Celtman countdown advice · EnduranceworX

1d • XTRI

Celtman countdown advice

Top two tips to start ( bold assumption that you have trained well)

1 RTFM this is oddly something lots of idiots dont do. It really is very comprehensive so read it, make your crew read it then read it again.

2 Get yourself a support crew who already know the event. So that means

@Ewa Pisarczyk

@Karianne Lancee

and

@George Noble

are sorted for sure. Anyone else its worth doing 1 and have a look at some small things that arent in the manual.

Travelling up. Torridon is quite remote but if you fill up in Inverness or Dingwall you have enough fuel to get round and back to Inverness. Inverness is also a good stop for supplies..Big supermarkets and Tiso ( sell all the kit needed for the mountain safety bag).

You MUST register on the Friday.. or at least 2 people with 2 sets of kit need to register. If you have someone coming say after work just make sure you have their kit and someone other than you to register it.

The briefing whilst it can be tedious is useful..even if you think you know it all. There can be last minute changes so dont get caught out by dodging the briefing.

Social swim on Friday is great fun if you are up early enough. Make sure you have the means to dry your wetsuit after or bring a spare as at 0300 sat putting on a damp suit will be erm sub optimal.

Start your fuelling up on Thrusday and try and stay as close to normal eating as possible on Friday. Anything heavy or high in fibre you may have to join the sheep to get rid of it on the course. Get to bed early Thursday as you will be lucky to get much, if any sleep on Friday night.

The buses leave at 0400 sharp. Don't be the dick that isn't there. The finest you can cut it probably is arrive 0315 to set up T1 and pick up the tracker. So depending on how far you are staying from Sheildaig can mean as early as a 0130 start.

You have one supporter designated for T1. Make sure you have a plan for how this will run and they know exactly how it goes. The tracker needs to go on the athlete rather than the bike to lessen the risk of leaving it in T2. Since there is no support after T1 until KLE..the athlete should have food and fuel for at least 90 mins with them on the bike. Unless you are out and away in the top 10 to 20 people your support car will get held up and it can be 2 hours before you make contact again.

Decide how you want to handle fuelling logistics but this is the most efficient way. Athlete has 90 mins on board..everything else is handed up. The support vehicle should leapfrog the athlete at distances of 5 to 10k. This allows you to get to the athlete quickly in the event of a puncture or mechanical. Driving 30k up the road only to realise 2 hours later there's an issue is poor. Support car should also use the tracker for insurance. Each stop check if the athlete needs anything and take any litter or empties from them. For hand ups find a safe parking space on an incline so you can jog alongside and hand up without slowing down. Athlete can jettison empty bottles etc before the new feed comes in but do make sure you pick up the litter. All being well T2 will be made with no incident.

If you are in the car..make sure you have plenty of food and water. You dont have time to head off for lunch!

T2 has been tricky since it was moved with bikes and cars sharing access. It is well marshalled but dont ' race' as you come into the village just ease in and get set for T2. T2 is actually super chilled and its a good chance to refresh but dont leave without the tracker.

At this point you may well be indulging in cut off arithmetic. Manual says its 18k to T2A but Strava says its anywhere between 15 and 17k. Plan for 18k and you won't get caught out. The run across has around 600m of climb and some potentially tricky underfoot conditions to start but once you are 'out of the woods' its actually a lovely run.

From T2a unless you are hoping to place high in the race then settle in and enjoy your day! Basically its a hike straight up 1000m to the top...there won't be much running done until you get up top. Up top its rocky trail running/hiking to the trigger point and back down to the 'chute'. This cleft has some big step offs and is a bit of a scramble. There are two ways to go on exiting the chute...stay right and high which is not an obvious route or drop straight down towards the lochan following the little string of cairns marking the way and then onto the path. The path is rough and rocky so take care. Short controlled steps and if your support runner is any good they can route find and you simply follow their steps. Do make sure you lift your knees as there are lots of rocks to catch a foot and send you sprawling. Dentists are expensive.

The descent is arduous and your quads will be speaking a bit so progress sensibly and make it safely to the road. At this point you know you are there..it is possible to change shoes here into road shoes. It can be worth it..fresh shoes with a change in emphasis can lift you for the final tarmac stretch.

Jobs a good un!

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