The 2nd day began with a run from the race HQ to Portland Bill for checkpoint 1 before continuing around the coast and back to race HQ for checkpoint 2. None of this was particularly scenic but did manage to fit in a good few steep climbs.
During the race briefing they had warned about the risk of taking a dead end footpath to a juvenile detention centre and I proceeded to take this and added o. About 1.4 miles to the overall distance. It was also a short while after this that I felt a twang on my right hamstring and was reduced to a hobble. With some dynamic stretches I managed to get to a reasonable run without too much pain so I decided to push on for checkpoint 3.
The route now proceeded through Weymouth town centre and along the sea front. This was all very flat but also very busy. At the end of the sea front the coastal path headed back to the more familiar hilly coastal path. This frat section was more rolling hills than anything more severe. This continued until Smugglers Inn where checkpoint 3 was. Throughout this section I’d passed large numbers of other competitors and although my hamstring still hurt I felt comfortable that I could complete the next section.
From Smugglers we headed straight up the next hill which went gradually upwards. Then after a fairly flat section we hit the more serious hills. These included steep uphill climbs followed by very steep downhills. All hard on the quads. Through Durdle Door before finally dropping down to Lulworth Cove and the finish. At this point we also had the opportunity to view the next serious hill that waits for us tomorrow.
Although my hamstring is still very sore I intend to push on tomorrow to complete the course, although I intend to join a slower group.
Througout the day the weather was warm but with a cooling sea breeze. I think the weather was quite deceptive because quite a few people had gotten a little burnt.