Introduction
Another iconic race which I have been aware of for some time; this was
the 43rd edition of the Welsh 1000m Peaks Race. The race has been
going since 1971 and has had its fair share of controversy including the death
of a competitor several years ago in a fall from an exposed ridge which led to
a course change. The race is held on the first Saturday in June, starting on
the coast at Abergwyngregyn, climbing up and over the five mountains
over 1,000m altitude in North Wales before finishing at the summit of Snowdon
some 20 miles and 3,000m of ascent later. Not for the faint-hearted this one,
as there is no waymarking and competitors are required to bring their own maps,
plotting the coordinates of the checkpoints themselves then navigating from
point to point with a number of compulsory routes between out-of-bounds areas.
The Event Weekend
The usual long drive to an event area took place on the usual Friday
afternoon with the usual traffic conditions. Nevertheless I was at my chosen
campsite by around 7pm and was able to pitch my tent and relax with some easy
camp food Lidl-style! This consisted of smoked salmon and mussel chowder,
followed by chicken tikka masala and a luxury tiramisu. All went down rather
well and cost barely a fiver!
I almost managed to spend a whole night in a tent in Wales without it
raining! 15 minutes before I had to get up at 6am the heavens opened and the
tent took the inevitable deluge well. Breakfast, wet tent packed away and then it
was time for the 20 minute drive to Llanberis to register and receive my
electronic chip ‘dibber’. The scene was set for the potential weather
conditions on the day when a thunder storm hit at around 7.30am taking out the
power in the hall. Kit checking in the dark followed before I boarded the bus
to the start. The organisers were rather concerned about the conditions and the
briefing focussed on what competitors should do in the event of an electrical
storm while up high on one of the exposed ridges which featured heavily in the
route after the first few miles. ‘There is no point cancelling the event
because of something which may not happen’ said the race official and this was
proved correct as I saw no more lightning for the rest of the day.
The Race
At 9am around 120 people in the ‘A class’ – (fell runners 5 peaks) set
off and began the first ascent from sea level up to Aber Falls. After an
initial burst of speed along the road section people stopped off one-by-one to
remove waterproofs and extra layers. It had stopped raining and become very
humid. Most people were down to one layer now with the rest safely stowed away
in their rucksacks. The section up and past Aber Falls became quite technical
and single file before the terrain opened up into a long climb up to the first
checkpoint at Foel Grach.
From here the route to the next checkpoint
took a long and steady climb up towards the ridge near Carnedd Daffyd then an
out and back of around a mile each way to the summit to ‘dib’ the control.
Unfortunately this is when the rain started again. It quickly became heavy,
then heavier still. After a couple of minutes the intensity of the rain was
such that you didn’t think it could get any heavier but it did! Torrential
really is the only word to describe it. My pace quickened in the rain – I
really didn’t want to be up there if this was the moment that the storm decided
to return.
Checkpoint cleared and the rain stopped after half an hour or so.
Descending into the valley at Ogwen the temperature increased and I grabbed a
couple of flapjacks and a banana from the aid station before continuing. The
next challenge was an ascent of Gylder Fach before dropping down into the
valley at Pen-y-Pass for the last aid station. At this point I made my one and
only navigational error which meant I descended too soon and ended up faced
with a 10m high cliff with no way down.
Some extra climb and an additional 20
minutes added I reckon. After Pen-y-Pass came the final gruelling climb of
Snowdon following the Pyg Track. A marshal at the aid station helpfully said
that the remaining distance was only 3.75 miles – not too bad I thought. ‘It’ll
take you a couple of hours though’ he added – bugger! He wasn’t wrong. The Pyg
Track is like a never-ending staircase of helpfully placed slabs of rock marking
out a path of sorts. The main problems with this ascent were the tiredness I
was feeling in my legs and the hordes of tourists everywhere, some ascending
but mostly descending, taking their time about it and generally getting in the
way. This meant that often the best line to take up the mountain to avoid a
stationary queue at a tricky bit was to take a wider and more exposed line
nearer the edge and the increasing drop down to Llyn Llydaw and Glaslyn lakes
below. Fine on a leisurely stroll up to the summit but rather annoying on a
long timed climb after 18 miles running and walking! After what seemed like an
eternity I neared the marker stone at the top and peeled off to the right to
collect the last checkpoint at Garnedd Ugain before retracing my steps and
heading up to the summit of Snowdon and the finish line. 7 hours and 20 minutes
had passed since the start. An hour longer than I had (roughly) planned but I
had done it and received a rather unusual slate medal as my reward.
After the race
Once completed there was the small matter of descending some 6 miles
down to Llanberis to collect my car before beginning the journey home. I had
been warned about how quickly you cool down at the top of Snowdon and how
important it is to take extra layers. This wasn’t a problem today though as the
summit was blanketed by a warm mist of cloud (and body heat from several hundred
tourists in hot pants and stilettos – bloody mountain railway!). It seemed rude
not to jog down the mountain so set off with another guy and proceeded to jog
down by the side of the railway track for the first couple of miles.
At this
point I bumped into my friend Simon ‘having a rest’. Clearly the extra energy
he had used finishing ahead of me had left him tired and we walked the next bit
together, stopping off at the Halfway Café for a drink and snack. ‘So, is this
place exactly half way then?’ said Simon to the lady behind the counter. ‘It is
on the way up’ came the reply!! Still not quite sure how that works!
Another memorable day in the mountains and one I would recommend to any
runner with a sense of adventure who fancies a challenge. As the saying goes
‘I’ll be back!’.
