Pentland Skyline report

[Tim]

Well done Tim, another really interesting insight into what some might call "real running".
Andy

Don't know about "real" running. There was an awful lot of walking done yesterday!

I finished off Feet In The Clouds recently, after a break from it,

andy

How could you not read it all in one go??

and have begun to realise the reputation of some of these races - particularly the Ben Nevis that you reported on. I don't suppose I'll ever get to take part in these races (particularly things like the Nevis race that has pretty stiff entry conditions - yes, I checked!) but I definitely intend doing some off-roaders next year, and I'll see where that takes me.
andy

Well, Richard Askwith is like any other runner, he can't resist talking up his achievements (and the difficulty of his runs). Sure, Ben Nevis is a slog but unless you've aiming to challenge the elites, it's pretty straightforward. It just takes a certain pigheaded determination. Of course I was lucky with the weather so that made it relatively "easy" this year.

BTW, what's the difference between all these designations - off-road, trail, cross-country, fell..... Are they just different words for the same thing?

andy

Well, "Fell" = Hill running. Cross-country means running several times around a boggy field with variable amounts of mud and short steep hills. "Trail" generally means any event that avoids tarmac but isn't hilly enough to be a hill or fell race.

Hill and fell races may involve a degree of personal risk from exposure and/or falling off of something. You're unlikely to die during a cross-country race although you might wish you had!

HTH.

Tim