Marshalling the Holyhead Mountain race

My rule of thumb with racing is: if it has nasty off-road downhill sections I will marshal it, and if it doesn't, I'll run it. Snowdon Twilight didn't have any downhill so I ran it. The day after, there would be the Holyhead Mountain race, and that does have scary downhill bits, so I volunteered to marshal that. I figured I would be very tired because of the race the night before, but I should still be able to make it to wherever my marshalling station would be. 

I had not received any communications about it so I assumed they didn't need me. Until I woke up on the day before. I had a message from the organiser: Katie. Was I still available? I hadn't planned anything else, so I said yes. And that night I saw her in person: she was also running the race. Not only that; she won it! Excellent performance.

On the day I drove up to the Breakwater Country Park. Given that we only ran half the distance the night before I was quite fresh. Once there I encountered some stress; it is paid parking, but the machine only accepted coins, which I didn't have. There was no pay by phone code displayed. I knew I would have to get to my marshalling station, so just hoped for the best. If I would get a ticket I would try to fight it. I don't think in 2025 you can have coins as the only available payment option! 

I found Katie, and she gave me a hi-viz vest, and a little map. She had circled where she wanted me to stand. And she said the route was marked with ribbon. I didn't get a radio or anything, but I did get her phone number for in case. Suppose you  get a runner with a sprained ankle; you can't sort that on your own, but I would be able to contact her. 

I walked to North Stack, and from there I navigated to my post. The ribbons went off the main path, onto something narrower and steeper. That would be easy to miss! I understood why she wanted me there. Now I needed to wait for the first runner. Because of the layout of the terrain I would only be able to see them if they would be really close.

Ribbons marking the route. North Stack is just behind the hill.

It wasn't cold, but it was quite windy! There was also quite a lot of fog. Typical Holyhead weather. I remembered I had once done a race here, but a different one. That had been sunnier, even though it had been in January!

After a while the first runner arrived. An Eryri Harrier! I pointed him but he had to go, but he wasn't having any of that. He said the route went straight ahead. I was confused. If that was true, why were the ribbons going the other way? I phoned Katie. No answer. Then other runners arrived. They, in contrast, were convinced by the ribbons, and happily trundled up the steeper bit. I dropped Katie another voicemail. I was starting to feel confident the first runner had just been wrong. At least he hadn't strayed from the route very far.

After a while, Felicity appeared. She said she was sure she was the last runner. I wished her a good rest of the race, and figured I would walk back to Race HQ, over the route the runners had taken to get to me. If Felicity was wrong and there was still someone else, I would meet them. And I could make a start with removing ribbons.

Selfie while walking back. The fog is lifting!

Back at HQ, Katie was at the finish, with some other marshals, timing the runners who were coming in. I had a chat with her and with some of the finished runners. There was Harri of Parc y Moch fame, and Rhian who runs Track Tuesday, and had also run in Bethel. It turned out there had been quite a lot of confusion about the route. Katie thought she had set out the route to the same way as last year, and had probably told the runners that. But she hadn't quite remember it correctly; hence the confusion at my marshalling station. Last year, apparently the route did go straight ahead. And there were a lot more confusing points in the race. Later one of the other marshals appeared (he had been the Harrier at yesterday's finish who told me it was indeed the finish) and he said the runners were coming at him from three different directions. Oops! Maybe next year use more marshals. 

When all the runners were in, Katie did the presentation. This also came with a little bit of controversy; the man who had finished 4th was a bit miffed he hadn't been given a prize, even though he knew that numbers 2 and 3 hadn’t done the whole route. Due to a navigation error they had accidentally cut off a corner. He then also got a prize. 

Some of the runners turned out to have been ex-students of ours! That was cool. And there also were three cute dogs. 

After the presentation we took down the Eryri Harriers gazebo. And then it was done! A successful race I would say. Not flawless, but successful. I could see myself marshalling again next year…