Ragleth Inn Fell Race 25/8/10

AS 4 miles 1600 feet.
Wet, windy and a little bit slippy.
Callow hill viewed on a much nicer day
Great race and really pleased I managed to make it on time coming back from my Peris recce in Wales. This was the last in the series and I had done all the others. It was also the last race at all in Shropshire for quite some time. Good to catch up with the usual crowd before and after the race as well.
Photo from a rather wet Alastair
Starts by crossing a ford followed by a gradual climb up a track. Then leaving the track and going straight up Callow hill. Over the other side and back onto the track for another gradual climb. Next is a left turn and a very steep descent into Callow hollow, a good portion of which I spent sliding down on my backside(unintentionally), and follow the stream down the valley back to the base of Callow on the opposite side to where we started. All the way up the steep relentless climb back to the top. Retrace our earlier steps back to the finish.
Looks like I was a bit slower than last year but I'll put that down to heavy legs and the terrible weather conditions ;-)

Stiperstones Fell Race 14/7/10

AS 3.2 miles 800ft (I think it's a bit more than 800ft).
5th race in the Shropshire summer series.

My third run of this race, but, this year it was run in the opposite direction to the last two years. I think maybe because some new steps had been put in where we usually run down. I guess it could have been dangerous legging it down those.
I started Ok but as usual I lost a few places going up the hills. And, as usual I went past a few people on the way down with an added bonus of some people going the wrong way on the last descent. They followed the path instead of cutting across though the bracken. I couldn't however keep up with RichardP. Again he seemed to be storming up the hills disappearing into the distance. He's having a fantastic year.
Photo from Alistairs Fell Running Pictures just before the cheeky short cut. It actually looks as if I'm going quite fast on this one.
I enjoyed the race. Even the torrential rain on the way round and at the end was nice.

Pontesbury Fell Race 23/6/10

AS 3 miles 1160 ft. Race 4 in the Shropshire Summer Series.
My second run of this race.

Once round the playing fields, up the road for a couple of hundred yards then down the track to the start of the steep climb through the wooded section. At the top of the woods, over a style and a right turn down another section of the hill. Then a very steep section up the flank of the hill towards the top. With jelly like legs a stumble accross the ridge and shallow climb to the summit. Then a nice fast descent back towards the woods, over the style and retrace our steps through the woods and back to the playing fields.
Alastair from Fell Running Pictures ,whilst fighting illness, climbed the hill to take this and many other great photos. Keep taking the tablets mate ;-)
This year the route at the top was reversed from last year due to some rabbit holes at the bottom of the steep hill. Better to get your foot stuck in one at slow uphill speed rather than fast downhill.

I was 2 mins faster this year, but, due to the change in route I don't know whether there was real progress. I think there was.

Nice to see everyone again and I look forward to the next run in the series. Stiperstones.

Batch Bash Fell Race 2/6/10

AS 3miles 1000ft.
The third race in the Shropshire summer series.
A nice evening for it. Luckily the temperature had dropped a few degrees from the afternoon and the running was quite bearable. Even photographer Alastair had a pair of shorts on. I've not seen legs like that since the 1999 world knobbly knees contest, or was it on a chicken farm ? Only joking Al, you have a fine set of pins ;-)
It was my first run of this race so I didn't really know what to expect. Luckily I was warned by GrahamS that there were three hills on route. Good job too, it seemed like we'd done three miles by the time I'd gone up the second hill. The trails in between the hills suited me as I could get up some good speed and get ahead of a few people before the next hill where I inevitably got caught up again.
I've said it before but I could really do with shedding some weight. Last year I was regularly coming within a minute of fellow runners RichardP and DaronW. Daron has lost a lot of weight himself and Richard seems to be blasting up the hills this year. They're both running really well and keep finishing way ahead of me. I really should try and keep up with them.

Caradoc Classic 12/5/10

AS 3.5 miles 880 feet. The second race ,of six, in the Shropshire Hills Summer Series.

Thanks to Alistair www.fellrunningpictures.co.uk for this photo

I've not done this race before and was glad to be able to give it a go this year. Starts with a short run to the south side of Caradoc, then, straight up to the top. As usual I lost a few places on the way up, but, because of a different route on the way down, with a slightly longer run from the base back to the finish line, I was able to pick off a couple of people on the run in. For me the weather conditions were perfect. No rain, no wind but quite cold. Great to see all the usual faces and catch up with people before and after the race (hi Jim). I'm really looking forward to the next race in the series. In the meanwhile though, I'm hoping to do Moel Eilio at the weekend.

Wrekin Streak Fell Race 21/4/10

My third run of this race. As this is now my local hill I was hoping this year to produce a good time.
Photo as usual from the Fell running photographer Alistair http://www.fellrunningpictures.co.uk/

For some reason though, it crept up on me so I didn't prepare for it in the manner I had hoped I would. Oh well, I was slightly faster this year, but, only by about 15 seconds. Must try harder next year.

I planted a mini, digi cami thingy on the side of a tree by the start finish line and bellow are some very short extracts from the 30 odd minutes of film. So mini is it that no body spotted it strapped to the tree, inch's from them.

The start. One competitor starts late. She did well, I remember her going past me about a third of the way up.



A short while later, the winner

A while after that, Me and M (behind the head)