In the build up I remember saying that I would take it easy this year. No going off fast, no chasing anyone down, steady, steady, steady until I get a feel for the race. This is absolutely my plan. Steady. Really steady. At a conversational pace for stage one and probably stage two and three as well. With my recent training hiccups and back strains plus feeling not quite 100% only last week this is no time for pushing limits, that will come later in the race.
I really hardly know myself sometimes!
The course starts with a track along the old railway line then turns a couple of corners - it then runs through the campsite where we get a cheer from those gathered and into and around a forest trail that is mostly quality path for a number of miles. There are quite a few turns here and there to start with and it's only later on when it stretches out and becomes less windy and the decisions are fewer and further between.
After about half a mile Paul and I are chatting and someone cruises past us and runs off into the distance. Don't jump after him. Don't jump after him. Don't jump...
"Don't go off too fast too soon," Paul calls after me laughing as I jump up a gear and attempt to chase the flying runner down. The road winds round a few corners here and there and then enters a tree line, in and out. I can't see him so he must have got a larger gap than I thought so I dial up the pace so I can catch him and then run with him for a bit.
Still not there. Blimy he must be motoring, I'll just dial it up a bit more. After half an hour of gradually increasing the pace I get to the stage where to go any faster really would end my race early so keep it at a constant. At the first checkpoint I ask about other runners and that's when I realise I am leading, by accident as it happens as the runner who was ahead has taken a wrong turn and I passed him without knowing.
Now I am in something of a pickle. I've invested energy to get ahead so to drop back would be a waste. But now I have to manage my lead and hold on to something without knowing how fast anyone else is going and without exerting too much energy. . So much for a steady first day. Afterwards online I see some comments from friends saying how they thought I was going to take it easy but I must know what I'm doing - if only they knew!
Soon after checkpoint one the route leaves the lake and, after a quick right then left on a road, enters the wide forest trails used for logging - these I remember well. Spectacular views and long, gradual climbs and descents are the order of the day for this mid section. It's not unpleasant but it's also a bit of a slog on some of these roads. Every now and then there will be a turn, clear on the map and clear on my trace, and then checkpoint 2 comes and goes. There's more of the same until checkpoint 3 which is just at the top of a sneaky little climb and close enough to the finish that there's only about 5 miles left. I haven't seen anyone for a while (all day) and I spend a little time chatting and thanking the checkpoint volunteers. I fill up with water and then have to make the only route choice available on this stage - straight on across (and down and up) a section of moorland or around on the road? I choose the road after thinking about it for a while - it's the easier option although I run it harder than perhaps I should because I can't escape the nagging feeling it's longer. Although I suspect I would think this of whichever option I took!
I negotiate the final road section and find the somewhat hidden path across a field that leads to the campsite and drop down with what will turn out to be a twelve minute lead over Paul and then a further minute back to Andy which is no time at all in a 235 mile race after only 31 miles. I didn't win this stage last year so that's a nice and unexpected bonus. Sally has driven round to the campsite despite not being able to do anything to help apart from speak to me and I change into my evening wear after a quick shower. This has become a staple of my post stage routine - get in, get out of the clothes I've run in quickly, wash myself and the clothes if needed, get dry and warm and then eat as soon as possible. My food is basically the same format but with different options each day. Breakfast is a dried meal with added water, as is tea, and during the actual running I eat things that I know have worked for me in races in the past with a couple of random things thrown in for good measure because I know that whatever I've chosen I'm unlikely to want. This works well for me and I've got a teabag or coffee each day and an emergency hot chocolate.
After I've eaten I will check the condition of my feet (always wise to eat first!) and my kit. I will then lay out my sleeping arrangements and put my feet up. I remember watching a program about the Tour de France which said that the cyclists adopt a particular mentality during the race. Don't stand when you can sit, don't sit when you can lie down, don't lie down when you can sleep. That may or may not be exactly what it was but that's what's stuck with me and I use it to full effect.
People drift in to the finish for the next couple of hours and settle in to sharing tents and sorting themselves out. This is our first night in camp and we chat the small talk of knackered strangers thrown together on an adventure. It's a lovely time. Jo shouts from the tent "Are they Spiderman leggings?" to me (they are) and after they've finished laughing and admiring (I think) my matching painted toenails (thanks to my daughter Maria, 19, for that) it's time to rest. I'm not the most sociably outgoing person in the world at the best of times and the close proximity of others voluntarily thrown together for an extended period is an interesting one. Truth be told on the first night most people are working out a rhythm that works for them so people drift in and out of conversations while sorting themselves out. This is true for competitors and race crew and director alike. Richard (RD) would go the extra mile for any of his runners and as soon as our day is over for him it's just the start of the next stage preparation.
I've kept my kit remarkable similar to the previous year - a roll mat, no pillow (used my rolled up fleece layer around my rucksack) but a new sleeping bag that is lighter and warmer. I snuggle down and get not un-comfy and drift off to sleep quite quickly wondering what tomorrow will bring.
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