10 July was the 40th anniversary of the Lyke Wake Race, which goes from Osmotherly to Ravenscar across the North Yorks Moors for 66km or 42 miles. The weather was just about ideal, with little sun, clear visibility, no rain (though some marshals reported rain on their position before I arrived) and a light NW wind which was not exactly following but felt comfortable and certainly did not hinder.
The terrain is varied, though all high, and deserves a paragraph to itself. The whole route keeps high, which in the North Yorks Moors means over 200m and goes up to 454m (1500 feet). The route divides into four parts, all characterised by mud and stones. The first quarter is trails around hills through woods and grassland, some of which can get quite slippery. The highest section here can be avoided, I found by following some more local runners, by devious trails through bracken. The second section climbs to an abandoned railway line, which winds gently downhill round the desolate hillside to the Lion at Blakey – see www.lionblakey.co.uk – and then continues along a couple of miles of road. The third quarter strikes off into the wild, through some serious mud and heather, after a few hundred meters the mud becomes worse, and then eases into a mixture of mud, serious mud, occasional stones, and sometimes streams.
The final quarter rises and falls over hills and streams, the most interesting being at Wheeldale, with excellent stepping stones crossing some 5 meters (but the one previous time I saw them, they were several inches under water). The finish is at Ravenscar House Hotel, with Tetley’s on tap. A minor problem is that there is no public transport, so you need a driver or lots of time to hitch and take two bus routes.
I jogged the route in May 2000 with my wife Janet, making a navigational error, and knowing the overall nature of the route was absolutely valuable. On 10 July, I knew I could keep my feet dry as far as the Lion, and then it was a lost cause, so relax. I knew that the line was clear enough, but went into narrow braided paths at some places, and my navigation was perfect – though if it had been in cloud it would have been hard. I knew that the 1-inch tourist map North York Moors ISBN 0-319-85824-0 is perfect, and copied four segments onto one double-sided A4, laminated to be waterproof. Even if it didn’t rain, I was sure to drop it at least once (and I did). So, the scene was set.
The race is not a handicap, but runners nominate their expected finish time, so everyone should arrive not too long before the prizegiving. The first start time is 4am, for the 12-hour runners, whereas a 6-hour runner can start at the civilised time of 10am. With a predicted time of 9 hours (my benchmark is to add half to the record) I started at 7am, in a bunch of 6, not too many to block the trail.
The record is about 6 hours. Overall winner was 6:23, first female in 7:32, first vet (over 55) was 8:00. I was 8:20, and may well have been second vet. Oldest finisher was 76, in 11:57. Time limit was 12 hours.
Because I did so much better than my benchmark, I reckon: either the record is soft, due to it being a relatively local event away from the serious runners of the Lakes and Scotland, or the terrain suits my style, – requiring good eyesight to spot the boulders, concentration to put together a series of moves to use the stones and mud-slopes to best advantage, and coordination to make it work. For part of the distance, I was considering a star-rating system for mud. No stars is normal wet dirt. One star is thin slippery stuff which requires care. Two stars is thick mud which may force you to stop occasionally to lighten your shoes. Three star mud may suck off your shoe. Four star mud is so deep you may never find your shoe. Five stars is potentially fatal, and may be found on Rannoch Moor, according to legend. Lyke Wake Walk is mostly one to three, with an occasional four. My old Saucony Jazz 5000 shoes were perfect (no financial interest).
