Nicky Spinks completes a double Bob Graham Round in record time

Posted on May 16, 2016 by talkultra

Joss Naylor and Nicky Spinks – image via inov-8 ©DarkPeakFellRunners

inov-8 ambassador Nicky Spinks, the inspirational cancer-survivor and fell runner, marked her 10 years post-diagnosis by becoming only the second person – and first woman – to complete a DOUBLE Bob Graham Round in a record time of 45 hours and 30 minutes

Starting at 00.01am on Saturday May 14, the 49-year-old farmer from Yorkshire started her 132-mile route across the Lake District’s highest fells in the hope to complete in under 48 hours.

A standard Bob Graham Round involves a 66-mile circuit of 42 summits including 27,000ft of elevation gain, to be completed in less than 24 hours. Nicky was the previous record holder for the Bob Graham Round – 18hrs 06mins completed in 2015. This record was recently recently broken by Jasmin Paris (read HERE) in 15:24.

Nicky managed to do all that twice; running 132 miles and visiting each summit two times on an epic run that involved 54,000ft of elevation gain. The only person to previously complete a Double Bob Graham Round in less than 48 hours was Roger Baumeister, who in 1979 clocked 46hrs 34mins.

BGRmap

Nicky still has the fastest women’s times for the equivalent 24-hour fell running challenges in Scotland (the Ramsay Round) and Wales (the Paddy Buckley Round).

In her blog, Nicky, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006, said before the attempt:

“I hope to become the first woman to complete the Double Bob Graham Round in less than 48 hours, maybe even breaking Roger’s record time. The main aim, however, is to enjoy it and celebrate the fact that I am still here, living and running ten years after being diagnosed and treated for breast cancer.”

Well, Nicky did that and then some… it really is difficult to comprehend the mental and physical tenacity that is required for such a challenge.

Many congratulations Nicky – that is some record!

Great Lakeland 3 Day 2016 #GL3D – Day 3

Posted on May 2, 2016 by talkultra

‘Well almost,’ is becoming a theme on the GL3D. Last night during camp 2 bivouac the wind increased – then increased – then increased! As sun rose, the carnage was clear to see. Broken poles, ripped tents, lost dry bags due to being blown away in the wind and in addition, the rain just kept on coming and coming. Some may call the conditions ‘character building!’ However, bloody brutal was the general consensus amongst camp.

Race director Shane Ohly, although extremely sympathetic to the runners needs was a little distracted… the large marquee that provides a shelter and eating environment for the runners was about to take off and provide a vey unique kite in the stormy skies. It was all hands on deck; poles were being rammed in the ground, straps were being added and luckily, the improvised actions secured the imminent flight.

The gale force winds, torrential rain and a bunch of tired competitors gave Shane no option – bad weather courses were announced at 0600. This was then adjusted nearer 0700 removing a key control that would have taken all runners over Grizedale Peak. The winds were just too strong and dangerous.

Only 7 elite runners were left in the race and they ran a full bad weather course, several runners attempted an improvised A/B route but most people just made a direct route to the ‘C’ finish causing a logistical headache for the Ourea Team. Buses had been arranged for approximately 50 runners, however, on the day, the numbers escalated beyond 100.

As one would expect, just as the day approached midday, the rain stopped, the wind reduced, the sky turned blue and white fluffy clouds occupied the sky as the sun broke through… you couldn’t make it up! Really?

Shane Ohly confirmed at the finish line, ‘this has been the most testing event and conditions we have encountered in any race we have organised. I don’t like to reduce courses but safety is key and we make the right call. It’s been a tough weekend!’

The runners confirmed the severity of the 3 days but it’s funny how morning grimaces turned to afternoon smiles. The GL3D ethos rose above the surface and talk soon started about 2017.

Images available at iancorless.photoshelter.com HERE

Follow on Instagram @iancorlessphotography

Great Lakeland 3 Day 2016 #GL3D – Day 2

Posted on May 1, 2016 by talkultra

Yesterday I said, ‘The Lakes really are a special place any day, anytime, in any weather… well, almost?’

‘Well almost,’ hit today with some seriously torrential rain, gusting to gale force winds (particularly on the tops and in exposed areas) and at times slippery conditions underfoot. That’s the Lakes for you… the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away.

Despite the onslaught of the weather, the scenery and the landscape still remained beautiful and spectacular. Despite the odd patch of white at higher levels, the complete blanket of snow that had covered about 500m was gone! It really is amazing the difference a day can make.

Warmer temperatures overnight certainly made camping a more pleasant experience and for those runners who were up early and packed away by 0615, they will have dry gear and a dry tent to pitch tonight! Anyone who slept in will have a different story to tell. When the rain came, it really did come and although Shane Ohly (race director) had said it was on it’s way, we had all secretly hoped he was wrong.

The forecast was bad and Shane had contemplated running a bad weather course but many runners, even those in the Elite category decided to run the much shorter ‘C’ route. In all honesty, it was a wise decision. The C route although easy navigation had plenty of ups and downs in it and in the conditions, it was far enough.

This was confirmed at the Cafe at Honister Pass which contained a gathering of GL3D competitors throughout the day. They all found solace in some food and a warm drink before pushing on past Buttermere and to the day 2 camp at Loweswater.

Despite the harsh conditions, temperatures were good. However, wet clothes and serious wind chill did make many a runners journey a tough one – hands in particular were constantly being banged together and rubbed in an effort to bring them back to life.

In the true nature of the GL3D, many of the participants had nothing but smiles and laughter for the conditions, particularly after the picture postcard scenes of day 1. The race did have its casualties though with many participants not completing any of the race categories (they just wanted to be back in camp asap) and others deciding to end the 3 day adventure early; the lure of warm clothes and a bed just too much of a temptation after such a tough day.

Post race the rain slowly reduced to a persistent drizzle, temperatures were relatively good but the main priority for all was to get out of wet clothes and into dry clothes. I can’t tell you how many times I heard, ‘thank goodness this is not a full self-sufficient mountain marathon!’

Dry bags were opened, tents were pitched and in the safety of one of the large marquees provided by Ourea Events, stories started to be told about the days challenges. Of course, as per the previous day, free cake was consumed and energy levels were topped up with a pint of beer.

Day 3 concludes the 2016 GL3D and the runners will navigate back to the start location via Elite, A, B and C courses. However, I heard someone say the weather forecast is worse for tomorrow; oh joy!

Images available at iancorless.photoshelter.com HERE

Follow on Instagram @iancorlessphotography

LAKES in a DAY Preview 2015

Posted on October 7, 2015 by talkultra

The ‘Lakes in a Day’ is a point-to-point race that starts in the northern town of Caldbeck and heads directly south way on down to Cartmel passing through three major points; the first feed station is Threlkeld, 2^nd Ambleside 3^rd Finisthwaite (a small hamlet). It then does pass through Newby Bridge which is at the bottom of Lake Windermere.

The journey is a tough challenge even for the hardiest competitor and the 50-mile journey includes 4000m of ascent that includes the stunning Helvellyn Ridge and the western shoreline of Lake Windermere.

Race director James Thurlow warns competitors:

“This is a long run in wild terrain. If you are at the start line wearing a t-shirt and shorts carrying nothing but a bum bag, expect us to be asking a few questions. If the weather is bad, then pack extra kit. This event is not like many other ultras in the UK calendar – it goes up on to the high fells and STAYS up there so don’t take any chances.”

Mountain, map skills and navigation skills are a prerequisite for the race as the route is not way-marked. Unlike many ‘true’ navigation events, the use of a GPS is allowed and GPX route is provided for runners in advance so that they can download it. Importantly, Thurlow warns, “GPS must not be your sole means of navigation for this event.” They are wise words, batteries fail!

The 2014 edition of the race had 180 runners start the race and at the time of writing, 357 are registered for 2015. Kim Collison and Holly Rush are two stand out names amongst what looks like a high quality field.

Current course records are 10:37 and 13:31 for Tim Higginbottom and Cat Sutherland. If conditions are good on race day, both records stand a good chance of being broken. To entice a fast pace, £500 is on offer for the first person to break either record.

The race starts at 0800 on Saturday October 10^th and race updates will be available here: http://www.lakesinaday.co.uk/eventupdates/

Race website HERE

Mandatory kit HERE

A GPX file for the route is now available here.

A selection of images from 2014 HERE

Lakes Sky Ultra 2015 – Race Images and Summary

Posted on September 12, 2015 by talkultra

Skyrunning hit the UK hard today with the first edition of the Lakes Sky Ultra, the 4th race on the 2015 Skyrunning UK calendar of 6 races.

It’s a race not for the feint hearted and today the race became considerably harder with severe weather. Wind and rain battered the course and made key difficult sections of the course, considerably more difficult. So much so that a key section of the course, Pinnacle Ridge was considered too dangerous for competitors. It was a great call and one that all the runners agreed with.

Experienced Skyrunning World Series competitor Eirik Haugsnes, flew in from Norway to take part in the inaugural race and as expected he won the race with a strong and dominant performance ahead of Skyrunning UK V3K winner Gareth Hughes.

Sarah Ridgeway, Skyrunning UK V3K ladies winner and 3rd on the podium at Glen Coe Skyline ran a strong ladies races and took a 2nd victory the Skyrunning UK series ahead of Dragons Back 2nd place lady and The Spine Champion, Beth Pascall.

A full race report and results will follow tomorrow.

Results

Sarah Ridgway 9:13:04
Beth Pascall 9:19:42
Zoe Salt 11:15:27

Eirik Haugsnes 7:16:50
Gareth Hughes 7:31:22
Jim Mann 7:32:38

Live Tracking Results HERE

Skyrunning UK HERE

Lakes Sky Ultra HERE

Episode 67 – Martin-Consani, Fonn, Meek, Böttger

Posted on August 8, 2014 by talkultra

Episode 67 of Talk Ultra – On this weeks show we speak with Lakeland 100 and Lakeland 50 winners, Debbie Martin Conasani and Jo Meek. We speak with Norwegian powerhouse, Torill Fonn about her recent world record for running 374.999km’s in 48-hours. Julia Böttger joins us for a catch up and tells us about her running journey in Turkey and winning Ronda dels Cims. We have the News, a Blog, Up & Coming Races, Emelie Forsberg for Smile and Miles and Niandi Carmont once again joins us as co host.

NEWS

Marmot 24

24-Hour
Aurellio Antonio Olivar/ Angel Garcia – 390 points
Kenny Leitch/ Keith Masson – 380 points
Anthony Emmet/ Catriona Sutherland – 280 points
12-Hour
Sam Jenner/ James Langstraat – 100 points
Tarni Duhre/ Andrew Campbell – 90 points
Alice Lamont/ Andrew Jones – 60 points
Lakeland 100 – race report and images HERE

Marco Consani 21:14:52
Charlie Sharpe 22:47:56
Lee Knight 23:21:48
Debbie Martin Consani 25:28:33
Beth Pascall 25:48:36
Nicky Taylor 29:37:08
INTERVIEW

Debbie Martin Consani won the Lakeland 100 in convincing style just recently and we caught up with er to hear about her running history and how the Lakeland 100 went.

Lakeland 50 – British Championships

Kim Collison 7:48:01
Marcus Scotney 8:06:42
Danny Kendall 8:13:39
Jo Meek 8:43:14
Lizzie Wraith 9:18:22
Bonnie Van Wilgenberg 9:31:05

INTERVIEW with Jo Meek

Red BUll K3
3030 meters of elevation gain in a little less than 10 km: Red Bull K3 is the event that will revolutionize skyrunning. The first competition of “triple vertical kilometer” will start from Susa (Turin) on the 2nd of August, when professional athletes and amateurs will have to face the ascent to the summit of Rocciamelone, at 3538 meters high.
Marco Moletto 2:06:30
Marti Teixido 2:07:18
Nejc Kuhar 2:08:12
Laura Orgue 2:22:38
Stevie Kremer 2:29:44
Corinne Favre 2:39:27

Buff Epic Trail 100km *only 17 finishers of the main race
Iker Karrera 12:19:16
Jessed Hernandez Gispert 12:43:53
Pau Bartolo Roca 13:28:23
Nuria Picas 15:00:29 (6th overall)
Francesca Canepa 16:18:45
Marta Riba 17:31:32
Devil O the Highlands
Casey Morgan 5:13:42
Robert Turner 6:00:03
Neil MacNicol 6:02:25
Nicola Hendry 7:09:58
Noanie Heffron 7:12:56
Helen Lees 7:14:07
Mention for Karen Wallace 8:03:35 1st vet
Swiss Alpine K78

Jonas Buud 6:30:18
Beat Ritter 6:38:51
Mirco Berner 6:53:39
Denise Zimmermann 7:47:57
Claudia Kahl 8:12:50
Ornella Poltera 8:33:38
Peak SkyRace race report and images HERE
Jason Cavill 4:22:52
James Ellis 4:26:54
Tim Pleijte 4:36:54
Sally Fawcett 5:24:54
Kimberley England 5:38:13
Sasha Habgood 6:26:44
Interviews live from the event by Niandi Carmont

BLOG

‘When I ski on a steep slope, or when I solo climb (or more scrambling, I can not consider a V+ is climbing seeing what people is doing today!), or running on a glacier, I don’t do because I want to die. I have not suicidal impulses on myself. I want to be alive, I want to explore and my goal on the mountains is to find happiness, answers to my questions, improve, learn, meet new friends, see, discover, mostly, on a world that is more and more structured and looked, to feel freedom.” Kilian Jornet http://www.kilianjornet.cat/en/blog/are-mountains-the-last-space-of-freedom/

INTERVIEW

Torill Fonn from sweden (born norwegeian) last weekeend set a new nordic record in 48h running and a new world record for ladies over 45 when she ran 374 999 km at the Skovde Ultrafestival in Sweden.

SMILES and MILES with EMELIE FORSBERG

INTERVIEW – Julia Boettger

UP & COMING RACES

Iceland
Fire and Ice | 250 kilometers | August 10, 2014 | website

Norway
Scandinavian Adventure Run | 50 kilometers | August 19, 2014 | website

Zambia
MOSI-OA-TUNYA TRAIL | 85 kilometers | August 11, 2014 | website

CLOSE

LINKS

http://traffic.libsyn.com/talkultra/Episode_67_-_Martin-Consani_Fonn_Meek_Bottger.mp3

ITunes http://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/talk-ultra/id497318073
Libsyn – feed://talkultra.libsyn.com/rss
Website – talkultra.com

Marmot24 2014 – Race Images and Summary

Posted on August 4, 2014 by talkultra

Full image gallery available HERE

The inaugural Marmot24 took place over the weekend of August 2nd and 3rd. The UK’s first 24-hour mountain marathon. What an epic race it turned out to be!

The tough and challenging Lakeland terrain tested each and every participant to the limit. Using a score format (all controls had the same points) participants had the potential to visit and accumulate points from 54-controls spread over an area of 300 square km’s. Needless to say, the potential for any 2-man (or woman or mixed) team to gain a 100% score was almost impossible. However, several teams excelled in the tough conditions.

50-teams took on the challenge of the 24, 12 or 6-hour format with respective start times of midday Saturday the 2nd August, midnight 2nd August or 0600 3rd August. It was ironic that after weeks, no months, of the most perfect UK weather, the change came on the morning of the race and conditions for all events were ‘challenging.’

24-hour competitors registered at 0900 and therefore had several hours of prep time before the midday start.

It was needed! With 54-controls and such a potentially large area to cover, this race was always not only going to be about fitness but also about navigation.

Race HQ was just off the A66 between Penrith and Kendal and this therefore offered race director, Shane Ohly (Ourea Events) and Charlie Sproson (Course Planner) the opportunity to go north and south of the A66 and use the HQ as a hub for both directions.

Route planning was so varied; some teams would start south, others in the north. Clockwise or anti-clockwise. The route options were endless and thus tracking and following of the event was very much a lottery.

One consensus for many appeared to be the potential to spend 10-12 hours on the fells, call in the HQ for food, maybe some sleep and a change of clothes and then head back out. Most teams took this option and at the finish, the only teams not to use this strategy ended up taking the 1st and 2nd places.

At the stroke of midday, runners departed to the fells and dispersed like ants being chased.

Rain had been falling for hours and continued at varying strengths for the duration of the event. In the evening a wonderful dry patch of weather arrived and showed the Lakes in all it’s glory… many runners said post race that it was worth being wet for so long for the display that the heavens provided that evening.

Teams had travelled from all over the UK, France and Spain to participate in this new and ground breaking event. Post race, they all concurred that the terrain and the difficult conditions had provided them all with an ultimate test. Bogs, marshes, bracken and ferns were a new experience to the ‘Europeans’ and it was clear to see the impact. Top Spanish competitor, Mònica Aguilera post race discussed her frustration about the terrain and how difficult it was at times. ‘It was so hard, so difficult and so slow,’ she said, ‘local knowledge would certainly have been a help; on the map we thought this section (south west corner of the course) would be fast and runnable. However, it was very tough and very slow… it took us hours.’

Mònica Aguilera heading north with her teammate, Marc Raflos.

Ultimately, local knowledge did prove a great help for Kenny Leitch and Keith Masson, they accumulated an impressive 380-controls but did not take top honours! Proving that local knowledge and great navigation (along with excellent fitness) is the key to a successful race, the Spanish team of Aurelio Antonio Oilvar and Angel Garcia topped the podium with 39-controls. This score was considered by all competitors and staff as quite remarkable under the tough and extreme conditions.

In addition to the main event of 24-hours, a 12-hour and 6-hour option was provided. Certainly, starting at midnight (for the 12-hour) and heading off into the cold, dark and very wet night would not be a challenge that many would embrace. However, each and every runner looked excited at the prospect.

From midnight the weather slowly became worse and all runners had to endure prolonged downpours and on the tops, strong winds. Adding navigation to the mix did make the whole experience a tough challenge.

Sam Jenner and James Langstraat topped the 12-hour podium with 10-controls beating Tarni Duhre and Andrew Campbell into 2nd by just 1-control.

As participants recovered with a bowl of hot chilli post race, one thing became apparent; he combination of tough Lakeland terrain, variable weather and 54-contols set the Marmot24 apart from other events and it’s a format that was welcomed. Roll on 2015!

Results:

24-Hour

Aurellio Antonio Olivar/ Angel Garcia – 390 points
Kenny Leitch/ Keith Masson – 380 points
Anthony Emmet/ Catriona Sutherland – 280 points

12-Hour

Sam Jenner/ James Langstraat – 100 points
Tarni Duhre/ Andrew Campbell – 90 points
Alice Lamont/ Andrew Jones – 60 points

6-Hour

Katir Francis/ Duncan Hedges

Links:

MARMOT24 WEBSITE HERE

RACE PHOTOGRAPHY HERE

Marmot 24 (2014) by Ourea Events – This weekend, 2nd/3rd August

Posted on July 30, 2014 by talkultra

Marmot24 is the UK’s first 24-hour mountain marathon. The event combines the very best of British mountain running and navigation into an exciting and challenging non-stop format.

Join us for a weekend of unforgettable adventure on the 2nd & 3rd August 2014.

Three options are available: 6, 12 or 24-hours. All the competitors finish at 12 noon Sunday in an exciting and dramatic finale to a memorable weekend of racing.

‘Completing a mountain marathon and conquering the navigational challenge should not be underestimated… but it should not be feared either, as successfully navigating and running in the mountains is a hugely satisfying experience and gives a real sense of confidence. A steady and careful approach will usually see even novice navigators around their course safely.’

The Event Centre location for Marmot24™ is close to Guardhouse in the Lake District National Park. Guardhouse is close to Threlkeld and just minutes off the A66.

The competition area stretches 360 degrees from the Event Centre and includes approximately 300 square kilometers. To the north are the remote Northern Fells guarded by the imposing flanks of Blencathra. To the south Clough Head marks the start of the Dodd’s ridge running towards Helvellyn and ultimately Ambleside. The terrain is perfect for a mountain marathon with laser fast ridges and valleys linking areas of complex contour features. There is also a great network of footpaths and tracks but competitors will need to balance easy running on these, with more direct routes between checkpoints. This area of mountains can be very challenging with steep mountains, cliffs, marshland, fast flowing rivers and energy sapping tussocks. Bad weather can happen year round and the nature of the mountains can change very quickly from benign to dangerous.

Ourea Events want competitors to travel as light as possible, to maximize their enjoyment of running in the mountains, without compromising their safety. Therefore, as Marmot24™ is a summer mountain marathon, the organization team does not require competitors to carry a tent, sleeping bag or stove. However, each pair is required to carry a 2-person bothy bag (emergency shelter) and an additional warm layer such as insulated jacket. All team members must also carry a personal survival bag.

With the 24-hour race starting at high noon Saturday, the 12-hour race starting at midnight Saturday and the 6-hour race starting at 0600 on the Sunday morning, everyone will finish at 12 noon on the Sunday in an exciting and dramatic finale to a memorable weekend of racing.

Race director, Shane Ohly, an experienced and fierce competitor himself is extremely excited at the prospect of the racing. To the best of my knowledge, the strongest looking teams are from France and Spain. There are a few other foreign teams but I don’t know too much about them yet. No obviously strong British teams, which is a shame… but there is still time for them to enter as entry closes July 31^st.’

Ones to watch:

Spain

Aurelio Antonio Olivar and Angel Garcia

Aurelio was the 2013 European Rogaine Champion.

Angel won the Spanish national adventure racing championships in 2013

Aguilera and Marc Raflos

Mònica has won the World Adventure Race Champs, the Marathon de Sables, Trangrancanaria, Transvulcania and many more. Marc has been the Spanish national orienteering champion three times.

France

Christophe Bosseaux, Vincent Becam

A strong team with both runners having represented France at the European Rogaining Champs.

Scoring

All checkpoints will have the same score value, which is 10.

Competitors arriving back late will be penalized as follows:

Up to 5 minutes late = lose 1 point per minute / part minute.
Between 6 and 15 minutes late = lose 5 points per minute / part minute.
Between 16 and 29 minutes late = lose 10 points per minute / part minute.
Over 30 minutes late = loose all points!

More information and last minute entries HERE

Montane Lakeland 100 & 50 2014 race images

Posted on July 28, 2014 by talkultra

What an incredible weekend of racing in the stunning English Lakes. The Montane UTLD 100 and 50 mile races certainly have become two of ‘the’ must do events on the 2014 calendar. With the long term continued sponsorship of UK brand, Montane. The event has grown from very humble beginnings as an alternative to UTMB to an outright ‘must-do’ for any enthusiastic ultra runner.

Although run on the same course, the 100 and 50 events are two very different beasts. Both races are point-to-point. The 100 starts in Coniston and does a circular route around the northern lakes dropping back down from Pooley Bridge towards Windermere and then heads around Windemere Lake via Ambleside taking in the Langdale Valley and then a push over Tilberthwaite concludes what is unanimously called a ‘brutal’ event.

Not surprisingly, the ’50’ starts pretty much halfway around the 100 route, in Dalemain and is run over the exact same course as the latter half of the 100 event.

Sun and the Lakes can be a rare commodity but participants in both events had plenty of relentless heat to partner them over every step. Even during the first night, temperatures were ridiculously balmy with nothing more than a short sleeved shirt required. The second night however did throw a curve ball for 100 runners entering another night on the trails or for 50 runners finishing after 2100 hours. The heavens opened with some biblical rain… I guess for some it was a welcome cool down and refresher from the oppressive heat.

Marco Consani (21:14:52) was very much a dominant force in the 100 event. Over the early stages Marco had close competition and ran side-by-side with eventual 2nd place, Charlie Sharpe. However, when Marco took over the lead he never looked back. Climbing out of Howtown with the start of a new day he had a 30-minute lead which he continued to extend all the way to the line finishing almost 90-minutes ahead of Sharpe in 2nd (22:47:56). Lee Knight finished 3rd, 23:21:48 after pushing relentlessly for the duration of the event.

In the ladies race, Beth Pascall proved to be a revelation. Having never run longer than 60-miles before, this lady started at the front of the race and at Buttermere one wondered if she would pull off something quite special. However, experienced ultra runner and Montane athlete, Debbie Martin Consani (yes, Marco’s wife) slowly pulled back the gap and extended the lead away from Beth. Apart from a rough patch at Mardale Head, Debbie never looked in doubt of winning the race but Beth really was charging and at the line it was 25:28:33 to 25:48:36. Impressive. Nicky Taylor was 3rd lady in 29:37:08.

One thing must be said, the Lakeland 100 is a tough event. Even contemplating the start and the race deserves respect. Each and every runner who toed the line achieved a great deal. For those who finished, they have memories and experiences to take to the grave. For those who didn’t finish, they will be back… the UTLD100 get a hold like no other race.

The Lakeland 50 was a British Championship event and as such competition was higher than normal. The men’s race had Lakeland 100 winner and Montane athletes, Stuart Mills and Iznik and Spine Challenger winner, Marcus Scotney. In addition, we had Danny Kendall who just this year placed top-5 at the Marathon des Sables. Add to the mix, Kim Collison, and Lee Kemp a fast race was always on the cards. Fast it was… maybe too fast! Starting at 1130am, the heat of the day was already pushing down and when Danny Kendall says ‘it’s too hot!’ then you know it’s hot… In the early stages, a small group formed but it was Collinson who eventually snapped the elastic. Scotney came from behind and charged into 2nd place and then behind, Kendall and Mills had a tough battle for 3rd. At the line, Collinson finished in 7:48:01, Scotney 2nd in 8:06:42 and Kendall 3rd in 8:13:39.

The ladies race had Lakeland 50 course record holder, Tracy Dean racing against the female Lakeland 100 course record holder, Lizzie Wraith. For sure, it was an exciting head-to-head. However, add to the mix Jo Meek and a real battle was always going to unfold. Meek as expected pushed ahead of Wraith and Dean and never looked back. Running with 100% conviction, Meek dominated the race and never for a moment looked under threat. Dean unfortunately dropped due to illness leaving the door open for Wraith to take 2nd place and Bonnie Van Wilgenberg ran a controlled and impressive race for 3rd. Meeks run was so impressive that she placed 6th overall in a time of 8:43:14. Wraith ran 9:18:22 and Wilgenberg completed the top-3 in 9:31:05.

Full Lakeland 100 results are HERE

Full Lakeland 50 results are HERE

The Lakeland 100 and 50 are sponsored by Montane

all race images are available at iancorless.photoshelter.com

: Marc Laithwaite at Lakeland 100/ 50 2014

: Bonnie Van Wilkenberg at Lakeland 50

Great Lakeland 3 Day ™ Day 3

Posted on May 5, 2014 by talkultra

The final day of the Great Lakeland 3 Day ™ was very much a victory lap as runners finished of the final leg of a 3-day triangular route, navigating via a selection of trigs to arrive back at Pooley Bridge where they had all started 3-days earlier.

The damp, misty and wet conditions of the previous day faded away with the arrival of dawn. Although the day would remain overcast for the majority, the occasional glimpse of sun would appear when the clouds decided to break.

Although a shorter day, a great deal of challenges would confront the Elite, A, B and C categories. The great success of the GL3D is the appeal and flexibility for each participant to race at a different level on different days if required. Shane Ohly said, ‘We are a small but adventurous three-day mountain marathon with a relaxed and friendly atmosphere that attracts both runners and long-distance walkers.’

The race has been an incredible success and the addition of the C course has made the 2014 edition even more appealing providing a tough and challenging adventure for walkers. Rather than complex navigation, the emphasis is on long mountain journeys, spectacular scenery and enjoying an amazing mountain experience.

Brilliantly organized, great fun, tough, a real challenge… are all words and comments that could be heard as participants departed from the race base at Pooley Bridge.

I am sure many will be back in 2015.

Overall Results:

Elite:

Jim Mann 16:30:28

Chris Warner 18:29:57

Robert Hicks 19:08:56

1^st lady: Kerstin Rosenqvist 21:39:15

Simon Harper 17:38:38

Jim Trueman 18:24:30

Matt Puxon 18:54:21

1^st lady: Sally Ann Spencer 19:59:13

Alexander Beaven 12:37:40