Before the Hunnypot 100, I interviewed a number of entrants about what they expected from the event and how their training was going. One of the entrants was Guy Evans, and he has kindly agreed to answer some post-event questions as well. It was also rather lovely to walk Guy in at the end, well, the last fifty metres anyway.
Q. What are your main memories of the Hunnypot 100?
A. Well the sun and the heat are the obvious and overriding memories. I’ll also remember the route – Kent might not have massive hills but it also doesn’t seem to have any flat bits either!
Q. You completed the event and came in the fastest 30 entrants. What strategies did you use to get around what appears to have been the hottest ever 100?
A. I slowed down. For the first 10 miles I was jogging the downhills, but after the first CP I walked everything. Even walking, I was still overheating. It quickly became apparent that it was much more about finishing lines than finishing times. I resolved to take it easy – in particular on the hills. I had a rough plan for when I was expecting to get to each checkpoint but I threw it away.
I was also taking more time at the checkpoints than normal to help cool down and recover. The volunteers at the checkpoints were brilliant. They must have been hot and tired too but were very patient and understanding – having water tipped onto the back of my neck was bliss.
I had a wetted buff but I’m not sure how much that helped – it dried out very quickly after each checkpoint! I also had electrolytes and salt tablets. I think I should have taken more of these. I made sure I was well hydrated – but from reading around afterwards suspect I might have taken on too much water and that was causing my blood sodium levels to drop.
Above all else, I took it from checkpoint to checkpoint. I had a wobble very early on when the thought of carrying on in this heat for the whole of Saturday, the whole night and then for the whole of Sunday (which was forecast to be hotter) just seemed too much. But just focus on the next checkpoint and the overall distance will take care of itself.
Q. Which part of the walk did you enjoy the most?
A. I said before that the night section wasn’t my favourite. This time it was! The coolness when the sun eventually set on Saturday was wonderful. The scenery in the last quarter was great and I just about had enough energy left to enjoy it (although I had a bit of a loss of sense of humour with the repeated ascents and in particular descents into Ide Hill checkpoint).
Q. Will you be doing it again? Or is it too early to say?
A. Another LDWA 100? Yes, for sure. 100%. I’m really looking forward to the next few which are in great parts of the country. I hear that the provisional Devon and Cornwall route has a lot of elevation – great!
Q. Do you have any suggestions for organisers of future LDWA 100s?
A. For me personally, don’t be afraid of making the route challenging. But, I really don’t feel in a position to make any suggestions. I’m incredibly grateful to the organisers and volunteers of the 100s for all the time and energy that they invest in putting them on. It’s a real privilege to be able to turn up and take part.