I hate midges! Nasty tiny biting flying biting irritating biting things midges... I hate them.
So when, after 2 hours in the car, we arrived at the Coed y Brenin visitors centre on Friday evening at twenty to eight and stepped out of the car, the swarming midges that greeted our arrival was not a pleasant experience. I was there, however, to register for the Trail Marathon Wales the following morning and therefore had to brave the flying, biting onslaught. Perfectly natural for a dense forest to have midges and it was late evening but that doesn't mean it was anything other than hateful. Registration completed we headed on and (still getting bitten even in the car) got to our caravan and I set out my kit for the following morning.
Saturday struggled into life with rain and heavy cloud, and as I dressed and prepped for the race I checked the weather forecast for Coed y Brenin and discovered that the race was to be run under low cloud, 98% humidity and 3 - 4 mph winds - so horrible conditions for running in a forest then.
I arrived at a little before 8:20, walked to the visitors centre and got ready to run. The race briefing took place at 8:40, and the marathon runners were waked to the start. The gun was fired (not some starter pistol but a large bore hunting rifle) and we set off into the forest.
Now I've run a fair bit around the area surrounding Coed y Brenin, but none of that had prepared me for the sheer quantity of ascents ahead of us. Running up trails, mountain bike single tracks and cinder roads the climbing seemed endless, and the descents while fun and fast, seemed much shorter in distance by comparison. As tough as the ascents were though I was expecting it to be tough. "Brutal" had been the word used in the advertising for the race, and it certainly was that. No, the things that made it worse, far worse, was the stifling humidity with not a breath of wind; which was just energy sapping and felt like you were running whilst wrapped in cotton wool; and the bloody midges. Every few minutes I would wipe my perspiration covered arms to remove the polka dots of midges that repeatedly covered them. I had worn tights to protect my legs, and a buff to cover my head and ears, but everywhere else was consistently covered with small black biting dots... (Note to self - some form of insect repellent next year).
But despite the heat, humidity, midges (have I mentioned that I hate midges?), constant climbing and no air movement the event itself was superb. The course was super-challenging, using as it does some of the single track mountain bike trails around the park; the views were stunning at every turn, the running was varied - ranging from fire roads and the occasional section of tarmac road to forest trails and technical descents. The course splits into two halves, with the first half being the half marathon course, and on its return to the visitors centre the marathon runners were diverted from the finish to the second half of the course into the hills across from the main park that included some of the most technical mountain bike trails.
I crossed the finish line after an energy sapping 5 hours and 8 minutes, and received my wooden finishers coaster (each one unique) feeling tired and elated. I ran the last 10 miles with a super lady from Liverpool called Amy who kept me motivated as I kept her going, and we sprinted up the hill to cross the finish line together.
Was it enjoyable? - totally.
Was it challenging - absolutely! It was the toughest marathon I have run to date.
Would I do it again? - I can't wait till entries open on September 1st.
Is it worth doing? - superbly organised, excellently marked route, lots of well stocked aid stations with encouraging and supportive marshals, a goody bag with a t-shirt, a gel and a pair of Salomon trail socks and a nice wooden coaster for finishing made it good value, coupled with stunning scenery, a unique and challenging course and brilliant camaraderie amongst the runners makes this a great race.
Could it be improved? - a few more bits in the goody bag and a technical rather than cotton t-shirt would be welcome, escalators on the ascents would be nice, better weather would of course be very welcome... And give the midges a day off...
I hate midges...
For more information, visit the Trail Marathon Wales website.
Steve T
Steve is currently raising money for Pseudomyxoma Survivor, you can donate to his cause on this webpage.