10 Peaks Lake District Race Report

Lake District 10 Peaks

I wasn’t expecting much in terms of results from this race to walk away with another 2nd place, my 3rd this year was a bonus but it was a tough race and a real challenge in preparation for the UTMB in August.

The 10 Peaks Lake District takes you over the 10 highest peaks in the the lakes over a roughly 45 mile route depending on your line choice. For good measure the organisers very kindly throw in another 2 compulsory peaks in High Raise and Esk Pike.

The route takes you over dramatic rocky crags, across open moorland and through low lying bogs following a clockwise loop bagging the peaks in the following order:

  • Helvellyn, 951 m (3,118 ft)
  • Bowfell, 902 m (2,960 ft)
  • Great End, 910 m (2,986 ft)
  • Ill Crag, 935 m (3,068 ft)
  • Broad Crag, 934 m (3,064)
  • Scafell Pike, 978 m (3,210 ft)
  • Scafell, 965 m (3,162 ft)
  • Great Gable, 899 m (2,949 ft)
  • Pillar, 892 m (2,926 ft)
  • Skiddaw, 931 m (3,054 ft)

Surprisingly I’ve never ran in the Lake District before and to say I was looking forward to a day in The Lakes running up all these fells I have had my eye on for a while was an understatement. Also it was my last race before UTMB and a chance to see where I was fitness wise to give me the opportunity to identify and fix any weaknesses before August.

My aim at the UTMB is, or at least it was before this race, to finish under 30 hours in Chamonix. This means I have to average 3.4mph over the distance to finish in 30 hours so my aim in the 10 Peaks was to get round at this pace and to see how I felt.

It was also a day to test out some of my new gear for the UTMB. The North Face Ultra Endurance shoes being my main focus. See what I thought of them in my in depth review here

Start – checkpoint 1

After the worlds cheesiest pizza the night before and just  couple of hours sleep we left the b&b in Keswick and drove to the 4am start of the race at Swirls car park.

10peaks-lake-district-start

There’s no warm up on this race, it’s straight into the climb up to the summit of Hellvellyn.

I settled into a comfortable rhythm and to my surprise started to work.my way through the field eventually reaching the summit in 2nd place just a few seconds behind the leader.

The climb certainly got you warmed up but the view from the top was spectacular with the sun starting to rise with the beginning of a perfect trail running conditions.

sunrise-over-hellvellyn-clifbar-10peaks

Checkpoint 1 – checkpoint 2

Checkpoint 2 – checkpoint 3

Checkpoint 3 – checkpoint 4

Checkpoint 4 – checkpoint 5

Checkpoint 5 – checkpoint Finish

10 Peaks Lake District - 2nd place

After thoughts

Thank you

Thank you to my beautiful wife Victoria for putting up with my daft hobby and supporting me throughout. I really couldn’t ask for more.

The marshals, helpers and supporters who help make these events great and unique. They couldn’t happen without you and what you do for everyone is brilliant.

Jayson Cavill Running & Fitness Coach for the training advice and guidance. Working with together has made a massive impact on my running and I’m now ready for the UTMB feeling confident and prepared. These last 6 months have been tough but rewarding. If anyone is looking to improve their running I really can’t recommend Jayson enough. Next stop UTMB.

Kit

Strava


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *