Ras y Mynydd

Race: Ras y Mynydd, Mynydd Llandegai (4.5m/800ft)
Time/Position: 29.31 (2nd from 43)
A cracking race - short and fast - which takes a logical loop round this little village in the wild Bethesda hinterland, whilst also taking in a great climb up Moel y Ci. A very fast start from the village hall, down small lanes, leads up to more typical fell race terrain to circumnavigate Moel y Ci. It joins uphill forest tracks to loop north round the hill to Parc y Bwlch, then takes a narrow path across to a sharp, steepish climb after Tynllidiart. I started out in fourth place but had worked my way up to second by the time we got to the woods: there were plenty of route options and the leader was just out of sight, so I had to guess the most logical route! After a very fast descent down to the western edge of the village, I could see the leader and got a bit closer to him on the long tarmac descent to the open moor of Gwaen Gynfi. There was no way I was going to catch him, however, so I just tried to consolidate second place and keep it going for the XC section across the moor. Great views of the mist peeling away from nearby Elidir Fawr. More road then leads back into the village for a final steep climb - luckily I felt surprisingly good throughout the race so was able to keep it going for a decent finish back at the hall, 22 seconds behind the winner. Excellent bara brith and tea was a welcome finishing touch. This race has been going for well over 20 years, apparently, and used to attract 120 runners.