Over the last few months I have been concentrating on doing everything I can to make it possible for me and a friend to be able to enter this event so all of my time has been taken up with this, but this weekend we received the e-mail we had been waiting for. Conformation that we had been accepted to run in this event. For those of you that don’t know the event I have got this from their web site.
The
Lakeland 100 'Ultra Tour of the Lake District' is the most spectacular long
distance trail race which has ever taken place within the UK. The circular
route encompasses the whole of the lakeland fells, includes in the region of
6300m of ascent and consists almost entirely of public bridleways and
footpaths. The route starts in Coniston and heads South before completing a
clockwise loop which takes in the Dunnerdale fells, Eskdale, Wasdale and
Buttermere before arriving in Keswick. From here the route heads to Matterdale
and continues over to Haweswater before returning via Kentmere, Ambleside and
Elterwater to the finish at Coniston.
The
route does not pass over any of the 'popular' Lakeland summits. Instead, it
weaves it's way through stunning valleys, coutours picturesque fells and cuts
it's own line through the amazing Lakeland topography. The Lakeland 100 will
take you to places in Cumbria you may never have visited before and it's likely
you'll wonder why.
The
event is continous in nature, competitors don't have to stop or sleep on the
route and the winners are generally expected to finish close to the 23 hour
mark. The overall time available for the route is 40 hours so sleep at
intermediate checkpoints is possible, but time is not on your side.
There
are 14 manned checkpoints on the course which are compulsory to visit, food and
drink is available at each. Checkpoints generally consist of village halls
(where available), staffed by our support team who are ready to greet you, feed
you and encourage you onwards. The 40 hours available to complete the course
may seem manageable upon your first calculations but don't be fooled. The climb,
descent, rugged terrain, darkness and tricky navigation generally ensure a
50-60% failure rate over the 100 mile course. Seasoned ultra runners have tried
and many have failed, a finisher's medal in the Lakeland 100 is possibly one of
the most treasured possessions you will ever receive. There are few things in
life for which you will have to work so hard, show such commitment, desire and
the simple stubbornness to keep going.. the minority who have completed the
event will concur.
The
100 mile event starts at 5.30pm on the Friday evening and the final cut off
will be 9.30am Sunday morning. You can choose to enter the event as a solo
participant, as part of a pair or as part of a 3 person team. Pairs and teams
must remain together at all times on the course.
The
event requires competitors to be experienced ultra distance runners with
excellent navigation skills. The drop out rate for this event is a warning
signal for anyone contemplating entry, the majority of those who fail are
inadequately prepared. Before considering an entry, consider the preparation,
consider the hours and consider what it takes to complete the Lakeland 100. If
it was easy, it wouldn't be an achievement.After receiving some really bad news about a very close family member a few months previous to getting into the event I decided that I would do this event for Cancer Research UK I have set up a just giving page so if you would like to donate that would be amazing. So a big THANK YOU to anyone who donates in advance.
Awesome Daniel. Really good luck with this.
ReplyDeleteThanks finger crossed!
DeleteFantastic goal for next year Daniel, good luck with all the training.
ReplyDeleteRich