RIGHT, that’s it. Two out of three successful Dallam BG attempts. One to go – mine.
No pressure then. All training done and a fortnight lay-off begins.
Activity now focuses on my logistics supremo and quarter-master general, Helen. Nothing will be left to chance - I expect she’ll lay on some wartime-style RAF briefing presented by a moustached figure with a pointy stick. “Tonight,” he’ll say as he raps a huge map of the Lake District fixed to our lounge wall, “you’ll be flying along the Dodds at a height of over 2,000 feet. Watch out… the flap-jack will be particularly heavy around Helvellyn, and you’ve got to keep fuelled so you don’t bomb. Chocs away down in Dunmail. Any questions?”
Any questions? Well, thanks to the generous advice from other club members, there’s not many left, except to say will I do it?
I heard Jarv (after his successful attempt) say to me “Piece of cake!”, though it could have been “piece of cake?” There seemed to be a lot to go around, with the tea loaf being my favourite.
I’ve certainly had a few training runs over the past few months, so thanks to everyone who came along to make it an enjoyable affair. And yes, they were enjoyable. Mostly. Well, they would have been a lot less pleasant if I’d being doing them on my own.
So here’s some of the things I’ve learned over the past few months:
· Kahtoola Microspikes make a wonderful Christmas present. Being able to run down the hard-packed snow of a Munro all the way to the bottom was a winter highlight (even if I did forget the suntan cream and burned my nose)
· You see your whole life pass in front of your eyes (I had to stifle a yawn) when the mother-of-all-hailstorms hits you near Honister.
· When Shinny puts a ‘countdown to Bob Graham’ on your blog page it doesn’t worry you in the slightest …until the final 10 days. When Helen puts a countdown on your Google home page, she’s just being plain evil.
· It’s possible to cause a global run on the price of mini Jaffa Cakes by buying in bulk
· Even Milli can get stuck in a bog
· Dallam provides the best support for BG attempts
My final training run, of course, was Jarv’s BG. Fantastic weather and a fantastic outcome. I joined at Dunmail Raise in the small hours for Leg 3, with Dave Deason navigating and Stuart and Dave Barnes as fellow sherpas. Leechy asks me if I’m “going to do the whole thing?” This is a standing joke.
Sunrise hits our group just before Rossett Pike where we met Mike McKenna and Mick Pearcy for a spot of coffee and cake (sorry, a re-fuelling stop – people will get the wrong impression about how hard this challenge is), and then it was up to Bowfell to catch a view of the Scafells (cloud-free in the early morning sunshine for a change).
Along the ridge down to Mickledore and then up Broad Stand with Tom having fixed the rope. I’ll quite happily admit I’m a ‘Broad Stand virgin’ so made sure I didn’t look down (or stupid). In fact, the only problem was trying to squeeze through the rock cleft while still wearing my rucsac, which entailed me leaving the upper layer of skin from my left elbow on the rock wall.
No problems on the run down to Wasdale – although Jarv claimed I used my walking pole tip like the point of a bayonet to keep him moving forward. Can’t be true - I didn’t need to.
From Wasdale, Mike Mckenna, Dave and I headed up to Kirk Fell to provide further coffee and cakes, and then down to Honister. Jump in the car to drive around to Little Town and then onto Keswick to see Jarv finish.
To find out more about his round you’ll have to wait for his write up.
Here’s my support team as it currently stands (a bit of re-jigging after a few injuries – but hoping they’ll make a recovery in time):
Leg 1 – Ray Gill [Nav], Andy McCracken [time-keeper], John Hooson (Ambleside)
Leg 2 – Mike McKenna [Nav], Mark Bell [time-keeper], Martin Benson, Ben Beachell (Eryri)
Leg 3 – Martin Gardiner [Nav], Matt Beardshall [time-keeper], and Lanny (Martin’s mate), with Tom Phillips and Andy McCracken on ropes at Broad Stand.
Leg 4 – Dave Deason [Nav], John Leech [time-keeper], Mick Pearcy
Leg 5 –Julie Pearcy [Nav], Helen Deason [time-keeper], Dawn Gill, John Hodgson, Dawn W (Harrogate)
If anyone else would like to support – please let me know (mobile: 07531 721875 or reply to this blog), you’d be more than welcome. And thanks to those who’ve offered to date.
My schedule (as below) is based on 23 hours (ish)
Location Time
Moot Hall 18:00
Skiddaw 19:25
Great Calva 20:10
Blencathra 21:20
Threlkeld(A) 21:51
Threlkeld (D) 22:01
Clough Head 23:00
Great Dodd 23:30
Watson Dodd 23:39
Stybarrow Dodd23:48
Raise 00:06
White Side 00:14
Helvellyn Lower Man 00:32
Helvellyn 00:38
Nethermost Pike 00:48
Dollywaggon Pike 01:00
Fairfield 01:42
Seat Sandal 02:07
Dunmail Raise (Arv) 02:32
Dunmail Raise – (Dpt) 02:42
Steel Fell 03:07
Calf Crag 03:27
Sergeant Man 04:02
High Raise 04:11
Thunacar Knott 04:26
Harrison Stickle 04:36
Pike o Stickle 04:48
Rossett Pike 05:33
Bowfell 06:08
Esk Pike 06:33
Great End 06:58
Ill Crag 07:13
Broad Crag 07:23
Scafell Pike 07:35
Scafell 08:07
Wasdale - Arrive 08:42
Wasdale - Depart 08:52
Yewbarrow 09:42
Red Pike 10:32
Steeple 10:56
Pillar 11:30
KirkFell 12:20
Great Gable 13:03
Green Gable 13:18
Brandreth 13:36
Grey Knotts 13:44
Honister - Arrive 13:57
Honister - Depart 14:07
Dalehead 14:40
Hindscarth 15:01
Robinson 15:27
Keswick Moot Hall 17:07
Finally, I’ll be raising money for Macmillan Cancer Support. If anyone would like to sponsor me, you can visit my Justgiving page.
No pressure then. All training done and a fortnight lay-off begins.
Activity now focuses on my logistics supremo and quarter-master general, Helen. Nothing will be left to chance - I expect she’ll lay on some wartime-style RAF briefing presented by a moustached figure with a pointy stick. “Tonight,” he’ll say as he raps a huge map of the Lake District fixed to our lounge wall, “you’ll be flying along the Dodds at a height of over 2,000 feet. Watch out… the flap-jack will be particularly heavy around Helvellyn, and you’ve got to keep fuelled so you don’t bomb. Chocs away down in Dunmail. Any questions?”
Any questions? Well, thanks to the generous advice from other club members, there’s not many left, except to say will I do it?
I heard Jarv (after his successful attempt) say to me “Piece of cake!”, though it could have been “piece of cake?” There seemed to be a lot to go around, with the tea loaf being my favourite.
I’ve certainly had a few training runs over the past few months, so thanks to everyone who came along to make it an enjoyable affair. And yes, they were enjoyable. Mostly. Well, they would have been a lot less pleasant if I’d being doing them on my own.
So here’s some of the things I’ve learned over the past few months:
· Kahtoola Microspikes make a wonderful Christmas present. Being able to run down the hard-packed snow of a Munro all the way to the bottom was a winter highlight (even if I did forget the suntan cream and burned my nose)
· You see your whole life pass in front of your eyes (I had to stifle a yawn) when the mother-of-all-hailstorms hits you near Honister.
· When Shinny puts a ‘countdown to Bob Graham’ on your blog page it doesn’t worry you in the slightest …until the final 10 days. When Helen puts a countdown on your Google home page, she’s just being plain evil.
· It’s possible to cause a global run on the price of mini Jaffa Cakes by buying in bulk
· Even Milli can get stuck in a bog
· Dallam provides the best support for BG attempts
My final training run, of course, was Jarv’s BG. Fantastic weather and a fantastic outcome. I joined at Dunmail Raise in the small hours for Leg 3, with Dave Deason navigating and Stuart and Dave Barnes as fellow sherpas. Leechy asks me if I’m “going to do the whole thing?” This is a standing joke.
Sunrise hits our group just before Rossett Pike where we met Mike McKenna and Mick Pearcy for a spot of coffee and cake (sorry, a re-fuelling stop – people will get the wrong impression about how hard this challenge is), and then it was up to Bowfell to catch a view of the Scafells (cloud-free in the early morning sunshine for a change).
Along the ridge down to Mickledore and then up Broad Stand with Tom having fixed the rope. I’ll quite happily admit I’m a ‘Broad Stand virgin’ so made sure I didn’t look down (or stupid). In fact, the only problem was trying to squeeze through the rock cleft while still wearing my rucsac, which entailed me leaving the upper layer of skin from my left elbow on the rock wall.
No problems on the run down to Wasdale – although Jarv claimed I used my walking pole tip like the point of a bayonet to keep him moving forward. Can’t be true - I didn’t need to.
From Wasdale, Mike Mckenna, Dave and I headed up to Kirk Fell to provide further coffee and cakes, and then down to Honister. Jump in the car to drive around to Little Town and then onto Keswick to see Jarv finish.
To find out more about his round you’ll have to wait for his write up.
Here’s my support team as it currently stands (a bit of re-jigging after a few injuries – but hoping they’ll make a recovery in time):
Leg 1 – Ray Gill [Nav], Andy McCracken [time-keeper], John Hooson (Ambleside)
Leg 2 – Mike McKenna [Nav], Mark Bell [time-keeper], Martin Benson, Ben Beachell (Eryri)
Leg 3 – Martin Gardiner [Nav], Matt Beardshall [time-keeper], and Lanny (Martin’s mate), with Tom Phillips and Andy McCracken on ropes at Broad Stand.
Leg 4 – Dave Deason [Nav], John Leech [time-keeper], Mick Pearcy
Leg 5 –Julie Pearcy [Nav], Helen Deason [time-keeper], Dawn Gill, John Hodgson, Dawn W (Harrogate)
If anyone else would like to support – please let me know (mobile: 07531 721875 or reply to this blog), you’d be more than welcome. And thanks to those who’ve offered to date.
My schedule (as below) is based on 23 hours (ish)
Location Time
Moot Hall 18:00
Skiddaw 19:25
Great Calva 20:10
Blencathra 21:20
Threlkeld(A) 21:51
Threlkeld (D) 22:01
Clough Head 23:00
Great Dodd 23:30
Watson Dodd 23:39
Stybarrow Dodd23:48
Raise 00:06
White Side 00:14
Helvellyn Lower Man 00:32
Helvellyn 00:38
Nethermost Pike 00:48
Dollywaggon Pike 01:00
Fairfield 01:42
Seat Sandal 02:07
Dunmail Raise (Arv) 02:32
Dunmail Raise – (Dpt) 02:42
Steel Fell 03:07
Calf Crag 03:27
Sergeant Man 04:02
High Raise 04:11
Thunacar Knott 04:26
Harrison Stickle 04:36
Pike o Stickle 04:48
Rossett Pike 05:33
Bowfell 06:08
Esk Pike 06:33
Great End 06:58
Ill Crag 07:13
Broad Crag 07:23
Scafell Pike 07:35
Scafell 08:07
Wasdale - Arrive 08:42
Wasdale - Depart 08:52
Yewbarrow 09:42
Red Pike 10:32
Steeple 10:56
Pillar 11:30
KirkFell 12:20
Great Gable 13:03
Green Gable 13:18
Brandreth 13:36
Grey Knotts 13:44
Honister - Arrive 13:57
Honister - Depart 14:07
Dalehead 14:40
Hindscarth 15:01
Robinson 15:27
Keswick Moot Hall 17:07
Finally, I’ll be raising money for Macmillan Cancer Support. If anyone would like to sponsor me, you can visit my Justgiving page.
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