Karrimor International Mountain Marathon
Critical Route Choices for Elite
Rob Howard / 30.10.2004
Early Saturday morning, under a bright full moon and a starry sky registration resumed at the Dan yr Ogof caves. Cars queued from both directions to get into the registration area, and to be directed where to park. Somehow the race organizers had found enough hard standing in the surrounding area to squeeze in 1700 cars after the heavy rains made it impossible to use nearby fields for parking. Some cars had to be parked 2 or 3 km along the main road, giving those competitors a walk to the start, while others were squeezed into the quarry being used as one of the starts. Instead of one field there were cars in half a dozen locations, but somehow the marshals kept everyone moving through registration. Some of those who left it until Saturday morning to register found the queues and distant parking spots left them running late for their starts, but they had been warned it would be a bit chaotic.
At least the clear skies on Saturday morning promised a fine day, and the forecast for the weekend is for dry weather, with perhaps a few showers and a cold night. It’s expected to drop to just 3C tonight. However, as teams made their way to the starts there were patches of dense cloud and fog, some rolling about the hills and some hugging the valley floors.
The starts took place in 3 locations. The A, B. and C courses set off from the East Start in a quarry across the main road from registration, while the 3 Score course classes began on the West Start on the hillside above the HQ field. See All Event Posts
