[al]

Contrived, yes, but good fun

great evening & relieved the temps dropped from the previous day!

[galpinos]

Contrived, yes, but good fun

great evening & relieved the temps dropped from the previous day!

Definitely, being a more well insulated gentleman, especially compared to most runners/climbers, that heat would have been a killer.

[Brannock]

Enjoyed the Burbage race last night, surprisingly good route. 

Has anyone done the Welsh 1000m peaks race? Its in a couple of week and I'm starting to get a little nervous.

[T_B]

Nope but I passed them coming up Glyder Fawr last June as I was coming down and they looked tired (was a hot day)!

Welsh 3000ers was supposed to be my big race this year but instead of doing laps on Kinder I’m currently injured and going bouldering instead.

[SA Chris]

What you done Tom?

[T_B]

Just had 11 days off due to proximal hamstring tedinopathy problem I have being aggravated (tripping over... then not letting it settle down before overdoing it). Again. Plus getting sore Achilles. So playing it by ear at the mo..

[SA Chris]

Not good at this time of year. My calf has been a bit tweaky all week, but i think its from long bike ride Sunday, then late run with intervals Monday and no stretching after. Lazy, and time limited, dangerous combo.

[Fultonius]

Lazy, and time limited, dangerous combo.

I think that's pretty much the root cause of most of my ails this year. Busy life, tired, quick sessions, not enough prehab/injury prevention. 

Hope everyone mends soon!  Might go for a wee hill trot tonight.

[Monolith]

Crikey. Hope you all heal fast!

Currently enjoying a rare window of non-injury. Fortuitously, this coincides with Jura in two weeks time. Un-fortuitously, I've got to get around the bloody thing with little training. Similar to Brannock, I'm soiling myself.

As an aside, Fatneck and I toyed with the idea of a UKB running meet up perhaps at somewhere like Frodsham which is both undulating trail and fairly accessible from most directions. If there's any impetus for this, holla and we could set an FB group up or similar.

[T_B]

You're gonna be loving that last 5k on the road Tom

Seriously, respect for toeing the line off so little training. I just hope it's not hot for you!

[steveri]

As an aside, Fatneck and I toyed with the idea of a UKB running meet up perhaps at somewhere like Frodsham which is both undulating trail and fairly accessible from most directions. If there's any impetus for this, holla and we could set an FB group up or similar.

Well clearly I'm in. Met the wider necked gentleman in Real Life last week at Blackstone and we chuckled about your upcoming Jura. Excellent choice straight from the couch

[Monolith]

Thanks for the respect Tom but I'm going to have to play it by feel I think. If I get there and am overawed by the prospect, I'll sack it off and go to the Lagavulin open day. In a strange headspace about it given I've wanted to do it for so long, it only happens once a year and there's no guarantee I'd get in again next year. I think I'd get around on pigheadedness alone but chronic DOMS for the remaining whisky festival days wouldn't be much fun. Hmmmm

Steve, I'm going to head to Frodsham in the morning to get a few miles in. Drop me a FB message if you happen to be heading out. Bar the steps of doom and the top edge, I don't really know the area nor how to connect it to Helsby. Been many years since I climbed there.

[SA Chris]

At least have a go. Distance and vert wise it's on a par with Ring Of Steall, and I could walk normally within 7 days of doing that.

[T_B]

I think the thing with the Jura (I haven't done it) is that it's notoriously mega rocky and rough underfoot. If you compare the pacing of someone really good with a comparable Lakeland AL in terms of climb/length, they're moving a lot slower. Still, I would go for it!

[SA Chris]

Lot steeper too i reckon. Is there a harsh cutoff? If not I would treat it as a big day in the hills, running and walking as and when fitness and terrain allows. At least you then know the route in order to get on it next time and push for a time. Even iof you don't complete, you've at least got prior on some of the course.

[Monolith]

Aye that was my thinking Chris and I do prefer rough ground to endless grass. Could always set off at sub 6 min/mile pace for the first mile, put on an Italian accent and put the jeepers up the favourites before dropping out in mile two.

[SA Chris]

I thought Jornet was Spanish?

[steveri]

@Tom - sadly not free tomorrow but easiest way to connect to Helsby is down the access rd at the bottom of the steps of doom. Head straight across the road and head down track then path. Right when you hit tarmac in Helsby, then left and left up narrow steep footpath. Up. Have a peak at strava for clues. Enjoy! Or not, if it involves reps

[Monolith]

I thought Jornet was Spanish?

Was thinking more of assuming the identity of an Italian mountain runner. That said, they all weigh around 6 stone so that's that disguise blown..

@Tom - sadly not free tomorrow but easiest way to connect to Helsby is down the access rd at the bottom of the steps of doom. Head straight across the road and head down track then path. Right when you hit tarmac in Helsby, then left and left up narrow steep footpath. Up. Have a peak at strava for clues. Enjoy! Or not, if it involves reps

Thanks Steve! I'll save a fuller tour for when we meet but perhaps take a look through Strava in the meantime. : )

Separately, have been enjoying the GPS debate in the FRA Facebook thread - close to 1000 replies in 3 days! 

[steveri]

Mm, hard to put that genie back in it's box. Probably 50% use GPS to record. Hard to distinguish between dirty cheats* using it to pre-load a breadcrumb and people just recording so they can brag on strava afterwards (hello!).

I've only used a breadcrumb twice, once on the Welsh 3000s where I picked up a pied piper trail of people in the mist ...who dropped me once it cleared and my legs died (I had recced it too). That's a skyrunner which are supposedly marked and not a nav test. The other time I was *dirty cheat on the Old County Tops and definitely saved a bit of time coming off Sca Fell. They'd have to tear that hard-won t-shirt off my back in a wrestling match though.

And the 'old days' were full of people that couldn't use a map and compass

[galpinos]

The LAMM is no more! After an incredible weekend on Harris, Martin announced it's the last one, and quite a high to go out on. Great weather, stunning scenery, brutal hills and a mid-camp that was out of this world. We shall have to see what Shane and his team can conjure up.

Tom, how did Jura go?

[SA Chris]

Like the whisky, bottled!

[T_B]

Am interested to know how Brannock got on with Welsh 1K? I was bouldering in Ogwen on Saturday afternoon and it was absolutely roasting. Hopefully there was some cooling clag over the Glyders/Snowdon?!

[Brannock]

Welsh 1km peaks is a good race, if brutal. Carneddau were in thick clag above about 500 Metres, there was a train of people up to the first check point (a vauge point on a broad ridge on the way to carnedd llywelyn), at which point those in front of me went off in directions 180 degrees apart. Followed someone in roughly the right direction, but I was checking my map so much I lost contact with them, which point i had a bit of a panic and went round in a circle, big thanks to the guys who pointed me in the right direction around foel grach. At which point i was cursing my decession to be ethical and rule obeying a not have a gpx trail. The rest of it went fairly smothly, if slowly. The terrain is very rough, there isn't much easy running on it.

The organisation in is relaxed but efficient, there is a good atmosphere to it.

To be honest I was woefuly unprepared, having not done much long or hilly running, I was just aiming to get round and have a good day out, so I'm not to disappointed with six and a half hours.

Shame about lamm, my first fell race, great that Shane is doing something similar.

[Monolith]

Good work Brannock! Sounded like a great day out and to have a classic under your belt like that!

I did indeed bottle Jura. Agonised about it all of the day before and came to the decision that a red hot day with not a lot of recent ascent in the legs would make for a potentially torrid time. The Lagavulin backup plan came in to touch which was incredible. Hoping to try again next year under different circumstances.