Night running / LED Lenser review

The RAT was the first time I'd raced in the dark. And I've done very little running in the dark full stop. This made me a bit nervous going into the race but there wasn't a huge amount I could do about it given that the race was in August - training in the dark would have meant missing out on sleep and I decided that sleep (and so not risking getting sick) was more important.

As a member of the Trail Running Team I was lucky enough to be given a LED Lenser head torch. And I'd had the chance to practise using it when we were out in the Alps in June. I was really pleased about this as it meant I knew what I could expect from the torch and that definitely gave me confidence. In the Alps, I had felt comfortable running up and down technical Alpine trails. And so I was fairly certain I'd be ok on the Cornish coastal footpath.

I was more nervous about navigating in the dark. Whilst the race was on a well-marked long distance trail, my experience (e.g. Our trip to the Isle of Wight) has taught me that this doesn't always mean you can get away without knowing the route. We bought a map and spent the days before the race recce-ing the tricky bits - mainly when the route passed through villages. This wasn't the best option but it had to do as we couldn't head all the way to Cornwall twice and we couldn't run the whole 50k (it was a there-and-back route so that would be sufficient for recognising the whole 100k route) in the days running up to the race when we needed to be resting.

So when I stood on the start line at midnight I felt pretty  comfortable with what lay ahead.

The LED Lenser head torch was really impressive. It lit up the path brilliantly and I felt I could run in pretty much the same way as during daylight. In reality, I probably wasn't quite as fast but that's not exactly a bad thing at the beginning of a 100k race! About 30 mins in I realised that the torch was a bit tight and was pressing on my head. But I was able to adjust the strap while it was on my head and I kept on moving while I did this. It was easy to change the direction of the beam (helpful on steep downhills or uphills) and its brightness.

My one problem was my batteries running out. But this was my fault - I hadn't put in new batteries for the race and dawn was about 2 hours later than I'd expected. So the torch lasted 6 hours on not-new batteries - I don't reckon that's a bad statistic. And it had a helpful red warning light that flashed when the battery was low. Given it was almost light I didn't change my batteries. Once the batteries were low, the torch would switch itself off to preserve the battery that was left.  I could see enough to run most of the time and I was then able to switch it back on for the bits where I needed a bit of extra light.

And what about getting lost? There were a few parts where I went marginally off course or went round the perimeter of a field when I could have taken a direct route across the middle to the next stile / gate. In fact the only point where I got lost to the point that it bothered me was after dawn!

In terms of running in the dark, I now feel much less scared about this aspect of longer races. In an ideal world I'd still want to recce the night time bit of the course in advance. But a section of night time running is definitely not something to put me off a race anymore.

Race report - RAT / The Plague (Hannah)

Yesterday I ran my first ever 100km race – The Plague, which is part of the Roseland August Trail (RAT) set of races put on by Mud Crew Events in Cornwall.  I’d never run more than 35 miles and hadn’t run at night so there was going to be a lot of uncharted territory, especially given that my training hasn’t gone to plan this year thanks to issues with my right lower leg.  But, kinesio-taped to the max, I was stood on the start line at 12:05am on Saturday 17^th August, feeling relaxed and ready to go.

Ready to run

We started by running across some fields down to the coastal footpath.  The grass was soaking wet which meant that I had wet feet within minutes of starting – not ideal, but at least the torrential rain which had been plaguing us for the last few days had disappeared and we were running with a clear sky and a reasonably big moon.  It was very calm and some of the views as we ran around the coast were really special – a flat sea lapping onto secluded beaches, gently lit by the moon and only experienced by those “lucky” enough to be awake at 3am to enjoy it.

The first 5 hours or so of the race went pretty quickly. Focusing on where I was going, avoiding falling into badger holes, off the edge of the cliffs or down the endless steps meant that my mind had no time to wander.  The problem with that was that I’d forget to eat and drink as often as I usually would.  I don’t think it caused any major issues as I realised this fairly early on and so consciously kept reminding myself.  I don’t run with a watch though so I couldn’t do anything like set an alarm.  Maybe something to bear in mind for future...

I enjoyed the wildlife on the night section.  Owls were hooting all around us.  At one point a bat flew in front of my head torch, a lot of the rest of the time there were white moths dancing entranced by its beam.  Then as the sun rose lots of rabbits came out to play.

I ran with people for most of the night.  Early on this was my brother Barney which was really nice – this was also his first race of this distance so it was good to share a piece of it.  I then ran for a long time with a chap who had an impressive running CV and who entertained me with stories from last year’s Spine race – it was an honour to speak to someone who’d completed such a challenge and to understand how he’d approached it.  Running with people helped with navigation.  We still got a bit lost from time to time but were usually able to work together to make sure that the damage wasn’t too big.

Our worst detour actually came just after dawn.  I’m still not quite sure how we went wrong but we found ourselves at the edge of a field with a thick gorse hedge blocking our progress and no obvious way through it.  Luckily the light meant that we could see exactly where we needed to be going and so we did a bit of off piste...  This involved crawling through tunnels in the gorse which had been carved by cows.   

My arms and legs were ripped to pieces!  The subsequent run across an uneven, sloping field meant that my right lower leg started to ache quite badly which was very frustrating as it had been fine until this point.

The next stage of the race was a real low point for me and one where I got very close to pulling out. I stopped to put on a Compressport calf guard (I’ve found this has helped in training) and to take an Ibuprofen (which I’ve never tried in training as I don’t really approve of running on painkillers).  And after this I ran on my own for quite a while.  My leg was still sore and I didn’t see anyone for ages.  At the same time, conversations at previous checkpoints meant that I knew that I was making really slow progress – it had taken 5 hours to cover 20 miles so indications were that this was going to be a very long race.  I convinced myself that I was coming near to last and that, if my leg continued to give me grief, then I’d have about 10 more hours of dragging my sorry state up and down hills and steps as the backmarker on the course.  It didn’t seem like a fun proposition.  In the midst of this I came to a field full of horses where 2 were blocking the stile in the corner of the field and were very stubborn about moving.  I could have called it a day there and then!

I knew my family would be waiting for me in Portscatho (4.5 miles from the turnaround point) and so I’d be seeing them soon.  But I didn’t reckon I’d feel proud of myself if I stopped when I saw them.  I decided I’d keep going to the turnaround at 50km and then get them to pick me up.  And that’s what I said to them when I passed them, feeling pretty miserable with the world.

Shortly afterwards I got to the Portscatho checkpoint.   I mentioned how slowly I was going and the fact that I thought I was coming last.  The people on the checkpoint were brilliant at lifting my spirits – they assured me that I was far from last and was doing really well.  This buoyed my sprits a bit.  They were lifted further as I ran towards the turnaround and realised that everyone who was in front of me didn’t have the 2 hour lead I’d been imagining. True, some of them were 1 hour ahead but anything can happen in the second half of an ultra.  The Ibuprofen was also kicking in at this point – coupled with a flatter section of the route this meant I was able to run quite a bit and get into a rhythm.  When I passed Brett and Barney I asked them to pass on a message to my family – that I wouldn’t be pulling out at the turnaround but would see them back in Portscatho.

I arrived at the turnaround in 8 hours and was greeted with a hug.  Again, the people on the checkpoint did wonders for me psychologically and I was hugely grateful to them.  I had a small portion of pasta and tomato sauce and a cup of tea.  I also got out my MP3 player and plugged myself in – this was probably one of the best decisions I made all race.

After about 10 mins I headed off, feeling significantly better and with my favourite tunes pumping in my ear.  The stretch to Portscatho was brilliant.  I ran pretty much the whole way and loved it.  I was feeling really positive.  This was also helped by knowing that the 50km runners were all due to start 10 mins after I’d left the turnaround so I knew they were chasing me down!  In fact the top two guys passed me at the Portscatho checkpoint and they were flying – it was impressive to see.

Applying some vaseline on the way back through Portscatho

I overtook a couple of Plague runners in Portscatho and was feeling in a good place when I saw my family for the second time.  I stopped briefly to say hello, apologise for my previous mood, apply some Vaseline and take another Ibuprofen.  Then I cracked on.  The next stage was quite fun as the 50km runners gradually caught up with me – they were hugely encouraging, congratulating me as they went past or patting me on the back.  It’s this sort of camaraderie that makes me enjoy ultra-running above a lot of the other sports I’ve done.

The 50km runners also acted as useful pacers.  Once the front guys had gone past, I found I was able to keep up with the runners on the flats and downhills.  On the uphills they would drop me, but then I turned to my music which gave me a beat that made it a lot easier to trudge up the endless climbs at a consistent pace.

At some point along this section it started to rain very heavily.  We’d been warned that it would and I was grateful that the rain had held off for so long.  I decided not to stop and put on my waterproof as it was still reasonably warm so I got soaked to the skin.  There were a few dry patches as the day progressed but for the remainder of the race we were mostly running in drizzle.  With this plus adding the 11 and 20 mile runners to the route as well, the paths started to get really churned up especially towards the end.  It was lethal and I wished I had by MudClaws on me – they’d have been in their element on that sort of terrain!

The rest of the second half of the race is a bit of a blur.  I felt stronger and stronger as time went on and began to enjoy the race more and more.  Around Mevagissey I found myself overtaking lots of Plague runners and that motivated me even more.  With only 8 miles to go I also knew I’d finish the race and I felt really proud of myself especially after my tough patch at dawn.

The last section was particularly hard cos of the mud and a lot of people were slithering and sliding around.  But I knew I was almost there and so I had a big smile on my face by this point.  The smile got even bigger as I crossed the finish line – it had been an incredibly tough race but I’d pulled through and had done myself proud.  100km, 3300m of ascent and descent in 15 hrs and 58 mins.  I came 16^th overall (out of 56 starters).  I was also very chuffed to be 3^rd lady and so came home with a trophy which will take pride of place in our house.

Me at the finish

 A huge thank you to MudCrew for organising such a great event.  And especially to all of those who helped motivate me out on the cours. 

Also thank you to Mammut, Compressport, LED Lenser for giving me some great kit to race in.  And TORQ for fuelling me brilliantly as always.  Unfortunately the weather meant I didn't get the chance to wear my Tifosi sunglasses though they've been great in training.