UKH

Hi all, have had some great advice here before so hoping for some more. 

In a moment of inspiration/ madness I found myself pressing pay for a 75 mile  ultra on 4th February next year (Lady Anne's Way if anyone is interested) the other day. 

Having only done 46 miles in Summer I completely understand this will be a completely different kettle of fish with potentially a whole long night of darkness to get through. My main concern is getting cold in the night but there are two bag drops so can resupply and change clothes if needed. 

I'm probably being naiive about the distance  and have a 50 mile run around Ladybower in mid November and Tour De Helvellyn in mid December already pencilled in with Trigger as a little bonus in January so think I will have done plenty of training by then but I suppose I'm just after some advice from and Spiners or people who have done the Cheviot Goat or any other daft long winter runs or events. 

Thanks

Dan

To reinforce what I suspect you’re probably already thinking, a big part of this will be about managing your clothing.

Take what you think you need based on the forecast, plus a bit more. The bag drops will be invaluable from a psychological point of view. Double up on kit you stash there, if you’re able. Eg a spare waterproof, in case the one your carrying ends up gopping. 

Minimise the negatives across the board. So as soon as you feel your temp dropping, do something about it.

Disposable hand warmers are good if you struggle with your hands; fiddling about with kit when your hands aren’t working and you’re freezing isn’t nice.

Equally, don’t over clothe yourself when your temp is steady, otherwise your sweaty kit may end up biting you in the bum.

Difficult, but it’s about trying to strike a balance. 

Also don’t forget about how important food will be on the day and don’t be scoffing anything your guts aren’t used to whilst racing!

Best of luck, might see you at the TdH!

Only done a couple around 50miles, both early Feb so many on here more experienced,  but I found....

Agree about the clothing.  Ended up covered in snow on both of mine, and although warm, didn't have much left in the bag in reserve. 

I found it even more important to get the pace right early.  No doubt that even with the right clothes, I can burn out faster as the engine runs harder to make sure you're warm.

Good headtorch is vital, and wandering around in darkness in the dunes of doom at the end of the Arc50 taught me that cheap isn't always best...!!

Enjoy yourself!

Buffalo mittens are the best thing on the planet.  

These look awesome I’m going to grab a pair what’s the sizing like, any other kit recommendations would be appreciated. 

Great tips, I’ve got a decent head torch thankfully and an okay spare so should be good ok that front. Pace wise is going to be something to work on is like to be able to keep moving at a pace where I generate heat. 

Awesome tips, I are well on the 50 and plan to do the same on this but know that stomach issues happen later on. Hand warmers are a great shout. I got in a bit of a pickle in march this year on a marathon where my hands got too cold and then I struggled to get my gloves out and on haha. 
 

see you at the Tdh 

Waterproof socks. Your feet will get cold and wet. Grit and mud will get in.Blisters can end your race. Have more than one pair, if you have drop bags, and some dry socks as well.

Spare gloves and another backup waterproof pair if its p*ssing down.

You mentioned you had a spare head torch. That's a much better idea than faffing with batteries, in the dark and rain, with cold hands.

Have an eating plan; foods you've practised with. Then a plan B. Its all very well having balanced set of sensible foods you can munch. But on race day, you might not be able to eat any of that, but would kill for a bag of monster munch.

If they dont provide hot drinks, a flask in your drop bag would be a good way to warm up quickly.

Toothbrush. (You can cut the handle off, if you're hard core.) When you've been eating sugary shite for hours, a quick brush, resets your mouth. Makes it easier to eat more things.

Some awesome advice here thanks so much! Especially the tooth brush. I do sick to death of sweet stuff after a while and I’ve never done anything long like this before my initial plan was ti hold off on them until later in the run and try and stick to real food for as long as possible But as you say you’ll never know what would happen. Any recommendations for water proof socks?

I've got Dexshell and Sealskin. I've heard good things about Otter socks as well, but not used them.

I've been using the DexShell Running Lite and Compression Mudder Socks over the last 12 months and have really rated them (in fact, this thread has reminded me that I really need to write up the review). I've tended to favour the Running Lite socks over the Compression Mudders, but the latter come into their own on really rough and boggy terrain, where the main issue is standing in something so deep it goes over the top of the shorter sock. For everything else the Running Lite is infinitely preferable, not least because it's a lot easier to get on!! They feel pretty luxurious on training runs too, so it's not just about the big stuff - they're great for the short runs too.

I'd second what maybe_si says about the Buffalo Mitts, because they really are the best. I've used a lot of gloves/mitts within my life and the only thing that comes close are Dachsteins. I've also rated the Montane Via Shift Gloves, and like the look of the very similar (but slightly more insulated) Via Switch, as they're really adaptable. For me this is a major appeal, because anything that allows you to keep moving efficiently without stopping is a huge plus - particularly within full-on winter conditions, where stopping essentially equates to getting cold.

On that note, find a decent running pack/vest that has plenty of accessible storage. There's a distinct chance you've got one already, but as per the sentiment shared above - having everything to hand (as opposed to hidden deep within your pack) is going to mean you can keep running - and keeping running means keeping warm.

The only caveat to that is, as another poster has said, that if you do need an extra layer on don't leave it too long before you put it on, because once you're cold it takes a long time to come back.

There's probably 101 things I'm forgetting, but that's enough for now. 

See you at the Trigger!