From Paul Stephens and the whole team…
“Ilkley Inclined To Madness” was our Team Name for the 2024 Gathering Winter Fools Relay postponed from last December when Storm Darragh hit the UK. In fact the forecast wasn’t much better apart from the wind. It was a cold, grey and damp day, but that didn’t dampen our enthusiasm or commitment.
Superb running by each of our four teams saw Ilkley finish 6th out of the 21 teams competing and each pair finishing their leg before the cut-off and mass start. We would have been first mixed team home and we did have 4 men and 4 women. But the rules state that each pair has to be mixed and ours weren’t. How fair is that!
It was a relay so we had to have a baton and ours was a tube of Love Hearts. Appropriate given the date.
So, 4 legs starting and finishing at Carlton Academy with a mix of footpath, moor, canal towpath and road. Legs 2, 3 and 4 start at a pub. I was tempted by the Goose Eye in the Busfield Arms at East Moreton, but wisely I resisted. Thankyou to Kate for organising our team, and to Keighley and Craven AC for the event.
Here’s a summary of each leg:
Leg 1. Carlton Academy to White Lion, Kildwick – 8.6m (Kate and Colm). Colm writes:
The day started with a few positives. The forecast sleet and snow didn’t happen. The sign-in area was inside Carlton Academy, the same place as the track sessions, which was warm and spacious.
As soon as the race leaves the school grounds, it’s straight into a hill, which is a common theme for the next four miles, through some cracking little villages like Laycock and Goose Eye. We cracked on through bogs and muddy lanes but unfortunately the fog obscured the views of this part of Aire valley.
The route took in some great trails heading towards Sutton which we found out has a lovely stone arch. We followed a scenic path along a beck to Cross Hills, which itself is nothing to write home about. At this stage my legs were starting longing for the end but Kate who was carrying the team baton, wasn’t slowed down by the weight of a packet of love hearts.
When we got to Kildwick we were greeted by the smiles of Peter and Martin who set off with love hearts on board. Kate and I jogged on to catch a bus pretty much back to the start. Then into the school for a brew with pie and peas. Great finish to a great morning.
Leg 2. White Lion, Kildwick to Busfield Arms, East Moreton – 9.6m (Peter and Martin). Peter writes:
Leg two wasn’t any easier on the second acquaintance (I ran it with Jeff Green in 2019). The route profile is like a reclining ‘P’ shape – 3km on a canal towpath followed by 300 metres of ascent, a muddy traverse of Rombalds moorland and plantation ending in an exciting descent to East Morton at 15km. That’s quite a demanding route for a leg that starts and ends in a pub but otherwise fails to live up to most people’s concept of a pub crawl.
With apparently little effort on the canal section Martin set a lively pace which my wheezing told me was somewhere between demanding and unsustainable. We caught and passed a Bingley ladies pair, one of whom I recognized as Jo Buckley, a fell runner not to be underestimated as became clear when I started to struggle and the pair came back past us. A cautious approach was needed on Murder Mile which proved true to its name, levelling out a few times only to turn a corner and resume climbing. Hats and gloves removed earlier on the flat section were put back on as we hit the tops. The temperature was around zero, but no wind thankfully. The only evidence of the ‘freezing rain’ suggested by the weather forecast was on the stone stiles which a pair of male Skipton runners warned us were slippery. Somewhat to my surprise I was feeling more lively at this stage so we thanked the Skipton pair by taking a place off them and set about trying to catch the Bingley ladies who were just about visible ahead in the low cloud. Irritatingly, they sped up in much the same way we did. They may have been better handling farm gates with cold hands (maybe they practised it). Despite our best efforts converting gravity into momentum on the slippery rocky bridleway (at the cost of control in a few places, it should be said) we couldn’t quite reel them before reaching the Busfield Arms.
We didn’t eat any of the sweets in the tube of Love Hearts which served as a baton. Nor did I remember the baton was in my pocket as we raced to the line. Our handover to Alison and Paul was less than slick as a result (sorry!). We enjoyed the leg and were pleased to come in slightly quicker than our estimated time and contribute to a strong team performance. Top marks to Ilkley Harriers and to Martin for relay partnering!
Leg 3. Busfield Arms, East Moreton to Fisherman’s Arms – 5.7m (Alison and Paul). Paul writes:
The short leg, and not much climbing (which didn’t suit me – that’s my excuse). I certainly had to be committed to keep up with Alison on the flat and downhill. It was as hard as the Saturday morning efforts. A mix of footpath, track and road to Micklethwaite and round the edge of Eldwick. A little muddy over some of the footpaths but nothing horrendous. A long downhill – the length of Shipley Glen and then a fast 2km along the canal from Saltaire towards Bingley.
Leg 4. Fisherman’s Arms, Bingley to Finish – 7.1m (Nicky and Wendy). Nicky writes:
Wendy and I enjoyed a leisurely cuppa in the Bingley rugby club bar after registration, then took a gentle jog down to the start at the Fisherman’s Inn. Luckily for us the rain had just about stopped by the time we started, for which we were grateful! Leg 3’s Alison and Paul sped round and handed over 5 minutes earlier than we were expecting and before the mass start, so there was a flurry of us grabbing the baton (a pack of love hearts), taking off our waterproof jackets and stuffing them in our packs while setting of running. The leg started with a nice flat mile along the canal, but then we had a rude awakening with the brutal climb up Altar Lane through the woods coming out of Bingley. Getting that out of the way was a good feeling and after that we were treated to a mile or so of downhill and a bit of nice scenery to enjoy. The rest of the leg is relatively flat, so we were able to motor on and then meander through the scenic streets of Keighley to our final destination, Carlton Academy. Hot pies and another cup of tea awaited. Wendy and I thoroughly enjoyed the day!