Results Results : 12 Hours

Race Report

Crawley AIM 6 & 12 Hour Race, 29 March 2008, by John Pares

This is very much from a participants perspective and I apologize to the people not mentioned as I was very focused on my own race. Thanks to Jeremy Mower for providing some input.

It was windy but there was an air of optimism amongst the motley crew assembled for the start of the 12 hour race on Crawley’s K2 track at 7am. I wasn’t sharing the optimism as I was lining up in kit and shoes borrowed from Chris Finnill, having seen mine disappear into the luggage chaos at Heathrow’s terminal 5.

Looking around the field at the start it was good to see some of the “usual suspects” who I’ve met at many previous races: ‘Smiler’ Sid Morrison, Sam Black and Ray McCurdy amongst them, plus Sue Clements with her efficient and consistent walk.

I wasn’t in the best shape of my life but I decided to stick to my original plan and go off at 90 mile pace. I didn’t expect to sustain this but felt I had nothing to lose. Allan Clark also started off well, with the rest of the field taking a more steady pace. Paul Watts, a blind runner, started out in lane 5 guided by Martin Ilott. Jim Mundy made a grand entrance, 15 minutes late. He was obviously feeling in top form and had given the rest of us a head start.

The first 3 hours were pretty-much uneventful with everyone focused on their own game plan although there was plenty of chat as runners passed each other on the track. I had decided to change from my usual tactic, of taking a walking break every half hour, to walking every hour. This seemed to work as I’d covered more than 23 miles in the first 3 hours.

The nature of the event changed after 3 hours as the six-hour runners joined the track. There were more of them than us and, initially, I felt a bit put-out. Who are these people invading our space? However, it was great to see some more familiar faces and I soon got used to a more crowded track. One change in dynamic for me was the faster pace. I had been consistently lapping the other competitors in the 12 hour race but there were now other runners moving at about the same speed as me. The fast guys were Jeremy Mower from Gloucester, and a team-mate on the Welsh 100km squad, and Bill Watson from near Edinburgh. It was interesting to observe the differences in style – Bill is tall with a long stride and very easy style, Jeremy is shorter and stockier and has a more determined feel to his running. I didn’t know Bill so my money was on Jeremy but it looked like he’d be pushed all the way.

Graham Tucker and Robin Gardner were also going well and looked set to achieve more than 40 miles. Gil John also joined the race having been helping out at the start of the 12-hour event. In the ladies race Eleanor Robinson was the favourite and I met Elaine Oddie for the first time, although I couldn’t figure out why she was running in lane 3.

At this point Jim Mundy took over as Paul’s guide and Martin Ilott joined the rest of us in the inner lanes. I call myself a long-distance runner but Martin has run coast-to-coast across the USA so I think he has the better claim!

At first I tagged onto the back of Jeremy Mower and tried to get a tow. It worked for a while but after my first walk break I couldn’t keep up. I’d had a hell of a week (7 flights, 4 foreign countries, lost kit…) and, although I’d managed to maintain a Zen-like calm for most of it, the events had clearly got to me. I felt mentally exhausted, the time seemed to be going very slowly and I was really struggling to maintain focus. I knew my form was off and I had to keep correcting it. This was one time when I could have used some decent rock music to pick me up but I had left my i-pod at Chris’s. This second quarter was probably the closest I’ve come to not finishing a race. I kept going by telling myself that I hadn’t gone through all this hassle just to record a DNF because I was feeling sorry for myself. I fell back on my old friends – Ibuprofen and Red Bull – and pushed on. I also switched back to walking every half hour.

The change of direction at halfway was quite a boost, it changed my perspective on the race both literally and figuratively. The downside was that the wind was now against us in the back straight where there was no shelter. I’d completed about 44.5 miles at halfway and, although I knew the 90 was out of reach, felt that a PB of 85 was still achievable.

The rain started at 7 hours. It was incredible that it hadn’t come on sooner but we all new it would come eventually. Initially it was just showers, and it didn’t change much, but it gradually became more persistent. Most runners left the track to put on waterproofs. The exception was Jeremy Mower, now in second place in the six-hour race. He took advantage of Watson’s exit to take the lead and never looked back, pushing on without changing even though the rain got heavier. A clever tactical move if you don’t mind the wet, after all it’s not Formula 1 and there’s no risk of spinning off at the corners! Personally I just put on a gillet and trudged on.  

Mower commanded the shorter event in the last third and won it by 3 miles. He was clearly feeling strong as the last 3 miles were the quickest of the day. He also managed to PB at 40 miles despite running the Barry 40 only 3 weeks beforehand. I think that quite a few of the runners were competing in their first 6-hour and I spoke to Matt Lane who was delighted to pass 26.2 and therefore record his first ultra-marathon.

At nine hours there was another substitution out wide as Martin Ilott joined forces with Paul Watts again. The way that these runners supported Paul was great, after all he couldn’t have run it without them.

At this stage I’d completed 62 miles, so less than 18 in the third quarter. The last quarter was a blur. I was still talking to others but fatigue had really set in and the wind and rain was wearing me down. I just hung on through to the end. Martin Ilott appeared in the inner lanes again, Ray McCurdy had taken over with Paul as Martin had realized he could make 100km and put on a spurt. He’d clearly been holding himself back and it was great to see him flying around at this point – it lifted my spirits as well.

Chris Finnill appeared back at the track and also helped to push me on. I wasn’t getting a PB but he helped me past the 80 mile mark. This win made it a dual victory for the Welsh Ultra team – hopefully this bodes well for the Anglo-Celtic Plate in May.

A great day, well organized by Pam Storey and her team of helpers – thank you. The event also raised £1,000 for AIM to support an orphanage in Uganda which helped to put 12 hours of effort into perspective.