North Downs Way 50

Oh my word, am I in pain today? I'm hobbling around the house like an old man. However, yesterday's 50 mile run pretty much went to plan and I am delighted with how I did.

The 2014 North Downs Way 50 mile trail run was the 60th marathon of my running career. It is also the only run of the 12 completed so far this year that I did last year.  The Shakespeare marathon (3 weeks ago) being the only other run this year that I have completed before.

All smiles at the start.

Ready to go. I'm in there somewhere.

I'd set my sights on beating my time from last year, but given that I have run the equivalent of 5 marathons over the last 3 weekends I wasn't sure if I was going to be too fatigued to do this. Last year I completed the 50 miles in a time of 8 hours 17 minutes. This year I was really hoping to be able to break 8 hours. My strategy was to get to mile 25 in 3 hours 30 minutes so that I then had 4 hours 30 minutes to complete the much hillier second half.

My memory had told me that Box Hill and Reigate Hill were the two biggest hills on the course, both of which come just after the half way point. In my head the run only really started once I was on the climb of Box Hill.

I started steady and built my pace up over the first 15 miles, then aimed to keep my pace at roughly marathon level until Box Hill. The whole route is incredibly scenic, it is a beautiful place to go for a run, but it is also more undulating than I had remembered. I had told myself that the first half was very runnable, but there were enough short, sharp climbs that brought me down to walking pace. Lesson 1 - never trust your memory.

I found myself passing numerous runners up to the first checkpoint at Puttenham at mile 7. I briefly stopped to have one water bottle topped up and was on my way, leaving about 4 runners at the checkpoint who had been just ahead of me. I was expecting them to catch me, but I only saw one of them again after that.

I had my first bite to eat at the second checkpoint near Guildford at mile 15. I grabbed a small cheese sandwich and some fruit and continued on my way whilst I munched. I then caught up with the lead female at about mile 20. We had a brief chat before I went on my way. She looked really strong and I fully suspected she'd catch me again over the second half of the course.

Shortly after that I was caught by John, who would eventually finish second overall. We ran several miles together. Occasionally I would take the lead, then he would come back and we'd run together for a while before he then went ahead of me. During an ultra it is nice to have company, but you also have to stick to your own pace. John would leave me on the climbs, but I seemed to be quicker than him on the descents. On the flat we seemed pretty equal. I discovered he is originally from Yorkshire but now lives near Box Hill, which he runs up for training. I could never compete with that.

The third checkpoint was just before Box Hill at mile 24. I grabbed more food here; another cheese sandwich, a couple of cookies and a big slice of melon.  I ate the cheese sandwich as I crossed the stepping stones at the bottom of the hill, and this is where I met Ruth for the first time. I'd intended to eat the cookies on the climb. But it was too hard to climb the stairs up Box Hill and eat at the same time. The cookies were starting to dissolve in my hands so I decided to stop under the shade of a tree half-way up the hill to finish them off. I ate the melon once I reached the top and then continued to run.

About half-way

It was only 7 miles to the next checkpoint at Reigate Hill. This seemed like the longest stretch on the route, obviously because the two big hills made it slow going. Ruth was also waiting on Reigate Hill to get a snap of me as I ran towards the checkpoint. There was quite a gathering of supporters at this point. Once again I only got one water bottle filled. I had half a bottle of electrolyte in my second bottle and figured this would be plenty to reach the next checkpoint at mile 38.

Arriving at the 4th checkpoint on Reigate Hill

As I left the checkpoint I was told I was 7th overall. Things then started to go wrong for me on this stage of the run. It's time to get indelicate, and I might well be breaking one of the rules of running.  If you're a non-runner you might want to skip the next paragraph.

As I continued on my way to the fifth checkpoint my bladder started to feel really uncomfortable. I thought I just needed a pee, so I jumped behind a tree. However, the colour of my urine was way off the above colour chart, it came out in small drops but at the same time it felt like I was pissing stones. 

Obviously, I realised I was very dehydrated and wished I had filled both bottles at the last checkpoint. I had four miles to go to the next checkpoint. I continued to drain both of my water bottles with the aim of finishing them both as I arrived at the checkpoint. Those 4 miles were the most uncomfortable running experience I'd ever had. Walking was ok, but running really seemed to hurt my bladder.

I reached the checkpoint and got the volunteers to top up both of my bottles, one with water the other with electrolyte. Whilst they did that I downed four cups of water they had put out. I left the checkpoint as three runners arrived together (Steve, Hamish and Vladimir). I walked away from the checkpoint with a small picnic in each hand. It wasn't long before all three caught me and passed me.

The next checkpoint was just 5 miles away and about 7.5 miles from the finish. Once I'd had plenty to drink I recovered quite quickly. I caught up with Peter and we ran and chatted for a short distance before I went ahead of him. I then passed Hamish and Vladimir on a downhill section. Both seemed surprised to see me again.

I arrived at the final checkpoint just a short way ahead of Vladimir and Hamish. I refilled both bottles and grabbed some cherry tomatoes and jelly babies and continued on my way. This was food that I could eat whilst running. Hamish left the checkpoint the same time as me and we both kept together for the next few miles. We never saw Vladimir again until the finish. 

Soon after the checkpoint we saw a runner ahead of us. We had had an update at the last checkpoint and knew that he was the fourth runner.  'He's going to be shocked when we pass him', I thought. Just as this thought formed in my head Hamish said, "Let's have him". The competitive streak in us then kicked in. We both raised our pace and passed the other runner at some speed considering we had about 44 miles in our legs. We gave him a small greeting along the lines of, "nice one mate, you're doing great", but we continued at a reasonable pace until we knew we where way out of his view. Neither of us said anything, but I'm sure we were both thinking the same. This was poker running. Trying to make out to a competitor that you are stronger and fresher than you actually are in order to demoralise them so they don't try to chase you down. It worked.

Over the last few miles I kept checking my pace and I knew it was going to be touch and go whether I'd make it to the finish in under 8 hours. Then with about 3 miles to go Hamish and I found ourselves in a field with no North Downs Way marker posts or any of the race organisers markers to be seen. We both swore and cursed and then tried to guess which way we should be heading. I checked out a nearby farm track whilst Hamish made his way towards a minor road. We kept within shouting distance and I heard Hamish shout that he thought he could see a finger post. We regrouped and headed towards the distant post. Sure enough it was for the North Downs Way. 

The little detour had obviously fired Hamish's adrenaline, but it had the opposite affect on me. Hamish darted off at a pace I couldn't maintain. I calculated that I wouldn't finish in under 8 hours and could feel my pace slow with defeat. Shortly afterwards I passed a volunteer re-hanging direction markers, apparently someone had removed several signs which is why we had gone off course. With our small detour I didn't know how much further I had to go. As it happens, according to my GPS watch I reached 50 miles in a time of 7 hours 57 minutes, so I will take that as a consolation. Unbeknown to me I had just under one mile to go, which felt like the longest mile of my life.

I crossed the line in a time of 8 hours 4 minutes. I then waited for Steve and Vladimir to finish some 5 minutes later. Steve finished just ahead of Vladimir to take 6th place by 15 seconds. The runner that Hamish and I had passed then came in 3 minutes later, so I guess he really was suffering over the last few miles.

Final 'uphill' push to the finish.

Bromance moment with Hamish.

Hamish and I with our medals

Cheering home Peter and Vladimir (in the distance).

It had certainly been one tough run. I did find myself questioning my reasons for doing it at certain points on the route. The only answer I can offer is the shear satisfaction I get from finishing such gruelling events, and in a respectable time. I do also get pleasure from the camaraderie between fellow ultra runners, which is definitely different from the camaraderie of marathon runners, which at times can be almost non-existent in large city centre marathons. As such, I hung around at the finish for a good 90 minutes to chat to my fellow runners.

Happy days! 

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