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VL Marathon 17th April 2011
I am happy to report that I completed my V. L. Marathon on 17 April 2011 in five hours 41 min on behalf of the Help for Heroes charity. It was a wonderful weekend in the city of London, having travelled with my friend Liz on the Friday by car. We stayed in the Westminster and saw Les Miserables that evening and Jersey Boys on Saturday, finishing with an Italian pasta at night ready for the run on Sunday. The weather was glorious (a little too hot for us runners), the atmosphere just amazing, spectators at every part of the route, so noisy, bands, cheering, shouting, very emotional and rewarding. I so enjoyed every minute I have just entered the ballot for 2012, so fingers crossed that I get in yet again. We came home by car after the race, with Liz driving after running 26.2 miles; she is a star stop. We are members of Black Pear Joggers Running Club, for all ages and abilities, meeting at Perdiswell Leisure Centre. The very kind people who sponsored me via the Messenger and elsewhere have brought my total so far to £400. My recovery is good apart from three black toenails, and I was running again after a few days. Jan McNelis PS
I was interviewed by the BBC at mile 18 so you may have seen me
on TV during the coverage. Just brilliant. Atlantic Coast Challenge Race Report 1st-3rd October 2010 http://www.votwo.co.uk/votwo2007/events-and-adventure/race_view.php?i=117 The Atlantic Coast Challenge is a 3 stage run form Padstow to Lands End, a distance of 78miles, which nicely fits into 3 marathons in 3 days. Of approximately 200 entrants there were 5 intrepid challengers from Worcester: Richard Sowden, Matthew Bailey, Alex Kear, Duncan Sutcliffe, Louise Staples (ex Black Pear) and Richard Wilkes (never Black Pear). As multi-day ultra races go this was very civilised. Race HQ was based on a holiday park near St Ives and competitors were transported by minibus to the start of each leg every morning and back to HQ on completion. Most competitors chose to take accommodation on the park and also took advantage of the catering facilities, swimming pool and massages provided on site. Checkpoints were approximately every 10km and well stocked with a wide range of goodies and the whole event was very well coordinated. The route was foolproof (for most) and simply required challengers to follow the South West Coast Path. For much of the route this meant beautiful Cornish cliff top paths, however we also got the dubious delights of a rain swept Newquay, some hellish sand dunes and 2 sole destroying beach sections, each over 4km long. The first day was typical October Atlantic weather – cloud, rain and wind – but the going was good. On day 2 the rain ceased and the scenery improved, with spectacular cliffs and views onto seal colonies. The final day was the highlight, with glorious sunshine and the most beautiful stretch of the race. Day 3 was also breathtaking in terms of exertion, with steep hills, boggy paths and scrambles over boulders on hands and knees. Unfortunately Alex fell victim to injury on day 2 but the rest were delighted with their results, especially considering how pre-race training had been neglected. Cumulative results as follows: Louise
Staples 15 hrs 37 mins 22nd 3rd in Category High Peak Marathon Race Report - March 2010 This year's race took place over the 5-6 March. The course is approximately 42 miles long over the beautiful, but hilly, Peak District and follows a circular course around the River Derwent Watershed. The race is made more 'special' because it starts at 11pm, ensuring that most of the race takes place in darkness. For understandable safety reasons runners have to enter in teams of 4 and are required to carry a significant degree of equipment, including a tent and a sleeping bag. Undoubtedly this was a tough race, although the more experienced competitors commented on how kind the conditions were this year. To put conditions into perspective, we were running on snow for approximately 30 miles, this snow varied between a soft thin layer to lethally slippery compacted ice to waist deep drifts covered in a fragile crust. Visibility varied between 20 miles and 20 feet, with sun, rain, snow and darkness adding to the mix. Preparation proved to be a crucial contributor to success or failure. In this event navigation is crucial, with the first 7-8 hours of the race taking place in darkness and the added complication of mist, fog and cloud Our team made 2 practice runs on about 75% of the route, which proved invaluable. However, even with this preparation we probably lost an hour due to navigational errors in thick mist. Our team was made up of Duncan Sutcliffe, Richard Sowden, Mat Bailey and Richard Wilkes. We completed the race in a time of 13hrs 50 mins and we achieved our goal of finishing in good spirits and able to stand! Of the 55 teams that entered only 46 made it to the start and only 35 to the end, our team came 30th. If anyone fancies entering next year then be aware that the race is over subscribed and entrants must satisfy organisers of their experience. Priorities go to teams that have run the race before so this could be your opportunity. Although you don't need to be mega fit to complete the race you need stamina and at least 2 of the team need to be competent navigators. You should also make time to practice on the route. If you want to win the race then start training now, the quality of the competition was almost a who's who of fell running, with numerous professional and sponsored athletes competing. People who had completed the Bob Graham Round were nothing special and Sir Ranulph Fiennes was looked upon as just another runner! For
more info on the event go to http://highpeakclub.union.shef.ac.uk/hpm/ Duncan Sutcliffe White Peak Marathon 22nd May 2010 Oh
My God! I don't half pick 'em! What was being run only to support
one of my friends around her first marathon turned out to be a
tortuous event for all of us with PWs (personal worst) galore! Julie Bott
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