Having missed my planned first race back due to ongoing fatigue, I made it back to racing two weeks later. Unfortunately, I picked a bit of a hard one for my return but at least it wasn't far to drive.
I don't think I would have had much call to visit Cowpe if there hadn't been a fell race there, but it is a village on the edge of a mill town with Pennine grey stone cottages, a lovely community hall, and not a lot else. It also sits in view of some wall like slopes which wasn't all that reassuring waiting for the start. I was also early, having thought I wasn't going to get out of work on time and then finishing early after all. But hey, I was here and registered and kitted on a dry evening after a few damper days. And a few of my team mates showed up to join me.
After a road based warm up, we started on the road outside the community hall and then took a right up the track. It had been a race full of whippets and standing on the start line I knew I might well come last. The climb on the road and track was fairly gradual and I gently trotted. But then we hit the fell and it was proper steep and bumpy, with those lovely ankle breaking divots. I was pretty near the back but not completely. We slogged up the hill, careful not to stand in the dead sheep on the way up, nor grab the dried out thistles that grew prolifically on the route. It was a bit follow the leader still, so I didn't worry too much about pace just tried to keep up with the chap in front.
I was quite relieved to join a better path at the top of the first hill. Here all the positions started to change and I puffed along, glad of something better to run on. I think this was part of the Rossendale way and it was still divot ridden but much flatter, and we passed some mounds that may once have been part of a quarry (there was definitely some kind of stone workings up there later in the race). The first decent was fairly harrowing and steep down sheep trod. I was a bit pathetic, and several people over took me. I was trying to keep weight forward but my head was engaged too much. We dropped across a footpath and kept descending... a bad omen for things to come.
Right at the bottom there was a steep drop to cross a stream next to the reservoir. Some mountain bikes looked on at the mad people running around the hills, particularly when we jumped another tributary and started on the first of the hand and knees ascents up to the actual Whittle Pike. I actually started to gain on a few people over the next mile or so up to Whittle pike. It was a mixture of steep sections, bogs and sheep trod. I jogged a bit, scrambled a bit and walked a lot. But it was good forward movement and the views across the Pennines were impressive.
After a final little steep section, the cross at Whittle Pike was finally in sight and I felt pretty dead. Wrongly, I thought it was mostly down hill from here. That some of that down hill would be ankle breaking and steep had occurred to me. The first section of the descent was okay but then tipped down hill to take us in to another valley where I realised we weren't taking the main footpath back.... We headed a short way along the stream floor of a gulley before heading straight up another hand and knees fell side. I was slightly concerned about the elderly man in front of me but fortunately did not have ot perform CPR on that slope. I was glad to get to the top of it and try to make up some of the places lost on the descent. (I didn't manage many).
The flatter section on the top seemed to go on longer than I remembered as we rejoined the path we had come along on the ascent. The divots were going to be fun on the descent. The chap I had worried about on the up flew past me and I got stuck in to trying to get down the hill as fast as possible. It was hard going being steep, uneven, tussocked and full of thistles. I felt challenged but I was sort of enjoying it. This was fell running proper. I was blocked by two people walking off the fell for a bit which held me up and stopped me getting near the small group I had been chasing.
I was actually quite grateful to hit the better made track at the bottom but didn't have a lot to give for the finish on the road. I gave what I could and pleasingly didn't lose any more places on the long (it felt long) section of track and road back to the hall where in a twist of the macabre they made us cross a playing field up hill. I caught up with another older chap as I approached the finish but felt I couldn't really over take him. The little group I had chased were all piled up after the finish contemplating their safe return (but by the grace of God it had felt at times!)
Back in the hall, a few of the blacksheep were drinking tea having finished well before me (I'd come very near the back). Some had some scrapes and one came across as slightly traumatised having fallen in a stream. I had faired better than some by going slower it seemed. It was a proper fell race and it was nice to have a go but I was glad it wasn't any longer than it was! I am hoping to make at least one more in that series in the next few weeks before the season ends, but I hope they are a bit more runnable!
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