UTI by UTS (by UTMB) 13th May 2023

Look, I am Scottish!

Last weekend I travelled to Wales to take part in the Ultra Trail Snowdonia (UTS) race.  UTS is one of the “By UTMB” races, and as the only UTMB qualifier in the UK it is a pretty big event.

If you are not familiar with the UTMB qualification rules, running stones, INDEX etc count yourself lucky. It looks like it can become an all-consuming, highly expensive obsession if you are not careful.

A short recap.

Until a few years ago you could qualify for one of the UTMB races (the UTMB 100 miles, the CCC 100K or OCC 55K) through a simple point system. These points you could collect by completing a wide range of different races all around the country. Then the organisation changed the rules and now you no longer collect points, but something called “running stones”. And these stones you only get in particular races, specifically races associated with (or owned by?) the UTMB brand. Clever marketing that!

I know people who love UTMB, travel far and wide for other By UTMB races and pilgrim to Chamonix each year for UTMB week. Likewise, I know people who detest it, have done so before the rules changed and hate it even more now. Personally, I am sitting quite firmly on the fence about it, meaning I won’t let the collection of “stones” become the main focus in my running but if I have the opportunity to snatch one or two up, that’s cool. Will I ever get to run UTMB? Who knows. I think it would be a pretty “unique” experience. And I am choosing the word unique here on purpose as I am not sure it would also be “enjoyable”. I think these races are a bit too manic for me.

But back to UTS.

I had been aware of the event for a little while. The 100 miles distance looks like an absolute beast and obviously the question “Can I do that?” is deeply fascinating. One day I will have to try.

https://snowdonia.utmb.world/races/UTS-100M

Initially the race was not on my radar for this year as I was due to do Cape Wrath, but a change in circumstances shifted Wrath to 2024 and freed up the middle of May. Hurrah! Let’s squeeze in UTS! I just needed to decide on a distance. Jumping straight into the 100 miles seemed too insane but the 25K would be over too soon. I pondered a long time about the 100K but after studying the race map and looking at a scrambling bit which I was certain I would have to do in the dark I decided that the 50K was a good starting point.

The UTS50 (55km/34 miles) started in Llanberis on Saturday morning 8am and with 14 hours allowance everyone had to be back at the finish by 10pm. The route comprised of four major climbs and there were checkpoints after 9.5, 19.5 and 24.5 miles. First, we went up the Llanberis Path to approximately 1000m then down the Pyg Track, around the southern edge of the Snowdon massive and climbing along the Cambrian Way back up to the top of Yr Wyddfa, down to the Llyn Cwellyn Reservoir, up and over Mynydd Mawr and along the ridge of Moel Eilio, Foel Gron and Foel Goch to Llanberis. The day was clear and sunny, which proofed to be too warm. It also meant there were a lot of non-running visitors out and about on top of the 2000+ UTS runners, as well as The Roc triathletes. In short: Eryri was rammed!

The first climb went fine, the Llanberis Path is wide enough not to cause any major congestion. The Pyg Track descent presented the first bit of scrambling, especially higher up, and brought the whole group to a standstill. It caused quite a bit of anxiety in non-runners trying to fight their way uphill. The overall vibe here was not a happy one and I was keen to get away from the crowds. The second time up Snowdon was a really fun scrambling ascent and did not feel overly busy until we reached the summit area. There was a long queue of people waiting to get a picture at the summit cairn. I just went to touch the cairn’s base and that was good enough for me on this occasion.

Souls were lost on the third climb. It was by far not the longest one but very steep and the heat got to us by that point. People just plopped to the ground left, right and centre. I resisted the urge to sit down but had to stop and “admire the view” a little bit too often on my way up. The last ascent was easy by comparison, and the last ridgeline was really good fun.

Obviously, something had to go awry. By the second checkpoint the heat had taken its toll and I had a urinary tract infection. It was kind of inevitable. The day had been so hot and apart from the checkpoints there were limited opportunities for a pee unless you were prepared to have half of Snowdonia watching. Ascending still felt fine but any running on the flats or downhills was too uncomfortable, bordering painful. I had to power hike the last 9 miles which was a bit sad as my legs were going strong and the terrain was lovely. But such is long distance running and you just have to roll with the punches.

I got back to the finish after 12 hours 22 minutes. They gave me a medal, a beer and food. It was a tough race and the weather made it extra challenging. I cannot remember how many times during the day I thought “I am glad I am just doing the 50!” Apart from the UTI I am really pleased how it went though. The Scottish hills have done a good job training my leg strength.

The event was a bit too busy for me, but I knew that would be the case, so I just accepted it as part of the whole experience. The 50K distance had over 1100 starters and I had people around me almost constantly. Lots of runners, lots of running poles flailing in the air! Some people can be quite hazardous!

However, overall this was a great race and a grand day out! The route is beautiful and I am already poring over maps looking at the routes for the UTS 100K, the UTS100 Miles, Paddy Buckley Round and Dragon’s Back. I will be back in Snowdonia for sure.