Lesson From the Trail - UTMB 2017 - Tips to help you succeed
Dean Russell • September 11, 2017
Tips to help you succeed
After watching “ Summits of My Life: A Fine Line
” back in 2012 I found a truly inspiring athlete that shaped the path of my trail running. Killian Jornet
, a soft natured ultra athlete from Spain, is the six time champion of the long distance Skyrunner World Series. One of the most prestigious races in the series and one Killian talks passionately about is the Ultra Trail Du Mont Blanc
(UTMB), a 171km race around Mont Blanc that passes through 3 countries and ascends over 10,000m. An idea was planted firmly in my mind and ultra running soon became an inseparable part of my life.
By looking at the number of ultra running events each weekend you can see a surge in popularity of the sport in the UK. However no events here are anything like the UTMB, it is the Tour de France of trail running. Chamonix, the start and finish of the race, changes from a mountaineering and skiers paradise to a haven for over 2,500 lycra clad trail runners from all over the globe.
The hardest thing during the race was the hour before sunrise on both days, I questioned a lot in those 2 long hours…. my ability, my past failings, my future and repeatedly asked myself why I was carrying on. Running a 100 mile race was fabulously described by US runner Ann Tarson as like living a whole year in one day….maybe so if you are an elite runner but for me it was like living a year in 38 hours. When the sun rose over the mountains for the second time during the race I remembered all the training runs where I imagined what it would feel like to cross the line of the worlds biggest trail race, but this time it wasn’t a dream!
If you are thinking about entering a long distance race or have dreams of running in the UTMB some top tips that you might find useful.
- Walking the route over 4 days a couple of weeks before the race was the best advice I have ever been given. Mentally I felt prepared for each of the cols, helped with acclimatisation and getting more vertical ascent in the legs.
- During the race I had amazing support at the 5 aid stations where you were allowed outside assistance. Don’t underestimate how useful being able to text ahead with requests for change of clothes, food, equipment and the all important moral support that loved ones can provide during difficult stages of the race.
- Variation is the spice of life and having a good variety of food to choose from at the aid stations was invaluable especially towards the end of the race when I started loosing my appetite.
- In the past I have suffered from chaffing in-between my legs. I did a lot of research on the subject and could write a whole blog on it but in short:
- Wax, shave or use hair removal cream before the race in affected areas
- Regular cleaning to remove the salt crystals
- Use anti chaffing cream such as Glide
- Stay well hydrated
- If all that doesn't work I found taping my legs with Kinesiology tape after they started rubbing sorted them right out
- Using 1% Hydrocortisone cream after the race meant when you are wearing your finishing jacket the day after the event you won't be walking like John Wayne.
How to ensure you have the best chance to complete this demanding and exhilarating hike.
“There is no reward without risk, I can’t imagine living without it” - Blaine Smith
Second in a new series highlighting the finest running routes around Snowdonia's national park. In the second blog post the author, Dean Russell, showcases a short remote feeling run that packs a punch with a horseshoe run around the Northen mountains of the Carneddau.
Many of us found ourselves with more time on our hands as lockdown and travel restrictions took grip and the country battled to contain the Coronavirus pandemic that spread across the world. Much of the National Park in Snowdonia closed to ensure there were no undue pressures on local emergency and rescue services and the beloved mountains were off limits for the time being. Running through lockdown was a good opportunity to gain an intimate knowledge of all the footpaths in the local area, often running through thickets of brambles and gorse on paths that had been long since forgotten. Living on the edge of Snowdonia National Park at the outlet of the glacially formed Llyn Padarn, many of my lockdown routes passed a brass plinth that speaks of the evolution of the scenery in front of your eyes. Many of my hours passed enjoying the mountains, reflecting so perfectly on the lake when the air was still, watching how the light morphed high up as the sun started setting on another day of lockdown. It was on one of these many nights that I started to trace the line of the skyline and imagined running a route from the end of the lake across all the mountain tops around Llyn Padarn. As many people delved into cookbooks, looking for the next bake, or updating general knowledge preparing for the next zoom quiz, I hunched over my kitchen table with the map of Snowdonia laid out tracing the same line I had envisioned earlier. What I had been tracing was the hydrological water catchment for Llyn Padarn, twelve peaks where rain drops run from its summits onto their rocky slopes, down steep runnels into streams and rivers feeding the lake, flowing right to the outlet where I had been admiring one of the best views in the National Park. With the levels of Coronavirus infections reducing, on another unusually fine Friday afternoon the news from the Welsh Government I had been waiting for was delivered in their regular briefing. The mountains were going to open in their entirety and it felt fitting to commemorate the opening by running the skyline that I had so often admired. To follow the water catchment the route first ascends gently on roads through the villages of Fachwen and Dinorwic and into the local quarries. Described by some as a blight on the landscape, the sometimes otherworldly looking vistas are a reminder of the industrial era when North Wales was home to one of the most important slate producing areas. Ascending through endless slate piles, up inclines, past buildings and metal work that once would of been integral to the workings you get a great sense of how hard and dangerous the work for the miners must have been. After leaving the quarries behind, already high in mountain terrain, the summit of Elidir Fach was soon under my feet. A further short pull brought the rocky summit of Elidir Fawr, with its jagged grey gritstone that is in contrast to the red sedimentary siltstone on the flanks leading to the summit. The hard work initially getting up high was rewarded heading along the spectacular ridge to Mynydd Perfedd and sublime views to Marchlyn Mawr reservoir, Ogwen valley and one of North Wales most iconic mountains, Tryfan. The position of the Glyderau with mountain ranges on either side gave a big mountain feel to the summits of Foel-goch and Y Garn before descending towards Twll Ddu, more commonly known as Devils Kitchen named due to the sinister plume of smoke rising from a huge crack in its cliffs. Instead of descending into the depths of the cauldron a steep ascent up scree slopes of Glyder Fawr was necessary which felt like traveling without moving as my feet slid from underneath me. Descent from the summit was via the red route that winds its way south through complex terrain passing boulders with a faint spray painted red dot leading the way. The views across the valley to the classically shaped Crib Goch were spectacular and left me in no doubt that the next section contains some of the best scrambling terrain in North Wales. Pen Y Pass was a welcome respite and a chance to grab a snack and recharge my batteries before the crux of the run. The going got tough as I made my way up from Pen y Pass with the technical, engaging scramble up the initially broad East ridge that converges to an airy ridge walk up to Crib Goch’s summit. The fun didn’t stop there though continuing along the summit ridge which has some spectacular positions where it is not uncommon to see people traversing it “Au Cheval” (like a horse) before yet more first class scrambling to reach the grassy summit of Crib y Ddysgl. The way forward was made up of skirting impressive Cwms that are the product of scouring in the late Ice Age that ended some 10,000 years ago. The geology of the Cwms are synonymous with glacial activity in Snowdonia with the mountains having two distinct faces, grassy slopes facing South-West and steep craggy ones facing North-East. After completing the technical section where my thoughts were solely on the next foothold and handhold as you traverse a couple of Snowdon’s giants its a welcome respite, even with tired legs, to run up and down the grassy summits of Moel Cynghorion, Foel Goch, Foel Gron and Moel Eilio. Appreciating the great views of the Nantlle valley and the Menai Straits, I found myself in a state with no thoughts running through my mind, no stresses, no to do lists, nothing. Running has long been associated with controlling stress and boosting the bodies ability to deal with mental tension. Combining that with the benefits of being in the mountains has long been vital to my own mental wellbeing and as I continued my run I could feel the mountains cleansing my mind with every step, oh how I had missed the mountains. Running down from Moel Eilio skirting another set of slate quarries the final summit of Cefn Du was soon arrived at with the sudden realisation that there are no well worn paths from its summit and so a degree of heather bashing was required. Following a faint path by a dry stone wall led to a better trodden path that drops down eventually to the main road and a short run back to the plinth where the journey had started. An opportunity to admire the views, a chance to reflect, taking in all the mountains that have been traversed and ponder there long evolution just as the words by Gillian Clarke describes: But for how long? Cherish these mountains, born in fire and ash out of the sea to make this wilderness, Asleep for aeons beneath ice and snow, carved by the shifting glaciers long ago, Till ten millennia back, the last ice age made right for fern and purple saxifrage, This place, whose evolutions given birth to the rare Snowdon lilly’s home on earth, But all could go with the melting snow. The Llyn Padarn Skyline is a 36 km run with 3,108m of height gain that was completed on the 6th July 2020 in 6 hrs 31mins and 25 secs. If you would like to have a go at the Skyline there are more details on how you can get your time recorded here . Dean Russell is an active trail runner, climber, mountaineer and trekker with over 16 years experience in the mountains. Usually found running and climbing in his local mountains in North Wales he offers private and group guiding highlighting the best routes in Snowdonia’s national park. If you would like further details then you can contact Dean here .
First in a new series highlighting the finest running routes around Snowdonia's national park. In the first blog post the author, Dean Russell, showcases a run with some of the best views in the local area with a horseshoe run around Moel Eilio.
Blog for those addicted to running with tips and ideas to help get them through the Coronavirus lockdown
Run some of the UK's long distance trails or traverse a mountain range in the Alps over multiple days for a new adventure in 2020 - here's some top tips on how.