The H2H3K Challenge
By David Bish
Concept and Sprit
In prep for my Bob Graham attempt last year, Geoff Hibbert and I ran the Welsh 3,000ers starting and finishing at Ty-Powdr. Our time was 17½ hours although it has been done at least once before - in 19 hours by Roy Lee and Derek Seddon with a pint at the Vic en route!
This year I would like to establish an official pairs challenge (I'll lay on some kind of trophy) and a time to beat. The idea is that teams will be independent and no official timing, support, event organisation or pre-set route will be provided.
Easter (when the club has the hut) might be a weekend to have an initial few team attempts but the challenge will remain open until the week before the annual dinner (so that trophy can be awarded) then rolling annually onward. At the suggestion of Mark Garrod, the club president, the winners of the years' challenge have the option to set a different Ty-Powdr based mountaineering challenge for the next year or to retain the H2H3K format.
Contenders should ideally stay a night at the hut whenever reconnoitring the route or competing and to broaden the uptake of this challenge the pair may contain one non-member.
Needless to say this challenge is pretty serious and will usually involve some running in the dark on slippery exposed rock and very likely bad weather. As such it harks back to the days when club members regularly did gnarly things like this.
The gauntlet is down.
Route
The stylised, 'as the crow flies route' is 29 miles/48km (with 18,700ft/5,700m of ascent). This route is impractical to follow in reality and all route choice and direction is left to the discretion of participants (Geoff and I thought our 2009 route was 35 miles).
Any route taken must start and finish at Ty Powdr and cover all the following list of 15 peaks (teams are required to provide their split times to each summit as evidence) which can be ascended in any order and by any route:
- Snowdon
- Garnedd Ugain/Crib y Ddysgl
- Crib Goch
- Glyder Fawr
- Glyder Fach
- Tryfan
- Carnedd Llewelyn
- Foel Grach
- Garnedd Uchaf
- Foel-fras
- Yr Elen
- Carnedd Dafydd
- Pen yr Ole Wen
- Y Garn
- Elidir Fawr
I can provide a 2 page PDF file showing these summits for anyone who wishes to print their own map.
Kit
The use of a GPS or Smartphone for recceing or attempts is considered outside the spirit of the challenge. Ideally teams would carry a phone to summon emergency help and should consider the Shelter on the NE side of Foel Grach summit as a refuge in case of incident on the remote Carneddau (there is a phone signal).
A map and compass are essential; a whistle, headtorch, full body cover and a first aid kit are advised as are either fell running trainers or walking boots (trainers are a dangerous choice). The final kitlist is left to the teams who are participating at their own risk (accepting the terms of BMC participation statement printed in the KMC handbook and on BMC website).
Good Luck!
