Accelerace Mid Wales Ultra 2008 - support report...worth reading for future support car drivers!

Accelerace Mid Wales Ultra Tri 2008 - 3 May - Support Report

by Charlotte Carrritt, support driver for Steven Lord and Joanna Carritt

The day started at 4.15am with a quick breakfast and the filling of 2 thermos flasks and 587 water bottles. Headed off to collect the athletes who were in remarkably good spirits considering they were about to swim 4 miles in 10 degree water. Layered with rash vests and neoprene they plunged in with the other 8 nutters to start their (thankfully) shortened swim. Our job as support crew was to get the car warm and hot drinks ready for when they exit. Not a bad deal I thought. We had the car set up with swim, bike and run gear in separate bags which made it easier for the guys to know where to find what they wanted. T1 went smoothly (when they stopped shivering enough to eat and change) and they were off on the bikes. We had pre-agreed stop points at various intervals along the bike course, with the 1^st one being at the junction where the B4343 joins the A44. There was a garage a little way up the road where we were able to buy supplies and get back in time to see them peddling up the B4343. (Approx 37 miles). Our next stop was in a village called Llanbrymair. There is a pub as you come in on the right and opposite is a car park which has toilets (useful for both riders and support crew alike!) and a café just past the pub on the right hand side of the road where you can get take away coffee etc and they very kindly filled our thermos with hot water. (Approx 68 miles). Onwards towards Gwynedd and found a place to pull in at the bottom of the winding downhill just before Tal-y-llyn Lake. (Approx 88 miles). Our next stop was about 114 miles in a car park next to a hotel/restaurant called Tyn y Groes on the left hand side. Huge area to wait and a good view of them coming up the road. We saw Chris here so figured it was a fairly well used spot. I think this was our penultimate stop, our last one being in Betws-y-coed (approx 160 miles) We used the car park of the Best Western hotel at the bottom of town which was easy for them to pull in, massive and only £1 for 2 hours waiting. This town has plenty of shops to stock up at and public toilets to un-stock at! We then left them to it for the final 20 odd miles and headed to T2 in Llanberis to make sure they had everything ready for their run.

In they came and spent about 15 mins changing and eating and they were off again. We packed up the bikes, dumped the swim and run kit at Pete’s Eats where we were staying – info for anyone staying there, the reception (in the café) closes at 8pm so if you’ve not checked in already and you are in T2 before this it’s a good time to do this as you wont get a chance after. The way we did it was one stayed in T2 to meet the guys and the other ran up, checked in and got back in time to help with the bikes. So, with a bit more space in the car now we headed to the top of Pen y pass where they collected their run rucksacks (they were full of water so they decided to do the 5 mile climb without carrying any extra weight) and set off towards the off road section. For any runners not wanting to break their rhythm it may be helpful to get your support to pull in and open the gate. Ours were grateful for this, though we were disappointed not got get any style-climbing action photos. We met them again just beyond the point where they re-join the road (Plas Gwynant) for a refuelling stop and turned off the main road just past Bethania (?) and up the very narrow road to Blaen Nanmor. There is a car park at the top for a stop point, and we stopped again at the bottom where they turn right and join the A4085 as the light was fading and we suspected they would be tired and didn’t want them to go the wrong way. Into Beddgelert we stopped outside the Royal Goat pub. There is a local shop in the village that we used a couple of times (before they turned off the main road at Bethania we nipped along the main road and then stocked up and again when they were running through Beddgelert) and headed to the next stop with our supplies. This was in a car park in Rhyd Ddu, junction of A4085 and B4418 and stood in the road to make sure they saw us. We then agreed that the next meet point would be a bit further than planned as they were getting a bit used to the frequent stops and wanted to get a good chunk of running done. We thought we were stopping around Salem but we seemed to miss that and ended up in (another) pub car park a few yards outside Waunfawr. They were pleased that they had come further than planned and thought we had done it on purpose to make them feel they had more to go than they did. No, just failed to read the map properly. But after 18 hours of map reading I think it can be excused! Final stop was just before they turned off to the final, off-road section that we couldn’t follow them along, so we headed back to the finish to greet them.

There are loads of places to be on both routes, I guess it all depends on how much support your athletes need. My advice would be have the car laid out in swim/bike/run bags/boxes, use your charm to get hot water on route, especially for after the swim, take a map and someone you are happy to spend up to 24 hours in a car with! It may also help to stand where they can see you at some of the points as they may not spot you if you’re in a car park, especially at night. It takes some planning and we had pre-arranged meeting points which helped a lot. Also, set your mileage clock to zero so you know how far you’ve come as sometimes its further than you think. Try and have points at the top of hills or after a particularly gruelling bit of road where there may be a headwind. And we discovered that little unexpected treats like coke and chocolate made them very happy! But most of all just make sure you are on the ball and know where everything (spare socks, plasters, vasaline, energy gels) is and be quick when they ask for something. And don’t let them stop for too long or sit down unless they really need to as they will find it harder to get going again, especially on the run.

A long, tiring but amazing day, the organisation was great and the sense of camaraderie between the support cars and other athletes was great to be a part of. And a massive well done to everyone that took part, I am in awe of your determination and grit! See you next time!