That hurt! That Hurt A LOT, And it just kept hurting more and more.
I rocked up at Cromford rugby fields with JP and quickly got registered and ready to race. We stood and chatted and caught up with few other runners before mustering at the start line. After a short briefing we were away. A quick lap of the field helped thin out the runners before hitting the canal tow path. The path was wide enough for 2 or 3 runners a breast and he first flat kilometre was spent finding my pace and settling in and was fairly painless.
Time to bring the pain, as I crossed the canal bridge I started the uphill section. The high peak trail is a stunning bridleway that stretches from the Cromford canal rising steeply above the Derwent Valley before cutting a path into the heart of the Peak District. Today's course only followed that steep incline out of the valley. The path was wide and well maintained but was a hard grinding slog. Relentless as it was beautiful, It was a struggle to just keep running, walking would have been just as hard, I dropped to a slow jog and just kept plodding away. The course then took a diversion of the broad bridleway,onto a single track footpath that was steep, rocky, root strewn, and full of twists and turns. I couldn't maintain my slow jog and had to slow down to walking pace for the more technical sections.
This path soon levelled out and I could get on with some running, this was only a short run before tackling some gnarly steps back to the comfort of the wide trail path. Even though I was back on a wide flat trail, my legs and lungs were suffering and I was struggling to keep up my usual pace. The flat section wasn't any respite from the pain and effort required to keep running. The next section of uphill was steep and the trail underfoot was broken and loose. It was just too hard to keep running. But even walking was painful on the legs and didn't give a chance to catch my breath or lower my heart rate.
After passing though a gate the views and terrain changed to bleak moorland above the tree-line. The path was narrow and littered with large boulders. It was now a huge challenge to pick a route that would keep me from twisting an ankle and going arse over tit. This part of the course was shared with runners coming back down from the trig point, which marked the highest part of the course. They seemed to be cruising down the hill with speed and grace, whilst I was bumbling and bouncing from boulder to boulder. But after I looped round the trig point I knew it was DOWN HILL ALL THE WAY!
This gave me a great boost and gravity was finally on my side. There was no time to take in the views or even lift my head up. To go fast down the path took so much concentration. Picking a route on and over the rocks was incredibly challenging and all-encompassing. The added distraction and challenge to avoid bumping into runners climbing up to the turning point exacerbated the task in hand. Soon enough the path split and it was back to one way traffic. As I descended back below the tree line, the terrain settled back into less treacherous beautiful, woodland paths and wide farmers tracks.
It wasn't long before I was back on the high peak trail. The footing was smooth, firm, and now the incline was in my favour. I was picking up speed and focussing as hard as possible on my running technique and form. Remembering all that advice I had read about running downhill. This all went out the window as I passed a runner in red shirt on the left as a gentleman from Wirksworth running club past him on the right. We ran shoulder to shoulder after passing Monsieur Rouge and he was running bloody fast, but I wasn't about to let him cruise past me. I stopped thinking about leaning into the hill at the ankles, not over stretching and not slapping the ground with my feet. Instead I was in full 'fuck it' mode.
I matched the Wirksworth runner stride for stride, and ran in perfect unison, we soon gathered a very impressive amount of momentum and caught up with another runner. He, incredibly, put on and extra burst and slipped past the runner. I managed to stick to his shoulder and then regain our synchronised cadence after passing the other runner. Running downhill should be fun and a chance to ease off. But now I was engaged in an epic downhill dogfight, and was really struggling. We approached another runner but it was my turn to make he first move and burst past. The Wirksworth runner returned the favour, slipstreaming and then re-syncing at my shoulder. With only 100 metres of downhill left my core muscles were on fire, I was breathing heavily and pretty much emptied the tank.
As we hit the bottom of the hill and reached the final flat section, the gentleman from Wirksworth carried on with his amazing pace, but I was exhusthed. I've walked in races, I've ran through the overwhelming desire to walk in races. But I have never wanted to walk or stop and get my breath back after running downhill, before moving on to a pancake flat section! But this race was making me hurt in ways other races haven't. I plodded on at a slow steady pace and didn't give into the desire to walk.
On any other day this final kilometre would be an amazing experience. Running alongside a glassy flat canal flanked with beautiful trees. The evening sunlight dancing through the leaves and boucing of the water. Running through the Derwent valley towards the birth place of the industrial revolution should be an incredible run. But today after an epic climb and descent, this final flat section was just a drag. A painful, demoralising, trudge. JUST END! HOW MUCH FURTHER? Even when you can see the incredible Arkwright's mill and Willersly Castle the pain just doesn't abate. You even pass the finish line before doubling back 50 metres to finally cross the line.
Don't get me wrong. I LOVED this race. The challenge, the atmosphere, the terrain, the views, even the pain were all what made this such a great event. It took a couple of hours, a pint of beer and a very nice single malt whiskey before I felt normal again.
Strava:
Thanks to:
Matlock Running Club for hosting the event - www.matlockac.org.uk/
The Derby Runner for supporting the event - http://www.derbyrunner.com/
I rocked up at Cromford rugby fields with JP and quickly got registered and ready to race. We stood and chatted and caught up with few other runners before mustering at the start line. After a short briefing we were away. A quick lap of the field helped thin out the runners before hitting the canal tow path. The path was wide enough for 2 or 3 runners a breast and he first flat kilometre was spent finding my pace and settling in and was fairly painless.
Time to bring the pain, as I crossed the canal bridge I started the uphill section. The high peak trail is a stunning bridleway that stretches from the Cromford canal rising steeply above the Derwent Valley before cutting a path into the heart of the Peak District. Today's course only followed that steep incline out of the valley. The path was wide and well maintained but was a hard grinding slog. Relentless as it was beautiful, It was a struggle to just keep running, walking would have been just as hard, I dropped to a slow jog and just kept plodding away. The course then took a diversion of the broad bridleway,onto a single track footpath that was steep, rocky, root strewn, and full of twists and turns. I couldn't maintain my slow jog and had to slow down to walking pace for the more technical sections.
This path soon levelled out and I could get on with some running, this was only a short run before tackling some gnarly steps back to the comfort of the wide trail path. Even though I was back on a wide flat trail, my legs and lungs were suffering and I was struggling to keep up my usual pace. The flat section wasn't any respite from the pain and effort required to keep running. The next section of uphill was steep and the trail underfoot was broken and loose. It was just too hard to keep running. But even walking was painful on the legs and didn't give a chance to catch my breath or lower my heart rate.
After passing though a gate the views and terrain changed to bleak moorland above the tree-line. The path was narrow and littered with large boulders. It was now a huge challenge to pick a route that would keep me from twisting an ankle and going arse over tit. This part of the course was shared with runners coming back down from the trig point, which marked the highest part of the course. They seemed to be cruising down the hill with speed and grace, whilst I was bumbling and bouncing from boulder to boulder. But after I looped round the trig point I knew it was DOWN HILL ALL THE WAY!
This gave me a great boost and gravity was finally on my side. There was no time to take in the views or even lift my head up. To go fast down the path took so much concentration. Picking a route on and over the rocks was incredibly challenging and all-encompassing. The added distraction and challenge to avoid bumping into runners climbing up to the turning point exacerbated the task in hand. Soon enough the path split and it was back to one way traffic. As I descended back below the tree line, the terrain settled back into less treacherous beautiful, woodland paths and wide farmers tracks.
It wasn't long before I was back on the high peak trail. The footing was smooth, firm, and now the incline was in my favour. I was picking up speed and focussing as hard as possible on my running technique and form. Remembering all that advice I had read about running downhill. This all went out the window as I passed a runner in red shirt on the left as a gentleman from Wirksworth running club past him on the right. We ran shoulder to shoulder after passing Monsieur Rouge and he was running bloody fast, but I wasn't about to let him cruise past me. I stopped thinking about leaning into the hill at the ankles, not over stretching and not slapping the ground with my feet. Instead I was in full 'fuck it' mode.
I matched the Wirksworth runner stride for stride, and ran in perfect unison, we soon gathered a very impressive amount of momentum and caught up with another runner. He, incredibly, put on and extra burst and slipped past the runner. I managed to stick to his shoulder and then regain our synchronised cadence after passing the other runner. Running downhill should be fun and a chance to ease off. But now I was engaged in an epic downhill dogfight, and was really struggling. We approached another runner but it was my turn to make he first move and burst past. The Wirksworth runner returned the favour, slipstreaming and then re-syncing at my shoulder. With only 100 metres of downhill left my core muscles were on fire, I was breathing heavily and pretty much emptied the tank.
As we hit the bottom of the hill and reached the final flat section, the gentleman from Wirksworth carried on with his amazing pace, but I was exhusthed. I've walked in races, I've ran through the overwhelming desire to walk in races. But I have never wanted to walk or stop and get my breath back after running downhill, before moving on to a pancake flat section! But this race was making me hurt in ways other races haven't. I plodded on at a slow steady pace and didn't give into the desire to walk.
On any other day this final kilometre would be an amazing experience. Running alongside a glassy flat canal flanked with beautiful trees. The evening sunlight dancing through the leaves and boucing of the water. Running through the Derwent valley towards the birth place of the industrial revolution should be an incredible run. But today after an epic climb and descent, this final flat section was just a drag. A painful, demoralising, trudge. JUST END! HOW MUCH FURTHER? Even when you can see the incredible Arkwright's mill and Willersly Castle the pain just doesn't abate. You even pass the finish line before doubling back 50 metres to finally cross the line.
Don't get me wrong. I LOVED this race. The challenge, the atmosphere, the terrain, the views, even the pain were all what made this such a great event. It took a couple of hours, a pint of beer and a very nice single malt whiskey before I felt normal again.
Strava:
Thanks to:
Matlock Running Club for hosting the event - www.matlockac.org.uk/
The Derby Runner for supporting the event - http://www.derbyrunner.com/
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