I entered the Brecon Beacons 10 Peaks race one week before the start date as I was feeling quite hesitant about taking part. But as usual once the race starts all of the apprehensive butterflies disappear until the next race.
The 10 Peaks (actually more than 10!) is a self-navigating race over 56 miles and takes in 15000ft of ascent over some of the most beautiful scenery of Wales. Plenty of scope for innuendo bingo with Fan Y Big and other peak names. The green rolling hills of Brecon made the miles fly by as well as the various other runners I chatted to on the way. There was always a warm welcome from the many friendly marshals at each of the 5 check points. The weather added to the challenge of the day with rain, mud, strong winds oh and rain. The final descent to the finish line was a sheer mud slide. People at the finish line watched with smiles as head torches in the distance appeared and disappeared in close succession as runners made or I should say slid their way down the muddy descent!
My main objective on the Start Line was to complete the race and so when I found out that the bar was still open and that I was 1st lady with a time of 16:47:55 I was completely overwhelmed!
I would definitely be considering The Lakes 10 Peaks for 2018.
Katie Hateley