
Well, a picture tells a thousand words, but to be honest the one below’s a bit surprising. I’d thought some of the biggest hills were towards the end … and although there are a few rises, it’s clear that the worst climbing, by far, is in the eighth mile. Yes, it’s another weekend of staying in a lovely Dentdale cottage (well organised, Jan!), avoiding drinking too much on the Friday night, and then celebrating in a state of mild exhaustion on the Saturday night.

The start was a bit dramatic. James and I were talking about how fast to go off, adrenaline kicking in, that sort of thing, as you do. Then off we went, but within a couple of seconds, James, a yard or two in front of me, gets a trip and after manfully trying to stay upright – legs and arms flailing everywhere – he has no option but to hit the deck … sensibly aiming for someone’s ‘front-garden gravel’.
I carried on, hoping he’d quickly get back on his way, and lo, there he was, legging it past me at full pelt, heading for the sharp end of the field. I, too, was going quite fast … I got through the first five miles in 34′ or so, and 10K in 43′, at which point I’m thinking this may turn out to be too quick. I was right, and slowed more and more as the temperature rose heading towards that big bump shown above. This is not a good part of the race … a long drag, and mentally, you’re thinking,’We’re still heading away from Dent’, which frankly doesn’t help. Anyway, it’s always a relief to get to the bridge at about 10.5 miles, turn round and head for home. Also, although there are a few steep rises, I always like the run-in, and now that profile explains why …
James was first Strider home, with a great time, and not too worse for wear after his encounter with the gravel. I was happy with my run, a bit faster than last year. Nina (or ‘Nina Jane’, as the results have it), also had a good run, also faster than last time and worth a third prize for her age group. Dougie got the right side of the two-hour mark this year, after just missing out last time around, as did Alister, on the first part of an epic weekend’s racing. Phil Owen also had a good run, getting back on the road to recovery, followed by Jan, who got a third in her age group as well. Good runs, too, from Jean, Stef and Margaret, but two more special mentions: Jacquie really wasn’t looking forward to this one … mainly due to us all winding her up about how hard it was going to be … but she had a great run, and got a half-marathon PB on the way round. Finally congratulations to Yusuf, who made good use of George’s number, ran very well, and put over sixty runners behind him – well done mate!
Results
Pos |
Name |
Club |
Cat |
Pos |
Time |
1 |
Ian McBride |
Unattached |
M |
1 |
1:18:23 |
36 |
James Garland |
|
M |
|
1:37:49 |
41 |
Clare Pearson |
Skipton AC |
F |
1 |
1:38:30 |
69 |
Shaun Roberts |
|
M50 |
|
1:43:50 |
111 |
Nina Jane Mason |
|
F35 |
|
1:51:16 |
178 |
Dougie Nisbet |
|
M40 |
|
1:59:21 |
183 |
Alister Robson |
|
M40 |
|
1:59:57 |
222 |
Phil Owen |
|
M40 |
|
2:06:09 |
238 |
Jan Young |
|
F55 |
|
2:08:19 |
246 |
Jean Bradley |
|
F55 |
|
2:09:15 |
275 |
Stephanie Barlow |
|
F35 |
|
2:13:02 |
281 |
Yusuf Kuruner |
|
M |
|
2:13:57 |
314 |
Jacquie Robson |
|
F35 |
|
2:23:36 |
341 |
Margaret Thompson |
|
F55 |
|
2:39:47 |
345 finishers.
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