Success disguised as failure

On Sunday morning at 8am I set off running 431km (268 miles) from Edale in the middle of England to Kirk Yetholm in Scotland, along the Pennine Way, as part of the Spine Race. However, I had to drop out at the first checkpoint, 72km (45 miles).

It is clear that I did not meet all my goals; indeed, I did not even come very close this time. However, as well as acknowledging ‘failure’, I make it a practice to look at what I achieved. In this post, I will describe what I managed to do on Sunday and why I see it as a success, and then I will add some context.

The basics
With a winter pack (about 8kg), I ran 72km (45) miles on paths covered in snow through the Pennine Hills in 16 hours (the cut-off was 20 hours). That is an achievement to be pleased with. 20 years ago, I could not tackle that sort of distance. Even 10 years ago, I would not have had the technical skills to navigate in the dark, over that terrain in those conditions (because it is winter in the UK, the last 8 hours were run in the dark with the light from my head torch showing me the way.

The context for this year’s race.
I tried the same race in January 2024 and had to drop out at 272 km (169 miles). Straight after the race, I said, ‘Never again’, but by February, I worked out how I thought I could improve. This included improving my upper body strength (via CrossFit), losing weight, improving my eating and resting strategies, getting more kit, and slightly upping my training. Some of these worked: my eating strategy, my kit, and I benefited from the upper body work (which meant the hiking poles did more work on the hills). The losing weight was a failure, I was almost exactly the same bodyweight this year as last year (but at least my pack was lighter).

The big problem arose from injuries. I have run every day for over six years and have not had any injuries. But in August 2024, I developed a knee problem. This seems to have two components 1) age, 2) my running muscles tend to pull in a way that does not help. So, I had to run less and start doing physio to build up the other muscles. This injury meant I had to pull out of all my preparation races. The last six months have been very light for me regarding distance run. Then, about a week before the race, I woke with a painful back, which was just one of those things that happened. I thought this year the Spine race was not going to happen. With a last throw of the dice, I went to physio on Friday for a massage and needles, and that did enough for me to be able to start the race on Sunday. Because on Thursday, I was almost certain I was not racing on Sunday, I think I let my mind become less focused on finishing.

The Conditions
The final bit of context relates to the weather/terrain conditions. Every year, the Spine race throws some challenges at the runners, but they are always different. This year, the challenge was the snow that had fallen before the race. Two shorter races start on Saturday (the day before my race), and they had the challenge of running on the unbroken snow (which is really hard). For us, the challenge was that much of the root was icy, the snow was uneven and compacted, and periodically it switched to bog and water. This made the flat sections and the downhills harder to run on than they would have been without the snow and ice – but it also made some places that would have been really boggy easier because they were now frozen.

The Race
Before the race started, I meet lots of friends, some running, some working for the Spine team, and some just cheering people on.

From the start, we ran up through Edale and then the 5km through snow-covered fields to Jacobs Ladder. On the track up to Jacobs Ladder, I put on my YakTrax (chains that fit onto my shoes). I learned last year that putting the chains/spike early is good sense.

We started by running through the mist/cloud caused by a temperature inversion, coming out into the blue sky at the top of the climb. At this point, everything was going well.

I was feeling pretty good across the Kinder Plateau, round to the Snake Pass, and over Bleaklow. However, I could tell that I was modifying my steps to avoid jarring my back, avoiding jolting my left knee and dealing with the uneven, frozen surface.

The first timing point is Torside. Last year, I reached Torside in five hours 9 minutes. I tend to have a target of reaching Torside safely as a surprisingly large number of people drop out at Torside. The descent is long and technical. I had already decided that if I took seven hours to get to Torside, I would probably need to call it a day at that stage. I reached the Torside aid station (manned by a Mountain Rescue Team) in five hours 17 minutes – making me pretty happy.

The next timing point is the M62 crossing. Last year I reached it in just under 12 hours, and this time it was 12 hours 25 minutes. This was a clear sign that I was more tired than in previous years, and my back was beginning to hurt. At that point, there was about a half marathon to go before the Hebden Bridge checkpoint (about 13 miles). I decided two things 1) I wanted to reach at least Hebden Bridge, which would mean I would have done the whole Spine Sprint distance, and 2) if I wanted to give myself a chance of running further, I needed to get to Hebden Bridge in time to have some sleep to see if my body would recover. I pressed on as hard as I could, and I reached Hebden Bridge checkpoint at 17 minutes past midnight. The route took me 16 hours and 17 seconds, which was 6 minutes faster than I had run the Winter Sprint Race in 2021.

I was feeling quite rough by the time I arrived, a bit shaky, my back was sore and not wanting to eat. I got two hours sleep in my sleeping bag on a pew just need the eating area.

After the sleep
The shakiness went with the sleep; the appetite had not come back, but I managed a couple of pieces of toast, but the back was worse. The next checkpoint was about 95 km away, the second stage is the longest in the Spine Race. I have run that stretch three times in the past, so I know what is entailed and decided to DNF at Hebden Bridge,

I find the decision of whether to drop out or not quite hard. But once I have made it, I do not worry about it.

The journey home
I was lucky enough to share a taxi to Leeds with another runner, and from there, I caught trains to Nottingham. Carrying the 17kg drop back reinforced the message that my back would have got worse if I had pressed on.

What’s next?
For the next few days, I will be watching the progress of all the amazing people still in the race.

Definitely more physio, I need to get to 100% OK, i.e. beyond the sticking plaster stage. I must lose the weight I want to lose. And I will build my running speed and distance up, picking events I know I can finish. Once all that is in the bag, I will look at entering races that challenge my ability to finish again. My next event is a 50km race at the start of May.

Some thoughts about Kit and Technique
Because I only lasted one day this year, there is less to write about regarding the ins and outs of routes, kits, etc. However, here are a few bits.

This year, like last year, I ran with a Geeky Hiker. A Geeky Hiker is a front bag for all the things you will want during the race. They are becoming really popular, and they are designed and manufactured by Jody Manning who is a regular runner of Spine events. I was interested to see how many people had added their own extras to their bag.

If you are going to use hiking poles, I advise finding out the best way to use them. Most people I see using them could get even more advantage from them.

Spike/chains are unresolved issue for me. My key recommendation is like my recommendation about goggles: put them on as soon as they will make a difference. Many people leave their chains (and their Goggles) until they are absolutely needed – but you will get more benefits by keeping them handy and putting them own as soon as they will make a difference.

I wore YakTrax last year and this year, and I find them great on the ice. Lots of other people do not rate them on ice. However, I broke my YakTrax last year and broke a different pair this year. So, I need to have spares. If I had been running day 2, I would have been using my Pogu spikes, but I have not used them enough to recommend for or against them yet.

One final thought is about waterproof socks. I am a big believer in them, but they vary from keeping you dry in all but the worst conditions to leaking like sieves – and they all get worse with age. I wore my usual combination of Injinji merino toe socks underneath waterproof socks and a generously large pair of Altra running shoes. The water conditions were not that bad for area nothing more than ankle deep and foot only in for a short time, but my merino socks were wet through – and this is the tip, so that pair of waterproof did not come home, throw leaky waterproof socks in the bin straight away, otherwise you will be struggling to remember which are the good ones.

Thanks
As always, there are so many people deserving of praise: the Spine volunteers, the MRT (mountain rescue teams), all the racers who spent time chatting with me, and the many, many people who cheer us on. Also, thanks to my family and partner Sue for their tremendous support. I want to thank Crossfit Comet in Nottingham for helping with my conditioning (and teaching me how to love the gym) and Kelly and Joe at the Body Project for their work on my injuries.

Photos
Here are some of my snaps from the race, with occasional comments.