And The Rains Came Down

As darkness fell and teams began to pour into the venue at the Park Foot Caravan site near Ullswater, the rain began to fall in increasing intensity ... and according to the forecast there will be much more rain to come.

Competitors parked in a nearby field, which was illuminated by a huge lighting gantry mounted on a 40 foot high crane. It could be seen from miles away, so there was no problem finding the venue! Those who were camping had to walk from there to the camping field and others just parked while they registered and then set off to their B&B’s, hostels and hotels. In the foul weather they were far happier than the campers, who faced an uncomfortable night in their tents. Late into the night the parking marshals stood out in the rain, wrapped up in many layers and heavy duty waterproofs.

Registration was inside the bar and it was a spacious area, with a canteen attached, where teams picked up the timing devices they will use on the race. (They have to touch a small metal disk to a pad on the checkpoint box which records their time.) At the team changes table the race organiser, Jen Longbottom, was making sure everything was running smoothly. “The race was full this year,” she said. “We had 1600 entries, though I expect around 1450 will start and fortunately we were able to allow everyone on the reserve list to enter during the week.”