Walking Events

29th January 2023 - Wilmot Wander - Simon was in the team but was DNS due to a late hamstring problem. I drive, we are a little late getting there and just miss our start time of 7:00am, we are team 3. I wear my Alpkit trousers with braces, thermal vest, Es Paradise long sleeve t-shirt and Red GB top, works out OK, I don't change anything all day. I carry too much weight, the Christmas cake and the three cans of Red Bull were not necessary. The Start. Quince has brought Molly with him, she walks well. Good pace up to CP Alpha, Stanley, we are still in touch with lots of other teams. Enjoy the part from Stanley, Morley, Coxbench and over the top to Duffield. We see Mackworth water tower from Almshouses Lane, it looks miles away. We are probably on for a record time at CP Bravo, Duffield. The soles of my feet really start to hurt from Quarndon. I have my first Nurofen at 15 miles at Mackworth. The field up to the water tower is particular hard work this year. I wonder why we keep on doing this all the way to CP Charlie. Alison picks up Molly at Hackwood Farm estate. Dave Mac is pleased to see us, we have a look at the Kinder Elite route. Mike and Rita are there. We all enjoy our Christmas cake. The Nurofen kicks in whilst we are there, and I set off at rocket pace. Robert is struggling at this point. We follow the new route deviation via Haven Baulk Lane, works well. CP Delta, Findern. I have a can of Red Bull just as we get on the Canal at 3pm. Good pace along the canal. We are at CP Echo at 4pm. Robert has a can of Red Bull. Head down for the last five miles, however it is no more painful than at 15 miles. We finish just as the light is going in a time of 10:32. My first time over the new A52 bridge. The End. We go to the Three Horseshoes for a couple. I drop them off and then bath and goulash. The soles of my feet are very painful.

26th January 2020 - Wilmot Wander - I leave at 6:25, pick up Quince, Robert and then Jack from Junction Street. Park by the Co-Op travel place for the first time. We start the walk at 7:40am, team 43, Prof's Team. All good humour to Stanley and onward. A man has a heart attack on the way up from Whittaker Lane, they use What 3 Words to give the location. Ambulance is there when we arrive, helicopter is just flying in. Rain starts just after we leave the Bridge Inn. I have a bit of a headache just after Radbourne, Robert and Quince go without. Jack's right hamstring tightens as we leave Mickleover, so we slow the pace a bit.
As we enter Burnaston I realise that this year is a very muddy event. We get to Swarkestone for just before 6pm. Robert, Quince have a bit of a headache. The usual painful walk along the canal path, we have to walk an extra half mile to go to the alternative A52 bridge.
I am surprised when our final time is 12:32, enjoy the chicken soup.

Four Inns 2019 - Me, Robert T, Quince and Gee.

6th April 2019 - Me, Robert T, Quince and Gee. Simon wakes up an hour too early and drives over to pick up Quince. He then goes back home and has a cup of coffee, before coming back at the right time. Simon picks me up at 3:15am. He drives us to Holmbridge, we arrive just at 5am. We get the last parking space at the back of the hall, see Dave Mac as soon as we step out of the car. Breakfast, Simon talks to Alice who he met the other day in the Snake. We have been selected to be given a GPS tracker. We set off at 6am, calm bright cold morning. I need gloves on. Simon rockets ahead, digging his poles into the tarmac. He meets a friend from School. We walk well and make good time, only five teams have passed us at the Isle of Skye. Head up the track onto Black Hill. Nibor, Bromley and a friend pass us on this section. Stop for a quick picture at Hey Moss checkpoint. We are pulled along by all the other groups to the Crowden checkpoint. Simon leaves Crowden a couple of minutes ahead of us and then goes like a rocket. We do not catch him till the Torside checkpoint. As we are walking over Torside Dam I talk to a Scout Leader who has done the walk 45 times. Take it very steady up Torside Clough, I send Quince and Robert ahead to watch people doing the cut across. However, most people stay on the Pennine way. We walk a lot closer to the Torside stream this time, on the actual Pennine way. Enjoy this part very much, find Bleaklow Head easily in the Sunshine. Three teams from Imperial College are with as at this stage, they miss Doctors Gate path.
We arrive at Doctors Gate checkpoint, there are only a couple of teams behind us at this stage. Enjoy a couple of hot dogs. Simon gets stung by a wasp or bee and has some first aid treatment. We get a good pace on down to the Snake. We are busy doing the calculations to see if we can make Chapel in time. Simon has more first aid from the Mountain Rescue at Snake Inn for about 30 minutes. We set off up Kinder, Simon is getting very slow, up the usual route. I use View Ranger a lot to find the exact place to walk across, and it proves invaluable. We walk on a small footpath across to the other side in under ten minutes.
The team are still asking for a half in the Nags Head, I say No. We make great time to the checkpoint at Edale, a bit disappointed that it is just more sandwiches. They say that we can make Chapel, no problem, I am not so sure. Set off towards Rushup Edge, Simon gets even slower, he is convinced that we will make Chapel anyway. I ask Simon "Will Chapel be enough for you today ?", he says No. We arrive at Chapel checkpoint with 15 minutes to spare. Another team arrive just after us. We set off through the estate towards the railway line, the Sat Nav is very useful again. Use the Sat Nav again to find the station. Walk along next to the railway line and then past the Beehive pub. Mountain Rescue are waiting for us at every turn. We have joined with the other team by now. Up the steep road to Whitehall checkpoint. Have the fantastic rice pudding with jam and a wee dram. Set off again with the other team and two Mountain Rescue in tow. Very dark, all navigation is from the Sat Nav, takes us down to the Dam. I am not sure that many of the team know we are crossing a Dam. Another checkpoint just before we head up the hill. It is different in the dark, but does seem to drag on. Rather cold at the Cat & Fiddle checkpoint, put my Fleece on. Have coffee and jaffa cakes and then set off. It seems to take forever to get along the stone path, Robert says that he was not sure even at this point that we would finish! My blisters develop on this section. Mountain Rescue are waiting as we come into Buxton. Drag ourselves along the road to the final checkpoint at the School, arrive at 03:18. Julie opens the door, and we go in for a cup of tea. Have a nice baked potato with chilli. Get our gear and find a place in the sports hall. Get into my sleeping bag for 4am, far too painful to sleep. We miss breakfast at 8am. We call in for Sunday Lunch at the Beehive on the way home.

Start 06:00; Isle of Skye 07:09; Hey Moss 09:06; Crowden 09:40; Torside 10:30; Doctors Gate 14:01; Snake Inn 15:04; Edale 17:46; Chapel 20:45; Whitehall 22:42 Cat 01:10; End 03:18; - Walking Time 21 Hours 18 Minutes.

27th January 2019 - Wilmot Wander - I pick up Robert at 6:45am, Quince over sleeps and does not pick up Simon on time, they arrive a little delayed. We start walking at 7:30, rather than 7:20am. Very windy and a bit cold all day, there are record drop-outs due to cold. Simon recognises Gill Gillinator Watson at the Stanley checkpoint. Good views from the top of Bunkers hill. Robert pops his first pain killer before Vicarwood farm. All year he has been opposed, but his physio said that it was OK. We cross Markeaton Brook. The rest of us have our first dose of Ibuprofen just after Radbourne church. Have our second dose at Burnaston, we are the last team out of the checkpoint. We get to the canal for 4pm, it takes 1:15 to get to Swarkestone. Push hard to finish just after 7pm, 11:35, we are last. I have walked hard all day and could maybe have gone faster. We have the chicken soup and talk about entering the Four Inns. I drive us to the Three Horseshoes, Simon is very cold before we set off and has hot chocolate. Quince has beer and then suddenly goes very white and uncommunicative. I give them a lift back, slowly.

28th January 2018 - Wilmot Wander - Facebook Post Quince and Alison pick me up just after 7am. We have a start time of 7:32am, team 40. We make good progress in the early stages. Legs hurt a little by the Bridge Inn. We miss the bit where you cut the corner in Duffield and walk past the Chapel. We slow to under two mph on the way up Quarndon hill. No rain all day and mostly sunny. I eat the biscuits supplied and a fair bit of trail mix at Radbourne. I take two Ibuprofen just before we come into Burnaston. They kick in during the canal, and we really start to move. Join the canal at 3:20. I have to stop for a Paula Radcliffe along the canal. We are at Check Point Echo in the daylight! We are pressured to finish before 6pm by messages from Rob Taylor, we do out fastest speed over the last few miles, almost 4 mph. We run the last few hundred yards from the bridge to the hut. Our time is 10:23, Strava records the route as just over 32 miles, with 9:23 of time moving. Allison comes and picks us up. Need new walking boots or at least laces, and walking trousers. Shorts was absolutely the best choice. I have got some blisters for the first time for a while.

31st January 2016 - Wilmot Wander - We are team 49 :- Prof, Gee and Quince, and set off at 7:35, see Matt Waterfall and Jonathan Nightingale in the hut. Robert and Rachael were off at 7:18, we pass them on the golf course. CP Bravo At the Bridge Inn, Laura and James Harvey are waiting for us, have a bit of a chat. A lad walks with us for the first twelve miles, but he struggles in the mud, leave him on Quarndon hill, Gee had never been up before. CP Charlie Jonathan Nightingale is walking with Brendan and Shaun, they lose a glove at Mackworth Hotel, and we never see them again. I have a 4ml shot of Jager at the Stenson Bubble, it does not make me feel any better. The walk along the canal is the worst bit, just sliding around all the time. We finish in 11:34 one minute slower than last year. I give Matt Waterfall a lift home, he walked round with Halinka and Sam. Robert is an hour behind us at Toyota. He proposed to Rachael there. They carry on to Swarkestone and stop there.

Four Inns 35k 2015

25th January 2015 - Wilmot Wander - I pick up Thierry and Robert just after 7am for the Wilmot Wander. Start We set off at 7:38am. We try and take it nice and steady to start with. CP Alpha CP Bravo Weather is cool, with no rain. Have our sandwiches at Radbourne with Dave Mac. Robert changes his socks. After 22 miles it gets quite painful. Very much head down from Swarkestone. Done in 11:33, all very tired. End