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South Downs Way 100
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The aid station plan will be posted next week. I won't post anything until I have written permission for every spot and I am still waiting for that at 2. The locations and distances have all been set - 15 including the finish and well spread.
I'll drop a note on here once the aid table is live on the website. It will be posted along with the full crew instructions and infopacks. Should give you plenty of time to work on your plans with 2 months before race day.
Any questions please let me know or post here. Thanks a lot. James
Morticia
I am pleased that you appreciate the sacrifices that I make so that you can have an event.
All those hours sitting behind a checkpoint in the hot sun, are going to be hard work.
I am sure that you will be able to take inspiration from my efforts!
Have you ever had one of those days when you've just said feck it, I wish I hadn't done that?
My usual approach to running ultras is fairly haphazard to say the very least, I don't follow a programme and most weeks I have only a vague idea of how much I'll run, some weeks it'll be 80 miles some 20 depending on how the rest of my life encroaches.
But this 100 miler I thought deserved better so I thought a couple of days ago I'd better have a plan and had a look around for a hundred mile plan somewhere and see where I was training wise. So off I toddle and find one in Relentless Forward Progress, the book from Bryon Powell who runs the IRunFar website.
So I counted back the weeks to the SDW100, had a look at the plan and saw this weekend was a 28/12 Sat/Sun back to back. Bloody hell I thought, bit severe but he knows best so off I went.
Flat trail 28 in just over 4 hours yesterday followed by a considerably slower 12 today and I felt happy in the fact I completed where the plan said I should be. Buggered up my already delicate hip flexors which'll need treatment but a certain amount of pride anyway.
So I've just checked this coming weeks plan and noticed I'd misread the plan.Yesterday should have been 18 miles not 28. So now sitting here with my fecked hips I feel something of a twat
Lirish- You deserve an easy week now then! Good book that- I have studied it, but have made up my own training plan and this week have amassed a grand total of 40 miles so must do better next week!
Ben- Surely if you are near the end of the race it will be dark and it might be p*ssing down and that can't be pleasant to loiter in?!
I booked a B&B in Chilcomb situated right on the trail apparently. I have booked the travelodge at the other end and when I stayed there the other week the end of the bed was higher than the head which will probably be a good thing after 100 miles so I will try to get the same room
Don't worry Morticia.
I will have a nice rain proof canopy and a gas heater.
I will also make sure that you don't linger at the checkpoint too long, so that you finish the race in the best possible time!
Lirish you encompassed everything that ultra running is to me with the statement about haphazard training.
I don't like plans they are too easy to break. I run because i love to run. If i want to run back to back maras in training i will but won't decide that untill Friday night or i might say f*ck it and go to the pub instead.
Don't get me wrong I put in 70+mile weeks in the run up to a big event but on my terms. Today was a prime example. Sat in front of the tv at midday and thought sod this i'm bored so went and done a full on hill rep session. Bloody good it was too
Sorry to hear you've injured yourself. I tend to follow my heart not someone elses plan if you get my drift.
Well feck it again that hurt.
Second recce run today, this time from Amberley to Southease, about 35 miles by the map which ended up being 38 by my Garmin but I guess that depends on how much you get lost. You can guess from my extra three miles how often I did
Anyway out of the train station at Amberley and faffed about finding the trail for a bit, unsurprisingly it went straight uphill behind the station for a couple of K before it goes into some lovely ridgeline running from Rackham Hill to Kithurst Hill, Sullington Hill before dropping to Parkfield and crossing the A24 then back up to Chanctonbury Hill where there's a lovely little woods.
The trail all the way here except for a couple of hundred metre sport is hard packed stone mix or chalk, even though we've had a fair bit of rain over the past week it'd had drained well and personally I'd have had no problem running it in road shoes, though I did have a pair of TNF single tracks on.
Trail is pretty much undulations from there on in, nothing too challenging but difficult to get a rythm going and you really need to keep eyes about to follow the markers, there's a couple of places where there's no markings whatsoever and it'd be very easy to take the wrong route, one in particular coming up to Clayton Windmills when the trail doubles back from the road. Another area that suffered from a lack of markings was from Blackcap down to Housedown Farm and then across the A27, the marker postshave actuallt had the signs dugout of them it appears so it's worth paying attention to the map around there. From there it's a pretty easy run along a concrete section down into Southease.
Couple of points to ponder, I used TNF single tracks today and my feet suffered, I'll certainly seriously consider doing this in road shoes if the weather has been dry the week before.
Drink lots. It's very exposed out there and in June it's going to be brutal on a warm day. I had a torrid time at one point and couldn't figure out why unti I went to pee and found I was massively dehydrated.
I'm not sure what the compulsory kit is likely to be but I'd advise full body waterproofs, because it's so exposed when there was heavy showers today there was no where to shelter, thankfully I had full kit with me but it would have been pretty miserable without it.
And finally don't do it with fecked hip flexors. I've put myself back a couple of weeks at least with no guarantee I can get them sorted before June. Watch this space but if I don't run I'll ask James if I can crew one or two of the aid stations again.
This being my first 100 miler, my whole aim is just to finish within the time limt, and so far I've been pretty confident of achieving this, however, the doubts are now starting to set in. Went out on Friday and really struggled on a 20 miler, i know it was hilly and muddy but bloody hell, 5 times that seems like a tall order. Purely for confidence reasons, Im going to go out tomorrow and do an all dayer. Going to do a very slow 30 miles.
Anybody else having doubts and wibbles at this point?
Yes fear not Gee Bee 2 you are not alone!
My training was going well til a month ago but the last few weeks I have only managed 20 milers which like you I have found hard work and my knees are starting to suffer. I really need to train hard over the next few weeks. Hope tomorrow's run goes well, and make sure you walk if you are struggling as that is what we will be doing on the big day!
I did a Swimathon (200 lengths of breaststroke) thing the other day which hasn't helped my knee situation, so I have pencilled in along run Friday when I have recovered a bit!
Let us know how you get on. I am sure there are lots of experienced people on here who can give you advice
Well done cragchick. Sounds like a great race. I shall put it on my to-do list!
2 pairs of purple lunarglides have just arrived so I will stop admiring them and go test them
Craigchick well done on the Fling, up until a week ago I had every intention of joining you but at the moment I'm just not up to it.
At the moment I'm just about keeping up with a base level of mileage but it's costing me, hipflexors start to hurt about 5-8 miles into every run and get progressively worse the further I go. Been to my regular sports masseuse who's fantastic but it's not doing much good. It's I think something bio mechanical that's affecting aall the muscles in the area but what to do about it and if it'll work I have no idea.
I know where your coming from Lirish I'm always on the edge of injury. I have an imbalance which affects my right hand side, glutes, hams, knee ligaments and ankle are the worst offenders.
Orthotics have been my latest effort at injury prevention. Only time will tell on that one. My pods other piece of advice was to consider giving up running ultra distances.
I can't I replied I do it to keep fit and healthy!