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This last few miles could get interesting. Guy behind appears to be on gears, guy in front is apparently on SS. Rannoch moor and the WHW to Tyndrum is pretty bloody fast.
One big hill between them though. Come on you nutters!
Should be downhill, last few miles.
Hmmmm, knackered, hungry, close to finish, fading light.
Still a few hours before one rolls into 2nd place, going to be close and a hard fight either way.
Ian's on 413
Alans on 408
Ian appears to have pulled away, maybe Alan has stopped for chips at Kings house or Glencoe ski resort (roughly where they are abouts)
Alan's on the move again!
They would have got closer going over the devil's staircase. That gap will go down pretty quick now I'd think.
Just been looking, Ian's current speed looks a bit lower than Alan's
This is going to be close 😯
Ians on a downhill 13mph at 416
Alans on 4mph at 409
Can geared Alan beat SS Ian ?
Do they know how close they are to each other?
Probably be able to smell each other 😮
Oliver is out now.
27 started, 13 have pulled out so far !
Spot's seemed to have stalled for the moment, no movement on Alan for 30mins and Ian for about 20mins.
Expect a big jump when they refresh. Can Alan claw back some mileage on the down with his susser ? or will Ian hold him off to the finish ?
That's got to be all over bar the shouting now with the length of Rannoch Moor between them
Ian on 420
Alan on 412
logged out and in again, spots have refreshed
was going to bed, cup of tea and wait for Ian to knock out the last few miles.
Ian should finish in about an hour. Quite an easy run in from there except for one short bit under the railway line. Alan still has a climb to do up from Kings House. Cannot see Alan catching Ian unless he has a major problem.
Alans past Glencoe Ski resort.
Ian's bearing down on Bridge of Orchy, he could have enough time to spare for a swift half and chips and still take second !
Alans at 413
Ians at 424 crossed the Bridge at Orchy and should be able to smell food wafting up the valley from Tyndrum.
Fun watching, I've always found it hard to keep up with ian even with gears.
See Rob Wixey is having a good fill up at McDonald's in Fort William. Technology is great.
And Phil Richmond is tucked up in The Tomich Pub or B&B 🙂
waiting on a refresh
Ians at 425 @ 7.9mph
Alans at 415 @ 7.3mph
Suspect Greg May, Arno Minner and Tom Sap (no tracker) will stop at Camban bothy for the night. Hostel a bit further on likely to have lights out by the time they get there.
About 1 mile left for Ian
Will he make it for last orders at the bar.....
Ian's done... superb effort.
10.46pm Ian Finished 🙂
Alan might be in around midnight.
Good go fellas !
Having a whiskey to celebrate Ian's arrival. It was a Scottish oatcake when Aidan came in being a bit early for drinking.
Well ridden Ian.
Well ridden Ian
Absolutely!!
Wow! Cap doffed to everyone who rode/is riding this. Much respect for even starting such an epic - overused word I know, but I think this might almost justify it - ride.
Will be riding a couple of these trails (bonar bridge - ullapool - fisherfield - torridon... ) as part of bikepacking trundle next week, albeit much s l o w e r. I shall raise my hipflask to all of you as I do.
I'm surprised at how many times I have checked [url= http://trackleaders.com/highland13 ]http://trackleaders.com/highland13[/url] over the last few days and, knowing a little bit of the terrain, astonished by how the competitors have progressed.
chapeau fellows.
Alan Sheldon tracked at Finish -- at 12:06:27 AM (BST) 05/29/13
Another superb effort. I hope there's a bar open!
Rob Wixey should finish this morning in 4th, and probably just miss a sub 4 day clocking. Alan G and Mike T look on for a mid afternoon finish and up to 5 others could finish tonight.
Just updated the front page story with finisher times. Can anyone fill me in with news of the untracked riders, if any are still going?
Sad to miss it this time around but hoping to make an autumn tour and then be back to race next year.
The only untracked rider I am aware of is Tom Sap (Belgium). Last night he was with Greg May and Arno Minner in Dornie according to his partner. Greg & Arno look as though they stayed at Camban bothy and I assume Tom is with them. They have been together for last few days now.
Cheers Kevin.
Jenn - front page article you have missed off Alan Sheldon's name though you do have his time.
It's great watching this event. Just starting off on a loop like that with the tracker on must feel pretty committing and the pace at the front is quite something.
Noted, thanks 🙂
Looks like we have a few more finishers - though the Spot tracking system seems to be having an off day. Does anyone know if it's always this unreliable - or is it user error? 😉
Really enjoying it. I hope we get some more reports/pics..
Philip Richmond must have finished or had a catastrophic problem, and Daniel Jessee is almost home. All things considered SPOT is quite reliable. They do have to be turned off and on every 24 hours or tracking is lost. Batteries run out, satellites don't see units in thick tree cover but overall they are fine.
Wow looks like Arno and Greg are still on the move tonight, 11.19pm... they have just done the Devils Staircase and are both going for the finish by the looks of it!
Can't imagine what they are going through at this point, 5 days 13 1/2 hours of grueling riding to finish at this time of the night, neck and neck, racing each other to the finish along the West Highland Way!
They are at Kings House Hotel right now. 18 miles to go.
Hi Guys,
Great fun ready all this afterwards. Thanks for all the comments.
I never saw Alan on my run in to the finish, but knew he was no more than an hour back. Had to push hard all day, but had a crash on the fast descent from the ski resort. Tiredness and poor judgement nearly put me out entirely. I left he Fisherfield emergency bothy at 6.30am Monday, arrived at Camban bothy at 3.40am Tuesday, saw Mark's bike through the window. Elected to bivvy outside until 5.30am before pushing on again. So, about 200 miles in 41 hours with 1.5 hours sleep... The run in from Fort Bill was utterly punishing.
Cheers,
Ian
What lights are these guys using? I'm assuming that recharging isn't easy yet there's been a lot of night-time riding going on.
[quote=IanB ]Hi Guys,
Great fun ready all this afterwards. Thanks for all the comments.
I never saw Alan on my run in to the finish, but knew he was no more than an hour back. Had to push hard all day, but had a crash on the fast descent from the ski resort. Tiredness and poor judgement nearly put me out entirely. I left he Fisherfield emergency bothy at 6.30am Monday, arrived at Camban bothy at 3.40am Tuesday, saw Mark's bike through the window. Elected to bivvy outside until 5.30am before pushing on again. So, about 200 miles in 41 hours with 1.5 hours sleep... The run in from Fort Bill was utterly punishing.
Cheers,
Ian
Utterly amazing Ian. This thread has been completely gripping and I think we're all stunned by ALL of the riders!
Looks like Arno and Greg have pulled in to the Kings House Hotel... quick pint, or head down for the night? Amazing anyway, great to finish so close, wonder if they will ride in together or race it to the finish!
What lights are these guys using? I'm assuming that recharging isn't easy yet there's been a lot of night-time riding going on.
It is light till 11pm, you know that I'm sure. Possible to ride up there late without much problem, especially if just getting the miles in rather than bombing it. I reckon most lights like the Fenix torches etc are fine for getting through in 11pm twilight, anything that uses lithium batteries can usually run 1/4 power for 10+ hours, so just one or two sets of batteries is enough.
Went up to Tyndrum today to rescue my car, after getting home from Ullapool at 12.30 last night. Met Allan G, Ian and others in the cafe for a chat. Was great to have a craic with these guys that finished in such amazing times. It gives a whole new perspective to 'going for a wee ride'!
Hope Steve recovers fast. Saw a pic of his injuries. A lot of stitches to the face. Fast healing man!