My first trail race - The Maverick Adidas Terrex Original West Sussex 2023
On the 4th February 2023 I took on my first ever trail race. Want to know how it went? Then you must read on ⬇️
There were 3 routes to choose from as per below. The lads were all doing the long route so clearly I chose that one ofcourse. Elevation gain +471m meant nothing to me until the day lol.
The day before
What did I sign up to?
My good friends Ash, Delano and Jeremy (AKA fellow London Bridge Runners) had all signed up to the Maverick race in East Sussex and asked me if I would be interested to join them. It was something I had thought about doing for a while as these lads had been to a few Maverick races and hyped them up big time. My time was now so I had to sign up.
Here is some info on what was on offer:
On our "London Bridge Runners" WhatsApp group we agreed on which train we would all be on. Delano would get on the train from London Victoria to Amberley at 7:35am with the rest of us catching that train at East Croydon at 7:53am. There were train strikes today but should be ok after 7am so fingers crossed.
I asked the lads if there was a bag drop and they said yes. Wasn't too sure which shoes to wear so I decided to go for my Adidas Terrex SG Trail Running shoes. I was excited about my trail race debut and had no expectations whatsoever.
The weather was also brought up by Ash in that it was looking good. Jeremy responded with "Well, it's not exactly Tahiti weather is it" 😊 in reference to our fellow Tahitian, Delano who was there over the Christmas break.
Race day - the journey there
I met Ash at East Croydon Station at 7:30am where we both purchased our tickets first. If you have any Railcards don't forget to use that to get a discount on your ticket fare.
We then went to Caffe Nero for our traditional pre race morning coffee then headed to the platform where we were greeted by Jeremy and his girlfriend Leila.
Train arrived on time which is just what you need on race day. Delano stuck his head out of Coach 3 so we could spot him and all sit together. The train was full of runners including Samy and his two friends who like me were making their debut trail run. An hour journey to Amberley. We arrived just before 9am with an avalanche of runners departing the train onto the platform.
Race day - one hour to go
As soon as we entered the race village we headed for registration to pick up our bibs. I was asked if I still wanted to do the long distance and I said yes ✅
Walking around the village was good to see Tenzing there. Love Tenzing and knew I had that refreshing drink waiting for me once I finish.
At the Adidas Terrex tent there was Gina with her big smile as always 😊 she was helping runners with show trial. I decided to stick with my trainers for this occasion.
Pre race photos is always a given at race day to hype us all up that includes selfies and group photos.
Race day - Race begins "let's go"
Ash, Jeremy, Delano, Leila and I all set off together crossing the start line. We were immediately greeted by an incline to welcome us to the race. Nice and steady pace to start with. After a couple of Kms we approached a narrow section of the course with a gate which is where I lost the group. I knew at that point I wouldn't see them now till the finish line so solo race it was.
I found myself interchanging with a group of runners as we kept overtaking eachother and cheering eachother on each time which was great. There were plenty of hills to tackle within the first 10km before the first nutrition point. I decided to walk these inclines and could feel my calves as clearly not use to them. Plenty of scenic routes to enjoy on the way.
When I got to the first nutrition point I had a piece of banana, some water and a jaffa cake. I set off again with a boost of energy. Shortly after, the middle distance runners split off from the long distance runners. I had settled at this point into my groove as the hills were past me now woohoo and continued to enjoy the beautiful scenic route.
As I looked back there were no runners behind me from what I could see. I caught up with a runner, Louise, who kept me company for the next 8km as we chatted away about all things running and how beautiful trail running is. Beauty of running is meeting other runners. Checkout my favourite part of the course where you can see Louise running ahead.
Then came the worst part of the course, a lovely long muddy trail. I reckon my face says it all. I started walking carefully to avoid sinking in the mud but then gave up and just went with it. It was slushy and wet so soldiered on and hoped not to fall into the mud. Pleased to say I won that battle ✅
We battled hills and mud trails so now all that was left was the final push to finish line. With just a km to go I could see Delano up ahead hobbling along. He was struggling with the shoes he took from the shoe trial. He told me he went a size down than normal as they didn't have his size. Definitely a big lesson for him to never do that again. We crossed the finish line together which was absolutely great so I am thankful for that.
Post race photos are always a given too so check these out.
The medal
The result
Main thing about trail running is it doesn't matter about time as you can tell from my overall position. All about enjoying the race and mixing it up with the nature around you using all your senses.
Final words
"Amazing, stunning, unique" would be how I would sum it all up.
I can see why my friends love trail running and are hooked. I am now hooked too so time to book my next one me thinks 😊
