Greg Brock

Three Peaks, 25 miles & 120 Press-Ups

On Saturday 12^th February Tom Williams (from the Marathon Talk Podcast) and I did the Yorkshire Three Peaks, and if that wasn't hard enough we also did 120 press-ups on our way round!

I stayed with Tom & Hels on the Friday night in Leeds before an early start on the Saturday morning to head up into the cold and misty Yorkshire Dales. We were soon in Horton-in-Ribblesdale and heading up towards the first peak: Pen-y-Ghent. As we approached the top; the temperature started to drop and the wind picked up in preparation for our first set of 40 press-ups, along with some very strange looks from a group of walkers.

Tom is currently training for the Comrades Ultra Marathon at the end of May, and along with Martin Yelling, they have set themselves the challenge of doing 100 press-ups at 30km, 60km & 90km. So when Tom mentioned he was going to do 40 press-ups on the top of each of the Yorkshire Three Peaks I couldn't be out done and had to join in.

We were soon enjoying the fast-paced running as we descended the flanks of Pen-y-Gehnt and headed along the flat(ish?) section to the Ribblehead viaduct. From Ribblehead the Race Route cuts under the railway line and heads straight up Whernside. However, as this is not a public footpath we opted for the slightly longer route around the back of Whernside. The steep climb up Whernside and another 40 press-ups.

The steep technical descent off Whernside is fairly slow going and then it is down to the Hill Inn and the start of the long climb up Ingleborough. The final Peak of the day starts of quite easy with a nice run along the limestone pavings and board-walk, and then it is a short sharp climb up the exposed rocky edge to reach the summit plateau. A struggled run along the summit to reach the final trig-point. The last set of 40 press-ups started OK but soon deteriorated into a mental and physical struggle. The final Ten required every last bit of effort (and encouragement from Tom) and even then I only just made it.

The run off the top of Ingleborough summed up a great day as the sun came out and we were blessed with great views over the Yorkshire Dales. It was then back into Horton, and the Pen-Y-Ghent Cafe, for some much earned food & drink.

All together we were out for 5 hours and 40 mins and covered just over 25 miles and 120 press-ups.

Sunday, I went for a 10-mile recovery run with Hels around the Leeds Half-Marathon route.

Thanks guys for a great weekend.

All Eleven Winter Toughguy Medals

Another top ten finish on what was my eleventh consecutive winter Toughguy event.

Toughguy is a very popular event in the midlands that attracts several thousand competitors every year. It starts of with a mass-start cross-country run, followed by the 'killing fields' obstacle course.

As always I went out very fast at the start, to try and get in front of the crowds. It is always difficult to pace this type of race, because if you start too slowly you will get caught up behind people when the course narrows and the obstacles approach, but if you go off too quickly then you will pay for it later by running out of energy when you really need it.

By the time we reached the slaloms (running up and down a steep hillside several times) I had got myself into a fairly good position (probably about 15th overall). I kept this position up through the forest but my race almost ended at the'Water Slalom'when I enthusiastically launched myself into the first water obstacle and hit my knee on a big chunk of ice. It was somewhat demoralising not being able to walk for a few minutes, and all the people I had previously overtaken were now going past me. I gradually got my knee back into action and I was off heading towards the 'killing fields'.

The 'killing fields' consists of a whole variety of obstacles (23 in all); cargo nets, underwater tunnels, concrete tubes, diving boards etc. I passed each obstacle as fast as I could and gradually started overtaking people again. It wasn't until just after the underwater tunnels when one of the marshalls shouted 'you're in the top-ten' that I realised I had actually made some good process.

Battered Legs due to all the Ice

There were two new (for 2011) obstacles; 1) 'Underground Interrogation Pits' which was actually a very good addition to the course and consisted of working your way through an underground room with lots of mud and hanging logs and the odd bit of electric fence wiring to avoid. 2) The 'Gladiatough Collosseusm' was somewhat below the normal Toughguy standard, and consisted of some very poorly made rope swings and monkey bars in a figure of eight pattern above the final pool.

After all these obstacles I eventually crossed the finish line very cold and tired as always. I was told by the finish line marshal that I was within the top-ten.

Overall a very good event, but it will probably be my last !?!!?

Previous Results:

2001 - 03:28:00 - 1859th
2002 - 03:35:20 - 2033rd
2003 - 02:20:35 - 668th
2004 - 01:41:24 - 296th
2005 - 01:23:56 - 52nd
2006 - 01:32:43 - 49th
2007 - 01:23:13 - 39th
2008 - 01:02:07 - 10th
2009 - 01:23:33 - 5th
2010 - 01:29:15 - 40th

I have been meaning to update this site for quite along time now, but our young daughter Isabelle, running and various other activities have all got in the way of this.

Also, I have recently been involved in setting up the WinterSwim website and also some new features for the Marathon Talk Website, including Jantastic. If you are into Swimming or Running have a look as they are a great way to keep motivated over the winter.

Anyway, to get an overview of what this website is all about, the best place to visit is the "About Me" page. This gives an insight into my activities and life over the last few years.

Most of the content can be found in the Right Hand Column, adjacent to this blog, but here is a quick summary of the main sections:

• Photos - All the Photo Albums in one place
• Videos - A few video clips and compilations of photos.
• Swim / Bike / Run Logbook - with maps and data from the Garmin website.
• Reports of some of my expeditions and trips around the world.
• Caving Logbook
• Diving Logbook

I will continue to add more content to this website, and blog about adventures and activities, so please check back regularly to keep updated.

As always, if you have any comments or just want to drop me a line please Contact Me or leave a comment on this page.