'In the depth of winter I finally learned that within me there is an invincible summer' - Albert Camus
So to my eighth and final race of 2015, a hilly winter marathon with a good mate for company looking to crack his first 26.2!
I am a huge fan of Jon Steele's Hardmoors Series having completed the Hardmoors 55 and 60 ultras earlier this year. The races are well organised, relaxed and friendly and it just so happens they are all held up the road from me in the beautiful North York Moors.
So what better way to make your first foray into long distance trail running than a Hardmoors marathon for one of my oldest buddies Ben.
We arrived in time for the race briefing where we learned that Jon had thrown in an extra four miles or so to ensure we would get full value for money! This would take the distance beyond 30 miles and towards the official 50km ultra distance - what an awesome (if unorthodox) way to break your marathon duck for him.
The briefing ended with a brilliant round of applause for hero ultra runner Dennis Potton who was amongst the runners on the day. Dennis had found time to save a
drowning child on his way to the finish of the
Hardmoors 60 in September.
The sun had started to rise above the Moors as we left Guisborough Sea Cadets and made the first sticky, muddy ascent to High Cliff Nab on the Cleveland Way. We were greeted by a spectacular sight as the sun lit up a snow crusted landscape with cloud enveloping the valley bottoms. Wow, it doesn't get much better than conditions like this in December.
After taking us up Roseberry Topping (twice) and then on to Captain Cook's monument we made good progress on the frozen ground through Kildale and then up onto the High Moors. A tough long climb then before leaving the Cleveland Way and descending East to Castleton and Commondale. The sun continued to shine all morning illuminating incredible frosty views in every direction.
Whilst receiving our punishment on Roseberry Topping, Rachel, Bobby and Simon were taking on the '10km' route which was actually closer to 9 miles!
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| Simon, Rachel and Bobby ready to go - Photo credit Suzanne Dunn |
Well done ladies on your first trail race, and massive good luck to Simon taking on the mighty Marathon des Sables in 2016!
Our final climb back up onto the High Moor came after Commondale and by now the snow was melting fast in the sunshine leaving deep freezing puddles which Ben found soothing on his battered feet and I found plain horrible! By now our pace had slowed a little but we determined to finish and it was a relief to finally reach the woods high above Guisborough as the light of the day began to fade a little. Here we were caught by an experienced runner training for the Spine race in January, one of the world's toughest ultramarathons. He was so impressed by learning Ben was taking on this tough challenge as his first marathon he had to stop in his tracks and shake him by the hand!
It was good to run hard down into Guisborough where we were cheered by waiting Bobby with our friends Chris and Becki who had arrived in time to cheer us home. I didn't detect the shiny eyes promised by Ben at the finish line but I know we were both proud of finishing this tough run and it was a privilege to be there with him throughout his first marathon. Massive respect buddy, that was a hard route to pick for your first one and you pushed it all the way to the end even when it got really tough. I hope it will be the first of many for you!
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| Tough to kill! - Photo credit Chris Pickwell |
Congratulations to the Hardmoors family (runners and volunteers) who created another brilliant event with excellent organisation, aid stations and most importantly that special friendly vibe. I'll certainly be back for more in 2016 and hopefully with friends again too!
