Jan-15

Recommendations

Info

Fell Races are much more varied in length and have categorisation which takes into account both their length and their steepness. Races are categorised using two letters. where the first letter is A, B or C and tells you how steep and the second one is S, M or L and tells you how long it is. A – should average not less than 50 metres climb per kilometre, should not have more than 20% of the race distance on the road, should be at least 1.5 kilometres in length. B- should average not less than 25 metres climb per kilometre, should have not more than 30% of the race distance on the road. C – should average not less than 20 metres climb per kilometre, should have not more than 40% of the race distance on the road, should contain some genuine fell terrain. S – 10 kilometres or less M – between 10 and 20 kilometres L – 20 kilometres or more On the injury front I have seen some bad ones over the years but I think generally the fell runners I know are injured less overall than the road runners. There are a lot of local fell races some of which are on more moorland than fell and of course there are even more races in some of the most beautiful places in the country i.e. Lake District, Snowdonia etc etc. The number of participants in each race is typically lower than on the roads but that is often by choice because organisers don’t want the extra work involved in having significant numbers plus they may have difficulties with access to land if the numbers increased too much. You do still get a real variety of abilities on the fells but on anything other than the really short races you are expected to be able to navigate in case you lose sight of the people ahead, for that reason people often start by entering with friends who are already able to do that and you often see small groups running round together. Each race in the calendar stipulates whether navigation is required (NS) and whether experience is required (ER) and all the information can be found in the FRA calendar or on the FRA website. The other most important thing to consider is kit requirements. On some races organisers can use their own judgement on what kit to ask people to carry, on many short local races only a waterproof is requested or in good weather nothing is made compulsory, but you have to be prepared to carry full-kit if requested so you should always have it with you if the weather is unpredictable. On longer races it is now compulsory to carry full kit, which is waterproof top, waterproof pants, hat, gloves, compass, whistle, map and emergency food (long races). On some really long races additional equipment is also made compulsory. Please don’t let the kit requirements put you off if you have never tried the fells before as there are many summertime short races in the championship this year where kit
equirements will be limited and you can fall in love with the fells before you then spend money on getting the right kit for the big stuff. The Fell Running Association (FRA) governs most Fell Races, although you do see some that aren’t under FRA rules, the definitions above are FRA definitions. The FRA is affiliated to UK Athletics but if you want to join the FRA you do that directly rather than via the club, membership provides you with an annual book of races and a quarterly magazine (which is really good !). Apologies for the length of this section but I think this is the one that is sometimes clouded in mystery for some people and I do think that is a shame. Trail (or Multi Terrain) Running Trail is a description often used to mean it can’t be described as Fell or Road but there are some key characteristics that are worth mentioning. I think the difference between Road and Trail is clear, it isn’t on the road (although we do have a Trail race, Roddlesworth Roller in our Road Championship this year to confuse matters !). The distinction between Fell and Trail can be more grey, I tend to find that if they have called it Trail it means it will be on clear footpaths and some of them will be hard under foot, so I then choose shoes with some cushioning. If it is called Fell it could be on good footpaths at times but at least some of it is likely to be on open fell or moorland away from paths, so I then choose shoes with really good grips. However, every time I reflect on that definition I think of many exceptions so it really isn’t that clear. If it is called Multi-Terrain you almost invariably seem to find yourself on a road at some stage of the race in my experience. Another distinction between Fell and Trail is often that Fell tends to go over the top of the hills whereas Trail tends to go over the passes between the fells, but again I can find exceptions to that rule as well. There is no official governing body but there is a Trail Running association which I have to admit I know very little about. What I do know though is that Trail races are often in very beautiful places and tend to be very relaxed and friendly. There are a lot of local ones to look out for and you’ll notice a Trail Marathon and Half Marathon advertised somewhere in this copy of the Dash and on Facebook. Cross Country Mud, glorious mud ! If you don’t mind getting muddy these are brilliant fun, good grips are required on your shoes but even that won’t guarantee you’ll stay on your feet. These are always really sociable events as you are generally representing the club as well as yourself. There are other races around but we always enter any pay the entry fees for the Red Rose Cross Country so those are a good introduction if you haven’t tried this before (or not since school !).
Page 1 and 2: The Dash January 2015
Page 3 and 4: Aug-13 Sep-13 Oct-13 Nov-13 Dec-13
Page 5 and 6: TIP OF THE MONTH - 31 days of runni
Page 7 and 8: Marathon (and Half Marathon) of the
Page 9 and 10: New Year….. What A Year!!! Toward
Page 11 and 12: Assisted by the touring Dashers Orm
Page 13 and 14: Ormskirk Karen Atherton 25:50 66.52
Page 15: The Diversity of Running As we move
Page 19 and 20: Fell running. How scary is it reall
Page 21 and 22: Fell championship races Ashurst Bea
Page 23 and 24: WALSHIES PUZZLE PAGE. With thanks t
Page 25 and 26: 4000 miles Snowdonia Marathon Oct 2
Page 27 and 28: 14200 miles-I was snapped at about
Page 29: The Christmas Do
Page 32 and 33: terrified for two people. But I suc
Page 34 and 35: longer the domain of the elite athl
Page 36: Founded 1990 Club committee Chairma

Jan-15

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?