Wuthering Hike: Saturday 10 March 2007
It's nearly 8am on a cold and grey Saturday morning in the Pennines. There are runners everywhere sheltering in the courtyard of the event centre. Those who have arrived late are squeezing past those queueing for a last minute bacon butty. Planet Fear seem to be doing a good trade in last minute purchases of hats and gloves: it’s amazing what a cold wind can do for sales.
At 8am Brett, the racenorganiser, stands up and gives a few short words about the race and then we'renoff down the road with the moors rearing up at us to our left. The race reallynfeels like it is underway as we turn left onto a stony path leading to thenruins of Top Withins. A family at Top Withins offers encouragement to thenpassing runners heading up towards Round Hill and the Widdop valley. Over the top of Round Hill, there is a great view of the Pennine Way snaking down to the Walshaw Dean reservoirsnwith the moors rearing up beyond yet again. By this stage, the lead runner Adam Breaks of Calder Valley already seems to be some way ahead and the main hope for the rest of the pack is that he will tire before the end. It feels like progress is being made as we pass the Widdop reservoir checkpoint. The prospect of a stiff climb up the west side of the valley is tempered by the great scenery: Widdop crag looks black and forbidding against the grey sky to our left. Over the top and we're cruising again on good tracks to Hurstwood reservoir: not far from Burnley, but a significant distance from Howarth. At this point, Matt Giles has overtaken about 240 runners and is now in 10th place (having started 10 minutes late due to travel problems): the sight of him passing at such speed must be demoralising to a lot of the field. At 8am Brett, the race organiser, stands up and gives a few short words about the race and then we're off down the road with the moors rearing up at us to our left. The race really feels like it is underway as we turn left onto a stony path leading to the ruins of Top Withins. A family at Top Withins offers encouragement to the passing runners heading up towards Round Hill and the Widdop valley.
Over the top of Round Hill, there is a great view of the Pennine Way snaking down to the Walshaw Dean reservoirs with the moors rearing up beyond yet again. By this stage, the lead runner Adam Breaks of Calder Valley already seems to be some way ahead and the main hope for the rest of the pack is that he will tire before the end.
It feels like progress is being made as we pass the Widdop reservoir checkpoint. The prospect of a stiff climb up the west side of the valley is tempered by the great scenery: Widdop crag looks black and forbidding against the grey sky to our left. Over the top and we're cruising again on good tracks to Hurstwood reservoir: not far from Burnley, but a significant distance from Howarth. At this point, Matt Giles has overtaken about 240 runners and is now in 10th place (having started 10 minutes late due to travel problems): the sight of him passing at such speed must be demoralising to a lot of the field.
The moorland scenery is left behind at Stiperden Farm and the race proceeds along fantastic Pennine tracks hemmed in by dry stone walls. Some of the flags here are so old that there is a groove in the centre of the path. This is one of the last fast portions of the race and we run down a gentle gradient for miles. The runners are more spread out now and there are good opportunities to get lost in the lanes and paths leading towards Todmorden. It doesn't look far to Stoodley Pike - a huge monument dominating the moors to the south - but there is a huge trench valley in the way. It feels like a stiff climb up out of the valley to the beautiful ancient village of Mankinholes. With doughnuts in hand (from the Mankinholes checkpoint), the runners round a corner and are struck by the scale of the climb up Stoodley Pike that lies ahead. Most runners are too shell-shocked or spent to thank the nice local lady who is shouting out the runners' positions at the turn back onto the moors, but everyone is grateful for the support. Stoodley Pike is one of the few places where there is a route choice and those taking a diagonal line up the hill are able to gain ground on those who follow the paths marked on the map. A cold wind blows on the top and it is a good idea to pick up some pace down the long sweeping descent down into Hebden Bridge to keep warm. There are two critical pieces of route finding in the Hebden Bridge area: firstly a non-obvious switch-back through a forest on the way down and secondly a non-obvious ginnel on the way up and out (it doesn't help that there are two ginnels leading to steps out of Hebden Bridge: the wrong ginnel leads to someone's front door, the correct one leads to the Heptonstall checkpoint).
For some, the climb out ofnHebden Bridge towards Heptonstall is the crux of the race, for others it wasnthe knee jarring descent into Hebden Bridge. The climb up the Heptonstall roadnis about 24 miles into the race and those who went off too quickly or haven't eaten enough are paying the price. There is no respite however: after HorsenBridge, there is a gentle incline that seems to go on forever (maybe two miles long). At this stage, those of us who still have the energy are able to pick up a few places on the broken souls ahead of us.
The last checkpoint is at the low point of a valley. This allows for one last gruelling long ascent. After what seems like an age the top of the next hill is reached. Miraculously the sun has come out and the runners are rewarded by the sight of the finish just beyond the glinting Leeshaw reservoir. There might still be pain involved in covering that last couple of miles, but we know that it will all soon be over: the finish is there - the warm food, a cup of tea, the showers, a chance to rest at last. The finish is a welcoming place. There is warm food on offer and more importantly for some fresh water and tea. After the adrenaline of the race has started to wear off, there is time to sit around chatting to our fellow runners. There is much talk of the race just gone, but the focus seems to be of the races to come. People are mulling over the Runfurther ultra-running series flyers, planning where to race next. There seems to be a great deal of enthusiasm for the Manx Mountain Marathon, but maybe that's just because it's the next race (or maybe it is the exotic lure of the Isle of Man).
Results: http://www.fellrunner.org.uk/results/race07/hike07web.txt
Men
1st - Adam Breaks -Calder Valley
2nd - Allen Smalls - Colchester Harriers
3rd - Matt Giles - Stourbridge RC
Ladies
!st - Helen Whitaker - Carnethy and joint 1st - Cath Worth - NYM
3rd - Mandy Calvert - Macclesfield Harriers/Team Vasque
