Mow Cop Hill Race 2018, 6.5 miles, BM, and a ride to Wincle Brewery

Time for my first event of the year which,  for yet another year, was Mow Cop Hill Race.  It was the race's ninth year and my ninth time running it.  A week earlier I rode over to Wincle  Brewery.  Though the weather was less than sparkling for the Bank Holiday, the Sunday wasn't too bad and I took the opportunity for a pleasure ride.

Mow Cop Hill Race
Now that arthritis has dramatically reduced the amount of running I can do, the significance of missing one or two runs is much greater.  For one reason or another I had only managed to run twice since February and not for a fortnight before the event.  Cycling for at least 14 hours a week keeps me generally fit, all the same I am always nervous when I am not specifically fit.  Still, there was no way I was going to miss Mow Cop Hill Race this year and blot my perfect attendance record.

Warming up on the steep bank leading out from Mow Cop Village Hall car park.

The usual car park was a mire, but an adjacent area and the Mow Cop Village Hall car park were skilfully marshalled and all went smoothly.  Though the sun didn't shine for us this year, it was warm enough for shorts and singlet and there was no threat of rain.

Gathering for the start were one hundred runners.  Geoff started off the briefing before joining us for the first time.

One hundred runners mustered for the start.  Geoff Petengell, one of those responsible for the race, was joining us for the first time.  He delivered the briefing then 'changed sides', leaving someone else to call the off.  The reason for his participation as a runner this year was revealed later.

I made a fast start, the gradients match my running strengths and it is worth getting to the first stile as early as possible.  Even the path by the playing fields above the village hall had big patches of deep mud.  I sustained my speed up the fields on the way to the quarry.  Unusually, the rocks on the climb out of the sandy quarry had mud on them and there were a few slipping feet.  We ran past the folly and on to the Old Man of Mow, taking the longer path past this year.  At this point I became conscious of the fact that I was still going quite hard.  Uncharacteristically, I continued at the same level of effort.

Now quite why I decided to continue running hard is a bit of a mystery to me.  Real effort has always seemed a little vulgar and undignified for me (heroic in others though).  I did make an effort once before, in my one and only road race, where I managed a half marathon in under 1:36.  Let's face it though, in a road race there's bugger all else to do.

Heading up through the quarry, quite slippery this year as the rock had become coated with the ubiquitous mud.

There was a lot of mud everywhere, I had chosen to wear shoes with a very aggressive tread, my More Mile Cheviots, they worked well especially downhill in the mud and tree roots in the wooded area by the side of Mow Lane.  I am growing fond of these shoes, which I only bought as something cheap for kicking around and riding the bike in.

The boggy bit after joining and leaving the road at Roe Park was an especial joy this year, reminding many of the filthy run up to the Roaches on the Roaches Fell Race.  No souls (or shoes) were lost as far as I know.  I fair zipped along here, the right pace can help one sort of skim along on the coarse cane grass.  Making 'tactical' micro routing decisions is counter productive in my opinion, one just slows down and starts sinking.

Out of the bog it is all downhill again.  Just after the lovely section following the stream, I felt some pain in my hamstrings.  This was a novelty, it's about the only place I haven't had a pain before. The pain didn't get any worse with effort so I kept going.  Keeping it going is not hard on this section, all the same, a few 'challengers' spurred me on.  I found my road legs here on the lanes, a huge stride is very efficient down hill (not sure of the effect on joints though).  This allowed me to pull away from my challengers, while actually reducing my breathing rate and intensity.  A psychological and physical riposte ;-).

It was soon time to begin ascending again and long strides were left behind for a sort of shambling run, run/walk walk etc.  Under a tree, opposite the house in the field before the woods, sat a gentleman with a lovely grey Staffie sat at attention on his knee.  The attentive expression on the animal's face was a picture, one could imagine dog and owner sharing critical observations on our performance.  As I had decided to keep the pressure on, I did not stop for a photo.  Anyway it would have seemed a little presumptuous to stop and point a camera at a spectator.

I picked it up as soon as I emerged from the woods, fending off a few more challenges, though I was feeling it by now and was passed once in the last fields before the village.  I was very cautious over the fences and hay bales as I really was very tired.  I kept it on to the end and it was quite a relief to cross the finish line, I was really ready for the water on offer in the village hall car park.

Tea and coffee and some amazing home made cakes.

I walked back to the car park looking for a puddle or stream to wash in before going into the village hall.  The only puddle I could find was very muddy and my efforts weren't worth much (the picture of my shoes below is from after attempting to wash them!  I scraped off as much mud as  I could and used my wet socks to remove a little more before changing into dry stuff.  Back in the hall I ate a considerable amount of the smashing cake on offer.

During the results and awards we found out Geoff's reason for running this year.  Apparently he has just turned 60 and was determined to win the V60 category, this he did despite trailing at second for five miles.  Congratulations Geoff and welcome to the sexagenarian club.

Did I mention that it was muddy?

It's good to be 'back in harness'.  All the effort I made got me back in three minutes under last years time, nearly half a minute a mile quicker.  This was heartening, at an age when not getting any worse means that one is getting better.  I definitely enjoy running at a modest pace more.  Speed does matter to me, it's just that my goals are 'speed at a comfortable level of effort' based, rather than what I can do when the hounds of Annwn are behind me (except when the hounds of Annwn are behind me).  Fun perhaps once a decade or so though - I had quite forgotten what barely being able to walk down stairs the next day felt like.

Wincle Brewery

The outlook for pleasure rides wasn't sparkling for the Bank Holiday period.  Sunday's weather promised to be a little grey, but it wasn't expected to rain and would be warm enough for shorts and jersey, if you were brave.  I have run past Wincle Brewery, when on the Dane Valley Way section of my old 28 mile Saturday long slow run, many times.  I have sampled its products, post run in the Gradbach hostel often, but have never had the opportunity to stop in the rather charmingly situated brewery.

The excellent Molly, Wincle brewery's popular 'greeter'.

I planned different out and back routes using BRouter web and loaded the files onto my GPS.  I didn't check where the route went, as a mystery ride is a bit of fun and, as they say, it's all good.  The route mostly followed NCR 550 out of Stoke to the Hollybush then forked left on the 559 to Leek, passing the Leek Tunnel on the way.  I stopped near the tunnel for sandwiches.  There are steep steps where the path bypasses the tunnel, a narrow ramp alongside the steps sufficient to wheel a bicycle up, is a real boon.

I stayed on the 559 through Leek, on up past Tittesworth Reservoir to Meerbrook.  Surprisingly, I was now directed directly north instead of west round Gun Hill.   I should have paid more attention to the outward route as the software had used some footpaths¹.  I am fiercely against bicycles on footpaths, however by the time I realised what had happened, turning back and using a different route would have added a ten mile penalty.  In this case I had no choice, but to dismount and carry on.

While dismounting is technically permissible, it is still not really satisfactory and anyway, progress over what turned out to be very marshy ground and one very high and narrow stile was far from fun (the balance of the bike with rear panniers fitted made a shoulder carry a non starter).  Even without the weight of a rider the wheels sank more than rim deep and I had to wipe off as much mud as I could with handfuls of grass.

The old steed, and Molly off to greet the next customer.

Once back on the road I soon forgot my wet and muddy feet as I enjoyed the scenery on a long freewheel down to Danebridge.  I swooped into the brewery car park, propped up the bike and was promptly greeted by the excellent Molly.

A welcoming site.

I sat outside and enjoyed my beer and a chat with other drinkers.  Had it been finer I would have had more beer then walked/slept it off before starting back.  As it was I ended up hurrying my 'Wincle Waller' a little as the ambient temperature dropped.  I should have gone back into the shop where there was a nice wood burner, a mistake another cyclist, down from Macclesfield, hadn't made.

The ride back, which was pretty much the GPS default route for cyclists, was pleasantly uneventful.  I hit just shy of 40 m.p.h on the way down to Bosley!  I was surprisingly tired when I got home, the whole ride was little more than my daily commute (though a lot more than twice the ascent).  I will no doubt visit again, continuing with different out and back routes.  It should be easy to modify the outward route to take the Gunhill Road, Rudyard Road, Bearda Hill option. I don't want to think about how much ascent that will add.  Funny, I can't think of running without hills, the more ascent the better, cycling is another matter entirely.

¹  BRouter allows users to configure their own routing profiles so it is possible to write a profile to stop it doing this.  Unfortunately details on the scripting aren't that easy to find, I 'm on it and will share when I crack it.  BRouter is easily the best routing tool I've used, mainly by virtue of the underlying maps available.