RACE 29 - RUNNERS NEED G3 SERIES - 25 June

Now this race is a bit of a faux pas.  I decided with the summer upon us (yes rain, high winds ~ well it is Wimbledon fortnight so what do you expect?) that I should begin to pack a few more races in.  So this week I'd planned for a nice 10k run through the North Downs ~ hilly but beautiful, and then a triathlon not that far away in Dartford.  No long distances to travel, easy to get to ~ what could go wrong?  What I'd failed to do was check the times of the events.  The 10k was  at seven pm not am as I'd expected and the triathlon started at seven in the morning the following day.  So instead of having 24 hours to recover, I'd managed to book two events in 12 hours.  Whoops ~ what a Muppet!!


Oh well nothing to be done about it so a little about the race itself.  It is part of the Runners Need (running shop chain that acts as sponsors) G3 (no I've no idea what it stands for) series.  It starts and finishes at Newlands corner, SE of Guildford which is at the heart of the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.  The route covers the scenic and beautiful countryside following forest trails and woodland sandy tracks, exploring the north side of the downs, weaving through the bracken tracks and over some hills. The route is on; http://connect.garmin.com/player/85366690 The G3 series as a whole "boast hills, mud, sand and more hills! Expect some pain..." And yes it lived up to expectations on that front!

The following information is from Surrey Wildlife Trust.  Newlands Corner is a popular reserve with superb views of the surrounding countryside. There are 103 hectares (255 acres) of open chalk downland and peaceful woodlands to explore. The woodlands here are mixed, with some deciduous trees like oak and birch, plus evergreen yew. Some of the yew trees are hundreds of years old. The woods shelter roe deer and are home to green woodpeckers, nuthatches and tawny owls.

Newlands Corner lies on the chalk ridge of the North Downs at a height of over 170m (500ft). The Downs command fine views across the Weald to the ridge of the South Downs. Below the slope from Newlands car park lies the village of Albury.

In spring and summer, the chalk grassland is a spectacular carpet of wild flowers. In the past the grasslands were grazed, and nowadays they are mown once a year after the plants have set seed. This keeps the grassland open and stops scrubby plants invading.  It also forms part of the North Downs Way. 


About two miles to the east lies the Silent Pool, in a shady hollow surrounded by box trees. It was  probably an old chalk quarry fed by underground springs and would have been a precious source of pure water in days gone by. The pool and nearby Sherbourne Pond became home to many different species of aquatic life and one can often glimpse the blue flash of a kingfisher as  it darts across the water. More recently the pool has had a tendency to dry out due to the springs  feeding the Pool suffering from the lower than average annual rainfall. 


Silent Pool has always been a popular place to visit and many feel an eerie stillness looking out over the still water surrounded by the evergreen box trees. "Legend has it that this is due to the fate of a woodcutter’s daughter who was surprised by a nobleman on a horse as she bathed in the pool. Having failed to lure her to the bank, he rode his horse into the water and caused the girl to move out to deeper water where she drowned. When the woodcutter returned and found her body, he also found the nobleman’s hat floating on the water. It bore the crest of none other than Prince John!"  There is also a link to Agatha Christie as during her disappearance her car was found in the car park at the Silent Pool. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agatha_Christie#Disappearance

Drove Road (where we actually park) is also a fairly good site for amateur astronomy as it is one of the closest 'dark sky' sites to the centre of London. With a downhill ridge facing south, you can see constellations such as Orion and Gemini in winter. Once or twice a year the Guildford Astronomical Society and other local societies hold public events at Newland's Corner with about 25 telescopes and 150 members of the public in attendance (see their website for details http://www.guildfordas.org/)


These reserves are privately owned by the Albury Estate. Surrey Wildlife Trust manages the area under an access agreement between the Albury Estate and Surrey County Council. http://www.surreywildlifetrust.org/reserves/show/8


While 'googling' I also found this ~ http://www.boxertrix.com/ which is the UK home for riders of BMW's sporty boxer motorcycles.  It seems that is a popular meeting spot as "quite a lot of old classic bikes congregate at Newlands Corner. The average age of the bikers here also tends to be a bit higher than those who meet down the road at Box Hill. It's not an exclusively biker spot, so you get lots of families walking or bicycling through the hills. On site there is a popular cafe selling a range of hot and cold drinks and food. The egg, bacon and tomato roll is a classic of it's kind. There are several picnic benches near the cafe, or you could go and sit on the hill to the south of the car park admiring the view whilst scoffing your breakfast".  Maybe if I have another mid-life crisis I should take up this instead ~ it'll be a little less energetic!


Finally, back to the race.  Saturday started as humid and overcast, but once the sun came out in the afternoon it soon began to heat up and became hot and humid ~ perfect race conditions ....not!  The thermometer was saying 25c with hardly a breath of a breeze.  As I wasn't sure about the traffic on a Saturday afternoon I set off in plenty of time knowing that I could always have a pre-race walk in the beauty spot.  Blasting down the A3 (keeping within all the speed limits obviously) I got to Newlands Corner with an hour and a half to spare due to light traffic.  They were just setting up the venue so I had a little toddle and took a few photos of the magnificent views.  True to recent form I'd forgotten something ~ this time any liquids.  Knowing that there was a shop on site I hadn't bothered to stop on the way which was a mistake as it wasn't open.

Very friendly organisational set up with the three ladies giving out the timing chips and race numbers also getting pre-race nerves as they were taking part too.  Then at 7pm we were off. The course was deceptive, as it was a gentle downhill run over pretty firm ground, turn left for a steep-ish section and then back along the side of the valley following the contours. I think the ease of the start caught some people out as they went off at some pace and faded quite badly on the first up hills.  Down into the bottom of the valley and then the first of the hills. This was steep but along reasonable firm ground before crossing Guildford Lane and then the pain really began.  It was then onto loose sandy trails, very steeply up hill.  I remember these from the 'Hard of Snails' race I did last year and will be doing again in August. They are really energy sapping and many people resorted to walking up. This is St Martha's Hill which is surmounted by a church of the same name.

St Martha's Hill is a prominent hill on the Greensand Ridge providing good views of Newland's Corner and on a clear day, you can see eight counties. The site contains several Megalithic and Neolithic artifacts, dating from as far back as 3500 BC. There are five, barely discernible, circular banks with external ditches which have been declared Scheduled Ancient Monuments by English Heritage.

There is a traditional belief that the original name of this hill was Saints and Martyrs Hill, the martyr being St Thomas of Canterbury. St Martha's Church (also known as St Martha-on-the-Hill) sits on the top of the hill and is accessible only by foot. It lies on the Pilgrims' Way. Parts of the structure have existed since the 12th century and it may have been built as a landmark or beacon to assist travellers. Its current dedication to Saint Martha is one of the few in England. 

The sandy hillside is clothed in woodland. Part of the 60 hectare site has a rare mixture of plant species and is designated a Site of Special Scientific interest. There is also an area called the Arboretum where, in 1900, the owners of the Albury estate planted exotic cedars, spruces and other softwood trees. On hot summer days, this hill is a place to catch a glimpse of Adder snakes which, though poisonous, are more afraid of us than we are of them and will quickly try to get away if they sense our presence.  More information on the Surrey Wildlife Trust and Wikipedia:  http://www.surreywildlifetrust.org/reserves/show/77 & 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Martha's_Hill

Needless to say none of this was making much impression as I struggled up.  Mercifully there was a water station at the top as I was dripping at this point (I know, too much information....)  Then it was down the other side back into the valley and then ~ you've guessed it straight back up the other side.  I saw some evidence of the work the wildlife trust are doing, some recently and beautifully laid hedges.  Spurred on by friendly marshals with a not entirely accurate exhortation of it being the final hill, we passed the 7km mark.  Basically the remainder was uphill, but more of the incline range of steepness rather than the full-blown serious gradient.


Crossed the line with a bit of a whimper, just outside the 50 minutes.  There were some remarkably fresh looking finishers already there but as more and more crossed the line, they looked a lot more like I felt ~ totally wrung out!  A opportunistic ice cream van had turned up so it was an ice lolly which cooled me down a little.  Had to sit on a tarpaulin on the way home as I was so sweaty, arriving back at 9:15. Jump into the shower (pure bliss), quick meal, pack the car for the following day (this time using a list), set the alarm for 4am and into bed by 10:30.    

RESULT: 24th out of 89 in a time of 50.03

PS ~ just found out they do free downloads of your pictures - amazing value!  Some of the events photographers charge up to £12 per image whereas this event only cost £16 including photos!