Thought I better get this report done befor the next outing, Arrocahr Alps race, 4 munros, about 15 miles and 8000' of climbing, SHR Championship counter. There are 3 cut off times, 1st one 2 1/2 hours to the Sloy Dam after a quick up and down Ben Vorlich, 3 1/2 hours to Lag Uaine the col between Ben Vane & Ime, 4 3/4 hours to Beallach a' Mhaim.
Neraly 100 set off up Glen Loin in cloudy/warm conditions. Plan was to go out steady and reach the dam in about 2 hours, 3 hrs 15 to Lag Uaine and should be ok to complete.
Arrived at the dam spot on within a minute even though it was a bit claggy on top of Vorlich which meant people came out the mist from all directions trying to find the checkpoint, been there often enough so no probs. Took it easy on the descent losing a wee bit of time in the steep slopes just above the dam.
Soon back into the mist climbing Ben Vane, visibility really poor, down to aboout about 20 or 30 yards, no visual clues as to the location of the summit or any other runners. Found a gully which ran on the correct bearing and after a bit of a delay hit the summit ridge but on the wrong side! Lost about 15 or 20 mins but should be ok for the next check.
Left the summit of Vane and runners who I was behind coming from all directions looking for the summit. Unsettled by the different directions people were going and started to question where I was going, a bit unsure so sat down for a couple of minutes to ponder before returning to Vane Summit, another 10 minutes lost and no chance of making the next check time decided to give up, my first DNF.
Jogged back to the start via Glen Loin for soup and rolls, I'll have a few more bearings writtem down next time.
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