Mike Parsonsí application for 20 year club.
A big effort to write all this but donít feel you have to write so much. A list of dates, key partners and a couple of yarns as my summary is enough.† †
Summary Total finishes 21,†
DNS 1, Helping/internet reporting 6, DNFís, 5.
I must admit, I was getting anxious as I counted!†
I am emailing Jen now on
jlongbo941@aol.com to see if I get my fleece. Canít understand why she doubted I had done 20!† No she wonít count all the Swiss, Norwegian and French ones I did because she says we will not have enough fleeces if we do.† †
9 different partners, and thanks to you all:- Don Booth, Bill Bentall, Ed Ward Drummond, Graham Lord, one unrecalled past minute partner, Geo Crawford-Smith, Bill OíConnor, Geoff Crowther, Brian Layton.
High points, our Galloway ë76 finish in bad weather. Winning first vets and 8th place overall in L/S.
Low points: not even getting to the overnight camp in Cheviot and getting disqualified in mid Wales because we missed a checkpoint, we passed close by but were probably slightly hypothermic. Just so many memories and so much fun.†
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Don Booth decided a long ago that I simply have a bad memory for pain and discomfort which he has a perfect recall of!†
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See complete story which I did for fun not for the fleece!
1968 - Muker, North Pennines
Gerry Charnley asked if I would contribute prizes to an event which was to be a 2 day mountain marathon combining orienteering skills with mountain movement but also carrying all your equipment for two days. I said ëyes that sounds an interesting eventí. Indeed it sounded rather too long for me. Gerry was a pioneer in the early days of orienteering in the UK. The two following years and I continued to give the prizes. 1969 - Troutbeck, Windermere, 1970 - Eskdale, West Cumbria
4. 1971 - Plas-y-Brenin, North Wales
Having given prizes for the first three events I decided it was time to get properly involved especially as there was no longer any excuse. This was the first year of the ëAí class. Don Booth, a local running friend agreed to team up and after passing Lyn Y Casseg Fraith, dropping into the Nant Francon, and then over Carneddy we just about made it into camp. It was very tempting to camp on the way being warm and sunny and we even stopped for lunch.† Never again did we have time to stop for lunch. We finished in eighth or ninth position which sounds great but there probably weren't many behind us because the total number of competitors did not exceed one hundred.†
1972 - Tibbie Shiels, Selkirk, Scottish Borders.
This year was a new partner Ken Ledward, and we customised all our gear in the Karrimor factory achieving what is probably an unbroken record of 6 pounds for me and 5 1/2 have pounds for Ken (he insisted he should be lighter because he was smaller and as everything was custom made it weighed less). Everything we wore and used except the shoes were handmade in the Karrimor factory. The shoes were a disaster causing extreme laceration†
of my heels and I barely limped to the finish. Chris Brasher was so pleased about his special rucksack we made him weighing only 3 ounces (100 g) that he wrote a special article in the Sunday Observer.
5. 1973 - Plas Gwynant, North Wales.
Ken Ledward's aspirations were faster than I could go so I team up again with Don, yes he of the ëBooth knotí†
and Bens of Jura organiser. Finished in rather better shape than the previous year.
7. 1974 - College Valley, Cheviot
Bill Bentall (the cartoonist and parrot man†
) and I failed to finish but a long friendship began. Bad knees were on the agenda and the pain was so great I thought I would never be able to run again. Failed - Probably my low point of all KIMMís.† †:'(† †
8. 1975 - Ennerdale, Cumbria
This year all my previous partners having given up on me and a casual comment one day to Ed Ward Drummond, yes he of the ëdream of white horsesí and he replied ëyesí but this was an unbalanced partnership both in terms of strength and navigational skills. He having more of the former and less of the latter and so the Haystacks above Ennerdale caught us out: failed again.†
† 9. 1976 - Galloway Highlands, Scotland
So with two consecutive failures now I found a new partner in Graham Lord e which continued many years, but we dropped down from the ëAí to the ëBí and in one of the worst weather conditions ever, which established Galloway as a severe place we finished 27th and were really pleased. Good practice in the first Swiss KIMM that year with Ken Ledward in August and also met Andy Lewsley.† †
10. 1977 - Howgills, North Pennines
Back again to the ëAí class after our success in Galloway
11. 1978 - Peebles, Scotland
With Graham again also went to do the first KIMM in Norway with Don.
12. 1979 - Rhinogs, North Wales
With Graham again and still have a full recollection of the amazing run by Norwegians who were able to read the ground better than we were even though they had no local knowledge.
13. 1980 - Isle of Arran
The mountaineers of the day were up in arms at our selection of Arran and the then secretary of the BMC Dennis Gray said that he would come and experience the event himself. ëWe have been places no-one has trod before and might never do in next 50 yearsí he said. I completed in good style again with Graham.† I will never forget our two specially invited German visitors. They were both professional mountain guides, Otto Wiedemann and Hans Engl. Navigation in the misty conditions in undulating almost featureless conditions was something that neither of them had ever experienced before. Hans however had climbed Everest without oxygen in the same year as Reinhold Messner two years previously. Otto and Hans decided to tag along with Graham and we could see by the second day that they were seriously short of food. Reaching the finish in Glen Rosa, I still recall saw the amazing sight of Hans stuffing his face furiously with food but still able to gasp that the event was, "harder than Everest without oxygen".
14. 1981 - Langdale, Cumbria with Graham Lord/A class
15. 1982 ñ DartmoorI caught a cold in the preceding week and advised Graham to find a new partner. On the departure date I was feeling reasonable and went along just to look, which meant finding a new partner with whom I finished the sadly Graham didn't!
16. 1983 ñ Strathyre, Scotland DNS - I was selling products in Korea.†
17. 1984 - Peak District, Pennines. Geo Crawford-Smith was my partner and he should be filling in his application right now because he's done almost every one.†
18. 1985 ñ Langdale, Lake District, Cumbria. With Graham L again
19. 1986 - Galloway Hills, Scotland. Having traversed the Merrick in extremely windy conditions, partner Don Booth persuaded me that discretion was the better part of valour and we packed. I decided that Don, superlative runner that he was, was not a Mountain Marathon Man and he heartily agreed.
20. 1987 - Ffestiniog, Snowdonia, North Wales.Living in Holmfirth by this time I found another partner who was up to the long-term commitment that mountain marathons need. Geoff Crowther, thank you!† Disqualified for missing a checkpoint, which we walked within a few hundred metres of: hypothermic?
21. 1988 - Cheviots, North East England. Geoff again.
22. 1989 - Howgills, North Pennines.
Geoff again
23. 1990 - Glen Lyon (North) Scotland.
Geoff
24. 1991 - Arrochar Alps 2 crocked ankles, one each. Going through the deadly brash.†
25. 1992 - Northern Lake District Geoff again and our first score event, tip from Steve Willis was the string. Used this idea ever since and it works brilliantly, have never been late on a score event.†
26. 1993 - Upper Nithsdale & Queensberry Hills, Scotland. Drumlanrig castle has never seen so may people since Prince Charlie invaded England in the 1740.† Best ever position, 8th in Long score and first vets: using secret weapon - hydration bladders plus carbohydrate powder in water.
27. 1994 - St. Marys Loch & Manor Valley. Geoff again
28. 1995 - Brecon Beacons National Park, South Wales. Geoff again
29. 1996 - Galloway Forest Park & Hills, Scotland. DNS
30. 1997 - Kielder Forest, North East England. With Bill OíConnor.†
31. 1998 - Howgills North Pennines. Howling Howgills and I achieved the first internet reporting.
32. 1999 - Cowal Peninsula Argyll, Scotland. Reporting
33. 2000 - Lake District, Cumbria. Reporting.
34. 2001 - Clydes MuirSheil Regional Park, Scotland. Year of F&M, very lucky to have any event at all.†
35. 2002 - Cheviot, North East England. reporting
36. 2003 - Langholme Scottish Borders. Reporting
37. 2004 - Brecon Beacons, South Wales. reporting†
38. 2005 - Eastern Lake District, Ullswater, Cumbria. Back again, I wanted so much to do the last and final event named Karrimor international Mountain Marathon. However six weeks prior to the event on a training weekend I seriously damaged my ankle and was on crutches for two days. Two weeks later I hadn't even been for a walk let alone run when my partner from last yearís Euro KIMM, Brian Layton gave me to say that his partner had pulled out. We finished in 120th position but the traverses were particularly painful on my bad ankle, and Brian was a little bit impatient because I just couldn't run a single stride. Anyway, 120th: maybe experience counts? We have 80+ marathon experiences between us.†
39. 2006 - Galloway Forest Park, Scotland. The first named OMM. No running at all this year but a few bike miles. Not yet entered. Seeking a partner if I go OK on our September training w/end.†
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