Marshalling Siabod again

After having marshalled the Moel Siabod race last year, I was quite happy to do it again. And when the organisation sprung back into the action, I saw that they had put me one marshalling point higher up the hill this year. And the weather forecast was fine.

When I arrived I saw that I was the only returning marshal. Not a good sign! And one marshal had pulled out, so we were all moved up a post. But the new faces looked lovely, and after the briefing we set off, with our hi viz vests, radios, cow bells, and clipboards with lists. We had a nice chat along the way.  

It is quite a walk to the top, where a lady called Julie was stationed: almost 5km, and 700m ascent. I was only some 500m away, and 60m lower. We dropped off the ladies on the lower stations along the way. They had views! By the time we came to my station, we were in clouds, although they periodically lifted. And the race had already started. 

I made sure to quickly go to the loo before the first runner would arrive. And I hadn't had lunch yet, and it was past 2 pm, so that was urgent too. I managed two sandwiches, and then I heard on the radios that the first runners had already reached the previous checkpoint. Time to put the lunchbox away and get my clipboard ready!

At my station

Sometimes the cloud lifted and there was a view

We were expected to have made a list of all race numbers, which could only be done when registration closed, and then tick off all these numbers on both the way up and down. Last year it had been fairly straightforward; there was a little lull between the runners coming up and coming down, and they had to climb over a style, which gave me the opportunity to note their numbers down. This time it was different. It started fairly easy when the runners were only coming up, although there was no style, and after many hundreds of metres of ascent, quite a lot of them were quite bent over, which obscured their number. The wind wasn't helping; this pulled on my list. But it was quite doable.

It was when the runners were also coming back down it got hectic. You have to look both ways, and the ones descending were moving really fast. Sometimes it rained, which didn't help, obviously. At some point they were coming from both ways and one of my pens stopped working. I was glad I had brought two! But sometimes I just frantically jotted the numbers in the open space of the paper, putting the tick marks where they belonged only when I had a little breathing space. 

In the marshal instructions we were asked to report back to HQ every time 10 more runners had passed us, but that was just not feasible.

Things got calmer when all runners had come up. Now I only had to look in one direction! And then the last runner came down. My job was done! I drank a bit more as I was thirsty, and then decided to start making my way down, collecting route markers along the way. I figured Julie would overtake me soon enough. Practically everybody is faster than me on the descent. And she of course could have set off before me.

By one route marker that actually helped at an ambiguity along the way I stopped. I didn't want to remove this flag before Julie would have caught up with me. But then she phoned me. She was lost! There was heavy fog at the summit, and she didn't know in which direction to descend. So I said I would come to get her.

I made my way back up. And after a while, I saw a figure in the fog. It was her! She was descending in exactly the right direction. Excellent. So now we could together make our way down to checkpoint 5. The marshal there was waiting for us. And so was the one at checkpoint 4. That was kind. And we walked back to HQ all together.

It turned out that Julie was a gardener, and I have struggled to find someone to help me with my garden. I asked her if she had any suggestions, given that she probably had lots of connections. She said she did. Maybe something will come of this! Watch this space.

When we got back to HQ there was only James there, the organiser. That was great, as that meant he had managed to do the presentation not too long after the race. Last year that had gone quite wrong, and hardly any winner had still been around to receive their prize. So we could just hand in our hi viz vests and radios and suchlike and head home. I think it was a successful race! And I am happy to come back next year. That will be an anniversary edition! 

Running festival TNH

The Eryri Harriers had planned a summer festival. The idea was that there would be something running-related going on every day. People could pick and choose which activities they would participate in. The Monday had its usual Monday training, but I was otherwise engaged. The Tuesday activity was a Tuesday Evening race, but I don't do these, so I was on the track (briefly). The Felinheli race was part of it. I did that! And then on Thursday, there always is Thursday Night Hill, and Dyfed had been asked to keep it accessible this week, so that also people who don't normally do this can participate. Dyfed, however, has strange ideas of what ‘accessible’ means, or ‘suitable for people recovering from a  knee injury (I had asked!)’, or any of that sort of concepts. 

We gathered, and there clearly were some new faces. I also spoke with a lady who had been before, but who hadn’t been for a while for reasons of tendon problems. Her name was Lena, or something you pronounce like that but spell differently. 

We set off in the direction of Dinorwic. Up the zigzags! I expected the big incline later. I was wrong. We went up the stairs, to the saw mill, and then over the spoil heap to its end. And at the end, we just clambered down the slate. This has absolutely nothing to do with running! And maybe not the most inviting thing to do to newcomers? 

In Dinorwic Quarry

Up the stairs

End of the spoil heap

Clambering down. Pic by Kasia

At the bottom we ended in some boggy terrain. Not my favourite. Maybe not good for tendon issues either. A good thing was that we crossed a little stream, so I could drink. It was warm and I was rapidly going through my supplies.

By the time we were back on a decent track again, it was already quite late. But at least from then on, Dyfed didn't do anymore Dyfed antics. We just ran a rather sensible route back to Llanberis. Lena’s tendon seemed to hold up, but how it would feel the next day would be more important. And by then, 2.5 hours after setting off, I was quite hungry and thirsty. I had sandwiches and water in the car, and thought I might consume these while doing a bit of after-run chat with the other runners, but the midges made me change my mind. Off home! And the next day I would be knackered…

Felinheli 10k 2026

I like racing! But on the day of the Felinheli 10k, I wasn’t feeling it at all. I felt decidedly sluggish. I even had an after-lunch lie down. I never do that! I wasn’t sure what was going on. But I hoped race jitters would perk me up. 

One thing that did perk me up was the weather. After the disappointing sunshine of the day before, it was now reliably cloudy. I had brought both my racing T-shirt and vest, and I felt confident to go in the vest. I did put sunscreen on just to be sure, though.

It was nice to see loads of running friends around! I ended up not doing much of a warmup as I got carried away chatting to people. But when I was in the crowd at the start line I was fully psyched up. I love a race buzz! 

Team picture

It is a bit of a jostle at the start. I made sure to not start too fast. I saw a lot of people in front of me that I expected to overtake later on. And there was one in particular that caught my eye: fellow Harrier Megan, who is practically the exact same age as me, so I knew that if I wanted to get a category win I would have to overtake her. And let's face it; I always like a category win. And this is not one of those races (like Borders League races) in which that is not doable.

Busy near the start

After the start on Beach Road, the race goes onto a housing estate, crosses the marina to end up in another estate, and then dives through the gate in the wall onto the coastal path. That is an unpaved road. I had made sure to wear my hybrid shoes for that. And it is quite pretty there! We also saw Plas Newydd on the other shore, which made me think of Madfabulous. 

 

Running past the marina, where the field is still not very spread out yet

That part of the route is a steady ascent. That is where my strength lies. So I was slowly overtaking people. And at some point I overtook a whole bunch in one go, including Megan, and my track mate Katie. I knew that last year, I had overtaken Megan only at kilometre 7 and now we were only at about 3 or 4. That bode well.

We were trundling on and all as well. Inevitably, we ended up between the buildings of Vaynol Estate. From there, the route is temporarily not very pretty as you get to Parc Menai. That is aesthetically just a different kettle of fish. But it is where you make a loop and start coming back. And on the road between the two, I saw the first runners coming the other way. At the front were an unknown guy, and a runner of Meirionnydd I see on the track. It's not unusual there is one of those at the front. They are a very ambitious club. I think in Bethel, they had the first 7 positions. 

In position 5 or so, I saw Steffan, and a bit behind that our own Ian and Nic. There were no women yet in sight. I was feeling good.

Between Vaynol and Parc Menai; notice the runners going both ways

Where we turned left on the main Parc Menai Road was  Louise cheering. That really lifted me up! I'm sure it made me faster. And soon after that I got to the water station. Last year that had been grossly inadequate, but this year the weather wasn't particularly thirst-inducing,  it was ok this time. Of the cup-full of water I think about half ended up in my mouth. 

Shortly afterwards I got to Louise again, which provided another boost. And then it was me who was running past the people still on their way up. 

After a while I saw Adam the NWRRC runner. He claims I always overtake him in the same stage of a race. His comment was ‘ah, there you are. I knew you would be here somewhere’. 

When I hit the little asphalt road over the estate the wind hit me. It was nice and cool but a bit of a brake on the system! But that’s ok. 

Soon after, I got to the downhill bit. That’s very fast! Just gentle enough for me to not be scared. And then you suddenly arrive at the gate through which you’re back on the housing estate. And then it’s not far anymore. I kept my pace up without running myself empty. 

Meaning business on the housing estate

I ran back over the bridge and through the other houses, and then to the sign ‘200m to the finish’ . That is when you can start legging it if you haven’t already done so. And I turned out to have something left in the bag so I ran away from the black-clad man behind me and thundered over the finish. I saw my time: 45:19. Slower than last year. But I was feeling better. 

Feeling good

Done!

My car wasn’t far, but I wanted water NOW so I accepted a bottle. And some fruit. And had a chat with the other finishers. And when Katie finished we went to my car; she had put her jacket in it as there seemed to not be a bag drop. I wanted some more clothes too. And my recovery drink. Then we went back to the finish. It was getting colder and wetter there. 

Not too much time later, the last runner came in, and they could do the presentation. The female winner was our own Elliw Haf! And I had my category win. I got a Crib Goch voucher and a big Toblerone. And I had come in as 6th woman. I was happy with that. And by then there weren’t many people left on the field. After the presentation, I left too. A really nice race! Hopefully, next year again…

Proud category winner

DIY on days off

There was a lot of DIY left to do after the previous round. And with some days off, I got to do some of it. Some of it unspectacular; repairing clothes, for instance. And, of course, snazzying up the kitchen, and making the trophy shelf. But I also made progress on the erasing the damage done in order to put up my IR panels. And that felt good! You can’t tell anymore that there ever was a panel at the top of the stairs. 

No sign anymore of the mess the installer made

The big hole in the wall due to the installer drilling into a water pipe, which was a much bigger job, is slowly vanishing. In March I packed the big gully in the wall with wood. Now I have put two rounds of filler on top. 

I will have to now sand and paint it, so more work to do, but there is clear progress. Success! 

Hole filled! 

Second trophy shelf

When I made a trophy shelf early this year, I pretty much immediately filled it with the trophies I kept in suboptimal places. So it was clear that before long, I would need another one. And when I won in my category in Deganwy, and what I won was indeed a trophy rather than a pair of socks or a bottle of wine or whatever, there was no way I could fit it on the old shelf. Time to snap into action.

When I was taking some time off after term finished, I finally came around to it. It's up now, underneath the pre-lockdown medals. I decided to put the 2026 trophies on it. So basically, my category win and team win from the Pier to Pier race, and the Deganwy trophy. My other wins this year have been a runner pack (gels and such), honey, booze, medals, and nothing. 

I hope this self will fill up soon too! I enjoy looking at my trophies when I walk past them. Gives me a sense of achievement! 

Having to leave the track

Should you go to track training if you have a 10k race the day after? One might say no. But I was tempted to do it anyway. I hadn’t felt good while running for a while. During the heat wave, the only one I had done had been the Bethel race, and that had been a bit of a scorch fest. It had been fun, but I hadn't felt dynamic. And when it cooled down and I could go for a leisurely run again, it just didn't feel right. My legs were made of lead.

Given the forecast for the track was lots of cloud and even some rain, I thought the conditions would be perfect. And on the track, I tend to feel quite good. I thought it would be nice to feel good while running before the race, to boost my confidence. So I went.

When I left the house it was indeed beautifully cloudy, but I soon left the cloud and ended up in the sun. I was a bit worried about that, given I had got burnt in the hills over a week earlier. I had brought sunscreen, though. Factor 50! I had tried to buy sunblock, but for some strange reason, supermarkets seemed to have sold out…

I gave myself a generous dose of sunscreen and got onto the track. It was quite hot. I was a bit worried about that.

After the warming up, the session was: run a kilometre, rest a minute, run 400 meters faster, then jog for 200 m to do it all again after 2.5 minutes. And then twice more.

After the first set I knew I needed to do something about the sun. I had some tape in my bag, and decided to stick that to my shoulders. It would probably block the sun quite effectively. This took me more than the 2.5 minute break, so I missed the first lap of the second set. But when we stopped after the second kilometre (600m for me), I saw I was blistering in spite of sunscreen and tape. And the sun did not show any signs of disappearing. I decided to abort. I had only done the warmup, the drills, and 2 km, but so be it! This wasn't healthy.

I was really hoping that the day after, the weather forecast would actually be correct! Because one thing was sure: I was not going to run 10k in the sun…

In full screen mode you can see the blisters

Dr Claire

 I had taken the Monday off. I looked forward to not going to Menai Bridge. And then an email came: my former colleague Claire would have her viva that day, and I was invited to celebrate with her afterwards in the pub. And I like Claire! She covered for my colleague Mollie when she went on parental leave. He interrupted her PhD for that by a year. She did a fine job. We also hung out socially. We did a memorable walk just after a race, when my IT bands were not collaborating at all. We also had done a walk with my other colleague Katie. And she had a whole bunch of us over for a games night. So I wanted to come. Even on my day off. 

I decided to bike. I don’t like biking to almost work (the pub is some 600m from the office) but now that the weather was finally good for biking again it would be a pity to drive. 

I got to the pub and didn’t see any of the celebrants. When I checked my email I saw that there was an update: everyone was in the coffee area, having cake. Oh dear! It was my day off. I hadn’t brought my key card. How would I get into the building? 

I phoned the person who had sent the update, but she didn’t answer. I tried three more. One answered, but he was at home. Finally, the first person saw she had a missed call, phoned me back, and let me in. Success! 

Now I could go and congratulate the new doctor. (Yes I know, she still has to do corrections.) I was also introduced to her partner Tom. And soon we went to the pub. ‘We’ included her external supervisor and external examiner. Excellent! 

We sat outside, because we could. Claire was clearly feeling a bit strange. That’s normal after finishing something that big! And someone had prepared shag stickers. Her PhD was about sea birds, and she are a good candidate if you want to get some light relief out of them. After one drink we relocated to a nearby pizza place for dinner. British vivas take hours; I bet she was hungry.

My ‘Honk if you love a shag’ sticker! 

It was funny that in the restaurant there was a bit of a buzz about Effi. A lot of people either had already seen it, or were really keen to see it. I have never experienced such excitement about a Welsh film!

I was quite aware of having to bike home again, so after that pizza I said my goodbyes and left. Claire is staying at the University, be it on main campus, so we will be able to keep seeing her!