Joss Naylor Lakeland Challenge
Introduction
The Joss Naylor Lakeland Challenge route leaves Pooley Bridge to traverse 30 summits over a distance of 48 miles and climbs 16,000 feet (77km, 4877m).
The inaugural run from Pooley Bridge to Wasdale was made by Joss Naylor in 1990, at the age of 54; in very bad weather with heavy rain and a strong SW wind Joss completed the run to Greendale Bridge in 11 hours and 30 minutes.
Chris Brasher offered engraved pewter tankards to the first 20 runners to do so with the proviso that they raised at least £100 for a charity of their own choice. In January 1997, with 17 tankards already awarded, Chris extended his sponsorship. In 2001, with 33 tankards awarded, Joss secured on-going sponsorship for the tankards.
The challenge is offered to fell runners over the age of 50 to complete the run in set times according to their age group. The challenge is intended to be a "supported run" for individuals - each contender is to be accompanied on every leg for safety reasons and unaccompanied attempts will not be recognised. There is more information on the Challenge Details page below.
If you are interested, please have a look at the Challenge Details, download a schedule or contact me using the email address on the Challenge Details page.
Wednesday 20 December 2023
Friday 8 December 2023
Craig Stansfield (M55 Repeat) - 09 September 2023
Pooley Bridge |
After a photograph on the bridge we set off from Pooley Bridge at 6am. We didn’t bother with head torches as it was going to come light soon. The weather forecast was to be hot and it didn’t disappoint. We were looking forward to a lovely sunrise, but ended up with clag and spectacular cloud inversions instead. We made steady progress talking about anything and everything. Ticking the tops off as we went. We nearly overshot Rampsgill Head in the clag, but bagged it and we were soon at Thornthwaite Beacon. No spectacular views today. We were soon dropping down to Kirkstone via the tourist path due to the bad visibility. We were 5 minutes down but no issues.
It was nice to meet our greeter at Kirkstone. Who’s name I can’t remember (Rainer Burchett - Ian). A quick feed stop and we headed up Red Screes. We followed some encouraging signs put out by some event team on the climb. I was climbing well and soon we were at the Fairfield summit. The clag had lifted and we were blessed with the first amazing views of the day. Seat Sandal came and went and we were soon at Dunmail. 5 minutes up.
Approaching Great End |
It was lovely to see Lisa and my leg 3 support. Another quick feed of muller rice and a can of coke and we were on our way. Dave and Matt set a good pace up Steel Fell. They were spot on with the nav in the clag. We were soon at High Raise and 12 minutes up. Bowfell is always a tough climb, so I had a gel at the start of the climb. I was still climbing well. We were moving quickly and soon descending Great End and on our way to Styhead. 37 minutes up.
Plenty of food at Styhead. I was feeling good climbing Great Gable. It must have been the jam butties. We made good progress on leg 4 passing a couple of BG supports going the other way. We were soon descending the scree off of Haycock. We were running low on water which was a bit of a problem in the heat. We spotted another challenger in front that had set off 15 minutes before us. The Seatallan climb had been playing on my mind as I wasn’t sure how much I had left in the tank. I tucked in behind Charlie and followed his ankles. We were soon at the summit. The last climb was here. I was climbing well and soon passed the other challenger before the summit. A speedy descent and we were soon in Greendale. In a total time of 12 hours 49 minutes.
I was so happy to see Lisa, my awesome road support.
Monday 4 December 2023
Tom Brunt (M50) - 02 September 2023
Tom Brunt (Dark Peak Fell Runners, V50) – Joss Naylor Lakeland Challenge, September 2, 2023
It was a warm and hazy late summer afternoon on the wonderful limestone hill of Arnside Knott. The Arnside bore had just raced up the estuary flooding the sandbanks and mudflats in a matter of minutes. But my focus was on the skyline of the Lakeland fells - working from right to left I picked out High Street, Stony Cove Pike, Red Screes, Fairfield and Seat Sandal. It is one of my favourite views and today it held a special significance today as just 24 hours earlier I had been running across the rocks, scree and squelching bogs of those peaks in a race against the clock. Stiff and aching legs were a constant reminder of that fact.
24 hours earlier…
I set off from Pooley Bridge at 8:03 (the stray 3 minutes due to some last-minute watch faffing) with Bill Stewart for company. The weather forecast is glorious, perhaps a little too glorious. Even at 8am the sun is strong, and it is clearly going to be a hot day. The first peak, Arthur’s Pike passes without incident and exactly on schedule. The pace feels brisk but manageable as we ascend onto the broad ridge heading south towards High Street. Minor (in some cases very minor) peaks come and go. Below Kidsty Pike early morning mist bubbles up from valleys to the east burning off quickly in the sun. Down into Threshthwaite Mouth and the relief of a walking climb. Up until this point it has been 2 hours of continuous running – the MV50 schedule for the first leg is a stern taskmaster. A good descent into Kirkstone sees us arrive at the carpark to be greeted by Paula (my wife and chief road support) and Rainer Burchett (JNLC reception committee). Apologies to Rainer if we were rather brusque! This was meant to be a two minute stop – in reality it stretched to seven.
Refuelled and doused in water we head off up Red Screes. Bill is on support duties for this next leg too. More food, more drinks and noticeably less chat; instead, we focus on the task at hand. The next climb up to Hart Crag drags – even with the patented Borrowdale Fell Runners Hodgson Relays leg 3 line we only manage to equal the split time. The sun is relentless and any hint of a breeze has disappeared. Up and over Fairfield and then my legs object to the sudden change from steep descending to climbing up Seat Sandal. A twinge of cramp shoots up the inside of my leg – this was not part of the plan. On the summit of Seat Sandal I glance round to check on Bill. A mistake… I catch my foot on a stone and crash unceremoniously to the ground. Every muscle group in my right leg seems to go into some sort of spasm. My left knee is bleeding. I feel nauseous. Gingerly I get back up and walk / jog / trot down to Dunmail not feeling on top form. Time to re-group.
Preparing to leave Dunmail Raise (Swatts, Jack and myself) |
Bill’s work is done for the day and his final selfless act is to give me his two ice-cold cans of coke. They are accompanied with fresh peaches (delicious), and I try to eat, drink and get organised for the next leg as efficiently as possible. Minutes disappear at an alarming rate. Support from here to the finish comes from Stephen Watts (aka SWatts of Pennine Fell Runners – himself a successful JNLC V50 man) and my own Dark Peak clubmate Jack Foxall. The youngest member of the team, BilI’s daughter Tilly (13), is joining us for Steel Fell – she sets off ahead and is soon marching up the fellside looking as though she could carry on to Wasdale. Normally I relish steep walking climbs like Steel Fell but instead I feel lethargic– we are not catching Tilly up. Things take a turn for the worse heading to High Raise negotiating the bogs and knolls along the undulating ridge. Jumping over a boggy area my legs cramp up again. I have no idea how to stretch out my inner thigh. I seem to vaguely remember a technique called the “Naylor Shake” for dealing with cramp, but unfortunately none of us have the faintest idea how to administer a “Naylor Shake”. Instead, I opt for lots of liquid and electrolyte. This section is a low point. It feels as though we are moving through treacle, the air is hot, the ground is wet and boggy and I have taken my eye off the ball with the navigation so we end up (needlessly) on Calf Crag. The final drag to High Raise, descent to Stake Pass and the gentle ascent to Rossett Pike are little better. Mercifully clouds fill in and we are granted some respite from the sun – not a moment too soon. The food and drink start to kick in climbing up Bowfell. Leaving the boggy terrain behind and getting onto the rocky peaks which constitute the most dramatic section of the route – Bowfell to Steeple – is also a boost for morale. This is familiar territory, we get the direct descent line off Great End spot on and meet SWatts’ wife Mel at Sty Head with additional supplies. More peaches (tinned this time) really hit the spot. Mel and SWatts have devoted their wedding anniversary to this run – impressive commitment to the cause. Similarly, Jack has rearranged his weekend plans at short notice to support and travelled up from Sheffield this morning. I feel a strong sense of obligation not to let the support crew down.
Leaving Sty Head I am about 30 minutes down on my 11:40 schedule so I need to claw back at least 10 minutes, preferably a bit more to avoid an anxious final descent to Greendale Bridge. The best place to start is the long slog up Great Gable. We gain 3 minutes which is a real morale booster. The sun comes back out but doesn’t have the intensity of earlier in the day; the air feels cooler. The cramps seem to have gone – touch wood the salts and drinks have worked, and although my legs are feeling wooden on the descents I am still climbing strongly. SWatts and Jack are having to work hard to keep up on the climbs – I take this to be another encouraging sign. A few more minutes are gained against the schedule on both Kirk Fell and Pillar. Little by little my confidence is rising. I keep pushing hard on the climbs. Scoat Fell comes and goes, Steeple too – a wonderful spot in the evening sunlight. Grassier terrain leads up to Haycock and then the delightful trod across to Seatallan. The mental arithmetic of times and schedules and splits has been proving difficult, but I arrive at the trig point after exactly 11 hours. Even in its current fuzzy state my brain can work out that leaves me 1 hour (well, 59 minutes) to make it to the finish. For the first time I feel pretty much certain that I’m going to make it. Legs complain down the steep drop off Seatallan, and then just Middle Fell, an understated gem of a hill, is all that remains. I can see two figures on the summit. I know SWatts is one and realise that the other is Paula who has spent the day doing all the unsung road support tasks. It’s great to see her on the final hill. We take a minute to admire the view in stunning evening light and all trot down together.
I reach Greendale Bridge 11 hours and 47 minutes after leaving Pooley Bridge. Hard work; it had been in the balance for much of the way, but that made the eventual success all the sweeter.
Seatallan and Haycock from Middle Fell – Jack and I are just about visible… |
Jack and I reaching the top of Middle Fell. |
Many thanks to:
Bill Stewart (Borrowdale Fell Runners) – Legs 1 and 2
Stephen Watts (SWatts, Pennine Fell Runners) – Legs 3 and 4
Jack Foxall (Dark Peak Fell Runners) -Legs 3 and 4
Paula Gould (chief road support and Middle Fell)
Mel Watts (additional road support and Sty Head)
Tilly Stewart (Steel Fell)
Louise Stewart (additional road support)
The obligatory team photo on Greendale Bridge – Swatts, myself, Jack and Mel |
Friday 1 December 2023
Andrew Merrick (M60) - 11 August 2023
Wednesday 29 November 2023
Chris Smallman (M60) - 08 July 2023
At 5am on Saturday 8th July, I met up with Alistair Hearn and Ian Hewett in the car park at Pooley Bridge for the start of my Joss Naylor Challenge. After a quick photo on Pooley Bridge itself and with sufficient light, so no need for head torches, we set off on my 17.5 hour schedule. On this first leg the weather was being very kind, warm and with a lovely breeze which meant the visibility of the summits was clear and distinctive. Underfoot was very dry so managed to gain time on the schedule and hit Kirkstone Pass 25 minutes ahead.
After an approximate 10 minute break and having an unexpected meet and greet from Rainer I headed off up Red Screes with Alistair Hearn, Ian Stephenson, Alex Kirby and Alan Bland. After summiting Red Screes we ascended Hart Crag increasing my lead by 45 minutes. This I felt was going to be very beneficial as I knew the next two legs were going to be the hardest. Again another productive leg which saw us arriving into Dunmail at 11.02, now being 50 minutes ahead of schedule and the weather was still holding for us.
Here I took a 15-minute break, refuelled and then started the ascent up Steel Fell with two fresh new pacers in Josie Greenhalgh and Marcus Taylor. Everything was still going ahead of schedule until we hit Bowfell where I started to struggle with stomach issues and cramp. With the help of Josie giving me salt tablets and Marcus firing coke into me and both urging me on I pushed on. Near the top of Sty Head I vomited which cleared my stomach and made me feel a lot better and hit the top ready and willing to hit leg 4. Here I was met by James McLaughlin, Chris Wright and Stephanie Wilson. Stephanie had climbed up from Wasdale Head to bring extra supplies, James had climbed up from Greendale Bridge and Chris had climbed up from Honister Slate Mine.
James, Chris and myself then headed off to ascend Great Gable once on the summit we were greeted with thunder, lightning and torrential rain. I was now feeling a lot better and still making good time even though the visibility was now pretty poor, we also still managed to navigate the last summits without any errors. After descending off Middle Fell, the last summit, we ran to Greendale Bridge ahead of my scheduled time in 16 hours 18 minutes being met by Stephanie who had run back into Wasdale and Sarah Smallman, my wife. We were pretty drenched by this time but happy to have completed it.
I would just like to say a big thank you to all of my support crew but especially a big thank you to my wife as this would not have been possible without her.
Saturday 25 November 2023
Glynn Jones (M70) - 17 July 2023
Last time (24 days before) everything was right except the weather: 60 mph winds for a retreat from Hart Crag the first (in June 2022) my fitness wasn't good enough and I was 14 minutes over the 24 hours. This time it had to work I would not be enticed into a fourth attempt! Not even by my keen band of 4 who have helped me to refocus my life after Barbara died in 2020: Jane Meeks, Gary Baum, Helene and Jonny Whitaker. All younger, fitter, and more talented than me. All lovely people. Would their kindness stretch to the slow pace of a 70-year-old with a gammy knee?
It did! Although my lack of bravery on the descents (I have osteoporosis) must have exasperated them. You who read this will know that the JNLC has 17,000 feet of descent and it's 49 miles (the most rough and steep bits coming after half-time, when quads are turning to jelly and knee joints to wood) descending anything more than 20° slope has not been a joy for me for the last 30 years, but I will not describe my tribulations of this challenge’s descents - slippery rock on Gable and Kirk Fell gave me a tumble several times - or this account will become a lament instead of a swansong. My team managed magnificently and had done their homework thoroughly. Thank you Jane, Helene, Gary, Jonny. It was an honour to be supported by you and a wonderful 23 hours 46 minutes for me.Wednesday 22 November 2023
Anne Daykin (W65) - 01 July 2023
Soon we’re down at Kirkstone, and I sit on a towel in Teresa’s van drinking a pint of tea while she makes me scrambled eggs. Off up Red Screes, into the weather again. The cloud is down and it’s confusing on Hart Crag, so Katy gets out the map and compass. No hanging around on Fairfield, the wind is ferocious and the cloud is still down. From Seat Sandal, Teresa sprints off to Dunmail Raise to let them know we’re coming.
Scrambled Eggs at Kirkstone (Photo-Teresa de Curtis) |
Leg 3 and the wind is getting worse. Strong enough to impede walking and blow you off balance. “We won’t be running much in this” I say, at the top of Steel Fell. It is what it is, the time doesn’t matter, we just have to keep moving and we’ll get there in the end. I take the lead, though Nikki warns me when I’m veering too far to the right up High Raise. I planned to follow the grassy trod all the way below Rossett Pike and just nip up onto the summit from directly below, but I head into the rocks instead. Everything is greasy in the wet, and I paid for my lapse when my foot slipped and a boulder savaged a large area of skin from the side of my leg. I’m lucky it’s just a surface wound. After Bowfell it doesn’t feel far to Styhead, in spite of the wind. We choose the direct route off Great End and Matthew sprints ahead, but they’ve seen us coming anyway.
In the Wind on Fairfield. (Photo-Teresa de Curtis) |
In the Wind on Great Gable (Photo-Nikki Hamerton) |
Air Ambulance in Action, descending Great Gable (Photo-Nikki Hamerton) |
Still in the Wind on Middle Fell (Photo-Abby Tighgeal) |
Onwards towards Pillar, my legs feel strong but my pockets are filling up with things I’ve taken a bite of and can’t finish. Abby keeps passing me squares of Kendal Mint Cake, and we keep on going. It’s so nice to get past Steeple, off the rocks, and suddenly we’re running again, down the lovely grassy descent off Scoat Fell. Either by good luck or good judgement, we avoid all the bogs between Haycock and Seatallan (I hadn’t been able to recce a good line because it’s been so dry recently) and suddenly here we are on Middle Fell. Steady away on the final descent, same as we’d done the last 16.5 hours. Now isn’t the time to fall over, and I don’t want to overdo it and feel like a mess at the end. Lovely little group waiting on the bridge to cheer me home – what a great day out!
Coming down to Greendale Bridge (Photo-Ian Charters) |
Official finishing time is 16 hours 32 minutes, which I’m quite happy with since we were running into a blustery headwind all day. I’m even happier when I’m told I’ve set a new record for females over 65
With thanks to The Running Team:
Leg 1 Ralph Baines, Mike Wallis (both Clayton Harriers)
Leg 2 Katy Thompson, Teresa de Curtis (both Clayton Harriers)
Leg 3 Nikki Hamerton, Matthew Daykin
Leg 4 Jean Brown (Clayton Harriers) Abby Tighgeal (Craven Pothole Club)
And Ground Support:
Ken Daykin, Mike Avison, Linda Gough, Dave Brown