Someone that has run 140 marathons would be considered somewhat of a connoisseur of the distance. Knows the flat from the fluctuating, the fast from the furious and the hilly from the silly. So when our distance supremo Steve Hickman indicates it was a bit of a toughie, you know he means it.
“It was quite simply the hardest marathon I’ve run. Harder than anything I encountered in The Himalayas”
Voted the best marathon in the UK not once but twice by Runners World magazine, this race was established in 1982 as a polar opposite alternative to the concrete carnivals the major cities were offering. If that was the objective, then it is mission accomplished. You couldn’t get any more different. Not a flat road or a high rise in sight, this course circumnavigates then finally ascends Snowdon, Wales’ largest peak. It’s not a peak let’s face it, it’s a full on mountain!
Starting in Llanberis at the wonderfully named Electric Mountain, this beast of a course starts as it means to go on… with a hill! A rocky 3 mile trail of up up and up began Steve’s journey. Any elation upon reaching the top was soon dashed by a steep and slippery descent toward the woodland area at Beddgelert.
Steve was hoping for a bit of relief along this section as the terrain flattened out slightly to a more undulating nature. Although, as promised by the course profile, it did indeed flatten out, the relief was lacking. For along these flatter parts were bogs. Not deep puddles, or sludgey trenches, they were proper bogs.
“Thigh deep at times. They’d be over your head Holmsie!” He tells me. I’m not convinced he’s exaggerating either! ” A lot of runners were dropping out here. One fell right in front of me breaking his ankle!”
Onward he ran. Toward the next sharp but short incline of Pen Y Pass at mile 16. But that was nothing in comparison for what was waiting for Mr.Hickman at the Pyg Pass. 18 miles behind him already. The tiredness that any marathon runner feels at that point starting to kick in and a colossal 3406 feet of ascent lay before him. Challenge enough had it been on a steep and stoney mountain trail. But no, no, no, no, this was rocks, boulders, massive monoliths of Jurassic lava to clamber over. There was no path, the boulders were the path!
“It was mountain climbing, not running. It was a bit scary to be honest. I thought I would fall. I was clawing my way on all 4s at times, taking 30 minutes to complete a mile. I had a few sulky sit downs along the way”
Eventually Steve reached the summit, 1085m above sea level, (that’s 3559 in old money) His feet were battered and tattered as they hit every stone, rock and boulder on the way. Those 4 miles felt like a marathon in themselves. But he’d done it, the mountain lay in his wake as he descended cautiously over the slippery, steep track and back toward Llanberis and the welcome (more so than the 139 times before), finishline.
27 miles the distance. 5255.90 the total ascent. 8.28.23 the time.
Last words from Steve…
“Never again! Tough day…. still… it’s done! #140”
