Race report by Gareth:
The Lap!
They call it “the beautiful ultra” and it absolutely does not disappoint.
47 miles, 8,800ft of elevation on a glorious sunny day in the Lake District, what’s not to like?
The race is a pretty new one, first held in 2019, is a clockwise lap of Windermere (they do anti clockwise in September). It’s grown from just 130 runners in 2019 to over a thousand yesterday and has quickly become an iconic Lakeland ultra.
Starting and finishing at Low Cunsey Farm on the Graythwaite Estate on the lake shore we were underway nice and early at 6:00am as the sun rose over Windermere to the sound of bagpipes, I was already having goosebumps.
The scenery almost all the way round is just stunning, some great climbs, all manageable but the cumulative effect of the ups and downs start to set in after a bit! Latterbarrow, Loughrigg Fell, Wansfell Pike, Orrest Head, Gummers How, the list of climbs with amazing views goes on & on. Yes it was a hot, sunny day and I felt I was melting a few times but I much prefer it to constant rain!
Some great moments stand out, running down from Loughrigg Fell into Rothay Park, Ambleside as Parkrun was wrapping up 15 miles in was wonderful, the parkrunners gave us a great reception, and I also knew that Claire & Zippy were waiting here to give me a big hug. Then straight out of Ambleside and up the biggest climb of the day, Wansfell Pike, was tough but the views were out of this world. I had my only dark moment going through some thick woods about 34 miles in and desperately needed to get out of my own head but coming out of the woods after whacking my head on a tree to see the smiling faces Tony & Sheila waiting at the gate! I still can’t express how much of a difference this made (they would never have known). They walked up Gummers How with me & and Sheila’s words about not worrying about my finishing time mentally freed me up to really enjoy the rest of the race. Then just a few miles later I knew Claire & Zip were waiting for me outside the Swan at Newby Bridge, I was feeling very emotional and promptly burst into tears when I saw them 🤣.
I was buzzing when I left them and it was just a short hop to the last checkpoint in the lovely village of Finsthwaite and when the guy filling my water bottle said there was just 5.35 miles to go (very exact!) I could have kissed him! The finish was incredible, running along the shores of Windermere and then back through the field to the farm as the sun was starting to set was an experience I’ll never forget. Claire & Zip cheering me in & Col Faulds shouting me over the line.
For the record I finished in 278th place in 13:19:09, very pleased with that 😊.
This is a great event, superbly organised and way marked with 2,500 directional arrows (I only got lost once, well it is me after all 🤣) and the friendliest, most helpful and supportive volunteers imaginable. Would I do it again? Nope, I’ve done it & I’m officially done with ultras after Paul and myself do the North Leeds Skyline in 4 weeks but would I recommend it? A 100% yes, it’s amazing, entry for next year opens today…just saying…it’ll sell out quickly..
Finally a huge thank you to everyone for your messages of support and dot watching when there’s much better things to do on a hot sunny day! It means a lot 💚🖤.
