My next big target was
Stranda fjord trail race in Norway in the middle of August. After the
disappointment of Ennerdale there was nothing to do but knuckle down and train
for Stranda. This went well in July and I managed 225km / 6000hm for the month
(admittedly Strava does tend to overestimate ascent).
My warm-up race this time
was Endure Dynafit Trail in Odsherred, West Zealand. Again, there were longer
options (50km and 100km), but I opted for the 25km. I convinced my running pal,
Anders, to enter too, and it was good with some company for the trip.
After rain in the last two
races, it was nice to see a bit of sun at the start of the race, although the
forecast was very changeable with a chance of shower or two. The start seemed
fast to me, I felt that I ought to be in good form but I felt that I was
struggling to stay in the group I found myself in – the group after the leading
group – but perhaps I just needed a couple of weeks to taper before Norway.
That's me in the yellow vest!
The route was great, even
if the route marking was a little lacking one or two places! It was incredibly
varied – sandy beach, rocky beach, grassy downland, woods, and with some steep
climbs including Zealands 3rd highest point, Vejrhøj, and a total of
about 500hm.
Compared to the Firkløver
trail in June, it was a tough race over harder terrain, but in the end I
managed a very satisfying 9th place (of 70 starters) in 2:29:11. I
was just behind Frank Ahrens who, overtaking me, said ‘Wasn’t it you who took
my bronze medal at Julsø Ultra?’ Fair enough that he had a little revenge.
The sun was shining again
when we had finished, so it was a fine finish to the day with a dip in the sea.
Firkløver trail
Early summer’s main event
was Ennerdale Horseshoe which, with 37km and 2290m, is the longest of the
classic Lake District fell races. As a bit of a warm up, I decided to run the local race in North Zealand ‘Firkløver
Ultra Trail 50/50’ (FUT 50/50) the weekend before Ennerdale. The race is best
known for its longer distances – 50miles or 50km – but I settled for running
the 16km distance.
The day dawned very wet and
I was quite pleased that I hadn’t started at 7am on the 50 miles; there was
still a chance that the rain might stop before my 12.00 start. It didn’t. But soft, mild weather so a bit of rain,
albeit fairly heavy, shouldn’t really be a problem especially in the forest.
I didn’t want to go flat
out just a week before Ennerdale, but a decent, manageable pace that I could
keep up all the way round. It was a nice
route, mostly in the woods, but a few open stretches too. There were a couple
of short sections of ‘off-trail’ across the forest floor, and a low tunnel
under the railway where I was bent double going through, but otherwise easy
trail running. There was a hug from one of the organisers at the finish, a beer,
cake and a relaxed atmosphere – what more could one ask for. My time was
1:25:14, 17th of 77 overall and 16th of 44 men - not record
breaking, but good enough for me feel that I had had a ‘good’ run.
No photos from the race, unfortunately, so here is a photo of the race organisers - Carsten, Per Egon & Klaus
Ennerdale Horseshoe Fell race
A week later and I was on
the starting line in Ennerdale feeling far from confident. My annual Lake
District camping weekend with old pals was timed this year (at my request) to
fit in with the Ennerdale fell race, so we had taken the long journey to remote
Ennerdale to camp at Routen farm. I had spent most of the preceding week
studying the weather forecast and it hadn’t been looking promising. The previous
day we had been out walking in fine weather on the first part of the race route
over Great Borne, Red Pike and High Stile, but the prospect of the full route
of 37km/2290m was making me decidedly nervous.
On the day the weather was
every bit as bad as promised, with heavy rain and high winds. At the race briefing
the organiser said that only the mild temperature had held him back from cancelling
the race. Off we went, clad in waterproofs. The start followed the lakeshore
path for the first kilometre or two before climbing steeply up Great Borne. We
didn’t need to ascend very much before we began to feel the full force of the
wind and the heavy rain started hammering on the side of my waterproof jacket. I
carried on up to the first checkpoint which I reached in just under 50 minutes.
This was a little worrying as I seemed to be right up against the cut-off time,
which I had copied from the website onto my race map.
As I continued on along the
ridge towards the second checkpoint, I became more and more convinced that I
would retire from the race. It was difficult to run in a straight line in the
wind, the rain was hammering on the side of my head, and I felt in danger of
being timed out. I could look forward to another 5 or 6 hours of wind and rain,
visibility was very poor, and I really wasn’t enjoying it. I reached the next
checkpoint and told the marshal I was retiring. He pointed me in the direction
of the valley and that was it, I was out of the race.
Once I dropped a few hundred metres, the wind
eased, and suddenly it became enjoyable again despite the persistent rain. I
jogged back down to the valley floor and along the lake until, eventually, I
arrived back at race HQ. There, having officially retired, I chatted with some
of the helpers who fed me tea and cake. I saw also that the cut-off times had
been extended, I just hadn’t noticed before the start, so I needn’t have
worried about that – oh well.
All in all a bit of a
disappointing day on the fells, although I probably made the right decision – I’m
never going to win a race, I run for the fun of it – so if I’m not enjoying it doesn’t
make much sense to continue. As a bit of a consolation whilst I was drinking
tea the marshals from CP1 returned. Who else than the legend himself - Joss
Naylor – who won the first 8 editions of the Ennerdale race, (and probably
thought I was a soft Southerner for dropping out!).
The view back along the ridge to Red Pike on a good day (photo taken the day before the race)
After rain in the last two
races, it was nice to see a bit of sun at the start of the race, although the
forecast was very changeable with a chance of shower or two. The start seemed
fast to me, I felt that I ought to be in good form but I felt that I was
struggling to stay in the group I found myself in – the group after the leading
group – but perhaps I just needed a couple of weeks to taper before Norway. 
