Mustang Trail Race 2017 Day 4

Today the itinerary was a bus ride to Marpha or Jomsom but as the main group arrive in Jomsom tomorrow morning we decided to get the bus all the way there. We had a leisurely start to the day with breakfast. We were at the bus stop at 8am and eventually caught a bus at 10am for the 55k trip on very unmade roads. It was an adventurous and painful journey. The buses are all Nepali size which meant that I hit my head on the luggage rack each time we went over a bump and Menai was jabbed in her side by the arm rest. As the road is single track there has a lot of reversing and juggling as buses passed each other. As I was on the window seat I had the joy of seeing the valley bottom inches away from the side of the bus each time this happened.  After about an hour there was a sudden gust of wind and I saw a hay bale sized boulder land about 6 feet in front of the bus. A bit of a commotion but we edged round it but what if we had been a few seconds earlier. There were wonderful views of Daulagiri and the Annapurnas around every bend which took our minds of the road plagued by landslides. Our next hold up was a truck that had a broken steering mechanism. This was fixed by a team effort in 30 minutes so we could go again. 

Unfortunately another landslide further up the road had blocked the road for 3 hours meaning we had to wait until at least 50 vehicles. After about three hours on the bus the scenery changed from a deep sided tree lined canyon to more open country and a wide river bed which became our track for a while which was actually less bumpy than the road. 

We then had lovely fields of barley and apple orchards in the area around Marpha. After 5 hours on the bus we got to a very dusty Jomsom and a clean hotel. We had tea/coffee and chocolate brownies for a late lunch followed by a walk around the sights of the town. 

Mustang Trail Race 2017 Day 3

It was a difficult night sleeping in the noisy dining room not because of the porters but noisy French Trekkers and the kitchen staff. I had to get up twice in the night to close the doors that were wide open and letting in wind and snow. On the upside because the storm raged for most of the night by morning the skys were clear and we were rewarded with stunning views of Daulagiri, Nilgiri and the Anapurnas.

 The itinerary said we were to run down to Tatopani 2,500 metres below us. This was not going to happen for a number of reasons. A few inches of snow on a high mountain ridge do not make for good running and we were both feeling the effects of a rough night and altitude headaches plus the fact that it was another breakfast of black tea and biscuits. It was slow tedious work cutting a route through the snow and ice on the stones steps downhill. This went on for about 2 hours by which time Menai was suffering. It eventually took us 4 hours to get to the lovely old fashioned village of Paundaw where work was in full swing getting in the winter barley. The harvest, threshing and winnowing all done by hand in ways unchanged for centuries.

It was a really lovey place that managed to have a miraculous  effect on Menai who had a coffee and apple pancake that saw her bouncing down the hill to Tatopani. We found a decent room in a guest house where we did some washing and went for a dip in the hot springs for £1.20 each. Really nice to have a few comforts and an early night. 

Mustang Trail Race 2017 Day 2

Another 5.30 start with just a cup of tea to get us under way.  We had fleeting views of Annapurna and Macchepuchere.  The problem today was that we were not sure where the finish point was going to be. Richard Bull had give us an itinerary that had the day ending at 3,660 metres at Kopra Danda. The guide books say that this is a 13-15 hours trek for two days. Suba was willing to give it a go but every person we met said that we would not get there. They were nearly right - more on that later.  This was a really beautiful day's walk on quiet trails with no one else in site. These are ancient rhododendron forests with orchids growing from the trunks and wild life.  During the day we saw or hear wild goat and pigs.

 The first place we came to was a very basic lodge where we fancied a cup of tea after an hour's walk. The only problem was that the owner and his friend were blind drunk on rhaksi (millet spirit ) at 7am. We ended up having to give them a hand and bought some biscuits to keep us going. After another hour the forest gave way to pine and open pastures. By 9.30 we had got to Dobato and had some much needed breakfast. 

We shared an omelette and a fried chapati and jam ( nicer than it sounds). The next stop was Bayeli (3,200metres) at about 11am where most people stop for the day.  We pressed on which meant a drop of  800 metres and a climb to Dhan Charka where we were told we should stay. Instead we had lunch and decided to press on for the 3 hour climb to Khopra Danda. We should really have taken more note of the spots of rain at lunch. After about 20 minutes of walking it had started to rain this turned to hail with associated thunder and lightning. Eventually it was snowing. We made it up in record time at just over 2 hours but were frozen if not a little hyperthermic.

 The hut was packed and there was no room for us but we stripped off nevertheless and got in front of the very warm fire where some lovely Italians made room  for us. We dried out, warmed up and had some food plus good conversations before bedding down for a rough night in the dining room with the porters. 

Mustang Trail Race 2017 Day 1

A five thirty start to re-pack and get to the airport for our 8.20 flight to Pokhara. We were delighted to be put on an earlier flight which in true Nepali fashion ended up arriving in Pokhara an hour after our original arrival time. We were met by our guide Suba and his boss Tek who took us to a smart looking jeep for the drive to where our warm up walk to the start of the race was to begin.  I recognised some of the places we drove through but things have changed a lot in 31 years.  The major change has been to road access with the metalled roads and tracks making impressive journeys up hillsides.  The Lumle agricultural centre was still there and we passed it in 90 minutes instead of the day's walk it used to be. 

En route we saw some monkeys eating winter barley and had a stop to show our trekking permits and buy some fruit. We are at out start point at 1.30 ready for what Suba told us would be a 3 to 4 hour walk.  Our route took us throughout the familiar and much developed Ghandrung village where we had lunch and into the wonderful rhododendron forests where we saw an impressive white headed monkey. However all the rhododendron flowers had gone here but later on they were in evidence. The route was quite busy with tourists of all nationalities, ages and sizes.

 By 5 we had arrived at our destination of Tadapani (meaning far water 2,600 metres) which was very busy. We had a room booked for us which was ok but not the cleanest. At least we had a shower and a decent dhal bhat with a nice warm fire in the dining room. We were in bed by 8pm. 

Offa's Dyke Run - things learnt Lesson 4 - Equipment

Equipment on something like this epic is very much a personal choice and what works for one person might not work for another. I am going to just explain what worked for me based on my preparations. So let's start from the bottom up.

As stated in Lesson 1 I chose to run In Hoka Mafate Speed trail shoes. As someone who had done a bit of fell running I had tried out both Salomon and Innov8 fell shoes but found that they did not give me enough cushioning for the distance.  I had tried trail shoes but really did not get on with them.  So I bought my first pair of Hokas about 12 months before the run and discovered that whilst they were great on trails they were not great on wet grass. However they were surprisingly light and once you got used to the oversize cushioning they worked a treat. I had actually run two big fell races in them and found that they hold up well.

For socks I went for knee length compression socks because that is what I always wear. I don't know it they make a real difference but I found they worked well. I bought a few pairs of Hilly Trail socks and they were the best I have used so far being a great combination of cushioning, sweat absorption and compression. I actually slept in clean socks and compression shorts for a couple of nights and think that helped overnight recovery.

shorts were something I had not really thought too much about. To my cost I discovered all shorts are not the same and one pair resulted in chaffing. The best pair I had were a pair of Ron Hill Trial shorts with side pockets that I found really useful for caring my maps in particular. 

I ran in technical t-shirts and discovered that shirts with a fine weave much better than others. I did think about investing in new shirts but stuck with what I had practiced with and did a bit of wash and wear. 

My pack was an Ultimate Direction 20L Fastpack. This was actually too big but due to the design it compresses well.  The big advantage with the pack is the daily accessible pockets. I was able to access my water, all my food, my hat, my camera and my phone without taking the pack off. 

I wore a buff most days to keep the sweat out of my eyes and the sun off my head. When it got really sunny I went for my trusty North Face hat with a peak. 

The biggest experiment I went for was to use Nordic Walking poles for the run.  I had read about how they could reduce the strain on the legs by 20-30% is used correctly so borrowed a pair 3 months before the run and had a lesson. In the end I plumped for the very light Black Diamond Carbon Distance Z poles that were excellent.  I made sure I had mastered using the poles for walking and running by using them 2-3 times a week. On the fourth day of the run in particular I seemed to subconsciously rely on the poles as I tired and I can safely say that they got me through. They take a bit of getting use to and they are not for everyone but in my opinion a vital piece of equipment if taking on a challenge like this.

Offa's Dyke Run - things learnt Lesson 3 - Nutrition

Those of us who ran the full 180 miles were burning around 6000 kcals a day i.e. up to three times normal daily consumption.  There were two issues really firstly how to make sure we ate enough during a day to replenish this output and then how to run and make sure we were topped up with energy.  We all had different strategies which varied greatly:

One runner had cooked breakfast and seemed to live on malt loaf (Soreen) during the day followed by eating huge quantities at night.

Another ate tinned meals during the 10 minute stops we had 3-4 times a day. 

Some ate sandwiches in the breaks and nibbled on the run.

Actually there is no single strategy that will work for everyone. These people had tried different things out and discovered what worked for them.

My strategy was as follows:

Cereal and toast with coffee for breakfast with some sort of packed breakfast to eat on the go.  I had things like boiled eggs, egg sandwiches or sausage sandwiches.

On the run I ate home made date bars, Nutrigrain breakfast bars (more like a cake), peanuts, chocolate and when I needed a boost a gel with caffeine. I also made sure I have some coffee at the breaks. I would try and get a sandwich around mid day to nibble on. I tried to eat every hour and tried to limit the quantity so that my stomach was not full.

In the evening I ate a hearty meal but tried to steer clear of meat as we were eating late and found that eating a heavy meal disturbed my sleep.

I didn't get everything right. On the third and the last day I got too tired and I forgot to eat in the afternoon which I paid for at the end of the day. You really need to force yourself to eat even if you don't feel like it. As a matter of interest once I was rehydrated I discovered that I had lost about 2 kilos in weight which for me seems to be a calorie deficit of about 14,000 kcals. 

Denbigh Harriers ran along Offa's Dyke to celebrate 25 years since it's formation.

It is easy to get inspired by some of the trail running races and exploits you read about in magazines  and then when you look into trying to take part in an epic challenge or race yourself you find that there are barriers to participation such as cost, qualification, training and support. So when our small running club of 80 members from North Wales was thinking about a way to celebrate 25 years of existence someone suggested organising a challenge of our own.  It was suggested that the club ran the 180 mile length of the Offa's Dyke long distance footpath from the Bristol Channel to the Irish Sea. The thing we hadn't considered but had been warned about was the hilly nature of the route. It transpired that at the end of the journey we would have climbed over 30,000 feet.  Now if this sounds like a tall order for a club of differing abilities and only a handful of people with any experience of this sort of thing you would be right.  However the plan took hold and the challenge was broken down into 5 days and then a further 24 legs of varying distance or 5 to 13 miles. Members of the club were then given the opportunity to run as much or as little of the challenge as they wanted to. Some people wanted to attempt the whole thing others would join for the day and some would join the run for a few days. 

So with some sort of plan in place and a date set for June 2016, 8 months ahead, preparation began in earnest. We organised training runs on the parts of the dyke focussing on running as a group, learning how to eat and drink on the move and on getting the kit right. We built up distances to about half of the expected daily average and found that we managed to keep together and run at a respectable pace. We found that by taking it slowly we should be able to cover the 36 miles 6,000 feet each day in around 10 hours. 

In readiness for 1 June start 16 runners and a driver piled into a minibus for the journey down to Chepstow for the start. We had an age range of 40 years from youngest to oldest amongst the runners and widely varying levels of experience and ability.  However that plan was to stick together and each individual to choose what they felt they were able to run.  On the 1st of June we headed to the misty Sedbury cliffs on the Bristol Channel to start the epic and we were pleased that is was cloudy and slightly damp. We took the obligatory group photo and set off. 

Over the next 5 days we ran as a group with the smallest group being 5 runners and the biggest 21 towards the end. We were met by the minibus 3-5 times a day to fill up on water and snacks and the ability to break the day down into manageable bits was invaluable as was the support from people who had not run the leg. We stayed in bunkhouses and B&Bs each night and spent our short evenings eating together. Many of us went to bed thinking about waking up each morning wondering how we were going to face another 36 miles. We learnt a lot about ourselves and how important personal administration and support from others was. We learnt how to manage niggles, blisters, lost toenails, dehydration as the weather got hotter, chaffing from sweat and all the other issues encountered when putting your body through repeated strain.  Some of us were unlucky and succumbed to injury, illness and problems with feet but amazingly bounced back to join in later on. The human body is truly amazing in that it can adapt to the stresses placed upon it continue day after day to do things it has not experienced before. Each day we celebrated milestones such as 10 miles, half marathon and marathon as well as perversely "only a marathon to go".  One of our biggest potential issues was the fresh leg syndrome.  As some of us were trying to complete the whole distance in 5 day there was the danger that fresh legs from runners joining us could push the pace too fast and jeopardise the long term aim.  However those who joined us were great, supportive and understood the unwritten rule that we went at the pace of the slowest. 

It was quite a moment then on the 5th of June at around 8pm when a hoard of Denbigh Harriers ran through the streets of Prestatyn towards the finish with the sea in sight after 41 miles and the hardest day yet in terms of climbing and heat.  We were greeted by clubmates,  family and friends to celebrate a huge achievement from a little club. So if you dream of doing what you read about in magazines there is really nothing to stop you. All you need is a like minded group of committed people, a lot of planning and a fair amount of determination.... Oh and a pinch of luck.