Paintedrunner, INVINCIBLE until proven otherwise: February 2016

Monday 22 February 2016

Helmsley Habit (Ripon Runner's social run)

The Helmsley Habit was organised by Simon

and Andy as a Ripon Runner's social run. It was a mixed ability run and 23 of us turned up on a dreary morning in Helmsley, at least it wasn't foggy as it had been coming over the top of Sutton Bank, it was just mizzerly. I arrived just in time, paid to park and ran to meet the others. I realised Id left my phone on the car seat in my haste, so ran back to get it missing the group photo, but thankfully not delaying the run.

We set off along the Cleveland Way, but we're not on it long before a split in the tracks and a regroup.

We now left the Cleveland Way and stayed on the main track until we were directed left, left and left again, this time we went straight up to a road and crossed it. Around a field to another road.

Mind the snowdrops

We headed along the lane towards Reivaux Abbey, and turned down through the woods.

After regrouping at the bottom of the steep muddy track, we crossed the road, away from the Abbey. A little further up the track we had a lovely clear view of it along the valley.

So we stopped a while to admire it.

More mud and woods and a couple of inclines later, we emerged onto a road, we ran along the road a short while.

We stopped again by a cottage, and met Paul, Matt and Doug out recce ing the Hardmoors 110/55 route, so we chatted a while.

A slight incline lead us back onto the Cleveland Way

Through a wood and dejavu, hmm! Had we been here before?

We left the Cleveland Way again and headed towards Duncombe Park on a concrete track.

You could see buildings through the trees

We ran around the outside of the park, through fresh cut logs, towards a river. Where it seems Simon likes to rest a while.

We ran to the left of the river

Steps and mud, mud and grassed, the miles passed by as the Abbey/Castle at Helmley came into view.

Quite an impressive ruin

Back into the lovely historic town

To the cars. Run over. And a lovely run it was too.

A social run, for all abilities in a nice new location. Thank you Simon and Andy for organising it. And thank you Ripon Runners for a great morning out.

Saturday 20 February 2016

Hardmoors 55 recce, Osmotherly to the White Horse and back

Today Tony and I met at 09:30 in Osmotherley

and set off on foot to the White Horse above Kilburn.

I had mapped the route and sent it to my Garmin yesterday.

We set off down an alley across a lane and then onto a slabbed path. Then done some muddy steps (Pauls Steps) across a little bridge, then the first of the mud started a muddy slope to test the tread on our trainers. We continued to work our way upwards, through fields and down lanes, past and some barking dogs towards a small reservoir.

More mud and then slabs leading us up to Square Corner. We had been able to see scattered snow on the hills and we were now getting closer to it, the lane was slushy but the views were great

We ran along the lane, this was a nice bit, even if it was a bit uneven under my dodgy ankle.

5 miles in we came across a sign that told us how far we had come.

We carried on along the lane, along the wall, beside a pinewood to Paradise Farm. Now there was a Tarmac hill before more mud. The next few miles were quite a slog through the muddy fields with the wind in our faces.

This cliff reminded me of Malham Cove from a distance. It's great going out on these recces and seeing stuff I've never seen before and that not many people will see. We ran over the cliff still running towards Sutton Bank, where we would decide whether to turn back or carry on to the White Horse.

The wind was cruel but the skeletal trees afforded more than expected cover.

We stopped to admire Gormire Lake, my dad took me to the lake once when I was a kid, we were close to Sutton Bank now

We went along the cycle tracks as they were easier going than the muddy footpath through the trees to the view point.

We could here someone calling, just around the corner a lady was looking for her lost dog, it had run off after something, I asked her the type, I thought she said Chihuahua but she said a ginger lurcher. I hope she found it.

We the ran to Sutton Bank visitor centre so I could use the toilets there. We then decided to run the mile to the White Horse.

Oh boy it was windy on the exposed cliff top, there were no gliders flying today. But the view never fail to impress me from up there, just how far you can see, you can see right across the Vale of York.

We were very soon above the White Horse looking over Kildale.

We went down the steps to the carpark

That's the Horse's bum.

You get to the bottom at the carpark and it's now a headless horse.

Over 13 miles done, now to head back.so we retraced our steps.

As we headed back the weather started to change for the worse, and before long the wind seemed to change direction too coming from the side but feeling as if it was a head wind.

Above the cliff that looks like Malham but smaller there are a couple of sink holes.

The views were slightly different from this direction, I was memorising it all for the big day

More narrow paths and slogging through mud

Trying to convince tired legs and achy ankles to do a few more miles, jogging flats and downs and hiking the ups and muddy or uneven sections.

We met fellow Hardmoors athletes who we had seen earlier in the day and stopped for a chat, great to meet James and the ladies. We couldn't chat all day, so we went off in our opposite directions.

Nearly home and mainly downhill from here. Back to Square Corner where a man held the gate. We thanked him, then he said "Bet you were looking forwards to a stop there" how right he was.

Going back down the muddy slope was tricky, for me, Tony managed it really well. As we got to the top of Pauls Steps, the name plate was under a rock, I thought it looked like a sausage dog. Tony thought I was mad. But that was it, recce over, we were back in Osmotherly.