Completing the High Peak Marathon
Yvonne Beckwith / 09.03.2011
<i>The annual High Peak Marathon is a classic endurance running event and unusually it is for teams. The race attracts entries from runners, ultra runners and adventure racers, and is usually won in around 8 hours by elite endurance athletes, but for most finishing is the challenge. This year Yvonne Beckwith from West End Runners, a Leicester running club, attempted the event for the first time, and after a steep learning curve and some exemplary team work, she managed to finish first time out. This is her account of the race.</i><br />
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At 11.17pm on Friday 4th March 4 West End Runners Mark Rawlinson, Dave Rennie, Jamie Rennie and Yvonne Beckwith set off to complete the High Peak Marathon. (This is a 42 mile, overnight, bog trot with about 5,000 foot of climb that starts from Edale in the heart of the Dark Peak area in Derbyshire.) Mark and the Rennie brothers have competed in this event several times before with various different permutations of the 4 man team, while I was a newcomer to the event.<br><br />We set off from Edale village hall at the appointed time - a staggered start of 1 minute intervals meant we could already see a row of head torches making their way up the hillside out of the valley. It is a starry night but sadly no moon, so it was pitch black. It is cold, I am dressed for the cold, within 10 minutes I am too hot but we've only just started and I don't want to stop to take off my jacket. Another 5 minutes of striding uphill over rough ground and I discover that my heels are slipping out of my brand new, never before tried fell shoes. Top tip - do not decide 3 days before a race that your much loved, but falling apart shoes are not going to make the distance and out of desperation buy a brand you have never tried before. <br />
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Being a bit defective I have footbeds in my shoes to stop me over-pronating, and between them and the extra thick socks I am wearing to ward off the cold there's not much room for my feet. Another 10 minutes pass, it's no good the jacket has to go. I am at the back of the team and stop without saying anything to the lads thinking it won't take more than a minute and I can easily catch them. I set off again and then hear a voice out of the dark say 'Yvonne, are you OK Yvonne?' … This is to become a feature of the event.<br />
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Thus far we have been running on grassy paths and uneven rocky ground, we take a track through some woods to avoid going up over steep Back Tor, no point in climbing if you don't have to. The track is muddy, my feet get wet and really start to slip around in my shoes and the mud seems keen to keep them, this is not promising in a race renowned for its bogginess. Note to self: next time you stop to faff around do all the faffing at once so you don't have to stop a second time.
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