Stainland 7 - Stainland - Sunday 5th September
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En route to the Stainland 7 I found myself repeating the name of this settlement until it became a dramatic proclaimation of two seperate words in an exaggerated Amercian accent. Welcome to
Stain Land. Glaconboy found this very amusing and started to join in. We did this over-and-over again until it ceased to be funny. To Mrs Glacon at least. She must feel like the single-mother of two boys at times. And by that I mean most-of-the-time.
After registration I had a quick trot around the back of the village until the last 3 miles of the course opened-up below. It then occured to me that I used to use this valley as a cut-through to get to my Mum's when she lived in Krumlin. Another great name. And once the venue of an obscure 60s Rock festival. It also occurred to me how testing the last few miles of this race would be. I went back in a hurry just to make sure that Mrs Glacon didn't see what I'd just seen; not until she was finishing the race at least.
If you like your running hilly and on road then the stainland 7 is a crazy mix of hill running that will well-and-truly light your fire. It begins with 1.5 miles of downhill. It's just the right gradient to allow fast running at it's freest. But there's silence on the road. People are enjoying the experience, but there's a common understanding of what running downhill means. This comes in the form of a 2.5 mile climb. Not much more to say really. When you get to the top you feel, not empty, but as though your best running is most definitely behind you.
Next the staged descent that plunges you into the heart of a typically intimate, South Pennine valley. Full of industrial and historical mystery. Now the gradient is uncomfortabley steep as you battle with the cobblestones, unsure whether to let yourself go and risk ruining your quads or turning an ankle at speed.
And lastly the staged ascent over about three sections. The sort of ascents that are only seen in 2D. All other visual cues are excluded. We just see up.
This race is what running is all about for me. The times incomparable and meaningless. The shared experience amongst the runners demonstated with a shake of the head and a glint in the eye.
Next stop
The Ilkley Incline.
