Snow joke

So, it’s snowing…

How do I know this?

Because it’s snowing in London, therefore it’s all over the news. Us Northerners realise it has been snowing elsewhere prior to today, but this does not make the national news. Snow in London is a different matter!

I also know it’s snowing because this is my view today from the office:

You would definitely need an orange ball for a game of footy today.

Normally I’m a fan of the snow but I have a race tomorrow, The Hebden 22 and I don’t want it to get called off. I’m hopeful and it seems the organisers are sensible, an extract from their update bulletin on Thursday reads:

“We are determined to run the event and only cancel in dire circumstances. If we can get to Mytholmroyd and the marshals can get to where they should be then it will be on. Walking in up to 6-9” of fresh snow is possible.”

So they understand that humans can walk (and run) in snow. The rest of the country fears it will grind to a halt…

Me and my mate Stevie G will (all being well) make the trip over to race tomorrow and we’re both very excited!

I’ve never seen snow as a reason not to run. In fact I enjoy it! In some ways it’s more pleasant than rain. If it’s not packed hard I don’t think it’s much slippier either.

How I prepare for snow

In my experience it will depend on the distance and terrain. If you are covering longer distances I would carry more kit. For the Hebden 22 I will wear two layers on my bottom half (tights and heavier tracksuit) and on my top half 3 layers (compression top, merino wool T and a light technical fleece). I will wear one pair of socks (this time I will be trying Sealskinz) and trail shoes (Inov8 X-talon 212).

As well I will carry a rucksack with waterproof top and bottoms, spare food, water, emergency first aid and foil blanket. Dry socks and base layer. If it’s very cold I will also carry an additional fleece top.

This will also be my first race with my Mountain King Trail Blaze Trekking poles which I will review afterwards.

Hebden 22

The Northern Running Guide description:

Fancy a 22 mile or a 14.5 mile run or even a walk? Saturday January 23, 2010 will see the Hebden 22 Mile ‘race’ be hosted again by the Calderdale group of the LDWA for the 4th time. The popular rural and hilly route has a limited number of 350 entries so an early entry is advised.

With good parking, changing facilities and refreshments onsite, a fun and enjoyable atmosphere is guaranteed. With the choice of the long (22 mile) or the shorter (14.5 mile) route, participants can decide which route to take. ‘Walkers’ are also allowed to enter and enjoy the scenery and atmosphere of the day by completing the routes along with the runners. The demanding long route has over 4000 feet of climbing. The shorter walk is a less demanding circuit and provides a leisurely return along the canal to Mytholmroyd.

Having done it last year in a respectable 4hours 34 minutes, I can tell you it’s a challenging course (even without snow) but well organised and great fun. It is also probably the best value for money race I have ever done. For less than £10 you get:

• Race entry
• Pre-race tea and toast
• Checkpoint food (the best selection I have come across)
• A post-race meal
• Massage
• Changing facilities
• And fully marshalled checkpoints (by some very enthusiastic volunteers)

Hebden 22 food

It is an absolute bargain!

So fingers crossed the weather doesn’t conspire against us and the race goes ahead.

DOMS

The pain in my hamstrings is now minimal and I can walk down stairs in a straight line so for me that means I’ll be racing (or at least starting the race- I may have to aim for completing rather than competing and my prevoius years time is too quick to compete with in the snow anyway ;)). My aim is to enjoy it and try out my poles.

I’ll let you know how I get on…