The 2001 Luppitt Lollop can be summed up in one word - mud! It's infamous for being a squidgy race at the best of times, this year's subtitle was "2001 - a Mud Odyssey" and the route map marked all the best bits, including the graphic "you won't believe what you have to run through here!", so those wimps who complained about excessive shiggy didn't get much sympathy from me!
The weather on the day was perfect for running with clear, blue skies and little wind. There was an extremely competitive field so I went out to enjoy a good wallow rather than try to keep up with people who put in two or three times my weekly mileage. Most of he mud was disappointingly shallow (I only once went up to my knees, more of which anon) but there was plenty of it. The road stretches were a bit of a bind and I chastised the organiser at the finish until he promised to look into cutting some out for next year.
The only mistake I made was race-testing a water-bottle for the Grizzly. The system worked well but I didn't actually need it (a quick slurp of water from a cup would have been sufficient) and I lost about 15s getting it filled at the first water station and a little more time on the following road climb while drinking it. This might not sound a lot in nearly two hours' running time but it may well have cost me two places and a trophy! I was with Dave Finn (Axmouth Challenge winner who finished fourth overall and third senior man) as we approached the water but, by the time I had filled the bottle and drunk the contents I had dropped back far enough to be unable to close the gap. It makes a real difference at that level of competition ... trust me!
I was still enjoying myself until a couple of miles from the finish when I went up to my knees in mud, my legs stopped, my torso kept moving and down I went with a stab of cramp in my right calf. It eventually subsided and I extricated my legs to continue on, albeit somewhat gingerly.
I got to the "you won't believe what you have to run through here!" which I didn't run as it was not only really gloopy but pretty steep and I didn't fancy another bout of cramp. (Apparently one of the marshals sunk over the tops of his wellies before finally sprawling face down in the stuff! It was VERY organic and his breakfast made a prompt reappearance!) This was followed by some of the best running on the course, skirting above little valleys in the sunshine before plunging down and crossing little streams at the bottom and clambering up t'other side. Good stuff, even on tired legs!
Someone caught me on the final hill which we walked together but he wasn't any more interested in a sprint finish than I was so we cruised the last half a mile with me about 5s in front. I finished in sixth place, a couple of minutes down on fourth (Dave Finn) and fifth, not my best position but much the same performance relative to the field so I can't really grumble.
The washing facilites consisted of four children spraying the runners with a hose pipe and scrubbing their legs with sponges! They even offered to untie my shoes, bless 'em! I spent the next couple of hours before the prize giving chatting to many people - it seemed that pretty much everyone who was anyone in the local running scene was there!
All in all, a most enjoyable day.