North Downs Way (Ultra)Marathon
The day of the North Downs Marathon arrived and I opened the curtains to see a wall of grey drizzle. Summer was over. I put away the sun cream and took out my waterproof jacket and swapped my road shoes for a pair of trail shoes. After a breakfast of Weetabix, banana and coffee I was on my way by 6:30.
The marathon was being held in Reigate about an hour away. The journey is all motorway – M20, M26, M25 but due to roadworks and the closure of the M26 westbound I left plenty of time before the 9am start.
I needn’t have worried about the roads but it was a very wet drive with a wall of spray and rivers of water collecting in the gutters. Parking was free and easy to find when I arrived at Reigate Hill and Gatton Park. There would have been a stunning view but all I could make out was a wall of misty drizzle. I met another runner and we managed to locate the hotel that was hosting us.
There was a good atmosphere as other runners prepared their gear and pinned on their numbers. I collected mine – number 73 – and did the same. I had time for a coffee and a chat before they called us to head to the start of the marathon. There was also a half marathon taking place (one lap as opposed to two) and they would leave half an hour after us.
It was a short walk across a busy road to the start line on a narrow strip of grass. About 100 of us congregated in the murk. It wasn’t raining though and was quite warm, just no sign of blue sky and sunshine. I checked my bottles were clipped in properly – salty water on the left and electrolyte on the right. My food was all stored (flapjack and wet wipes – not to eat – on the left and salted peanuts on the right.)
After a thorough briefing, we were sent on our way. I was around a third of the way from the front behind a group of about 30 guys who looked quite serious and they went off fast. Despite my intentions to take it nice and easy I was soon into a good pace and holding on to the tail end of the group.
The first mile was along a quiet road. We passed through a gate and were on top of Colley Hill (the 9th highest hill in Surrey) with its glorious views that we couldn’t view. However, I did get to see Reigate Fort, one of 13 built in the late 19th Century to defend London from attack by the French. There is also an ornate water fountain for horses called the Inglis memorial which looks more like a large tomb and dominates the landscape.
From there we descended into woodland and soon arrived at the top of an incredibly steep decent (30-40%?) on dirty, wet, chalk ground. This was where trail shoes were a problem. Great on mud and earth, they are awful on wet stone and tree roots which left me slipping and sliding like a new-born foal on an ice rink. Thank fully this downward section wasn’t too long and levelled out into more woodland. The trails at this point were almost totally overgrown which made for some interesting running postures.
Posture 1 – Bent double to avoid overhanging branch.
Posture 2 – The side bend. Twisting the body to one side with the arm across the body to avoid vicious blackberry thorns.
Posture 3 – The jaunty skip. A little leap to hurdle low lying brambles that can wrap around your laces or socks and bring you down.
Posture 4 – The slalom ski. Holding both forearms horizontally in front of the head to deflect head height weeds and from hitting the face.
Posture 5 – The twitch. A sudden and reactive withdrawal of a limb due to sighting nettles at knee level where they have access to the flesh between the compression socks and shorts.
Another gate and some more beautiful, more open, trail through woodland followed and before long we were at the 3 mile checkpoint which contained a great selection of crisps, flapjacks, bananas and drinks – water, electrolyte or squash.
This was the only road section and was very well marked to prevent any accidents. We were soon heading up a long drive and onto a steep ascent towards Box Hill. This was incredibly narrow and slippery and was complicated later in the day by the need for runners to pass one another coming in opposite directions. However, the running community are a polite lot and it became an occasion for exchanging encouragements and smiles.
I was now on the back of a group of about six people and we soon caught another two who weren’t too sure of the route. It wasn’t long before we all realised we were lost. It turned out a marker had been moved and the guy at the front had overshot a turning. The rest of us weren’t even paying attention, just following the legs in front.
Before long we had emerged at the bottom of a quarry. Someone spotted another group about 50m above us so we scrambled up the walls of the quarry on hands and knees to where they had been only to discover they must also be lost as this wasn’t part of the trail either (this was later confirmed).
Thank fully it wasn’t long until we found a marker but we had added over a mile to our run and lost a lot of time. Re-energised by being back on track we continued to climb through dense woodland occasionally passing viewing points to gaze at the mist hiding incredible vistas across the Surry landscape. At this point there were a large number of earth steps which sapped the legs but also gave an opportunity to refuel.
A couple of miles later we emerged at the Salomons Memorial which, on a clear day, enables people to see a marathons distance to Devil’s Dyke in Sussex – there’s an idea for a run!
From here we turned around and retraced our steps. This was halfway for the half-marathoners but just quarter distance for us. I soon realised my energy levels were low. I had managed the first 10k in around 50 minutes – too quick. I stuffed myself with flapjack and drank plenty. Despite the conditions I was still losing a lot of water and, unusually, hadn’t needed a toilet stop. In fact I didn’t need one the whole race despite drinking litres of water.
I won’t bore you with describing the same route in reverse but I soon began to feel my strength return as I slowed my pace. Finishing was the goal not a PB and I had already added a steep climb and made it an ultra by getting lost in the quarry.
I must mention the Army Cadets that served at the drinks station. They were fantastic, encouraging, helpful and smiley. There were very few spectators but those that attended were equally kind and supportive.
On the second out route it began to drizzle and the rain was welcome to cool me down. I spent time chatting to a guy and found out his brother was in the lead. Their mother was also running – a gift from her sons.
By now I was passing people heading in the opposite direction regularly as the half marathoners headed back to the finish. Again I was forced to stop a few times to let people through but was also let through more times by others.
I was trying not to be competitive but I couldn’t help counting the number of marathon runners coming back to work out where I was positioned. By the time we had conquered Box Hill for the second time I was in 17th place. I felt good and ran fast knowing there was only 10k left and by 5K I was going to finish. I always worry about not finishing if I am further than 5k from the end. Having hit the wall a few times I know that even a short distance can feel like a marathon I itself when you are on empty.
A couple of guys had delayed at the Box Hill checkpoint which moved me up the standings. By the time I arrived at the last checkpoint I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I had caught up with three more. I ran with them but sensed they were pushing as hard as they could so upped my pace to pull away. As I say I wasn’t meant to be competing!
Through the woods and dense trails I caught another and now simply aimed to not let them pass me before the end. The skies were clearing now and this enabled me to glimpse some lovely views. The rain had stopped but I was soaked through and felt cold.
For the second and last time I had to make my way up that initial slippy descent I mentioned up Colley Hill. The first time had been tough. Hands on knees tough. Walking by pressing down on my legs, buttocks screaming. This time was just as hard but I had the incentive of keeping the others behind me. I reached the top and took 5 minutes to drink and stretch for the last miles on the flat.
I set off at a fast pace feeling that I would finish strong. About half a mile further on I turned a corner and saw a bridge going over the motorway. It took me a few steps to process what I was looking at and then I realised to my horror that I had missed another turning. I haven’t made a mistake on the route of a race before and now I had done it twice in one event. Ironically I had been talking with someone before the start about my running dreams where this happens but it had never actually occurred!
I retraced my steps and saw that I should have taken a sharp right through the trees. As I approached three of the runners I had passed earlier entered the woods before me. I wasn’t having that. All that effort to drop three places because of a wrong turn? No way. I sped up and caught them. One tried to stick with me as I passed but I upped the tempo ad he soon fell back. I knew this wasn’t necessary and I was pushing myself harder than I needed to but I was enjoying the challenge.
With half a mile to go I knew I could ease off and I crossed the line feeling tired but content. By now it was clearing up nicely but I soon felt the cold of my sweaty short on my back and hurried to get changed.
