Grizzly Training Report 22 Jan 2012


Sunday’s run was one of several runs cross country style on Dartmoor preparing us for the arduous Grizzly in March along the South Devon coast.

The organisers were the Bere Alston Trekkers running club which teamed up with its close neighbour the Tavistock Athletics Club.

Although not too breezy in Plymouth the heights of Dartmoor in the Whitchurch area of Dartmoor near Tavistock exposed us to the wind in a big way.

Although the terrain was very wet the rain held off, which was just as well because running into the wind was hard enough and cold.

At one point a floating raft of innocent looking bright green mossy stuff caught one runner out and sucked him down by one leg right up to his thighs until Guy heaved him out. Dave’s faithful dog Mollie must have wondered if her faith in him was misplaced because she sunk half way into the bog also before being pulled to safety.

There were multiple falls in the slippery conditions and we soon gave up trying to avoid getting wet running shoes.

The route took us through Princetown and the windiest section along the old railway. We also followed a leat which looked easy until it took us through more marshy conditions. Nothing was what it looked like at first. The safest approach was to wait behind others and see if they sunk in the guey mud or in the wet clutches of a marsh, so as to avoid being laughed at by unsympathetic runners as you fell. Often those who laughed were also soon caught out.

Others also lost their shoes to the mud and some got too cold and had to be loaned clothes. It is best to be prepared for anything on Dartmoor.

Neil went back with the ten-mile group when his cold got too much – what a brave little soldier! Dave and Guy persevered and completed the planned 16-mile run or trudge – to be rewarded with a home made fantastic cake made by Dotty who is Trekkers’ endurance coach.

Fellow Trekker Julian told us if we could manager that nearly four-hour terrain then we could complete the tough multi-terrain Grizzly!

By Guy