Ange's Ultra Running

Trust your compass, 6th April 2023. Northern Fells Running Club hold a navigation day every 2-3 years. It is a great chance for club members to come together and improve their navigation skills.  This year there were seven participants, hosted by Jenny and Steve at their home in Skelton, the first nav skills of the day finding it!!  Coffee and biscuits on arrival we got a start on our day.  Pic 1 1. We covered the different maps available ( 1:50 000, 1:40 000, 1:25 000, BMC/Harvey and race maps) 2. Map symbols 3. Grid references 4. Reading contours – telling up from down, how steep is the slope. Direction or aspect of slope. 5. Using a compass. a. Parts of a compass b. How to take a bearing  Pic2 6. Measuring distance, a. timing b. pacing  (Jenny had marked out a 50m practice area) 7. Using timing - ( for a guide 4KPH for Walking 8KPH running plus 1minute per contour going uphill only. 8. Orientating the map and setting the map with a compass. 9. What to do if y...

23 Before Tea   The challenge idea thought up by Christine and the team at Elterwater Hostel, 23 Wainwright summits starting from and finishing at the Hostel.  An opportunity for the route finders of the world to optimise the route to their liking. And if you beat the record, win a two night stay.   2022 was going to be my come back year, and I set myself the challenge of running the Lakeland 50, unfortunately this was not to be as I caught a chest infection a couple of days before. I have a suppressed immune system following chemotherapy for Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma approx. 10 years ago.  Totally gutted I couldn’t set off, I had to recover and then aim for something else. I have put in the training so need to put it to good use.    Paul, (my husband) set up his own online coaching business “Summit Ultra Coaching” during the summer. I am one of his clients! Having never followed a training plan (and not always following this plan to the tee), I decided to ...

The Great Gifts Round (GGR) conceived from all 14 Peaks gifted to the National Trust after WW1. Start and finish at the WW1 memorial at St Olaf's Church, Wasdale. 24 miles, with just under 10,000ft ascent. Kirk Fell, Gt Gable, Green Gable, Base Brown, Brandreth, Grey Knotts, Castle Crag, Glaramara, Allen Crags, Seathwaite, Great End, Broad Crag, Scafell Pike, Lingmell. We opted for a clockwise round leaving the memorial stone at St.Olaf’s church just before 6am. The weather was dubious, which was disappointing for May, but not a surprise!! Kirk Fell ascent went well, the views back down to Wasdale and Wastwater were lovely, the view ahead not so great – into the cloud. No summit view from Kirk, no navigation problems either, we were soon ascending Gt Gable. The view didn’t change here either except for the snow flakes. Onwards to Green Gable, we missed the BG line off Gt Gable but not a problem, Windy Gap wasn’t too windy; Green Gable, no summit view and onwards to...