Race review: Hell on the Humber 2011

My first ultramarathon review from my first ultramarathon, Hell on the Humber.

The Hell on the Humber is a 12 hour ultramarathon in which competitors complete as many 4 mile laps as they can within the 12 hour time limit.  The set for this race was the grand wonder of the north, the Humber bridge.  The bridge is a long slog at 2 miles, so one lap equals across the bridge, and back.

12 hours is a heck of a long time to be running, so the organisers thankfully allowed competitors to set up tents near the start which was particularly handy for me as I was unsupported.  I could stash all my food and drinks in my tent and return to it as i pleased to send updates to family, and fuel up!

I was pleased to see that the weather was fine,  No wind or rain to speak of, it looked like a pleasant day to do it!

So the race started off at 7pm on Saturday afternoon at a rather unexpectedly pleasant pace.  Usually in races, people go off far too fast for me and I feel as if i'm slacking!  But thankfully it was nice and relaxed and for the first couple of miles I stayed with the pack.  

The bridge, rather than being flat is more of a long sweeping arch which means that you are continually going either up or down ever so slightly.  At either end of the bridge this is much more pronounced, and after the first couple of laps, these two sections became my walking breaks.  The middle section, although not totally flat, is perfectly runnable.  

As the evening went on, darkness drew in  and we were all treated to a magnificent sunset which for a time distracted everyone and as twilight set in there seemed to be a calm, happy mood among the competitors.

For me, much like many other competitors, the longest section of the race was the period between 11pm and 3am.  This was the part of the race when I slowly noticed the familiar faces I had been passing for the last few hours disappear.  Although I would only see these faces for seconds upon crossing paths, I developed a kind of friendship with them, asking how they felt, and getting the same answer every time gave us all a chuckle!  

The bridge became a lonely place during these hours, and the loneliness was only broken by the occasional person plodding/limping along, hardly looking conscious with blank lifeless expressions.  This is when you knew it was getting tough.  Even the start checkpoint was getting quiet, with only the bare bones staff there to record laps, and the odd marshal clapping rather less enthusiastically than they had been 6 hours previously.

If anyone told you that at some point in the race they didn't think "why am I here?", they would be lying.  It often crossed my mind that I could be sat in front of the TV with my girlfriend on one side of me, and a pizza on my lap!  Luckily its these kinds of thoughts that helped me push on.  Everyone else is on their arses at home, but I was proving to the world what I was capable of.  How my mental strength was greater than theirs! 

My mood was finally lifted with the rising of the sun.  I don't think I have ever seen such a beautiful sunrise, mostly because I was so happy to see it.  

Then a strange realisation occurred.....

I spent most of the race wanting it to be over, but now time was going too fast!  The cutoff was 7am, and I had to think about how many laps that allowed me to do.

I was aiming for 50 miles, and I arrived back at the start having finished 48 with only 20 minutes to spare, not enough time for another half lap.  

I was fairly gutted but at the same time relived that I didnt have to go out again.

For my first ultra race, and my longest ever run by more than double, I was pleased.

I came 32nd out of more than a hundred people, I may have a talent for this ultrarunning thing afterall!