Clwydian Hills fell race

Race: Clwydian Hills (15k/3000ft)
Time/Position: 1.21.32 (8th from 148)
I've been lured away to the Abergele 5 road race on this weekend for the past three years, so thought it was about time I returned to this local classic. I still remember the trauma of my first time at this race a decade ago: when I found the gully climax a brutal struggle and returned home with the classic thousand yard stare. I think this was my 6th time at the event. Beautiful autumn weather this morning, perfect conditions, as we set off for the long climb up to the ridge from Cilcain. I struggled terribly at first, not sure why (perhaps because I've upped the training in the past two weeks) and was close to packing it in as we neared Drws y Coed. The descent down to the Vale of Clwyd was an opportunity to regain some strength, although I missed the checkpoint initially and wasted some time. Contouring the Vale, I started to feel a bit better and began to gain places on the very long grassy ascent back up to the ridge. This race does have an 'arbitrary punishment' feel to it, but takes in some great terrain and really makes the most of our local hills. A steep descent leads down to Nant y Ne, and the usual horrendously steep climb out via the gully. I made up some ground and picked up the pace for the descent, the best I'd felt all day! A good battle with a runner from Todmorden, although I couldn't quite match his speed on the flatter tracks towards the finish.