Intrepid Race - Stage 2

After recovering from some badass DOMS from Stage 1, the Stage 2 date was revealed. 2 months down the line and we were told to be prepared for some load carrying. No location yet, but researching some of their past test events suggested we will either be by the sea or up the mountains.

I started training hard with some mountain hikes, hilly runs and also some load bearing hilly walks. All was looking great until disaster struck six days before the event. I was up in the Lake District and went out on the bike. During a bigger descent I misread the corner, overshot it and crashed off the road. Flew over the handlebars and was lucky to miss all the rocks, but my right shoulder and knee were bad. Three days before the event I phoned Ricky and said I can't do it. I can't run, flexing my knee is agonising. There's no way, maybe someone else can fill my spot? I wouldn't want to drive all the way there only to quit in five minutes because I can't run. Ricky said let's just turn up and see how it goes. We don't know what we have to do yet anyway and we can just make the most of the weekend should it not go to plan. Fair enough, the race location was just by Snowdon and we had to bring a rucksack weighing 45lbs (20.4kg), maybe there won't be too much running involved anyway. Thinking about the race, the absolute best outcome I saw was to place tenth out of the 21 teams in some finish line drama and qualify for stage 3, but that's a pipe dream. In reality, just getting to the finish is the only realistic goal.

It was 4.30am and we had to gather by the lake. I thought we would get a slightly later start this time round, but nah. Not with these guys. Last night we were given a map of the route. I was fairly familiar with most of this. Up and down Snowdown twice with a 45lb pack + food and water. I studied the route and looked at a map on my phone and discovered a potential shortcut through a campsite which would cut one kilometre off the distance quite near the start. There were just two checkpoints - at the summit and at Pen-y-Pass car park at the other end. Rest of the route we could go as we please, but the map did also highlight the suggested route to take.

Route and elevation for the day

As we stood by the lake, Simon the head staff said: 'Once you've got your packs ready, go sit in the lake and lie down on your backs'. Ricky and I crossed eyes and decided to 'sort our packs out' some more to delay the inevitable. Here it begins. More press ups, flutter kicks, leg holds. It was June but the lake wasn't exactly warm and the Sun was barely up.

Skip 2.0

Then we had to do some running. One of us holds a sandbag above the head while the other one has to run along the beach and back again. And swap around and repeat. Every time it was my turn, I'd be way off the back just jogging away. Luckily there wasn't too much of that. The focus was around endurance and the cold. One hour of 'gentle stretches' went past surprisingly quick and it was already time to get the packs on for the race. It felt like nothing compared to last time. Maybe it was easier, maybe I was fitter. I was just happy to still be in the race and not having had to quit already within the first five minutes like I feared.

Anyone cold?

Ten out of the 21 teams turned up for Stage 2. So we were told five teams will be getting through to the next stage. We got changed, grabbed our packs and at 5.36am the whistle blew. Top teams shot ahead. I was carrying a slow jog. The knee was just about OK for a very gentle jog but nothing more. Traversing the rough terrain along the lake split us all up so the top guys were well clear. As we emerged from the wooded area after thirty minutes we were approaching the shortcut. One team just went past us and looking behind us there was nobody there. Perfect, we slipped a right without anyone behind seeing the way. After joining the main path again on the other side there was dead silence. We probably gained some positions. But after five minutes nobody had caught us up and when we could see farther ahead we couldn't see anyone else either. No way are we leading the race? What a joke. An injured guy and his mate who's been training his right bicep a lot by lifting a lot of pints. Gotta be just a matter of time until we get swallowed up by the fast guys. As we followed the river up, we noticed two of the teams appear still on the other side of the river. They must have tried taking an even longer shortcut. But it soon became rather hilarious as the other side of the river didn't have a trail to follow and the slope became ridiculous for them. We left them behind and were still enjoying the lead. Carrying a bag full of gravel for the weight and having a bit of a laugh. This is mental, how haven't the other teams caught us yet? We had 1000 metres to ascend straight to the top. Just before the steep part of the Watkin Path one the teams slowly caught us and overtook us. Ricky was struggling but I was actually doing alright. My knee wasn't good to run but my fitness from all the training was pretty good for all this.

First ascent and Ricky is loving it

We reached the summit of Snowdon and took a quick break for snacks and water. The first team had already gone by but for the entire break nobody else caught us up either. We chatted with the marshal and started the descent along the Miners track. Half-way down we caught up with the first team and left them behind. What?! We were in the lead again. Where are the OCR guys? Where are the army guys? This is getting silly now. I had to be really careful to not go over my ankle or flex my knee sideways by accident but to be honest descending was pretty good with it. Another flatter section remaining and we will reach checkpoint 2.

Fought back to first place on the descent to checkpoint 2, got some strides in

It was time for some mental games. The team we overtook wasn't far behind so we decided to put a little jog on until disappearing behind the rocks so we could walk again. We were the first team to reach checkpoint 2. Filled up on water and had some more food. I was eager to get going but Ricky got into deep conversation with the marshals. The second team arrived, had a quick refill and took off before us. Ah well, they will ascend faster than us anyway. Gotta just keep going and try hold position. Soon after starting the second ascent, another team crossed us on their way down. Shit, they are not far behind, the OCR guys. I felt the first real struggle and it was an effort to keep up with Ricky. The leaders were still visible up ahead in the distance. The trails were starting to get more busy with hikers now as it hit 10am. After my low point I felt better again and then Ricky was flagging. But surprisingly enough, even though the first team seemed so far away it didn't look like they were getting much farther ahead. Were they saving energy for the downhill or were they also feeling the fatigue?

Second ascent and Ricky is still loving it

We reached the summit for the second time. According to the marshal we were like five minutes behind the lead. That made no sense. We barely lost any time on the ascent. The third team still hadn't caught us and was nowhere near. The idea of finishing was becoming more the reality after getting over the hump of the second ascent. All of a sudden it wasn't even about finishing anymore, it wasn't even about getting podium. Hell we could win it. We weren't in a big rush to get going again so the marshal asked if we're just taking it easy for second place. 'Nah we'll catch them on the downhill, we're better at descending' says Ricky in the most nonchalant tone. All fuelled up we put an effort in to close the gap. But after thirty minutes it was still just us. No one ahead, no one behind. Another ten minutes went by, ah yeah we spotted the leading team a little ahead and we were closing on them. They looked worse for wear. I said, let's just run past them and don't even look back. Let's give them a big smile and stare right into their souls as we overtake. Make them hurt. We did exactly that, looking as if we were still fresh as daisies. After regaining the lead we took some tactical mini breaks to not burn our legs out. We had carried this 25kg ruck for a half marathon and this 1000m non-stop descent would just burn us out if we weren't sensible. Quads were burning up, Ricky was cramping. But that wouldn't stop us. The absolute impossible was gaining more and more traction. we reached our shortcut again and went through the campsite. Nobody was visible behind our shoulders. Just a flat 3km to the finish. Final push, can't give it up now. While traversing the lake edge we took a wrong turn and I fell over on a rock banging my shin up......but all good. I'm all good. Just some swelling. We got back on the correct trail without losing position. It's all ours now. The campsite appeared in our sights and we closed in. 8 hours 25 minutes later we cross that finish line, what a feeling. The winners of stage 1 were there and one other team. DNFs for both of them today. The cold wind up at the summit finished them off. I am in such disbelief. From injuring myself six days earlier and suffering a minor concussion to not only finishing this event, but coming back with some gold. This is anyone's game now. Stage 3 awaits.

Search for the lone wolf

6 out of 10 teams finished the event, all qualified for stage 3

Strava link - https://www.strava.com/activities/1021124634

Saw a physio after stage 2 about my knee. Grade 1/2 MCL strain. He couldn't believe I did the event and didn't rip my ligaments clean off. Sad to say, I didn't make it to stage 3 for the final. In yet another instance of bad luck I suffered a motorbike accident before the Scotland final and wasn't able to recover in time.