Llangynhafal Loop

Race: Llangynhafal Loop (4.75m/1750ft) 
Time/Position: 44:48 (5th from 72 [3rd V40])
With our flights to Nice leaving Liverpool later in the afternoon, this was perhaps a little ambitious in terms of scheduling. But Vic and I thought we should be able to squeeze it in, and at least we were well motivated to get a move on! A fairly relaxed start saw a group of five or so pull away at the front, but Jez soon built an unassailable lead leaving the rest of us to fight it out for second. I kept a reasonable pace going on the always deceptive climb up Nant y Ne to the gully: it always looks gentle, but never feels it. I did my usual striding on the gully, no running, and got the top of Famau in third. But it was all very close and I was losing ground with every descent. Felt reasonably sharp along the ridge but never sensed that I was pulling away from those behind. After losing quite a bit of ground to fast descenders, I had a good final climb and our group of chasers more or less reassembled as we crested the final spur. It was then a downhill sprint, flat-out, for second: a race I inevitably lost as quicker descenders thundered past on the steep slopes back to the finish. Just over 12 seconds separated 2nd and 5th. Vic and I then ran down to the car and drove to the airport to begin our annual Provencal climbing holiday.