The Four Inns Walk
Saturday 5th April 2008
Olly Stephenson
The Four Inns Walk is a 40 mile
race across the Peak District from Holmbridge in the north to
Harpur Hill (near Buxton) in the south, across some beautiful
high moorland plateaus of northern England.
It’s been organised by
(and for) the Scouts for the last 51 years, although its appeal
is spreading and more than half of this year’s 90 teams
were from outside the scouting community. Competitors enter in
groups of three or four people, and it’s open to walkers
and runners alike.
Four of us entered as team ‘Carnethy
Hill Runners’, comprising Mick James, Olly Stephenson, Lucy
Colquhoun and our pal Steve Watkins from a club that sounds something
like Baildon Hedge Trimmers in West Yorkshire.
It’s a fantastically well
organised race, you get sweets by the fist full from the aid stations
en-route, and then when you finish you get the chance to raid
the organisers’ trophy cabinet as well, especially if you
have Lucy in your team and your eyes on the Mixed Team prize.
The phrase ‘stealing sweets from children’ appears
to have been specifically designed for all aspects of this race.
The run started well for us,
and Mick set a fast pace across the peat boggy lump that is Black
Hill. We had a bit of a shock the far side when we discovered
someone had moved Crowden Youth Hostel (and associated checkpoint)
from where it had been two years previously, and this would most
definitely have cost us our Polite Scouting Badge should any officials
have overheard us.
From here on we worked really
well as a team, looking out for each other, and enjoying a landscape
dusted in snow and framed by menacingly dark skies. Every now
and then the snow flurries would turn more serious, but before
long the clouds would invariably lift to reveal wonderful views
of Derbyshire cast in early spring sunshine.
After Bleaklow and Kinder we
reached the village of Edale. Our split times were looking promising
and we started to feel cautiously optimistic about our chances
on the Mixed Team record, but this all hinged on cajoling the
weakest link in the team to keep going at a reasonable pace.
It must have been hell for Lucy,
but she kept it up and never complained once as she powered effortlessly
ahead, leaving the weakest link (aka the men) falling asleep on
their feet from exhaustion (Mick), vomiting from the strain (Steve),
and single-handedly sack-carrying for me and towing me uphill
at the same time.
Towards the end some passers-by
witnessed the spectacle, and I overheard one of them gasping incredulously “look
how far ahead she is, and she’s carrying two rucksacks!”
We completed the 40 mile course
in 7 hours 48 minutes, in second place overall by just 9 minutes,
and knocking some 37 minutes off the existing Fastest Mixed Team
record.
As Steve said at the time, it
was a privilege to run with someone of Lucy’s calibre. We
all had a great time, and Lucy even managed to see a Scout with
a real necktie and woggle at the end which made her day.
Thanks to Alex, Martyn, Di and
Neil for their help and support.
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