The Wadsworth Trog, a 20 mile race with 3500ft of climbing. Due to the timing of the race, it's normally susceptible to horrific weather conditions. However, this year the sun was out and the wind was calm. Underfoot it was a mixture of soft boggy parts and firm icy patches. I don't believe you need a huge warm up with the longer races as you can ease your way into the race through the first 1/2 mile or so. After a very casual start I found myself at the front with 3 other runners. Team mates Karl Gray and James Logue with GB orienteer Jack Wood.
After a steady climb up onto the skyline, I found myself at the front. I started to stretch out and was surprised when I started to open up a gap. We reached High Brown Knoll, the 1st checkpoint, and a quick look over my shoulder revealed Karl had started to close me down. A sweeping descent that was incredibly slippy brought us to checkpoint 2. A couple of falls had cost me 1st place but I still felt ok. A short climb out from the reservoir brought us to a long flat section that would bring us out at Warley Reservoir. The distances between Karl, myself and James remained pretty consistent for the next mile or so. A few hundred metres away from Cock Hill I started to real in Karl and by the time we hit the road crossing I was back on his shoulder. A steady descent brought us out on a road, before a long climb up to 'Top of Stairs'. I had a quick look back at this point and couldn't see James or Jack, so I was confident that sticking with Karl might help us build a good lead. We reached the top and dropped down slightly to a conduit. A steady flat run for 1/2 mile brought us to checkpoint 6. The run over to Harbour Lodge was quick and it wasn't long before we were climbing up to Top Withens. My race plan was to stay on the shoulder of the leader up until this point and then kick on after Top Withens, but when do race ever go to plan? Instead, Karl broke me and a slight gap soon became a big gap. As we dropped down to the dam I realised Karl had gone and I had to focus on keeping 2nd. As I started the climb up and over to Walshaw I had a drink of water and composed myself. I settled into a rhythm and it seemed to work. A fast decent and then a short climb up to Shackleton Knoll and I was starting to hurt. My legs were burning and the descents were becoming painful. I dropped down into Crimsworth Dean taking a lot of care. I found it very slippy and very rocky. I then had to climb back up to High Brown Knoll. This was a real drag, not a steep climb but it just went on and on! Again, I had a few quick glances behind and I couldn't see anybody, so I was hopeful that I could hang on until the finish. A slow run over to checkpoint 12 brought me to the last downhill before the finish. At this point it's just about making sure your careful and don't fall. I reached the final checkpoint before the final climb up the finish at the cricket club. The final climb was a struggle and I wouldn't have been happy had anybody been around me at this point. You wouldn't want to be in a sprint up there. I reached the cricket club and I had finished.
I finished 2nd, with Karl winning easily. Jack came 3rd with James in 4th. My time was 2:35:30. I must congratulate Karl, a really classy performance. Overall I was with my race, I need to push on now as the race season is fast approaching.
Photography:-
1st Picture courtesy of Geoff Matthews
2nd Pictures courtesy of Dave and Eileen Woodhead (Woodentops)
Photography:-
1st Picture courtesy of Geoff Matthews
2nd Pictures courtesy of Dave and Eileen Woodhead (Woodentops)