The Inside Lane

It's been a busy 10 days: the Yorkshire Three Peaks and two of the most demanding fell races I've done, for different reasons. It was the second time I'd walked the 24 mile route up Pen-y-ghent, Whernside and Ingleborough. I actually found it a bit easier this time, largely because my preparation was better. I took - what looked like - too much food. It turned out to be just the right amount. I loaded up on carbs in the days before and filled my body with fluid and electrolytes during the hike. We weren't too concerned with the time but I think it was about an hour or so faster. A few days later, I had a 7 mile fell race along some of the most difficult terrain I've encountered. We set off from Edale and did an incredibly scenic loop, with 2,464 feet of elevation gain. It was brutal. I felt broken afterwards. On Bank Holiday Monday, it was the Bamford Sheepdog Trials Fell Race. It was also 30 odd degrees. I somehow managed to survive the steep climb up to Win Hill a...

I've had a relatively quiet spell since cross country season ended and the fell running calendar started to open up. I've still been running a few times a week and getting out in the Peaks as often as I can. It was Cressbrook Crawl fell race on Saturday. I'd been warned it was a tough one. It's 6.5 miles with around 1,200 feet of elevation gain. The first mile lulls you into a false sense of security before a brutal second mile. I felt like I was walking for most of it. Some of the downhills are exhilarating and the river crossing is fun, especially with the kids on the banks of the river spraying their water pistols at you. I came 46th out of 127 finishers and I was more than happy with that. It took me an hour. The guy who won completed it in a superhuman 44 minutes, which is roughly my flat road 10K time at the moment. Unreal. I'm doing the Yorkshire Three Peaks at the weekend, followed by another couple of fell races, one next Wednesday and one on the late May B...