Memories and Painting - Day 34

I started off my day with a quick game of frisbee with Jason:

@lakessinglemum Frisbee with Jason ##frisbee ##single ##mumsoftiktok ##over40 ##fypage
♬ Let's Do It Again - J Boog

Then I had a couple of hours of maths tutoring which was very rewarding. My Asda grocery delivery also arrived early (thanks to the driver living in my street!) so I could take pet food up to my parents'

I was reminded once again about the amazing race I filmed on Cat Bells 2 years ago:

@lakessinglemum

A taste of my fell running videos https://www.youtube.com/user/bw1310 ##fellrunning ##fellrace ##keswickac ##mumsoftiktok##fyp ##cumbria

♬ Run Run Run - Dumpy's Rusty Nuts

This then inspired me to try and recreate a photo I took that day to update my lounge window:

Great Westmorland Trail Race 2019

This weekend I had the pleasure of filming at the annual Great Westmorland Trail Race, sponsored by Sean Robinson. For the first time there was a Canicross event. There were 20 runners who had either 1 or 2 dogs. These dogs were of all shapes and sizes as well as a range of abilities. It made for an exciting race:

For some runners it seemed like a very serious event:

There was also lots of friendly rivalry:

Grasmere Sports 2019

Far too early on a hot and sunny Bank Holiday Sunday my son and I rocked up to Grasmere for this year's Grasmere Sports:

For the third year running I was responsible for registering the fell running which is a perfect job for me as I know plenty of the runners!

Due to the high temperatures my son spent quite a bit of time with me in the registration zone but he also went out to compete in the long leap:

Reasons to be Cheerful: Half Term Time #R2BC

 
I am running a day late joining in with Michelle for my reasons to be cheerful this week as its been such a busy weekend! We've had a busy half term with plenty of reasons to be cheerful:
1) Time to socialise

I have already written about our day of fell running at Sedbergh. It's great being part of a great club and a bigger fell running family.  Every event is a social occasion for adults and children as well as celebrating great running:

2) Time with the family

The advantage of working in a school is that I get most of the school holidays off. A chance to have fun together or to just relax! My daughter and I strolled into town and grabbed churros and coffee at one of our local restaurants:

3) Time!

It's great not having to rush around every where for work, school and activities during the holidays. I managed both a walk and run up to Kendal Castle this week and it was lovely up there:

FRA Juniors 2019 - Sedbergh

On a very wet and overcast morning we arrived at the People's Hall in Sedbergh in advance of Helm Hill's hosting of the FRA Junior championship for 2019. At the time it was so cloudy that the tops of the hills weren't visible and it was a worry as to whether it would be safe for the under 19s to run their full route as it took in 3 summits (luckily the weather cleared in plenty of time!).

After my marshal briefing I walked the under 9 route with my son so I could find the best videoing spot. It was a challenging if not too long a route for them:

My son and his friend walked some more of their under 15 route whilst I set myself up to film just below the under 9 turn. There were 26 runners from 6-8 years in this race:

After they had gone I walked up along the descent route to capture the under 11s. This shows how steep some of the course was:

Kendal Winter League - Helm Race

On Sunday it was one of the last races in this year's Kendal Winter League. As it was less than 2 miles to the race on the Helm we decided to walk up the hill to get there - we somehow always forget how steep it is! Once my son was registered we took time to walk the route as he is new in the category so didn't know it. It started off easy enough along a fairly level footpath:

Then there was a steady climb to the top of the ridge:

At the top the race routes split as the younger runners stayed on the ridge whilst my son and the other runners were sent to the back of the hill:

Kendal Winter League 2019: Race 1 Scout Scar

It was videoing the Kendal Winter League last year that really started the momentum going on my YouTube Channel. So with this year's competition starting last Sunday I am determined to:

1. Video all the races
2. Improve on my techniques and positioning for the films

I was combining videoing with being safety marshal on the gate at Scout Scar which meant that whilst I was close to the action (so close runners jostled me!), but it was quite tricky to film some of it! 

The first race was for the under 11s and under 13s which meant children from 8-12. This was a highly competitive and fast and furious race:

Once the 95 children had all finished it was time for the under 15s to take to the start line. This included my son as he had turned 12 before the New Year making him one of the youngest runners. They had a longer race of just over 2km and again there were some strong performances. My son was 13th out of 21 which was a great result for him:

The final junior race was the under 17s. Again some of these have only just moved up from the under 15 category but they all put in amazing runs:

My Top Nine Videos on YouTube

This was the year my YouTube channel finally got some momentum thanks to my filming of fell running! It is such a shame the rules of making money changed just as it was taking off as I would have a steady little income from it... I need to boost my subscribers to match the views and then I can earn some pennies *blatant beg*

Meanwhile here are my top nine videos by views from the last 12 months:

1) 3 Peaks Fell Race on Pen Y Ghent

My son and I hiked part way up to film the brave souls setting out on this year's 3 Peaks Fell Race the marathon with mountains:

2) Grasmere Sports Senior Guides Race

I was working as a steward at this year's Grasmere Sports so missed my son's fell race. I did get out in time to film the Seniors with commentary by the legendary Pete Bland:

3) Anniversary Waltz and Teenager with Altitude descent from Cat Bells

My son again helped me to film the final descent of these races from side of Cat Bells. A stunning day to cheer on the runners as they headed for home:

English Schools' Fell Running Championships 2018

Yesterday my son represented his school in the English Schools' Fell Running Championship at Giggleswick School. The course was similar to the Kendal Winter League Route so we only had to walk up to the other fell to check out the route to the top:

I then set myself up near the stream crossing to video the races as I know it makes the most interesting moments (yes I was hoping for a face plant or two!). My son made sure his leap wasn't a comedy moment with this massive jump:

Here is the video of his Year 7 race as they tackled the stream:

Great Westmorland Trail Race 2018

As the Great Westmorland Trail Race was part of my son's junior club championship we fired up the Sat Nav and went for a drive into the Yorkshire Dales. After an accidental detour via Kirkby Stephen we reached the village of Crosby Garrett which was the start line for the races organised by Howgill Harriers:

Once my son had registered we attempted to walk the course... After a slightly heated discussion with my son I was proved right that the juniors headed out under the railway viaduct before heading up the fell. It was a there and back again route so I found a spot to film the first race and sent my son back to the start:

To save time and marshals they combined the under 9 and under 13 races by setting the younger runners off first with an advanced start line. The turning points for the races were at different points so some of the under 9s were coming back down before all the under 13s had passed me:

FRA Juniors Clougha Pike and Quernmore Sports

This Saturday saw the penultimate fell race of the FRA Junior Championships at Clougha Pike as part of Quernmore Sports. This wasn't too far from Lancaster in the Trough of Bowland so relatively local to us. 

The first group to tackle their course were the under 9's who had to complete one lap of the field:

Then it was the under 11's who had to do a bigger lap of the next field as well as the first climb:

For the under 13's, such as my son, had a longer course than normal with 3 km. This meant two big laps at the top which was tough on the younger ones:

FRA Malham Fell Race

On Saturday my son and I drove over to Malham in Yorkshire for the latest FRA Junior Championship race hosted by Keighly and Craven Athletics Club. After a stunning drive through the Dales we parked in the beautiful village before hiking to the start:

Once my son was registered we joined the other families walking the course:

It was a scorching hot day and the under 9s were lucky to only have to run to the specially flagged turn:

Clough Head Fell Race 2018

On bank holiday Sunday my son was hiking up the Old Man in Coniston with school so I set off on my own to Threlkeld to film the Clough Head fell race. It was a beautiful day as I approached the fell which stands at 726 m (2,382 ft):

As it was an English Championships race there were plenty of banners at the start:

It was helpful to find some at gates as well as the paths up to the fell are not way marked (as the land is open access):

#CountryKids at the Three Peaks Race on Pen Y Ghent

This weekend my son and I headed off to Horton in Ribblesdale in Yorkshire to film one of the most iconic fell races the Three Peaks Race. It is known as the marathon with mountains:

The Three Peaks Race traverses the famous Yorkshire Dales mountains of Pen-y-ghent, Ingleborough and Whernside is one of the oldest, most famous and best organised fell races in Britain. 

First run in 1954, the Race covers 37.4 kilometres with 1608 metres of ascent and descent over the most rugged and spectacular countryside in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, taking competitors to a height of 723 metres above sea level. 

The men's course record is held by English international Andy Peace of Bingley Harriers, who completed this gruelling challenge in 2 hours 46 min. 03 sec in the 1996 race. 

The women's record of 3 hours 9 min 19 sec is held by English international Victoria Wilkinson in the 2017 race.

After about a 50 minute drive we arrived at the race start:

As soon as we arrived we met another fell running family from Kendal who were also planning on watching the race from the side of Pen Y Ghent. This was great for my son as the 2 other boys were only a year younger than him. We set off along the well trodden Pennine Way. For folks hiking the 3 Peaks Challenge they were being sent a slightly different way to make it a circular walk:

It was a beautiful day to be walking between dry stone walls on undulating terrain. We were glad we weren't running along it like the racers would be: 

Anniversary Waltz and Teenager with Altitude Fell Races

On Saturday morning my son and I sat off far too early for a drive up to Stair near Keswick for the last ever Anniversary Waltz and Teenager with Altitude Fell Races.  These have been held since 1997 and have helped raise thousands of pounds for the Motor Neurone Disease Association. Sadly Steve Cliff died from MND this year so this was the last ever race.

The Teenager with Altitude (TWA) started above the village with a first ascent up Causey Pike then 15.4 miles with 7,600 feet of ascent before finishing back at the village. We set ourselves up to capture the 300 runners who had signed up to this gruelling race:  

It as wonderful to hear the respectful applause and then cheer on the runners at they took a steady start to the run:

It made for a colourful spectacle as they wound their way up the fell side:

There was an hour gap before the Waltz was starting which was just as well as it took nearly 20 minutes to cross back through the village and reach the foot of Cat Bells where the race would start. This is the short race with a mere 11.5 miles and 3,600 metres of climb!

#CountryKids Fell Running Association Junior Championships Todd Cragg

This Sunday saw the opening race for this year's Fell Running Association Junior Championships at Ambleside. My son hadn't taken part in previous years so he decided to give it a go this year. All the races had to cross the historic Miller Bridge from Rothay Park:

There were 6 different age categories and each route was well marked and marshalled. My son and I walked his route so he knew where he was going and I could choose from filming locations.  The under 9 race (for 6 years and over) was just for 1 km and they went up the tarmac hill and back down again:

I captured their race from a few 100 metres below their turn. There were some scary speeds as they raced back down past me: