made for easy running at a good pace. I also noticed that even though it was stressed that you should be able to find your own way, on the day it was to be marked really well with tape. I decided after recceing a few parts in such nice conditions I'd get an entry. More on those conditions later!!


Having covered all the route in advance I knew what was coming and wouldn't need to get the map out on the day and could just focus on running. I reckoned that a sub 5 hour time was comfortably achievable. I was initially thinking somewhere just under the 4.40 mark would be my aim. Then it rained on and off for a couple of weeks and in a final recce run a few days before, even running 7 min mile pace was taking a bit too much effort over the fields. I came up with a rough schedule to hit each 10 mile checkpoint considering where the worst of the mud was and fields, elevation etc
(predicted times)
10 mile = 1.07
20 mile = 2.20
26 mile = 3.03
30 mile = 3.35
40 mile = 4.50 Finish!
*The last 10 miles have the most fields and most of the elevation comes between 27 and 30 miles.

So on to race day.... I could hear the rain outside when I woke up. I did a warm up before leaving home for 6am registration. After arriving and parking there was water running along the road and it had been raining hard for some time now. A quick and painless registration before a briefing in which we were told of a small diversion at mile 18 giving us an extra mile and then gathering on the start line just as it was turning light at 7am. The weather actually wasn't that bad overall once we got running, after a couple of miles of rain it was showery on and off though I had a good patch of sunshine when I finished.

I was straight to the front from the start and over the first few miles relaxed into an intensity that felt right. I'd been totally alone until nearly 9 mile when I heard some breathing and footsteps behind. It was Mat another local runner. We chatted over the next few miles and cruised straight through cp1 in 1hr 6 min 58 sec.... 2 seconds faster than I expected! No complaints. Shortly after the cp was the second longish field section where it can get quite muddy but we moved over there taking in the sights such as the M62 and B&Q and it wasn't as muddy as I expected. I slowed slightly to have a quick drink and a gel as we passed Buzzard Alley (that's where a Buzzard swooped me and cut the back of my head a few months ago) Mat moved about 5 seconds or so in front briefly and we were back together into the next section of fields before heading toward Burtonwood Services.

I don't think there was a quick way to run over the paths in that field so we just did our best and kept to it. The majority of the next few miles from mile 14 all the way to the 2nd cp at mile 20 is on farm tracks though we had the diversion to follow which meant we would arrive at cp2 at 21 miles. Just as we crossed the A57 at Bold Heath Mat dropped back and shouted something along the lines of see you at the finish. I turned to see he was ok and waved as I continued on to reach the cp in 2 hours 22 min so 2 minutes behind schedule but having done a mile extra. There was a lot of cheering as I passed and headed on toward Fiddlers Ferry and the Trans Pennine Trail.

As I was running alone my mind was drifting around in a trance, I did wonder where the relay runners were, I'd expected there might be a few ahead of me by now. Before long I realised I was almost at marathon distance and glanced at my watch to see it pass at 2 hours 58 mins. Next up is Moore Nature Reserve and the path drops down to the right down some stairs to weave along the path before starting with the gentle hills that make up the majority of the elevation. I was focused on getting to the next cp at 30 miles and I thought if I could get there with 1 hour 20 to spare as a worse case scenario I could average 8 min miles over the last leg and still make sub 5. 

I felt like I was working a bit harder to maintain the pace but in reality it is slightly uphill over that section as you pass the Appleton Reservoir behind Walton Gardens. Once across the fields and closing in on Hatton the pace came back ticking off 50km in 3 hr 36 min and passing the final cp in 3 hours 40 mins. I knew I was 5 minutes over my estimate but having followed the extra mile detour I thought I must actually be running just a bit quicker than my estimates. There were plenty of fields to come but I knew the route in my head and was expecting the mud that was to come. Behind Spooky world the infamous cow slurry did not disappoint. 

I was closing in fast on the M6 crossing and managed to leap the electric fences clean, as we crossed the sheep field. After getting out on the A50 road crossing I knew there were only 3 fields left before the woods and the first two were fairly straight forward. Some friendly cows in the 3rd came with me although they hadn't quite figured out how to use the style at the other end of the field. I glanced at the watch knowing I was within about 10 mins of the finish line and pushed on passing the Lymm Dam and down the Dingle before popping out in the middle of town getting some strange looks as I darted across the roads past the memorial and up the cobbled street toward the finish.

4 hours 51 mins for 41 miles... That'll do! Really happy to have been able to take part in the race and I think Kieran and Lymm Runners have done a great job of putting together the race and making use of a lot of tracks and trails that I'm sure a lot of local runners, never knew existed! In terms of organisation it was pretty much spot on... Can't think of anything that would need changing? I got some fantastic support around the route which was amazing and a huge boost! Going from what I heard after the race a lot of people had pushed themselves to new limits which is awesome too!



So was it muddy? ...

...
Getting there!


Jump over to www.charliesharpe.co.uk for free training videos and the latest race reports.

Al Andalus Ultimate Trail race 230km - 5 days

After having such a fantastic experience in 2014 I simply had to come back for another run. My only reservation was that I had the Dragon's Back race with only a week between. (300+km with 16000m ascent across the mountains of Wales) After umming and ahhh-ing and thinking it over for about... 5 seconds, I'd made up my mind and there I was on the start list.

The organisation and logistics of the race are fantastic! If you'd like to read more about how the race works then you can jump on the blog I did last year HERE. In summary it's 5 days with days 1, 3 and 5 being 38/39km, day 2 48km and day 4 at 67km. The terrain is a mix of good trail, like dirt roads and some single track and trails through the woods. The area around Alhama de Granada isn't known for being flat but there is nothing resembling rock climbing or the likes! The route markings are incredible and support staff are amazing too. Another thing to mention this is Spain and also summer... this year we experienced the local towns record temperature of 42C (in the shade) A thermometer in the sun near the finish line was showing 53C!

IF YOU JUST WANT TO READ ABOUT THE RACE AND DON'T CARE ABOUT KIT DETAILS ... skip down a little bit to the next image :)

In terms of kit, I should have reread my notes from last year as this would have saved me packing some things. Here's what I took and in ***s are things I would NOT TAKE next time

CAMP stuff

Snugpak sleeping bag (comfort rating 7degrees) never needed to zip it up ***would just take a liner

Thermarest - would be pretty uncomfortable without one!
Inflatable pillow *** could just use backpack for pillow but takes up little space
Towel - Microfibre one - just dried myself in the sun after showering and swimming though
Tooth brush + paste + suncream + aftersun
 Shoes for around camp - some road trainers incase I fancied wearing them *** would take flip flops or smaller shoes
 Shorts, long sleeve Vest and Berghaus jacket for at camp. never used the jacket but had long sleeve on to save being bitten by bugs once or twice

RUN stuff

Blister plasters, adhesive tape - basic first aid things, never had to use any of it.

Elete electrolyte 

Vaseline - Small tin ... Stops things rubbing, worth carrying though I never used it
1 pairs of injinji socks (washed all kit after running so wore exactly same kit each day)
1 pair of run shorts
1 9bar team vest
1 hat about £1 from Teneriefe a couple of weeks ago... broke on day one but pinned it together... you get what you pay for!
1 pair of Berghaus vapour claw Trail shoes - perfect
Salomon Xt wings belt - bottle holder belt with an extra couple of pockets for first aid and camera.
2 x 600ml bottles, usually only had 1 to drink between CP's but used the other for tipping water on myself on longer days - worth considering how long you'll be between cps some people who were slower runners were going through all the water before the cps...
Camera phone for piccies on route also has inbuilt torch for around camp at night
Garmin 310xt gps watch, record the data and keep an eye on things if you want to
Sunglasses - The usual Oakley's

Food wise I took....
3 x Dehydrated meals, the Decathlon ones which were nice enough. Day 1 finishes literally at a bar so I bought food there. Day 5 finishes in town so went to the supermarket. The other days I had this about 3 hours after finishing.
8 x Breakfast 9bars (2 each morning although on Wednesday and Friday I only ate 1)
4 x recovery shake... .Had this soon after finishing 
3 x SIS Go carbohydrate sachets ... handy to carry and mix into water if needed. Used 2 of them during the week one on day 2 and one on day 4
4 x protein recovery bars. had between meals or before bed.

Not really much that I could cut out that I packed. I didn't use the first aid stuff but I wouldn't run without it. If you get something causing a blister  during a stage and don't stop to tape it, a couple hours can soon make your race uncomfortable. Didn't have a mark on my feet at the end. Sleeping bag was too hot to sleep in again. The waist pack was fine for the running, most people had race vests but if I can get away with a small waist pack instead I will. Most people had much more stuff than that (or at least much bigger bags) 

I personally think the less stuff you have to mess with the more simple it is. 

Less decisions = less stress perhaps? Also less stuff is less to organise. I've done a lot of races and multi day runs now and have a pretty good idea what I will use and need. If you're doing your first one you might end up taking a bit of extra stuff. 

Anyway on to day 1!

Day 1
I had run about 50 miles the week after Dragons Back and a bit of cycling and climbing. The legs were feeling ok though I hadn't done anything hard or intense with them so opted for a gentle start on day 1. It felt hotter than the previous year and I remembered feeling a bit hot towards the back end of the first day in 2014. From the start there were 2 guys in the lead and pushing a good pace towards the first hill and the climb up to cp 1 at 11km. Mauri a local runner and Carlos from Brazil. Then myself and a group of 4 or 5 runners a little bit behind. As the climb started to kick in I pulled away from the group aside from Belgian Jochan who passed me and we caught up with Carlos moving into 2nd and 3rd as we climbed toward the first cp. I actually felt like I wasn't working as hard as last year but hit the cp within 60 seconds of my time last year.

The next 10km is generally down hill with a few little climbs here and there and I moved on at a comfortable pace slowly gaining on 2nd. Aside from my hat breaking and trying to tie it together pretty it was all fine and I was happy with the legs as the temperature started to climb. A quick refill cp 2 then off along the undulating road to cp3. I was feeling the heat a lot now and didn't really have any shade or a hat which seemed to make a big difference as I didn't feel quite as hot on the other days. I was glad to refill my water and get a cup of coke at the 3rd cp then it was home straight back to Alhama de Granada where I held a coaching holiday in February so I knew exactly how far it was to the finish. I felt like I was getting cooked and dropped the pace over the last section to arrive in 3rd, very warm but feeling physically great and made the most of the pool and nice food available throughout the afternoon and evening.

My post race routine was basically to get hydrated as soon as possible**
I'd have fluids with some elete water post race for the first 30 mins or so. Whilst I was cooling down. Then a recovery shake and milk where possible.
I'd continue nibbling on watermelon and sipping away at water before having a feed about 90 mins post run and again about 90 mins after that. Basically when I wasn't running I was drinking water, eating and lying in the shade or splashing about in the pool. Generally I was going to bed around midnight when the temps had cooled (hardly) and waking up 30 - 60 mins before the start time... Yes you might say cutting it fine but I was on my holiday and wanted a relaxed week of running :)



**I used no electrolytes on day 1 just to see what would happen and whether they were making a difference. It took me until almost 6 hours after the race to get properly hydrated again. The other days I continued to use Elete water after running in a couple of my drinks until I was hydrated which was generally 2 or 3 hours. In the race I was averaging 800ml per 10km of running and probably drinking about 8 - 10l per day of fluids maybe a bit more

Day 2 
I woke up feeling fresh and ready, basically I would guzzle down about 500ml of water then my 9 bars, clothes on, bag packed, quick mobility routine and on the start line.

For day 2 I was feeling good knowing the legs were ok and that the Dragons Back Race hadn't done any damage. I love the gorge at Alhama de Granada and the route sets off straight though there and out onto some undulating tracks before hitting cp 2 and the start of the single tracks (those on the coaching weeks with me will know what I'm talking about! Awesome trail through there!!) Me and Mauricio the leader were running together for most of this day and we moved through the trails together seeing deer and wild pigs. Just before 40km I found a stream and got myself in there to float around for a few minutes and cool down. 

Mauricio continued on ahead and maintained a lead somewhere around 10 mins I think from memory. The last few miles felt quite comfortable also as we climbed into Jatar and into the camp with the cold stream!! Despite me spending time floating about in 3 or 4 different streams and a trough I still ran quicker than last year. For the evening meal we walked about 500m into town where a local bar had prepared our food. I had plenty and polished off a good amount of leftovers too (thanks guys!) not sure if they were trying to weigh me down or help me out but thanks!!

Day 3

Although the middle day of the week is one of the short ones and relatively quick going it doesn't really feel like half way though when you speak to most runners... For most the main concern is the 'long day' Day 4 which is just over 40 miles 67km. If you can get through the first 3 days feeling reasonable then you can have a good long day and just give whatever you have got left for the final day. I set out at a decent pace but not quite as quick as last year whilst a group of runners set off for a fast start, I left them to it. Generally when I run I ignore any other runners pace and unless it's going to make a difference to the final positioning in the final miles I wouldn't usually alter my pace. As tempting as it was to tear off down the road with them I sat on my comfy pace around 4 mins per km (just under 7min mile pace)

After the initial undulations the route really starts to ascend about 13 km. A pretty good climb over the next 10km passing checkpoint 2 near the top. This section is almost on a plateau and you can maintain a decent pace. I was really feeling the heat again in the sun as there was very little water on the route to cool off with (no streams) but it wasn't long until I reached the 3rd cp and was ready to start descending down towards the finish. The white dirt tracks reflected the heat but descending gave enough breeze to take the edge off through the odd shaded patches. I had a quick dip in a little trough of water not far from the finish then it was into camp and time to relax before the paella dinner! 

There were a few people feeling a bit uneasy about the 'long' day

Day 4

The fourth day is 40 miles and is made up of some undulating single track over the first 10km, a fantastic lakeside trail over the next 10km before hitting a couple of good climbs through the hills and small towns on the way to the 50km checkpoint. From there it's a little bit of undulating on an exposed track before the final cp and descent down into the finish just outside the Alhama Gorge.

I literally rolled on to the start line filling my water bottle up as the countdown struck 0, there had been an earlier start group (30mins before) and I woke up hearing their countdown. A group of 3 set off at the front with a small gap to me and then quite a large gap to the rest of the field as we twisted around the hills, we spread out more and more and it wasn't long before I could see nobody infront or behind. Just before cp1 I began passing runners from the earlier start group and before I knew it I was heading along the lake. Pretty shaded and good trail though I didn't feel like I was moving that fast I was running well and seemed to get stronger and stronger as the day went on.

After the 2nd checkpoint on the dam there is a decent climb and a few undulations on the way to the 3rd cp. Progress was good and I remembered the next section down into the 40km checkpoint being quite good running. I was getting pretty warm by now and made some good pace and must have been fairly close to my time from last year. There is a river crossing at 43km which I didn't take advantage of... this year I lay there and drifted about for a few moments... It felt great and over the next climb I felt pretty fresh and reached the cp comfortably. Topped up the bottles and headed off for the final cp having done most of the ascent and ready to enjoy the downhill (ish) finish. This section for me last year was probably the hardest of the whole event as I got caught in the heat and guzzled through my water in no time. This year it wasn't quite so bad and there was an intermediate water point along with Graeme and Orla out on route. Soon enough I hit the final cp and descended well on the good tracks to the finish (there's a little bit of a hill sneaked in at the end there which caught me out last year) I arrived in not too far off last years time which I was happy with! There was time to chill out in the shade for a bit before heading to the local pool and restaurant (about 1km away) where we all caught up and relaxed before dinner before our final day! 

Day 5

It was a little sad that today would be our last day of the race. I was enjoying the trails and the sunshine but most importantly the atmosphere and being part of such an enthusiastic group that were all keen and motivated (well mostly, even if there were a few sets of achy legs ;) ) to get it done! The route for day 5 is fairly good going with a couple of climbs, though nothing too epic. The gap between myself and the front two runners and the 4th runner on the overall standings meant that in reality positions were unlikely to change unless there was some sort of incident. I took my time on the last day and ran a slightly more relaxed pace and tried to chat to all the earlier runners that I passed by. Everyone seemed in good spirits and the guys at the checkpoints were as always, super supportive! 

After reaching the final cp it's majority downhill and I managed to pass the final couple of guys who'd taken the earlier start times and rolled over the finish line in 3rd overall a total time of 21  hours 21 mins for the 230km. What a week! 

Although about an hour slower than last year overall (most of that on day 1) I had a fantastic run! I had a slightly more relaxed approach than last year as I was expecting to have felt some effects of the Dragon's Back still. I don't usually like to go back to the long races for a second time but this is definitely a race I'd make an exception for! Whether you really want to push yourself to the limit and run it as fast as you can or whether simply dragging yourself over the finish line would be a dream for you this race is definitely worth a look! You'll be well looked after and gain an experience of a lifetime! There's a strong possibility I'll be back next year! I like the area so much I held a trail run coaching holiday there in February! If you'd like to get some more details on the next one just jump on my coaching site www.charliesharpe.co.uk 

Huge thanks to everyone involved with organising the event and looking after us for the week! Also a big well done to everyone who signed up and took part! I know there were some amazing shows of determination and strength through the field! Same time next year?