Dash in the Dark

Race: Dash in the Dark, Llandegla (race 3)
Time/Position: 29.16 (4th from 191 [1st V40])
I was pleased that these night-time trail/fell races had been resurrected this winter, having enjoyed many of them in the past. But I missed the first race in November, then retired from the second after turning my ankle again. So this was my first night-time race since the old series a few years ago. However, there was one big difference: I've done these races with as few as 25 runners, but today the queue snaked out of the door. An enormous field, all rather baffling. The race was good, with a layer of melting snow making life difficult and necessitating a brand new pair of mudclaws. Not ideal to break them in on the race. They helped, but my damaged, fragile ankle made descending very slow. As a result, I moved into 4th place fairly quickly but lost ground on every descent. I was always conscious of the two immediately behind me, as they descended far quicker. But I was able to pull away a bit on the track round the lake and on the final long drag to the finish. Always exciting to race through these woods in the dark.