Yetholm Hill Race 7/06/09
On Friday I had been charged with doing the photos and video of Jane and Jim's wedding (see Stornoway Half report) and so we spent the weekend down in Cumbria.
Essentials for wedding photos - suit, camera and beerIt seemed to make sense to return on Sunday via Yetholm and do this Graham Henry favourite in an effort to flush out the excesses and toxins of the weekend. Friday had been a great success. Apart from the weather which was drizzle interspersed with showers all day and only relented later on, making my job of recording the event a bit more tricky. However it all ran pretty smoothly and I drank and danced more than I have in the last 5 years. Or thereabouts.
hillsAbout 5 and a half minutes into the race this became apparent. I was looking at my watch while going up the steep hill sweating profusely. Last year in the rain and low cloud I had kept up with the front runners but today I was feeling less than special. The good news was the weather was clear and bright and we would be able to see the views from the hill tops.
Keith Burns (Carnethy) was rewarded for this dive for the line with first mv60
and a slightly dented head. His report (& my photos) here.
The first half climbs a number of small summits before a drop down to the bottom of a hellish long hill – the Curr. By this time I had dropped to about 8th and the only thing on my to-do list was to try and stay top ten. On the way down to the bottom of the Curr an mv40 had overtaken and we hammered over the uneven ground together. I managed to gain some ground on the long climb up – but it was a warning about this blokes potential for downhilling.
I was a bit concerned about navigation after last year's race in the clouds where a number of folk went off route. I was beginning to lose sight of the runners ahead and was pleased they seemed to have more marshals than last year. The race was being run anti-clockwise for the second time which meant regulars might be more prone to getting lost. (Waiting for Mary at the finish line we watched a number of runners emerge from unlikely directions.)
This route gave us some great long smooth fast descents down the Penine Way. Although it also meant I could see at times a long way ahead across the hills and the distance to the next man. Miles away. So my motivation was the guy behind who I knew was about 15 seconds adrift. I pushed my weary feet (we must have done between 5 and 10 miles on the dance floor Friday?) up the last hill and got a few more seconds ahead, then rolled down the last couple of miles at a good lick keeping a careful eye on where the main path went. I asked everyone I passed which was the right way as I only occasionally caught a glimpse of the front runners by now too far to catch. Parts of the course I remembered from last year and it was inspiring to see the busy car park between the curves of the last descent. I stretched my legs and bombed down to the finish 35 seconds ahead of the next guy.
Dick Wall arrived late delaying the start. But was rewarded for being one of only 3 who crossed the summit of the very first hill properly - apparently the rest of us cheated going round the shoulder!I did have the feeling I was slower than last year though – and at 8th also 5 places lower. I didn't find out till we got home I was half a minute slower, and the conditions were considerably better this year: so what can I say – don't drink and drive.
Winner - aarghh more wine.By way of consolation Mary, who was also a bit slower, won first vet and a bottle of wine. And it broke up the journey (the race did, not the wine) from Cumbria. We raided a co-op as we hadn't eaten since breakfast, and got home about dinner time, knackered and in need of another weekend to recuperate.
Report and photos pb and Mary
Results
