Chevy Chase 2023

So Saturday…

This falls into great stupid ideas of mine and another let’s have a reason to visit family, I entered the Chevy Chase… Before anybody wonders what the actor Cornelius Crane Chase has to do with anything, the Ballard of the Chevy Chase recounts a hunt and resulting battle in either the 14th or 15th century between the Percy’s of Northumberland and the Douglas’s. Chase’s grandmother claims ancestry of the Douglas and gave him the nickname that stuck…

History lesson over, Saturday morning wander up to Wooler Youth Hostel, number collected and dipping thing attached to wrist, women behind me recognised from doing the Winter Spine by one of the volunteers. Then kit check done (mandatory kit, fleece, snood for a hat, gloves, fleece, full waterproofs, map, compass, whistle, food and drink). Chatting to bloke doing kit check, could have had a decent base layer instead of a fleece and it sounds like a snood for a hat is a fun debate he’s avoiding. Decide sunscreen is a good idea and find the boss who brings some up.

About 9:45 everybody starts wandering along the footpath to the start and I point out the house I grew up in to the boss.

10 o’clock and we are off, run past and don’t see my brother and his family (opps) and head up to Wooler Common. This is being run under Fell Runners Association rules so although I’m allowed to record the race on my watch, electronic navigation is banned and there is no marked route, just 7 checkpoints you must visit in order. Plan is keep following runners in front (old joke, you can follow fell runners anywhere except out of the pub) and if goes horribly wrong have OS app on my phone with maps downloaded along with the paper map and compass.

At some point before the first checkpoint I passed Graeme of @northernfellrunning which was a hmm moment, only frame of reference for goal time was I’d finished just ahead of him in a lot shorter race in December and he’d done the Chevy last year around 4:30 but obviously runs more in the hills than I do (no Striders, Sandilands & Lloyd don’t count). Turned out he had a bit of a mare of a day.

Checkpoint at Broadstuther done and it starts ramping up slightly, then kicked up to Scald Hill and checkpoint and then onto the Cheviot, avenge grade 12.8% if you believe Strava and start walking up the well worn path, heading into the quite dry peat bog, jumping across the odd muddy puddle. Few people are walking past me, ok if there is a next time more (some?) hill training.

It was forecast to be windy and it was, as I got onto the flat of the summit of Cheviot you could see the rain cloud providing the shower racing through and the steps over the drystone wall was an exercise in staying upright. Onto the stone slabs and up to the trig point & CP reached, 815m up its all kind of downhill from here…

Across some squelchy peat bog, over the fence and then it’s time to descend into the Harthope Valley, photo doesn’t do it justice, it’s steep (25% average apparently ). I’m in controlled walk mode as I descend, others moving quicker, others just sliding down on their backside.

Make it to the bottom and cross the burn and it’s straight up to Hedgehope, a mix of sheep paths covered in bracken, reeds growing in the squelchy stuff & bog moss until you get to just below the summit. Approaching the top I see the Marshalls pulling on waterproofs as the wind hits. Check the timing chip in and start descending, it’s started raining, not heavy but hard icy cold drops being blown horizontally, don’t stop to put my glasses on so squint to text the boss where I am, new phone, old eyes which are squinting so probably texted her work phone. Careful on the steep bit of the decent and it levels off. Pass one lot of crags realising it’s not the next check point,

then a couple of km later it is, accept a cup of water and head on. It’s wide open moorland and although there are fewer runners around I can see them in the distance, but it’s getting quieter.

The next checkpoint, Brands corner is the one that’s been worrying me, it’s off a marked footpath but by the fence line and skimming the Facebook group before hand saw a comment about it being in a dip. Anyhow off Langlee Crags, turn right onto a track, after a little over a km I see runners on the right going over a hill as I hit a gate, guessing that’s Brands hill and the checkpoint is the other side of it. Is this the fence I follow? Runner who catches me as I ponder doesn’t know so I start following the fence as he goes straight on, hmm other runners are coming at the hill from the other side and this all looks like barbed wire which I don’t fancy clambering over, do a little u-turn and follow the track and then turn back on myself 400m later having dodged crossing an interesting gorge. Now follow the fence and can see somebody ahead of me, then I can’t see them, keep going and suddenly there is the checkpoint, phew. Thank the volunteers and then the members of mountain rescue stretched out in the sun while thinking bet they are glad not to be on the tops.

View of Hedghope (left) and Cheviot (right) as I retraced my steps

It’s then follow the path towards the Carey Burn Bridge which was a mix of running and walking as its tricky seeing where I’m putting my feet and really don’t want to trip. The bridge is one of the two retirement points so marshalled and they were kind enough to bring homemade flapjack then it’s over the bridge and continue up the valley. At this point the mojo ran out and I struggled to run and as the path narrowed and became more interesting it was definitely walking time. Then a route sign! Turn right and go up the bank, handy as it would be dead easy to over shoot the turn.

It’s the final checkpoint!!! Check the timing chip in and keep going, I’ve had three lasses following me since along Carey Burn one says “3 miles to go” me: “so parkrun to go”, “no, less than a parkrun!” Is the reply. Keep going, now retracing the route from earlier, approaching the farm at Wooler Common and it’s where is the path, one of the group behind me recognised a tree the path went round… They went past and followed them down to the ponds and back into Wooler slowly loosing contact. Keeping an eye on my watch ok sub-5 hours is possible, keep going. Onto the top of Ramsey Lane, right onto the footpath, hey it’s the bloke I spoke to before Brands Hill, can I get past him? Yes. Round the corner into the Youth Hostel and done… Took 04:57:32, if you believe Strava 31.84Km ran with 1636m elevation. Hand in timing chip, collect goody bag and ask about chips and directed into the Hostel. Chips? One of the sponsors is @ParticularlyGoodPotatoes hence finishers get a cone of chips. Collapse in the grass outside the Hostel and somebody asks how I got on and it’s Peter who I’d been chatting to around the first CP at Broadstruther and I accept the offer of some water to waste the sweat and dirt off my face.

Had a look at the finishers bag and it’s generous, bag is a reusable drawstring rucksack containing t-shirt (cotton, bright orange so post clubrun bar wear), bottle of water, bag of crisps, two chocolate biscuits, handful of jelly beans and a voucher for a drink at @doddmilkbar another sponsor.

So 2 days later, would I do it again? Yea, would I do it differently? Yes, firstly do slightly more than one 15 mile run along the Vanguard and rely on what fitness is left from London Marathon and secondly see if I can get the weight of my pack down, not sure how but…

Anyhow after consuming most of the finishers bag and an ice cream the boss helped my back to my parents, as some point I glanced at my watch Training status: unproductive thanks a lot Garmin.