Coast Path Continuum
Coast Path Continuum
When I started my Coast Path (and Offa’s Dyke) run way back in 2016 I never expected it to take quite so long. I knew it would be a bit of an undertaking, that was afterall the whole point. However, I didn’t think I would still be doing it now. It seems that the further I get through the 1000 mile run around Wales, the further away the finish seems to get.
There was never a real plan or any finish date in mind so it doesn’t matter. I did think that if I could manage to average close to 20 miles per section that it would only require 50 runs. At one point I was consistently doing 20 miles every week. The longest I did was just over 30 miles in one section. At that rate it wouldn’t have taken long at all. Of course, nothing is ever easy!
Nothing is Ever Easy
I didn’t expect it to be easy. Steep cliffs, rocky paths, mud, pebbly beaches, sand dunes and such like would all lead to a slow pace and energy sapping terrain. Rain, winds, sleet and snow would all play their part too. Sometimes even sweltering sunshine might make things taxing. On top of that there would be work and family commitments that would mean I wouldn’t be able to do it every week. The same would be true of Triathlon, Quadrathlon and Cyclocross race calendars. There would be pauses to allow me to do these as well. Even the odd injury or illness was inevitable, all of which would mean that I’d probably only manage to get out on the trail a couple of times a month. Even at that rate it should only have taken 2-3 years to complete. It’s now been close to 6 years since I started and the end still seems quite a long way off. I’m on a Coast Path Continuum!
Why the Continuum?
Looking back at my stats, after starting the 1000 mile run around Wales in January 2016 I managed to get out 22 times that year. That does indeed work out to be close to twice a month as predicted. The first few runs were a little shorter but by the end of 2016 I had covered 396.48 miles. Again, at that rate I would have had the entire route completed in just over 2 years. All was looking good.
2017 however only saw me get out on the Coast Path 4 times. I can’t remember why this was and the blog post following the main hiatus of this year doesn’t give too many clues either. It did mean that I only extended my progress by about 60 miles.
2018 was a little better but I still only completed 10 sections taking me up to a total of just over 620 miles completed. This year it was all along the Offa’s Dyke Path as well. This part of the route was a little more difficult as far as public transport links were concerned so I did call on Anna’s help as a support driver from time to time so I wasn’t able to get out quite so often.
2019 started well with 6 sections completed in the first three months. I was back on target with 2 runs a month and the distance per run was back up to 20 miles or so. That all came tumbling down though as the rest of 2019 only saw me complete one more 13 mile run in October. That took me up to 750 miles in total though. So the end was beginning to look as though it was in sight. I’m not sure what happened over the summer, presumably quadrathlon races and holidays! The latter part of the year was taken up with some hill walking in preparation for climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.
Global Pandemic
Then came 2020 and the global pandemic that no one could have predicted. This brought with it National lockdowns, travel restrictions, path closures and disruption to public transport. Needless to say, Coast Path running was out of the question and I only managed a single section of just over 18 miles. Not much progress was made in 2020.
By the late Spring 2021 there was a slight lifting of the coronavirus restrictions and I was able to get back out on the Coast Path once again. I started off well with 7 runs in 7 weeks and all were close to 20 miles in length. I was making good progress once again and had now covered close to 900 miles. It was also clear that the end was more than 100 miles away though so the total distance was going to be more like 1100 miles – yes, the coast path continuum was kicking in.
The Biggest Hurdle
The last run in this little flurry was an 18.33 mile run from from Laugharne to Tenby on June 7th. All was looking good, I’d made it to Pembrokeshire. Who knew that the following week I’d hit the biggest hurdle of all. Yep, a bigger hurdle than a global pandemic was looming on the horizon.
The following Sunday, one day before I was supposed to be back out on the Coast Path again started just like any other Sunday. I was out in the sunshine training as usual. Swimming, kayaking, cycling and running. I came home, had a shower and then had a massive heart attack! That I had not seen coming!!
It won’t take a genius to work out that this event put a bit of a spanner in the works as far as my progress along the coast path was concerned. A few days in hospital, a couple of stents in my coronary artery and then a few months without any physical exertion don’t bode well for such activities. The doctors weren’t sure if I’d ever be able to run again, let alone complete long runs along the Coast Path.
Back to it
Thankfully after a few months I started to do some exercise. The distances, pace and intensity were all much lower than before my heart attack. That would be the case after any lengthy pause, but when the break in training is caused by a heart attack this is even more pronounced. I was therefore staying close to home, going out with others and carrying a phone and GTN spray with me at all times. I was still more tired than before, I was only running short distances and the medications I was on didn’t help with performance either. At least I was out there running, swimming and cycling albeit at a more recreational level.
Eventually, 7 months or so after my Heart Attack I decided it was time to brave the Coast Path once again. Quite a momentous occasion real
Easy Does it
Part of the difficulty of running around Wales had always been the logistics. A typical day on the Coast Path would be a long one. I’d make an early start, often getting up at 4am. I’d then have a 2½ to 3 hour drive to get to my end point for the day where I would leave the car. This would be followed usually by a couple of hours on buses and trains to get to the start point of my run. I’d always start in the exact place I finished previously and would often overlap a little. I’d then run along the coast path for somewhere around 3 to 5 hours. This was all solo and unsupported and often out of mobile phone reception. I’d then arrive back at the car and would have another 2½ to 3 hour drive home.
All in all it would be 12 hours or so. Unfortunately since my heart attack I simply wouldn’t be able to do this. It wouldn’t be safe for a start. It also meant being out there on my own (sometimes miles from help) for a long time, which neither I nor Anna were particularly keen on. A new plan was made.
The New Logistics
Rather than try to fit it all into one day I’d stretch it out over two. Anna would come along for support and we’d make a nice weekend of it.
The plan therefore was to drive to Tenby on Saturday morning. I’d jump out of the car and start running along the Coast Path. I had a target distance of just under 8 miles which would take me to Manorbier where there was a nice car park that Anna could drive to and meet me in. 8 miles might have been a little too much along the difficult terrain of the Coast Path so we had a contingency plan in place as well. There was a car park just above Lydstep Beach at about the 5 mile point so Anna would meet me there too. If I wanted to stop I could. If I was feeling and looking OK I’d carry on to Manorbier.
We would then spend the night in a nice, nearby hotel which offered some fine dining. This would allow us to chill for the evening, have some good food and a decent breakfast. After this, on Sunday if I felt up to it I would do another section of the Coast Path. This route would depend on what I’d done the day before as I’d be starting from where I stopped. If I’d only made it to Lydstep I would do the short section to Manorbier. If I’d made it to Manorbier I would start there and the target would be Stackpole Quay some 6.5 miles along the coast. Once again there would be a get out plan halfway along the run as Anna would meet me at Freshwater East as well.
If I made it all the way to Stackpole Quay by the end of the weekend I would have ticked off another 14 miles or so of the Coast Path. I’d then have the drive home to complete. Obviously if any of it was too much for me I would stop and I had Anna on hand to drive if necessary. She was also keeping tabs on me throughout by tracking me on her phone and even had the defibrillator in the car!!
I’ll blog about each section of the run later, but rather than keep you in suspense I’ll tell you that it all went well. I made it all the way to Stackpole Quay without incident. The running was good despite the slow pace, the scenery was amazing and I had a lovely weekend away with Anna too. There’s still a long way to to go, but it’s good to be out there again. Who knows how long the Coast Path Continuum will continue for, I’ll keep plugging away at it whenever I can.
