Technically, it's all downhill: The Tyne Trail Ultra 75km

Since childhood days, when family holidays would involve piling into my dad's van for day trips, I've always loved Northumberland. From the stunning coastline to the wild hills of the Cheviots, it is a magical place, When I came across the Tyne Tyne Trail Ultra, a race running from the source of the North Tyne to its meeting with the South Tyne close to Hexham, signing up was a no-brainer. What could be better than a day running the length of one of the most beautiful counties in England? Not only that, but the timing was perfect and the run would make excellent preparation for the sterner test of the UT100 in a few weeks.

Then, a few weeks ago, I knocked my training right out of kilter so rather than turning up for the Tyne Trail Race fit and ready to go, I was far from ready for such a long distance. Thankfully, this one had a generous cut-off time of 15 hours, so I was more or less confident that I could finish within the allotted time.

We made the best of the weekend by staying with our friends Ben and Rachael, who live in an idyllic spot on the hills south of the Tyne. This meant that I was able to get to the end point of the race by seven in the morning without too much hassle. There a coach took us to Kielder Castle, where the official race check-in took place. I got my race number and a satellite tracker was taped to the shoulder strap of my race pack. There was a bit of a gap before the race briefing, so I bought a coffee and an excellent piece of flapjack from the Castle Cafe (it is an excellent place for a visit if you are in the area) and took my obligatory pre-race selfie.

After the safety briefing, we all piled back into the coach and headed about three miles north to the actual source of the North Tyne, which is in an unremarkable field right on the border with Scotland. The race was due to kick off at ten, but we were all ready by ten-to and rather than stand around and feed the midgies for another ten minutes we set off a little early - fine by me, that extra ten minutes might be useful at the end of the day.

The source of the "mighty" Tyne

Deadwater to Kielder Dam: 15 miles (ish)

From the start, we jogged down a hill to join the track of an abandoned railway line (which would be with us for much of the route), which took us back into Kielder. I was running fairly well at 12-minute mile pace - nice and steady with a long day to go. After a couple of miles, my calves really tightened up, but they eased off about six miles in. Somewhere around Kielder village, I caught up with a couple of lads who were running their first ultra. Not only that, but they were running the full 140km distance of the Tyne to the sea - I was packing up after a mere 75km at the watersmeet. I jogged along with them for a while but found myself on my own a few miles later. Shortly afterwards, I found myself running alongside two women, Helen and Kelly; in the end, I finished the race with them, which was a great help. Kelly had flown over from Northern Ireland to run what as to be her first (and only) ultra, while Helen had grown up in mid-Northumberland and new the race route intimately - something that came in very handy further down the line. 

The route took us along the side of the Kielder reservoir down to the car park by the dam where there was the first aid station which we reached in about three hours, which put me an hour ahead of schedule. We replenished our water supplies, grabbed a bite to eat and set off after five minutes or so.

Kielder Dam to Bellingham: 12 miles (ish)

The trek across the mile-long dam was a bit of a grind; pancake flat tarmac. I know road runners like that sort of thing, but those of us who run in the fells like a bit of up and down and we don't like tarmac.

The start of this section was accompanied by some wonderful, long-distance views of the Northumberland hills (did I say that I like Northumberland). We jogged along, enjoying the views, chatting a bit and encouraging each other to keep a good pace.

After a few miles, we caught up to two runners (Michael and Philippa) who had left the aid station a while before us. They were at a crossroads on the trail and seemed to be unsure of which way to go. Here, Helen's local knowledge (and the fact that she'd run the race a couple of year's earlier) came to the fore and she pointed all of us in the right direction. Our group of three became five and we finished the race together. 

Somewhere in this section, the route took us through Helen's parents' farm and they had left a bag with cans of coke and mars bars by the path - an extra aid station - magic! Helen's daughter had also left a smashing encouraging note for her mum.

There isn't actually a path along the whole length of the North Tyne, so at times we had to follow roads or take diversions over hills (overall, we climbed over 3,000 foot in the day). Eventually, we dropped down to the river bank and jogged into Bellingham, which seemed to be moving away from us every time we got close to it).

The aid station in Bellingham (pronounced belling-jam ish) was in the village hall and provided us with coffee and the best roast potatoes I've ever eaten. They also had toilets - though whoever suggested that the gents' loo should be down a flight of stairs had clearly never run an ultramarathon. By this time, Kelly was getting some pain in one of her feet. She was joking about it, but was clearly in some distress, so she took a bit of time to sort it out before setting off again.

Bellingham to Wark: 8 miles (ish)

This was the shortest section of the race and we started off walking along the river bank getting back into the swing of things after the break. Some people do these sorts of distances by adopting a scientific approach of so many minutes running with a short walking break. I tend to be of the opinion that I always walk up hills and then run the rest. Though after twenty-something miles, anything that doesn't slope downwards can count as a hill!

The weather forecast for the day was that there would be a fifty per cent chance of showers, what we actually got was something close to one hundred per cent drizzle, with an absolute downpour at one point (which occurred just after I had declared that the weather was improving). 

The last mile or so into Wark was along the road and I noticed that there were a couple of dog walkers standing by the road ahead of us. I didn't recognise the people, but the dog looked familiar. As I got closer, I realised that it was Sue and Rachael who had come to cheer us on. Sue let Zaro off the lead and for a hundred meters or so, I got to run with my usual running buddy - it made me insanely happy (and he seemed to enjoy it).

It was great to see Sue, who had been following us on the satellite tracking system. I think she was surprised at how well I was doing. Actually, I was surprised - we'd got to Wark about three hours ahead of my tentative schedule.

At Wark, I made the bold decision to take my waterproof off and replace it with a long-sleeved merino top - the weather did seem to be clearing.

Wark to Warden: 12 miles (ish)

With just under a half-marathon to go (or four park runs as Michael and Pip described it), we set off with the evening sky brightening just a little. This last section was definitely undulating and, sadly, the vast majority of it was on road. You can make a good pace on roads, but they hurt your feet and they just aren't as nice as off-road trails and fells.

I think the rainbow does indicate that we got a bit of sun

By now, Kelly's foot was really hurting her and a chronic back problem was adding to her distress. I'm not sure how she managed to get through the last eight miles - it's one of the gutsiest things I've seen anyone do. At one point she grimly laughed that it was hurting so much that she'd even stopped swearing. We made a mutual, unspoken decision, that we wouldn't try and run any further and that we'd walk to the finish to stick with Kelly. 

We dropped down through Chollerton, crossed the Tyne at Chollerford and took the military road past Chesters fort before turning off on the road down to Warden. By now it was dusk and Helen and I both put our head torches on, not so much because we needed them, but to give some warning to the boy racers of Northumberland who seemed to be out in good number. 

About a mile out of Warden, a walker heading in the opposite direction made a rude comment and I realised that it was my friend Ben who had come up to meet us. We finally got to the finish at the Boatside Inn at around 10.15. The last section was by far the slowest. However, we all managed to jog into the pub garden where race t-shirts, medals, hot soup and cold lager were waiting!

Not looking too bad after 47 miles

Some Reflections

• I'm fitter than I thought I was. We finished almost three hours faster than I expected and I felt pretty good at the end. This bodes well for the UT100 at the end of June, though I am well aware that that is considerably longer and over far tougher terrain. Still, if I can do 75km in just over 12 hours, I should be able to manage 100 tough km in 24, shouldn't I?
• Ultra-running is as much about companionship as it is about running. Teaming up with complete strangers and then encouraging one another, telling bad jokes and pushing each other to go just a little faster is fantastic.
• Endorphins are an amazing drug - there were times when I simply couldn't stop smiling, I was enjoying myself so much.
• I've learned to manage nutrition and hydration, but my race organisation is rubbish. I ate something every five miles or so; an energy bar, gel or mini pork pie (my salty food of choice) and I drank about a litre between each aid station - water and Tailwind. However, I did struggle to ensure that I had easy access to the food. The side pockets in my Montaine race vest aren't great (I wore a bum-bag to compensate for this) and I sometimes had to take my pack off and scrabble around to find food in the main compartment. I need to be better organised at moving things from the main bag to places where I can find them when I stop at aid stations.
• The Tyne Trail Ultra is a great race; low key, friendly and very well organised. To be honest, there was more road running that I would have wanted, but that is unavoidable given the aim of following the river. It would be a perfect first ultra for anyone looking to make a start at distance running - and the finishers' t-shirt is smashing.