Mountaineering Marathon in Snowdonia, Wales (post and photos by mary)

  Glyder Fawr Mountain is the new 1000 Metre Peak added to the Race Course.

The adventures continue!  The Shropshire hills were a mere warm up for my role in the annual Welsh 1000 Metre Peaks Race.  On the Annapurna Circuit, Matt and I met a group of hikers from England, from the Gorphywsfa Mountaineering Club (www.gorphwysfa.org).  I wrote of them in my Annapurna story.

  Harvey (right) and Steve present the course map and dibbit technology.

Harvey Lloyd was very welcoming when I did contact him to seek advise on hikes around England.  Not only did he provide lots of information, he invited me to join the group for a “little meet” they were having in June.  I gladly accepted and booked myself for a gathering in Snowdonia from 3 – 6 June 2011.  It was not until mid May that I actually researched into where Snowdonia was, and what the “small meet” was.

 
Communication strategies briefed and racers tagged in.

The meet was the annual Snowdonia Summits Marathon which is described as an arduous event that starts at Abergwyngregyn, on the shoreline of Conwy Bay, and finishes on the summit of Snowdon. Traditionally it includes the ascent of the four peaks over 1000 metres high in Snowdonia: Carnedds Llewelyn, Dafydd, Snowdon and Ugain.  This year,  Glyder Fawr  was added to the race (apparently it was re-measured and met the 1000 metre height.  Could the mountain be growing?).  The total distance that the competitors have to travel is about 32 kilometres with approximately 9000 ft of ascent in total.

  Back side of Snowdonia – Wale’s highest peak.

I quickly wrote Harvey Lloyd to suggest to him that I was not qualified to compete but would be glad to volunteer.  He chuckled in reply to say that he had already put me down as a helper!  I soon learned from the other members of the group that I should never volunteer for any request by Harvey!  In my case, he assigned me as “Race Marshall” to assist in logging in the competitors at the finish line.  A small detail left out was the requirement to climb three hours to the top of Snowdon, the tallest peak (altitude 3560 feet!).  What a spectacular climb!  I was told to prepare for icy, wet, socked in weather.  Luck would have it that the sun shone the whole day, a race first!  What a glorious day we had on the summit!  Only the racers complained of the sun! The wind blasted all day and my warm woolies did come in handy.

  Snowdonia Marshall team on the ascent.

Finish Line Race Officials.

My “Marshall” role was to hail racers up our marked path to the finish line, to photograph (self assigned) them clocking in and to convey their finish time to the “gear check” Marshalls, Marianne and John.  It did get very busy once the racers started showing up.  It was most amazing to witness the sheer force of will power over physical strength.  These men and women had been running up and down five significant mountains on very rough terrain and goat paths and pushed themselves well beyond their bodies’ capability.  Many arrived in such a deep inner daze, they were unable to take in our directions to punch their electronic dibbit or to move onto the other stations.  Often they could only fling their bodies onto the ground in physical convulsions and severe leg cramps.  Unveiling their raw feet was gruesome, for which I could not resist sticking my camera into their agony and take pictures.  How they would make the three hour hike off the mountain on those feet was beyond me.

  Racers used electronic dibbits to record finish time, but the trusty clock was backup.
  Racers final metres to end a long grueling day.
  The Agony!
  The Focus!
  The Dehydration!
  The Pain!
  The Relief!
  The Satisfaction!
 
The Blisters!

It was an incredible day and I couldn’t have been placed at a better location.  The views of Wales were spectacular and rarely seen in such clear skies.  We were all convinced that the military Search and Rescue helicopter circling the summit was piloted by non-other than Prince William!

 

I am so grateful to the generous and kind members of Gorphywsfa, and particularly to Harvey Lloyd and Francis Richardson for hosting me in their roomy home, which also serves as a holiday home rental (see details below).  Thanks also to my drivers, Brian Trefalgar and Tony Rankin.  Both of whom were complete gentlemen and beyond kind in making sure I was well taken care of.

  Back side of Snowdonia 2.

The Welsh mountains and valleys are so green, so sculptured, so ancient and so variable as the brooding weather changes its embrace  from loving to hostility.  I can only hope that time will allow me back to continue my exploration of the beauty of Wales.

  The view at the bottom looked inviting enough to swim – for the brave!