Brrrr Brampton to Carlisle

It’s not the first time I’ve woken up on a very cold, frosty morning ahead of a big race and thought “why am I doing this?” Sometimes I wonder why I didn’t pick an indoor hobby that would not cause me pain and mean I’d stay warm. But Brampton to Carlisle is one of those races that reminds me why I love running and why I love running with Wallsend Harriers.

It’s been a while since I was on a minibus with the Green and Golds and some admitted they were there just for the crack, of which there was plenty. The journey there was enough to get us all psyched up and raring to go. I didn’t realise Brampton to Carlisle was such a well-established race. It’s been going for 65 years you know.  With a reputation for being fast, many of us had high hopes of a PB. I’ve only ever done the Jelly Tea 10 miler and seeing as I won’t be doing that again anytime soon (now it’s riddled with hills) I thought I should give this one a go.

There were over 500 runners taking part, from clubs all over but it was nice to see plenty of familiar, friendly faces from Heaton, Blyth, Tyne Bridge and North Shields Poly among others. It was flippin’ cold but the sun was out so plenty were braving it in just vest and shorts. The gun was fired and we were off.

What a glorious day and what a glorious race. I enjoyed myself so much, the miles were flying by. Don’t get me wrong, it was not without hills or the odd treacherous icy patch but for whatever reason it was just so much fun. As we turned the corner back onto the main road to Carlisle the wind (albeit mild) was back in my face and the cold air caught the back of my throat. The last three miles or so certainly felt harder but it was just a Parkrun to the finish. During that last mile I could feel my thighs starting to burn but having gone into it thinking I’d be happy with anything between 75 and 80 mins I suddenly realized I might just beat that target. A 74 minute finish was on the cards and I had no excuse. The conditions were perfect and I was in good shape. C’mon, it’s just seven or so minutes of your life I told myself. Go for it! 74 minutes and 41 seconds later and I was finished.

It was great to see everyone buzzing at the end. We all had a great time. It might not have been PBs all around but everyone ran so well and us ladies even managed to bag fourth team place! The comeback kid Brian Hetherington was second v50 with a phenomenal 1hr 31 secs, just pipping our sensational Simon (1hr 38 secs) in the last half mile (cheeky). Tim Nicholson was our first past the post though in 1hr 05 secs (we all know it was under an hour though Tim). Congratulations also to Sean McIntyre (1hrs 5mins 50 secs), Joe Colligan who had already flown the Wallsend flag for us at the x-country the day before (nutter!) (1:08:40), Darryl Roe (1:13:23) and Steve Aird (1:24:02) Our top lady Sarah Robson finished in 1:07:49, followed by “I’ll just see how it goes” Naomi Powell in a fantastic 1:09:28, then my good self, followed by the good Doctor Anna French in 1:22:11, our cracking captain Julie Collinson in 1:25:45 and Jitka Richards, who is getting stronger each race with a tenacious performance of 1:42:10 .

I urge anyone who hasn’t done Brampton to Carlisle before to get on board the Green and Gold express next year. You’re in for a treat.

Emily

Pics from the day on the gallery page.