Kirkhill 8 Revisited

Having enjoyed Kirkhill 8 so much last year I decided to sign up once again. I went into the event feeling better prepared than last year; although mileage was similar, the vast majority of my running has been on trails recently and I’ve focused more on runs with elevation.

The weather forecast caused a bit of stress over the course of the week. Even on Friday night it looked like we might be hanging around waiting to start in heavy rain. It was therefore a relief to waken on Saturday morning to find that the rain had come overnight and was not due to return to any great extent throughout the day.

Morning Faffing

Having planned to be out on Friday night (to see King Creosote play at The Tivoli), I’d packed my clothing bag on Thursday night and sorted out some of my food. On race day morning though I still had to mix up my Active Root and spread my bagel thins. This, alongside the rest of the effort involved in getting showered, dressed, car packed and who knows what else I wasted time on, resulted in me being 15 minutes late in collecting Lorna – sorry again! I did at least have the good grace to message and let her know so that she wasn’t left stressing that she’d been forgotten!

We got on our way and headed out to the Dyce Industrial Estate, only to find the areas that were not double yellow lines already chockablock! We managed to park on a nearby street and started the walk up to Kirkhill. CGM guys, you said allow 10 minutes! We took nearer 20 minutes as we were laden down, resulting in us sending a panicked message to confirm that we were actually coming.

Apologies CGM for not having the courtesy to attend in time for registration; I / we were very grateful that you gave us our numbers with a cheeky, ‘Good afternoon,’ from Race Director, Rod.

Race Briefing

Rod gave the race briefing while our faffing continued. I clarted on the Factor 50 suncream knowing there’s no way I’d escape sunburn without it! I later looked like I’d been going really fast, resembling a car bumper after a summer’s drive in the country, absolutely caked in beasties! If only I’d actually gone that fast! One lady actually said she wasn’t sure if it was a skin condition so hadn’t commented on the state of me at the finish!

Briefing over, we moved towards the start. I joined the toilet queue which was moving very slowly, only for Rod to shout, ‘Go!’

Despite being next in line, I opted to hang on and go later instead, the majority of pre-race wees being psychological anyway! Until I saw the start line video, I’d forgotten that another runner had dropped some of her snacks as we started running; I did my good deed for the day, going back a couple of paces to pick them up for her, avoiding her fuel being annihilated by the runners behind for which she was grateful.

Kirkhill 8: The Run

In all honesty I feel like calling it a run is stretching things somewhat! This year there was a lot of walking.

I settled into the first loop and went conservatively, knowing there was a long day ahead. Loops 1 and 2 were pretty uneventful. I chugged along, walking little bits as planned, the strategy always being as a minimum to walk up the lumpy path to Tappie Tower and the ‘mud slide’. I saw Nicola and James’ dad, Gordon, always good to see a friendly face.

I sipped my Active Root and took on some food (half a bagel thin with peanut butter and jam in loop 1, a Rice Krispie bar in loop 2 if I recall correctly.

By loop 3, I wasn’t feeling so great. The muscles around my knees were feeling tender, I wasn’t really loving my fuel, and I was walking more than planned. Conscious that I still had many hours ahead, I let myself do what felt right, trying to ignore the pace on my watch and just concentrate on moving forward. I tried having a bit of cheesy bagel instead to mix up the taste.

Loop 4 was much the same, walking with bits of running. I was really grateful that I’d fallen in with some other runners on these laps and we had a good blether, definitely keeping my spirits up. I think it was here that I met Nicola who’s made of really tough stuff! Spending a bit of time with her made me feel really emotional so I had to move on!

I picked up my flat Coke on the fifth loop. Despite my intentions for fuelling, the heat and humidity I think may have impacted on how I felt, and I was struggling to eat much at all. I was also a bit fed up of the tastes I had. I managed to eat half a packet of salted crisps and drank 500 ml of coke. It went down really well, far better than any other fluid, and I topped up again before lap 6.

I should mention at this point that the marshals were amazing. They were so friendly and encouraging, as were the CGM guys (Rod, Adam & Andrew). I really appreciated the words of encouragement and the cheers passing through each loop. I also appreciated the volunteers filling my bottles and helping me to organise myself.

In loop 6, I walked even more! Occasionally I’d manage to make myself run a bit, but these were short lived bursts, again more a shuffle than a run. Loop 7 saw me achieve my goal, more than a marathon, as I headed past the gate at the start of the loop. This was a relief and I relaxed knowing that I had only a couple of hours to go.

I was thrilled to see my running friend George and his wife, Pam, and miraculously I was running when I met them! I’d been able to convince my legs to run from the mud slide as it was relatively flat.

Throughout the loops, the camaraderie was great. Anyone passing would check in with a friendly word, ensuring others were okay. It’s this kind of encouragement and inclusiveness that makes the community so special.

At the end of loop 7, the marshal was willing me to continue for loop 8. I was done though, pretty confident that I’d not manage a full loop ahead of the race finishing. I therefore made the decision to wait 10 minutes for the little loop to open for business, and enjoyed a blether while doing so.

As the little loop opened, four of us lined up and headed off, three of them takinf off ahead of me as I struggled to get my legs going after the break. Mental note to self: maybe don’t sign up for a Backyard Ultra anytime soon!

I walked up the initial bit of the little loop, watching their backs, occasionally trying to run a few paces. I did run (or shuffle) the singletrack path back towards the wildlife bridge.

I then headed out for a second little loop, buoyed by even more flat Coke and the fact that I had less than 45 minutes to go! On this loop I met a couple of Jog Scotland folks, Craig and Jeanette, both looking good.

At the end of this loop I headed to the 500 metre stretch, up to the gate and back repeatedly. I collected my tent peg, the rationale behind this being that when the 8 hours is up, the tent peg goes into the next bucket, thereby allowing the official distance to be calculated. It was amazing how having shuffled at best for so long, I was able to run up and down a few times! This is a busy section, some folks going as fast as they can to max out the distance, others walking and doing the best they can at this late stage in the race.

Rod announced 30 seconds to go; I managed to touch the gate one final time, and it was all over. Tent pegs dropped, there was a lovely atmosphere, runners congratulating each other on their achievements.

Unlike last year, I was aware of the medal and didn’t require a special home delivery. Medal and goodie bag collected, I enjoyed a cup of tea and to a lesser extent, a buttery; to be clear, the butteries were great and the soup smelled good but I was struggling to face food.

We waited to see the prize giving, Lorna picking up an impressive 2nd female prize. Shortly after the prize giving the sky blackened and the heavens opened, leaving those of us still there sheltering in the tent while the heavy rain pelted down. As it lightened, we spotted a rainbow. The long walk back to the car began. This put my walking during the race firmly in perspective as there was none of the purposeful marching, only a slow painful plod.

Reflections

My main goal was more than a marathon and I most definitely achieved this. While not quite hitting last year’s distance, I feel that I had a good race in the conditions, so all things considered, I’m chuffed with my day out.

I’m very grateful to Pawel Cymbalista – My Mountain Lab Coaching – for his support and encouragement during training and on race day; it’s been tough fitting everything in this year; having someone to support with time management and scheduling has been really beneficial. I think the fact that I’m moving without too much pain the day after is also indicative of a solid training block, definitely something to build upon.

I’m very much looking forward to a bit of rest and recovery now, at least for a few days, then onto the next challenge.