Saltmarsh 75 day 2

"Cock a doodle do,  cock a doodle dooooo."  What a strange alarm clock I thought, and I knew ultra runners were keen, but this did seem a bit early.  I checked my phone, and yes, 5:33 seemed a bit stupid since we weren't due to set off until 8am.  I couldn't hear anybody moving around, and remembered we were in the countryside.  It wasn't an alarm clock, it was a cockerel crowing!  "Cock a doodle do".

At least my alarm clock was set and I could relax into going back to sleep, which I did.  Despite an awful nights sleep, by the time my alarm went (at 6:30).  Still, I didn't want to miss the start, and I thought I would finally get to go to the toilet.  I got up and went to breakfast in my pyjamas.  Despite being quite hungry, there wasn't much there I could stomach, so I opted for some cereal and tea and coffee.  Again I was quite disappointed by the lack of fruit, not even fruit juice available at breakfast.  I definitely couldn't face the eggs, mushrooms and beans that were available and there seemed to be a permanent queue for toast, so didn't bother with that.

Sarah and Kevin joined me for breakfast which was helpful as I didn't realise we needed to check in for day 2 and we were fast approaching the deadline with 45 minutes to go.  I then went to get into my running kit, and retrieve Sarah's race number from our car.  By the time I had done this the race briefing was starting and I wondered where Sarah was.  She appeared and then disappeared, so I went to find her.... Her tent was still up! And it was 5 to 8!! Eeeeek.  She was really stressing, and we had to remember that with 37 miles to go a few minutes wouldn't matter.  However when the race briefing had stopped I started to worry.  We ended up asking David to finish taking her tent down, as she would be staying with us later anyway.  Then Sarah and I rushed out to join the rest of the field.   We started behind the walkers.

We were of course in the wrong spot and spent a lot of time overtaking, but we felt it was worth it as we didn't want to get too stuck at the first style.  The scenery from this morning was far more beautiful than day 1, and there was even frost on the field!  It had been a cold night.  Stage 7 was just 3 miles from steeple to Mayland.  Just enough to get warmed up, and apparently lost.  We bunched up with a couple of other runners and took a wrong turn which had the fortuitous result of us seeing a few peacocks wondering around, however, this was not the right way.  A few switch backs got us back on track only there was a huge puddle.  Sarah and the others went the long way, I tried to skirt the puddle, which Resulted in several puncture wounds to my left thigh from the bramble.  Luckily they were superficial and my first injury of the day.  I wondered if they would bleed more though since I was exercising to make me look hardcore, but they didn't.

At CP 7 we had quite a long stop as we needed to do all those things we didn't do before the race start, like fill our water bladders, empty our actual bladders, put on plasters, ask embarrassingly for Vaseline (those last 3 weren't me... Just sayin').  I text David for Vaseline as I didn't want to listen to Sarah moaning about her chaffing all day!  Karma got me back, and after a few more miles I started to feel pain in my right Achilles.  The uneven rutted ground of the sea wall between Mayland and Maldon was relentless, plus this was a part I had run before and really not enjoyed.  Sarah was enjoying seeing other runners snaking the sea wall in the distance both ahead and behind us, but I just wanted to keep my eyes on the ground so I didn't take a stumble.  I was wanting to walk more and more and was going to text David to bring some K tape to the next checkpoint.  Luckily, Sarah had some on her, so cue me, taking my shoe and sock off to try and tape my Achilles.  It didn't make the pain go away, but it reduced it significantly, so it was bearable to run.  After a couple more miles it was in both sides though.  My speed really struggled, and by the next check point i wasn't a happy bunny.  It had been 8 miles to Maldon, officially hitting the 50 mile mark for the weekend, but I could have stopped there.  

Laura and Soraya had come out to see me, and ran me into the CP, to David and elephant.  I was far less happy than on day 1 when the same had happened with Lorraine and rob in sideways rain, and had a long cuddle with David.  Everything hurt.  I really appreciated Laura and Soraya coming and they took a few photos of us.  Laura said she wanted to see me at the finish so I better be on time because she had other things to do.  This was so sweet for her to come all the way to Maldon, and then to come out again later in the day.  I better run well for her!

The next section was apparently all concrete and I wasn't looking forward to this.  Having gotten used to off road running in training for this, I dread running on harder surfaces as I feel the impact effects.  Still it was only 3 miles, and we did most of it with or in sight of a chap called Mark from Tiptree road runners who often runs these parts, so we relied on him for navigation.  It was also on this section that I started using an eating schedule again.  This actually helped dramatically with my state of mind and is a stark reminder of why I use the nutritional strategy I do.  The carb load and race fuel, whilst partly about fuelling working muscles, is mainly about fuelling the brain with glucose.  When brain sees access to glucose go down it sends all sorts of signals to stop you running.  I felt a million times better once I started eating, and was full of beans again by the next checkpoint.  Here we met Lucy, who Sarah recognised as second lady at the Stour valley marathon.  We spent most of stages 9 and 10 of day 2 over taking each other, and another female runner, and given Lucy had been so high at SVM, I did start wondering how high up the field we may be.

The weather and the scenery of stage 10 was beautiful, and Sarah and I were both quite enjoying the running.  I was also quite excited as I knew that getting to CP10 meant I was finishing this thing!  There was no way I would give up with only a couple of stages to go, and we had about 9 hours left to cover 18 miles.  But we both needed the toilet and I wanted a coffee too.  We took our toilet break and I had my coffee, although when Sarah sipped it she realised it was just black tea.  And here we met Lucy again.  She didn't look happy and said she was seriously considering pulling out here.  I told her that Sarah and I were taking a decent break here and were definitely run/walking the next section, and would she come with us.  I really didn't want her to finish here when she had come so far, especially as there was no apparent injury.  I knew if it were me, I would have felt incredibly disappointed to have gotten so far and not finished.

We sat down here for quite a while taking in some salty snacks and I was having a cuddle with my elephant.  Eventually we got ourselves up, and the 3 of us, the 3 musketeers. (Ok, I'll think of a better name) started running for 12 minutes and walking for 3.   As I had a functioning garmin I was doing both mileage check and telling the others when to run and walk.  This was quite a mental challenge for somebody who had run in the region of 60 miles the last two days, plus the temperature was starting to soar.  The stiles along this section were evil, and sometimes forced us to take a walk break a bit too soon, but none the less, each 12/3 section equated to about a mile covered.  Halfway through this 10 mile section from Goldhanger to Tollesbury, I had picked up a little stone in my shoe, so sat down to take it out, and also asked that we walk for 5 rather than 3 minutes this time.  All seemed to agree on that, and it broke up that section nicely.  By the end of this section I was struggling again but it was fatigue in my muscles, as quite frankly, having never done a 75 mile ultra before, they were going to reach a point where it got very tough.  

We arrived at CP 11- Sarah and Lucy ran ahead to it as they both needed the toilet and I walked into it and refuelled and got lots more water, and was happy to see Laura again!  How lovely of her to come see me here, but she wouldn't be coming to the finish as I was taking too long ;). David was there too and he seemed very happy with his pint of ale.  I could have downed that for him.  The heat of the day was getting high and definitely thirst was rising.  Luckily Sarah had a spare hydration tablet, as I had run out.  She had to be the one to get us going again.  We know the other lady that we had passed during the previous stage wasn't very far behind.  I asked the girls if they minded us switching the ratio to 10 run / 3 walk, and they agreed.  Sarah said it was extraordinary that we were still talking about running at 68 miles into a 75 mile ultra, and she had a point.  Most people we had passed in the last section had been mainly walking.

Stage 12 was really remote, like seriously really remote.  There was quite a severe warning on the instructions not to start the stage if you had any doubt of finishing it, such was the remoteness that they didn't think they would be able to rescue you.  That said, there was a water drop a couple of miles out from the last CP.  There were more stiles on this section and they were REALLY evil.  About half way through this section we passed Kevin.  He later said how he was surprised it had taken us so long to pass him but we were going at a really good pace.  When I could be bothered to look at the garmin during a running section we were probably doing somewhere between 9:30-10mm pace, although obviously averaged dramatically slower due to the walking.  My dream of finishing day 2 in 8 hours as well was long gone though.  Eventually when we thought we had about 2 miles to go, Lucy saw some people in the distance she thought were her children.  We decided if they were that Sarah and I would go off ahead and leave her to run in with them.  They were, together with her husband who had started day 1.  I asked him how much further and he said about a mile.  Phew, I've got this.  I was feeling really grumpy when Sarah didn't want us to have our last walk break with so little left to go, and I think that is because I stopped taking on food a bit early- in a marathon I don't take on any more if I figure there is less than 30 minutes to go, but here, I should have kept eating regardless, just in case.  Still, the sea wall became a muddy field, which became a road with some lovely people telling us 'not far to go now' and other such things.  Sarah sprinted for the finish and I saw my car in the car park so knew it wasn't too far away.  The emotions were already welling up and when I saw David at the finish I ran to him, threw my arms around him and cried and cried.  Overwhelmed with the emotion of completing it, but also because of what I was doing it for, in memory of my dad, who would have loved to walk some of the parts we ran.

Lucy wasn't far behind us and we all exchanged hugs and congratulations.  Next was food.  David had brought me chocolate milk, and there was also jacket potatos being served.  The three of us ate and exchanged contact details, and were generally chatting away.  I think I was quite shocked by the whole experience.  After about 45 minutes, we decided to get on our way home- Sarah still had to retrieve her car from the start but was promised a meal when she got back to mine.

In the car, David presented me with a gift from Laura, a new elephant called Saltmarsh Nelly.  How fun, and way better than a medal:

In the following few days I received another elephant from my mum together with a beautiful card that reminded me of one of my favourite poems.  The gifts:

And the poem; Footprints in the Sand- please look it up and have a read.  As I was struggling through day 2 of SM75 with Sarah, one of my best friends whom I've only known a relatively short time, I was thinking how lucky I was to have a friend like her who would say yes to all these crazy challenges.  And I really felt like she was carrying me on day two.  How lucky I am as well to have all those people come out and support me, and a special mention must also go to Sarah Attwood who took me on some lovely long runs around York in training for this, and Rob and Lorraine who said yes to another hairbrained crazy idea of running from Colchester to Harwich, again to help me with my training.

Thanks to mum and Laura for the lovely elephantine presents, and lastly thanks to the wonderful husband who gave up his entire weekend to be support crew for Sarah and I!  When we got home he was the first one to crawl in to bed!

On Monday evening, I saw a missed call from Sarah and picked up the voicemail.  Not only had we completed this epic challenge, but we were 3rd and 4th lady!  4th lady in my first ever ultra, which was actually two back to back.  Wow!  (Maybe I will do another one but don't tell David) 

And, a week later the celebrations with fizz, the pin and the medal:

Saltmarsh 75 day 1

The challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to travel on foot, 75 miles of Britain's most unique coastline.  Claiming the title of the longest section of uninhabited coastline, and with a maximum elevation gain of 15 metres, this was a unique challenge.  2 days to complete it, with time limits on each day.

Well, as someone who has never run an ultra marathon before, I chose this one as my first, as I didn't really see the point in doing one marginally over marathon distance, but doing 50 miles in one day seemed a bit much... Therefore 75 miles over two days seemed the easier option (how naive).  Nonetheless, I accepted the challenge, and I promised myself that the only thing that would stop me running was injury.

The day before was spent with nervous but excited preparation- how much food would I need? Would I get sick of flapjacks? Did I have enough hydration tablets, would I be able to carry enough, and would the beef hula hoops squash down enough without crumbling?

The next morning I awoke with excitement of the challenge ahead.  We were giving Kevin, RD of the Stour Valley Marathon:  http://www.stourvalleymarathon.co.uk a lift to the start, and we would be meeting @mia79gbr there.  Given her enthusiasm at the SVM I was sure she would be there hours in advance.

There was promise of incredible organisation whereby you could send various things to whichever checkpoint you wanted and if you left your tent, it would be put up for you.  I decided it was too complicated to figure this out and instead packed a back that David was to bring to me at each CP after CP3, about marathon distance on day 1.  

Here's the full route map:

After registering and going back to the car to change, it was almost no time before the race briefing.  Obviously we had all been checking the weather forecast and knew we were due rain and wind from around lunchtime, which meant it would hit during that long section, stage 3, "Burnham-on-Crouch to Othona Community, Bradwell-on-Sea (13.3 miles)

The big one! Described by Robert MacFarland in his award winning book, Britain’s Wild Places, as ‘…the darkest, loneliest place in Essex’, this 17 mile stretch is as hostile and remote as it is unique and noteworthy." (Saltmarsh75.co.uk)

Day one had 6 sections, of varying lengths, one was as short as 3.5 miles but then the long one, was actually 13.6 miles, so longer than a Half marathon.  Thinking tactically this would best be done by having a pause each 2 CPs except the long one, however some misjudgement on my part meant I was wearing a bit too much for the warmth we experienced early on the Saturday, so had to remove a layer, that included the faff of removing my ultra vest too.  I had been promised that the CPs would be so full of food I virtually didn't need to bring my own, however, a fair comparison with either Stour Valley Marathon or Bacchus marathon, both of which I completed earlier this year, found them sorely lacking. I wondered whether it was just CP1 since it was so early on, and was hopeful for some fruit options and more variety of snacks as we moved through the day.

Me at CP1 still wearing too much kit- that pink top comes off soon.

Cp 1 was just after 5 miles in, and Sarah and I were already overtaking people.  The terrain was nice and easy here and the sky was big and blue.  I was naively thinking there was no way we were going to get that rain that was forecast when it was so beautiful like this.

We carried on and section two was where we met the sea wall.  This would become very familiar terrain by the end of the two days.  It had been mown, and was far easier to run than when I had recce'd parts of the route in May.  Stage two was from north Fambridge to Royal Corrinthian's yacht club in Burnham on Crouch.  8.7 miles.  We still ran this entire section, other than taking small breaks to take on food, and we still passed several walkers.  I had been feeling a bit under the weather in the few days leading up to this event, and I was quite worried during stage 2 as I seemed to be hotter than usual for a gentle jog through the countryside.  But I reasoned with myself that at 14 miles and the next CP it would be quite clear if I were actually too ill to continue.

Arriving at CP2 we really took our time here.  Sarah taped up her feet, and I adjusted my shoes having picked up a tiny rock at some point- I really need some gaiters.  The next section was more than a half marathon and we knew it was going to be tough, so we decided on using a run walk strategy, of 12 miles run, 3 miles walk.  This worked really well, and we were happily eating up the miles until the midway point where the Dengie100 runners had a water drop- I really appreciated this- their gazebo was like a mirage in the distance, not so much because we needed the water, but because the area really was that remote.

The wind was starting to pick up, as you can see in my hair:

But we were still smiling, and I was still hopefull that the rain wouldn't come until CP3, or even not at all. Not long after the water drop, we started to feel wet stuff coming out of the sky.  We decided to put our rain coats on, even though we were in a running section, and thank goodness, as the heavens opened moments later.  It was really really wet, and windy, and cold and soggy, and I started to find the walk sections really tough as I was cooling down too quickly.  

The wind and rain was relentless, and I just wanted to get to the next checkpoint- I wasn't caring much for the walking breaks, but Sarah made sure we were sensible so we could last the entire day, and day 2.

After what seemed like forever, two figures emerged from the darkness running in the opposite direction- oh no, we hadn't gotten lost had we?  As they got closer, I recognised them- Rob and Lorraine whom I'd done the 30 mile run to Harwich with, and who are also the current Guiness World record holders for the fastest 5k dressed as a pantomime camel.  It was wonderful to see them.  They had said they were coming to see me, but I had no idea where.  They helped run us about a kilometre into Checkpoint 3 in the wind and rain, saving us from having to get the instructions out.  Seeing them, and then seeing David, with Elephant at the checkpoint gave me a major boost!  This was the 27 mile point and there were only about 11 miles left to complete the day.  Nonetheless, the running conditions were horrible, and I needed a sit down and a salty snack before continueing.

In my mind this was the point which meant I would be able to finish today.  I had never run more than 30 miles at once, but that didn't matter- I didn't feel like I couldn't do 11.

Section 4 was just 3.3 miles.  Both Sarah and I though we would run this, but the storm picked up again, and I had to get an extra layer on.  Running into the wind was just a bit too much, and we did have a few walking breaks, including as we passed the decommissioned Bradwell power station.  We came off the sea wall for some shelter, and walked.  There was mud, and beyond we had to get back on the sea wall, but this mud was ridiculous.  It didn't just stick to the trail shoes between the lugs, but it stuck to itself... And then stuck to itself some more.  I must have gained 3 or 4 inches in height.  After such a long tough section, Sarah and I were in fits of giggles and this provided from much needed relief from what had been an incredibly mentally tough run.

Mud shoes- weight training in the middle of an ultra.

We arrived at CP4 in a considerably better mood than CP 3, after the fun of the mud.  I think the marshals thought we were crazy and I was mentally telling myself to shut up at my psychobabble- I was speaking like you do when you've had a few to drink in the early hours of the morning to someone who hasn't been drinking and indeed you've just woken up by crashing into some furniture... Red and black jelly babies! Wow! THEY'RE my FAVOuRiTE!!!!

CP 4-5 was 4.35 miles to St Lawrence, but I honestly cannot remember anything that happened.  Clearly the trauma of the previous 10 miles had erased my memory, but at least I can tell you that this run marked me crossing the marker for the furthest I'd ever run, which had previously been (only) 30 miles.

The rain picked up again, and by CP5 it was looking really dark, despite being the middle of the afternoon.

David was at cP5 waiting in the limited shelter.  We were really cold and wet and a little bit shivery, but nonetheless I was incredibly surprised to be asked if we were going to continue, especially as it was only another 3 miles to the end of day 1.  Still, I didn't give it a second thought then.  Of course we were continuing.  David asked us if we wanted fish and chips!  I didn't think fish would help, but the thought of hot salty vinegary chips in 3 miles time was amazing.  This was a part I had run before, so I expected to know the way, but with sea wall closures due to last year's storms, it wasn't as simple as that, plus, we had to go inland for the campsite.  Basically it was a left turn, along a road to cross a hidden style- the instructions gave the impression this style was immediate, but it was actually a very long way along the road- probably 3/4 of a mile.  We eventually found it then it was a few more styles to cross and fields, and then through a wooded area with some beautiful fairly lights, and yes, the finish of day 1.

We did it in 7:59, but wait, this was a village hall, not a pub?  But it seemed like there was food and David and chips.   Post run meal of baked beans on toast, chips, tea, then coffee, and then we realised how cold we were.

Someone gave us some space blankets, and I took off as many wet cloths as I could and wore David's jumper.  Sarah's shivering was concerning me, so we got to our car, and put the heaters on so she didn't go into shock.  Despite the incredible organisation of this event, somehow her tent and kit had become separated from one another.  After a few minutes, Sarah warmed up again and went on another search for her things, I helped David put the tent up as much as I could, then had a brief sports massage, before an uncomfortably cold shower, and then meeting David in the pub for dinner.

I chose Lasagne, and was surprised to be asked whether I wanted rice, chips or a jacket potato with that.   It's lasagne, isn't that enough on its own?  Anyway, I asked for chips, and had a cider, which after discovering a dead spider in it, having already drunk some was replaced with another cider.

After we had eaten, Sarah and I both crashed out, and needed to go to bed- it must have been about 9:30- I asked the pub for some milk and water to make up my nighttime recovery drink, and headed to the bathroom to get into my pyjamas and brush my teeth.

It was already quite cold so I slept in my hoody and with socks on, but it was barely a sleep, as I needed the toilet from very soon after getting into the tent, but was far too lazy to get up and go. . . 

To be continued...

Five marathons and an ultra. . .

If like me you were hooked on Richard Curtis films through the 90s and noughties, you would no doubt think of the film 4 weddings and a funeral.  However, there isn't much about this, that's like that, except perhaps the copious amounts of alcohol I may have consumed during the Bacchus marathon.

This is about my challenge for 2014.  This time last year, I decided that I would do 5 marathons and an ultra marathon in memory of my Dad to raise money for the June Hancock Mesothelioma Research fund.  My fundraising link is here: www.virginmoneygiving.com/angelaisherwood  Please take a look to see why I chose all of them, and see below for a quick review.

The first of the five would be the Greater Manchester Marathon - here is where, on my long term plan to qualify for the Boston Marathon, I would achieve a London Good For Age qualification.  When I started the journey toward my BQ (Boston Qualifier), a London GFA for a lady my age was 3:50;  this changed to 3:45 last summer.  I should have done a marathon last autumn that would have been my first sub-4 hours, but various things happened which meant I didn't have an autumn marathon at all.  Therefore, I had to take 34 minutes off my previous best to achieve my London GFA.  Well, I did more than that; I ran it in 3:39.  I don't think I've ever had a more perfect race, and I do recommend you read my blog to see how I felt in those last few miles, as I nailed it: Manchester Marathon

The next, was London, just a week later.  This was a challenge in itself; would I recover enough to run another 26.2 miles a week later.  I had been mentoring someone on the runnersworld  Forum.  She was going for a 4hr 30 marathon, and I was confident I would be able to pace her around.  This way I could enjoy running the race but still have a purpose.  It was a fabulous day, and we paced it perfectly, finishing in 4:30:10.

There was a luxurious 2 month gap between the second and third marathon of the year, I just had the small matter of getting married and going on honeymoon to attend to before returning to running.  I fantasised about running up the Pitons in St Lucia as being ideal off road training for the next marathons I was doing, but the reality on hiking these mountains was that it took two hours to cover less than 2 miles to the top, and the same coming down, and it was REALLY hard work (and that's coming from a multiple marathon runner).

The Third was my 'local' marathon, The Stour Valley Marathon.  It was just a week after we got back from our honeymoon, and I had done very little running since London Marathon, what with the final preparations for our wedding.  Still, this was one of the most enjoyable days I have ever had running.  What had been a very hot week turned into ideal running conditions, and we were able to enjoy the beautiful scenery of Constable Country without melting.  What's more, a cooked meal when we finished.  Congratulations must go to Kevin, Race Director, who put on a really brilliant race, and a fabulous memento of a horse shoe.  I've already signed up for next year, and can't wait.

Number 4 was a few weeks later, and hubby and I had our second holiday as a married couple in the Lake District.  We camped for this one, and had an amazing view of Lake Coniston from our Camp site, which was just a couple of miles away from the race start, and in fact, I ran past the camp site in the last couple of miles of the race.  The scenery was breathtaking, but one part that really struck me, is that a bit before the halfway point, after running around Tarn Howes, I was running downhill alongside a stream, which I instantly recognised as a footpath I had walked with my dad 11 years ago when he took me there to see parts of the lake district to help me with my A Level geography studies.  All that time ago, I left all the planning to him, so I had no idea where we had been.  I could have cried, but instead I had a big grin on my face that Providence had brought me back to this place to remember my Dad doing something he would have loved to do (well, not so much the running, but the exploring the Lakes).

Number 5 was last month in Surrey - the Bacchus marathon;  Again this was off road and not for time.  The challenge of this one was wine at the aid stations as it was on Denbies vinyard.  We had a wonderful weekend with family, and @mia79gbr stayed with us, and we ran the whole way around together in fancy dress.  The pictures showed we had a really good time, and the wine was fab!  LOVED this event, and I'm sure that will go in the calendar next year too.

This weekend, I take on the final challenge, which is my very first ultra marathon, The Saltmarsh 75.  75 miles over two days including camping over night.  At least this is a challenge, not a race, nonetheless, I am a bit frightened of the unknown.  Its been a long time since I've attempted a new distance.  And its excitement as well as fear.  All I can say is wish me luck, and I'll see you on the other side!

And, I would love some more sponsorship if you can spare it. .  . £7.50 is just 10p per mile!  www.virginmoneygiving.com/angelaisherwood