A Quest for Adventure – The Trigger Race

My recent quest for adventure had led me to enter the Trigger race which ran from Marsden to Edale on the 10th January

I was aiming to come in the top five ladies but my success was in no way guaranteed. Long runs were not my forte and with difficult conditions underfoot and some tricky navigation over Bleaklow, I was feeling a little apprehensive.

When my alarm went off at 5:30am on the morning of the race I savoured a couple more minutes before my drive to run was overriding my desire to sleep. I had been training hard for this 24 mile race and I did not want sleep to rob me of this opportunity.

Trigger Training
Training Hard for Trigger (Photo Credit – Zoe Procter)

An hour later, I was on a minibus on the way to Marsden with 16 other members of the Pennine Fell running club. Snow started falling heavily as we drove the final couple of miles to Marsden. The early start and big breakfast was taking its toll and I was feeling a little sick now. I put this down to usual pre-race nerves. By 8:30am the Sun had risen, the snow had stopped falling and my spirits had lifted. With so many friends stood alongside me on the start line and plenty of banter to keep us all amused, I was looking forward to the adventure ahead.

A few minutes later and we were off. I tried my best not to race like this was a 10km road race and reigned myself in when I saw the formidable Nicky Spinks just ahead of me. She was the pacing queen and my plan was to try and stay with her. I carried on past the Wessenden Reservoirs and out onto the moors on the pull up to Black Hill.

As I slowed for the climb, a fellow runner behind me pulled alongside and muttered some fateful words into my ear. “You probably don’t want me to tell you this but the sole is coming off your shoe. You don’t want that coming off on Bleaklow.”

I looked down to see the sole of my right shoe flapping around like a flipper

Concerned but determined to carry on, I let a mixture of thoughts drift around in my head. What if it does come off half way across Bleaklow? What if I’m worrying about nothing? It wasn’t long before my ‘what if’s’ became ‘what now!?’ as shortly after reaching the summit of Black Hill my sole came completely off my shoe. I pulled to the side of the track that had sucked my foot down and sabotaged my chances of a good placing. Runners and friends streamed passed and promised to send word of my predicament to the marshals a few miles ahead. Physically I was fine but I knew that I could not stand around exposed to sub-zero temperatures for long in the clothing I was in. I was now regretting not having packed my Craghoppers Compresslite jacket in my rucksack now. Super light and easily compressible, it would have been perfect attire to throw on whilst I tried to fix my shoe.

Feeling Positive at Wessenden Reservoir (Photo Credit – SportSunday Event Photography)
Feeling Positive at Wessenden Reservoir (Photo Credit – SportSunday Event Photography)
The Damaged Shoe
The Damaged Shoe

A decision had to be made and quickly. I could stagger the half mile back to the marshals on the summit of Black Hill or attempt to run the 3 miles down to Crowden. I decided to go for the second option as I was more likely to get a lift back round to Edale from there if fixing my shoe proved not to be an option. As I aqua planed my way down to Crowden, I must have stumbled and fallen over 20 times. Eventually rocks pierced through the thin strip of material on my right shoe which was my only defence against them. My foot was physically hurting from the impact of the hard ground on it and my hip was starting to hurt after throwing it down hard to try and get some form of traction underfoot. I saw no option but to pull out at Crowden.

I stumbled down the final grassy slope and saw Jasmin Paris stood by the gate. Jasmin is a very talented runner who should have been running that day. If she had, she would have easily won in the Ladies category and would have been placed in the top 10 overall. However, a cycling injury had prevented her from running and she was watching instead. She called out to me and asked if I was ok. I showed her the state of my foot and explained that I was going to pull out. Her response was quick and left me with no excuses. “What size are you? You could wear my shoe.” I paused. I desperately wanted to continue the race but couldn’t take Jasmin’s shoe and leave her standing there with one bare foot….or could I? Decision made, within minutes I had her size 7 shoe on and her sock on for extra padding. I was a size 5 myself and felt like one of the ugly sisters in Cinderella trying to convince myself that the shoe was a perfect fit. A fellow runner passed as I got to my feet and joked that with Jasmin’s shoe on my right foot would be going faster than my left.

After agreeing to swap shoes back at Edale, I got back to my feet and started running again.

I slowly felt the pain in my right foot starting to subside and my mood began to lift. I was convinced that I had lost over 30 minutes and was probably near the back of the field. However, I still had plenty of strength left in my legs and quickly found myself catching up with the group in front. As I started the scramble up and on to Bleaklow I was careful not to knock any rocks down on the folk below. It would have been far too dangerous for me to have done this with only one fully functioning shoe as the ground was very rough and the consequences of a fall serious. I carried on up and eventually popped out on the plateau above. Running proved difficult as the peat bogs sucked at my ankles. However, I was determined to make the 1pm cut-off at the Snake Pass road crossing and mumbled positive mantras to myself to keep myself going. 

An hour and a half later, I reached the road crossing. Supporters rang cow bells and big smiles from members of the Woodhead Mountain Rescue Team were a welcome sight. I was finally past the last cut-off and on my home turf of Kinder. I felt a wave of relief pass through me.

Mountain Rescue at the Snake Pass (Photo Credit – Sue and Nigel Jeff)
Mountain Rescue at the Snake Pass (Photo Credit – Sue and Nigel Jeff)

This was short lived as moments after this my leg disappeared beneath me as I fell between two flagstones and lost my footing. The runner behind me helped me to my feet and checked how I was before leaving me to dust myself of. My shin now hurting after breaking open the skin, the flag stones up to Mill Hill seem to go on for eternity. As I drew closer more and more familiar faces appeared with sweets, water and kind words of support.  It was not long before I finally reached Kinder Low. It was all downhill from here to Edale and even though everything was hurting, I enjoyed the feeling of letting my legs roll beneath me as I started the long descent down.

I finally crossed the line at 1:55pm. The race had taken me 5 hours and 19 minutes to complete and I ended up 9th lady.  I reflected on the race as I cleaned myself up and wrapped myself in my Compresslite jacket. If I’d come in 30 minutes earlier, I would have come in as third lady. However, ironic as it may sound, I would never have traded that placing with the experience I had had that day. If my sole hadn’t come of, my adventure would have been much less exciting. I would never have had the opportunity to test my reserves of resilience or to experience Jasmin’s kindness. Those are life’s riches which no money or prize can buy.

If you fancy having a go at fell running, visit the Peak Discoverers website at https://www.peakdiscoverers.co.uk or contact Claire Aspinall at claire.aspinall@peakdiscoverers.co.uk

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