Hellrunner - Hell Down South 2010

trying not to fall in

Results currently here

I'd heard of this race as being a bit extreme. Not quite a Tough Guy, but well on the way there. So when some people in the Evolution triathlon club said they would do it, I was happy to sign up. It sounded a bit like Grim challenge which I did last year, but with extra water.

I've done some fairly long runs including a half marathon in Windsor recently so wasn't too worried about the 10-12 mile distance. It was a fairly tough race. But it had some flat running, and some narrow paths uphill that it was impossible to run up due to the people in front blocking the way, so there were opportunities to get your breath back.

I enjoyed the race and didn't mind the lake crossings, though of course that then meant very cold squelchy trainers.

that's me in the middle!

The "Bog of Doom" was something else though. The water had been ice covered as I walked past on the way to the start line, and I heard later than the leaders had had to break it as they went through. To say it was cold would be a savage understatement. I was quite prepared mentally, but when I'd waded in up to my shoulders it even became a bit tricky to breathe. Not to mention the slippery mud on the bottom and the uneven footing that threatened to drop me under completely at any second. It smelled completely rank as well. But I tried to keep smiling (for the cameras - you can see me right in the middle of this photo here) and made it out in once piece.

concentrating hard

After that I knew the worst was past, so even though there was a bit more water, and my feet were a bit sore from being so soggy (got some cuts on my ankle from the trainers) I was going fine until one of the officials said "only 2km to go". I was expecting about another 5km so started to push hard to the finish. The last hurdles were some sand dunes, but the sand was completely frozen so rather than being difficult to push through, they were more like hard rocks that jarred my legs.

So my result was a time of 1:31:12 giving me 25th place in my age group and 240th place overall. Not bad in a field of nearly 2000 runners. I think I could have placed a little higher if I had known the distance properly beforehand, and if I'd not had to push my way past so many people in the first 10-15 minutes. Really ought to make more of an effort to get to the front at the start. Think I've said that before :)

Robert Shiels 6219 Male Finished Vet40+ 1:28:19 240 219 25 0:02:53 1:31:12