British 100km Champion and World no. 2

British Championship gold medal

I’m absolutely delighted to be able to say that I’m the 2017 British 100km Champion.  To have won my first national title at the age of 45 is an amazing feeling and something I’m very proud of, especially after all the injury heartache of the last few years.  It was a huge honour, too, to be part of the England team contesting the Anglo Celtic Plate (ACP) – a home countries international which was also being held within the race. 

 

I have to say, though, the build-up to the race wasn’t all plain sailing and there were times I wondered if I’d even make it to the start line!

 

 

My three weeks warm-weather training in Portugal went really well (see my last blog post), apart from the fact that I developed some nasty blisters of the balls of both feet.  Although my toes are prone to blisters it’s quite unusual for me to get them elsewhere on my feet and I tried various combinations of Compeed and different socks to try and alleviate the pain.  On my return from Portugal I had two or three days’ rest to try and give them chance to heal, though they never did heal completely.  Then, not long after that, I developed a calf / Achilles tendon strain.  Luckily it wasn’t a full-blown tear, but on the advice of my brilliant physio, Mark Buckingham, I had several days with no running whatsoever.  With both of my local swimming pools currently closed for refurbishment I was unable to aqua-run and ended up cycling to try and maintain some sort of fitness.  Thank goodness for the brilliant facilities in the health club at The Warwickshire, where I could go and do quality sessions on the gym bikes with a fantastic outlook over the golf course, with its lake and trees.  It’s almost like cycling outdoors – and I even spotted a pair of Oystercatchers as well as a Great Crested Grebe!  I’m hugely grateful to The Warwickshire for their support – their gym facilities are fantastic and so beneficial to my training.  I did a few rides out on the roads too, plugging away on my mountain bike on the lanes that I should have been running on.  Les, my amazing coach, kept telling me not to panic, but I did anyway, stressing about how much training I was missing!  Luckily my calf / tendon responded well to treatment from Mark and Dan Barrett at Witty Pask and Buckingham and I’m indebted to them for getting me to the start line.  I was soon able to resume running again, but I’d missed almost all of my quality sessions in the last six weeks prior to the race.  However, I at least managed to get in a couple more long steady runs to give me the confidence boost I needed before the 100km.

The last two weeks of tapering before a big race is always a stressful time.  It feels like I’m losing all my fitness and putting on weight; every little ache and pain seems like a full-blown injury and I’m paranoid about catching a ‘lurgy’!  When I tripped up my stairs and banged my knee five days before the race I thought it was the end of the world!  It did seem, however, that all the cycling I’d done in my keenness to retain my fitness was perhaps, in hindsight, not such a great thing after all.  My quads, IT bands and hip flexors were incredibly tight and despite massage, stretching and foam rolling, never fully recovered in time for the race.  Sometimes what appears to be the right thing to do isn’t necessarily so!  Despite all the minor setbacks in my preparation, and all my ‘mini-panics’, I never lost focus and deep down always believed that I would be there and run well.  In those final two weeks, knowing that I’d prepared my body as best as I could, I worked on preparing everything else – my food / drinks and kit.  I tried out my new England kit and broke in a new pair of my all-time favourite Mizuno Wave Rider shoes to make sure they were comfortable for race day.  I’ve worn Mizuno shoes for many years and I am so grateful to them for their continued support with shoes and kit. 

The final week seemed like an eternity and all I wanted to do was get out there and race.  Eventually the day came for Les and me to drive up to Patrington Haven, near Hull, and check into the caravan park which was to be our home for the next few days.  The race HQ and the start / finish were all based at the caravan park and the England team were all accommodated in caravans on the site, which was really convenient.  This also meant that I could ‘do my own thing’ regarding meals prior to the race and not be restricted to whatever was on offer at a hotel, which is so often the case when I go away to race. 

Which way to the Meridian Ultra?!

As well as incorporating the ACP and British Champs. the race was also an open race – the Meridian Ultra – so called because the Greenwich Meridian line passes just outside the village of Patrington, near to the course.  So, of course, we had to make a quick stop for a photo opportunity!  And I must also say a big thank you here to John Lloyd from Cannonball Events for putting on such a well organised race.

 

My race 'picnic'!

The day before the race Les and I drove the course to remind ourselves of the route.  We’d been up there last October to do a recce with the race director, but it was good to refresh my memory again.  Most of the day was taken up with preparing my ‘picnic’ for the race!  My bottles were all labelled, including motivational messages to keep me going, then filled with the appropriate drinks and gels / food attached.  And, of course, my ‘trademark’ silver stars attached to make my bottles easy to spot!  Saturday evening we had a team meeting, then it was time to eat, get my kit ready and go to bed – not that I slept much (or at all!).

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday morning was an early start for me as I like to eat my breakfast 3 hours before I race, so I was up at 4.30am!  With the start only a stone’s throw from the caravan I had a fair bit of time to kill before I made my way over to join the other runners.  It was a bright sunny morning, but a bit chilly due to the windy conditions.  There were about 50 runners gathered for the start, including the international teams and open race runners, both men and women.  It was a pretty low key start – the race organiser shouted “go” and we were off out of the caravan park and on our way! 

And we're on our way!

The route was flat with little in the way of shelter.

 

The course consisted of four laps of an out-and-back route, each of 25km.  It was all on long, straight, quiet country lanes through open arable farmland between Patrington and Sunk Island.  The route was as flat as a pancake and, being devoid of much in the way of hedgerows or trees, very exposed.  At one point I looked across to my right and saw two huge ships in the field, before realising they were actually sailing up the Humber estuary towards Hull!  Each lap ended with a loop round a small lake on the caravan site, before heading back out for the next lap. 

In a group early on in the race.

 

I had a planned pacing strategy that Les and I had discussed beforehand, which was aimed at achieving the 7hrs 56min qualifying time for the Great Britain team for next year’s World Championships.  I was also aiming to be the first female to win the ACP in under 8 hours.  If everything went really well I also knew I could have a shot at the W45 age group World Record of 7:43:55.  So I set off at my own pace and ignored some of the other girls who had started faster than me.  I think I was in about 6^th position in the women’s race after the first lap, with three of my England team-mates and two Scots in front of me.  My split at the halfway (50km) point was 3hrs 49mins 35secs, which was fractionally up on my target, but still felt very comfortable.  As the race unfolded I gradually moved up, passing the other girls one by one and still on track for my pace schedule.  Just before 65km I moved into the lead in the women’s race and, at that point, was still feeling strong. 

Still feeling strong and enjoying myself.

It wasn’t long, however, before the relentlessly long stretches of road, which were totally exposed to the windy conditions, began to take their toll.  By the end of my third lap (75km) I was starting to hurt, both physically and mentally.  My quads, which had been tight before the race, were beginning to protest and the blisters that hadn’t fully healed since Portugal were feeling really sore.  I think the fact that the course was so flat didn’t help as it meant I was using the same muscle groups the whole time, with no respite to use slightly different muscles to go up or down hills.  The thought of running that last lap really didn’t enthral me, but all my family had made the journey there to support me and there was no way I was going to let them down.

My sister and brother-in-law cheering me on - they gave me a huge boost.

 

One of the drinks stations out on the course.

At this point I should say a massive thank you to the England team management – Walter Hill, Michelle Maxwell, Darren Reevell and Anne and Norman Wilson – as well as Les, who all did a magnificent job in supporting me and making sure I got all my drinks without any problem.  I’m totally indebted to them for standing out there all day to support me and, of course, the rest of the team.  It was a hugely welcoming sight to see them, especially at the two drinks stations out on the course where, after several kilometres of lonely, windswept, monotonous roads, their encouraging words were really uplifting.

Message on a bottle - reading one of my motivational quotes.

Into the caravan park for the last time - those speed bumps felt like mountains!

I’ll be honest – that last lap was tough, both physically and mentally.  I had to use all the mental strength I could muster and thanks must go to Stuart Chambers at Athletic Mind for all his help in this area in the past.  My legs were screaming at me to stop, but I had to keep telling them that I was still physically capable of running (just!) and I wouldn’t let them give up.  I thought about all my family there supporting me, my friends back home who were tracking me online and, of course, Les and how much he had given to prepare me for the race.  I was forcing myself to eat and drink as I knew I needed every ounce of strength I could get.  I was still on my target pace until about 85 / 90km, but the last 10km was, sadly, painfully slow as I struggled to move my legs! 

 

So proud to be waving that England flag.

As I came into the caravan site for my last lap round the lake everyone was cheering for me and an England flag was thrust into my hands.  I had to dodge a few dog walkers round the lake, which wasn’t great, but I eventually crossed the finish line with a mixture of relief that I could finally stop running and elation at having won! 

The relief and elation after 8 hours of running.

It was wonderful to have all my family there to celebrate with me – it’s the first time most of them have seen me run for my Country and the first time any of them have watched me run in an ultra.  They’ve been so supportive throughout my 30-year competitive career and I was extra happy to be able to thank them by winning.  It was also fantastic to be able to share the moment with Les and repay him for everything he does for me.  I quite simply could not have achieved what I have over the years without his guidance, support and friendship.

A special moment with Mum, Dad, sister Jenny, brother-in-law Martyn and nieces Charlotte & Ellen

Receiving my medal and trophy from Hilary Walker and Walter Hill from the IAU / British Athletics

 

The women's Anglo Celtic Plate

My finishing time was 8hrs 01min 22secs which, now I’ve had time to reflect on it, I am quite disappointed with.  I don’t feel it does justice to all the training and hard work I put in during the months leading up to the race.  Having said that, it’s still the second fastest time in the world by a female so far this year!  It was the best I could do on the day, on that course and in those conditions. 

 

I was extremely proud to lead the England women’s team to victory in the Anglo Celtic Plate competition too (a result which the England men’s team also achieved with brilliant runs by all five of them).  I was sorry to learn that two of my England team mates had been unable to finish and I wish them both well in their recovery and future races.  But I was well backed-up by Sophie Carter, who had an excellent run to take the silver medal, and Mel Venables who showed huge determination to take the British Champs. bronze.  That was especially pleasing for me as she is also coached by Les!

The England women's Anglo Celtic Plate winners

 

British 100km Champion!

So, it’s now a week after the race and I’m still on a high, showing my gold medal to all my friends, work colleagues and training partners at Leamington C&AC to acknowledge all the support that they all give me.  I’m still incredibly frustrated at just missing that 8-hour target and keep questioning whether I could have done more; but I know that at the time I gave it everything I had.  My legs were in bits for a couple of days after the race, but they appear to have recovered quite quickly, thanks in no small part to the magic berries of CurraNZ.  I’ve had a week with absolutely no running whatsoever – apart from the fact that I was unable to walk for a couple of days, I also needed a complete break mentally and time to recharge my batteries.  I’ll probably resume light jogging again soon and take it from there.  But for the time being I’m just enjoying the fact that I’m British Champion!

Where am I going to display all of this?