Karrimor International Mountain Marathon

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Over The Black Mountain

Rob Howard / 30.10.2004

In the early afternoon teams on the non-score courses crossed the main A4067 road just north of race HQ to move into the are of The Black Mountain and onwards to the overnight camp.

There were no set crossing points and with 5 courses crossing the area teams were using a variety of routes. But whichever way they approached the road it was a steep descent and very slippery.

For anyone who had slipped or injured themselves, or who simply decided the day was too long and they were not going to make, this road crossing was the obvious escape route. One of those who found a race marshal and managed to get a ride back to HQ was Ashleigh Field who had badly gashed his leg in a fall. “It hit a small rock, but it was sharp enough to make a deep cut�, he said. So, for him and partner John Raho the race was over.

Most teams made the road crossing at the highest point. This had the advantage of losing less height when coming off the adjoining hills, but the weather there was bleak, with very dense cloud and a cool breeze. Those who stopped to eat or check the map didn’t do so for long. John Burt and David Fine, racing in the C class, crossed here, and looked cheerful, despite a bad start to the race. “It was a terrible start,� said Fine, “we took 2 hours to get to the first checkpoint. We followed someone and went the wrong way and it was hard to find our way back ...�

On the B course Robert and Kim Lawler were taking great care with their navigation. “In this mist you have to take lots of bearings and trust your compass, but it slows you down,� said Robert. “We might get benighted at this rate.� That was a thought in the minds of many as they looked at how much further they had to go.

Philip O’Friel and Stephen Brennan were running the A course. “It’s better than last year,� said Philip, “at least I can run some of it. There have been times we’ve been thigh deep in the bog though. It’s so wet underfoot that we’ve gone the longer way round to stay on paths if we could.� Mark Hawker and David Buckler had taken the same approach. “We’ve run one long section of path twice,� said Hawker. “I doubt that’s what the planner intended, but it worked for us!�See All Event Posts