Windy Hill Fell Race
What you need to know about the Windy Hill Fell Race
- 19km of good trails and paths with 683m of elevation
- Participants have to be 17 years of age or older
- Some check points have water and sweets available
- You can purchase an A3 map for £3.00
What kit is required for a fell race?
For the majority of fell races you are required by the FRA (Fell Runners Association)
- Full body waterproof cover
- Hat and gloves
- Paper map and compass
- Spare clothing
- Food/drink
I always go into fell races feeling out of my depth as the level of runners is just something else. In my eyes fell runners are the elite of the running world. They are fast, bonkers and insane on the hills. A lot of fell races are shorter distant so going into a mid-distance I felt a little more at ease. I’m not a short-distance runner, fast and furious is not my style. My strengths lie in the longer distances, but mid-distance is still a grey area. It’s great for the training block so I entered.
Windy Hill Race Day
The weather was just horrendous, wind, rain and no visibility at all. I had the route loaded on to my watch, they had some flags along the way but it wasn’t waymarked like some routes, so you did have the possibility of getting lost. We were given trackers at registration so at least you would be found if things took a turn for the worst.
I felt relaxed at the start line, didn’t go to the front like I do in the long races as I didn’t feel competitive to start as I was wary of the distance and the other runners around me. We set off and were funneled on a narrow trail going downhill which as any runner knows is very frustrating as you’re just crammed into a crowd and can’t really get the pace you would like. Any front runner would have had a strong start with it being downhill so I was getting a little frustrated then but that was just my competitive side starting to creep in. Once I got out of the pack I ramped up my pace as I was really enjoying the section and wanted my own space. I really don’t like having people around me when I’m racing, I find it a bit awkward and the smallest of things can just annoy me. I need to work on this as it does impact my performance overall.
I started out with my Inov8 Stormshell on and very quickly got too hot. I managed to take it off under my race vest without having to stop and tie it around my race.
We hit the hills, and the terrain was actually quite difficult with ravines and uneven lumps all around which is a killer for your ankles. Bogs and puddles were everywhere, I wasn’t avoiding them as it just wastes time and with it being a shorter race than I’m used to it doesn’t matter if your feet get wet. It was actually fun running through it all, under the foot was still quite hard so you didn’t get stuck like you do in some bogs. It had really big boulders to skip across but with it being wet it made you quite wary. My Altra Olympus 6 were amazing for this race, I could really trust my feet which is unusual on wet rock. I’ve struggled to gain confidence on downhill sections especially on wet rock but not once did I have any doubts or wobbles.
I only took a mountain fuel jelly with me and 500ml of water, I ended up having the jelly really early on as I had a dip in energy with me running a faster pace than usual. With it being cold weather I don’t drink as much but I should have took another 500ml bottle and something else to keep me fuelled. They did have 2 check points along the way, I didn’t use the first one but I grabbed some sweets on the 2nd to fuel me to the end.
I had no clue how many people were in front of me, a lot of the time we were in fog so you could barley see anybody but lucklily I always managed to keep somebody in front so I could follow. It does save time as long as they are going the right way I guess but fell runners are reliable on navigation.
We had a hill finish at the end, luckily I was told this at the start of the race so it wasn’t a surprise. I approached the top of the hill and could see the finish line; I was relieved and felt good. I came 3rd female and took a podium place, I was so surprised and even got a prize which made it even better. The winning lady had won by 6 minutes ahead of me which grated on me after, I think that’s just my competitive side but that’s what drives you to be the best you can possibly be.
