Cape Wrath Ultra
Ian Stewart Stretches his Lead over Sally Fawcett
Press Release / 07.08.2021
The longest day of the Cape Wrath Ultra saw the runners making their way from Inverbroom to Inchnadamph over 72km. The total ascent was a more modest 1400m and there was plenty of runnable terrain on tracks to start with.
Towards the end of the route, the runners had to negotiate much rougher and remoter terrain and after so many days on their feet it proved tough for many.
At the start of the day, there were still 55 in the race and eight participants are following a reduced course after being timed-out at checkpoints or due to injury and retirement.
The weather was wet and windy, but many runners said they would take that over “too hot and midgey”.
Stewart, I had a Better Day than Expected
Ian Stewart was the fastest runner again today finishing in 8:04. For the first time since day one, Sally Fawcett and Lisa Watson came home separately. Sally was nine minutes ahead of Lisa in 8:26. Ian’s lead has stretched and he now sits 1hr 37 mins in front after the six days.
The Scottish running coach said: “I had a good day. Today was always going to be my hardest because of the 30km of track in the middle. I am fine on the hills and there were plenty of those at the start and finish of the day, but if anything was going to go wrong, it was on the tracks.
Cat and Mouse on the Trails
Ian and Sally ran on-off together along the middle track section and then at the last col before a final hill descent to Inchnadamph when Ian sped downhill. He said: “I enjoyed that final descent and let myself go. It was a good finish for me.”
Lisa had caught Sally by the col but again her injury hampered her downhill speed. Sally, also a member of Dark Peak Fell Runners, finished second fastest today. She said: “I enjoyed the first third and the last third of the course today. The road section was really hard because things are hurting now. My knees and my foot are sore. When it was tussocky and softer ground it was really good.”
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