March 2013
2 posts
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February 2013
2 posts
Tame the Wild Bootcamp →
I am helping to organise the 2013 Tame the Wild boot camp in the far North West based near An Teallach. As one of the instructors I’ll be organising trail and mountain runs in the area depending on numbers and demand. Participants can pick and choose from a range of activities over the three days. See the gofurther Scotland page for more.
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January 2013
2 posts
BEYOND THE MOUNTAINS | A FILM BY JAMES URQUHART
Beyond the Mountains film trailer from James Urquhart on Vimeo.
I can’t wait to see this film. I met James just days after running the Watershed when he was still on his epic walk over every Munro in Scotland. We sat in the sun, drinking tea talking about mountains. Good luck with the editing James.
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November 2012
5 posts
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Days 24, 25 and 26: The Beinn Deargs, the Cromalt...
Pointing north from the summit of Conival to the bright quartzite-capped ridge to Mullach Leathaid Riabhaich.
60 miles. 13700ft height gain. Three days.
Big runs or races always come with a bit of an edge. An uncertainty about the outcome. The bigger the run, the harder the edge. But towards the end of those runs, there is often a moment of calm and concentration when you realise you have the...
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IT Band Injuries
Everyone who runs a lot expects an injury now and again. But what is it about an IT Band injury that’s so infuriating? I’ve struggled with an IT Band problem since the Ayr River Way Challenge. Things are improving but…not very quickly.
The IT band injury I had last year kicked in after about 6 miles while in the last few weeks the pain has me limping after just 1 or 2. Obviously...
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More Research from Ultrarunning Edge. Focused on... →
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Research on 100 mile ultrarunning tactics
There isn’t much research on ultrarunning and even less on tactics many ultrarunners take for granted - such as starting out slowly, using NSAIDs etc. But here’s a good paper on a survey of ultrarunners competing in the South Downs 100….
http://www.centurionrunning.com/assets/files/research/SouthDownsWay100Report.pdf
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Days 5, 6 and 7. The Central Belt.
Three days. 90 miles. 6800ft total height gain.
View Watershed Run Days 5, 6 and 7 Lowlands Traverse in a larger map
The section of Scotland’s Watershed that runs through the Central Belt may not be the highlight of the route - but it does manage to wind its way between almost all the built-up areas and industrial plots. The average elevation of the Watershed here is a surprising 280m – a little...
October 2012
1 post
The Fannichs - Scotland's Watershed
Here’s another of the best routes I ran during my journey on Scotland’s Watershed in May and June this year. Given the schedule and logistics, there were some days when I had to commit to nearly 30 miles or more - my day on the Fannichs was one of them.
View Watershed Run - Fannich Mountains in a larger map
The exact line of the Watershed (red on the map) reaches the A835 from A832 well to the...
September 2012
4 posts
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Sutherland and Caithness Days 28 and 29
Here is some more detail about my month-long run on Scotland’s Watershed. For other posts like this hit the Watershed Run tag or see the archive.
By the time I finished day 27 on Ben Hee, I knew - barring an injury - that I’d finish the journey. But I was finding any kind of climb impossible to run and my pace had slowed. To have any chance of reaching Duncansby Head within the 30 day...
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September 15th: RAW 12. River Ayr Way Challenge Ultra. 41 miles.
The River Ayr Way is Scotland’s oldest long distance way-marked trail which is a true ‘source to sea’ route that follows the river from Glenbuck Loch to the west coast. The ultra route starts on undulating ground over farmland and open moor with some riverside bog but quickly reaches beautiful wooded sections with...
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Southern Highlands - Day 10
View Watershed Run Day 10 in the Southern Highlands in a larger map
In the Southern and Central Highlands Scotland’s Watershed weaves its way north criss-crossing the A82 taking in some of the most dramatic ridges and mountains south of the Great Glen. But before it reaches that famous road, it runs parallel to Loch Lomond and then accross the tiny strip of land between Loch Arklet and...
August 2012
2 posts
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Southern Uplands - Day 4
View Watershed Run Day 4 in the Southern Uplands in a larger map
During the fourth day of my run on Scotland’s Watershed I had a difficult decision. I was standing on the A701 after running 15 miles travelling west from the A708. I could either cut the day short or commit to another 17 miles going north to Coulter over Culter Fell.
The decision was a defining moment because I was way...
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UKHillwalking.com feature about my run →
UKHillwalking.com asked me a few questions about my run and published this feature last week.
July 2012
5 posts
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Recovering from multi-day running
One of the best things about a solo, multi-day run over hundreds of miles is that there are no rules or handbooks. There isn’t an Idiot’s Guide to a multi-day ultra. You do your training; you decide if you are ready or not and you live with the outcome. It is an adventure in every sense.
But the corollarly of this is that there are no guides to the best path to recovery. If there is...
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Coping mentally with a multi-day ultra
This post started as some thoughts on winter training but I realised that running in grim winter weather is not only an extra physical work out, it also helps with focus and a bit of resilience. So I started to think about what else helped me cope mentally with the task of running hundreds of miles on a multi-day hill run.
I didn’t set out with a plan for mental training. There aren’t...
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June 2012
104 posts
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Mud Sweat and Tears - my favourite UK site on... →
Mud Sweat and Tears article about my run.
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New article in Grough about finishing my run →
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TGO article about my run →
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Final Figures
In between several breakfasts, lunches and other meals today I managed to map all the days since May 26th. I didn’t manage to do the whole route I intended - logistics and exhaustion got in the way in some areas. But I ran the whole of the Watershed in the Southern Uplands and close to the whole in the Central Highlands - what Peter describes as the Heartlands. I ran complete sections of the...
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Thoughts on finishing
I’ll be thanking a lot of people who helped in one way or another with this project over the next few days. But I wouldn’t even have started properly training if it hadn’t been for Helen. About two-and-a-half years ago I first mentioned the run - she didn’t laugh. In fact, even when I told her I might not finish a 700 hundred mile mountain and trail run, she saw the bigger...
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“High above this road, filled with shadow and doubt,
I want to shoulder my load...”
– Stuff on my iPod #6 - Bruce Sprinsteen - Leah
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“So here’s to drinks in the dark at the end of my road.”
– Stuff on my iPod #5 - Florence and the Machine - Shake it Out
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Day 29
A long one. Started just before 10am and finished at 7.25pm running almost continually for more than 30 miles . Problem was the dreaded Knockfinn Heights flow for first 8 miles. Where dragons live! Anyway, I’m here now in Watten with just 22 miles left. I do now feel like I’ve ran for several hundred miles but on top of the world. Looking forward to tomorow.
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“Keep your head up, keep your heart strong”
– Stuff on my iPod #4 - Ben Howard - Keep your Head Up
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“I’ve no quarter in my pocket
no apple left to eat
I am running, I am...”
– Stuff on my iPod #3 - Nerina Pallot - Halfway Home
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“Burning’ like a red coal carpet
A mad bull lost its way”
– Stuff on my iPod #2 - Rolling Stones - Gimme Shelter
Thanks...
…again to those who have joined me on the trail and hill for some of this
long run. Chris Dyer (and Gen), Paul Tat, Andy Wilby, Ray Wilby and Rob
Beaumont. All of them climbers and runners (well Tat is is a recent convert
to running!). It has been a real help and company came at just the right
time on more than one occasion.
