Aaron Pyke
from Australia to the highlands
What’s your why?
For me, the love of being out in the absolute middle of nowhere, with no phone reception, just me and the trails, is why I wanted to do Cape Wrath Ultra. A journey of 400km through the most scenic and undoubtedly the most technical terrain I will ever encounter in my running journey. It ticked all the boxes!
Ready for the adventure ©No Limits Photography
Preparations ahead of the race.
I think it’s truly impossible to be 100% prepared for something like the Cape Wrath Ultra. Especially when you live on the other side of the world, where the terrain and conditions are completely different from the ones you’ll be experiencing on the race. Dealing with the uncertainty of knowing if your preparation for the race or the kit you’ve packed to travel across the world was sufficient was nerve-racking. So, naturally, it came with a lot of kit testing, packing and repacking my 80L Dry Bag countless times until the point where it probably reverted to what I packed the first time!
The scenery in Scotland ©No Limits Photography
The Race.
So it begins! Just a short ferry trip across to that Day One start line. A few digestive biscuits and some Moccona gold to settle the nerves (4 coffees does not help you settle nervous – trust me!). Before we set off on an epic adventure, after crossing the start line, the bagpipes were just a gentle hum in the background, my nerves were gone for good. I knew deep down that I could withstand the “wrath” that the event would throw at me and was rearing to go each morning at the start line, eagerly waiting to see what unique, amazing scenery the course would throw at me that day.
Throughout the race, I grew a cult following as the; “Aussie DJ”, “Aussie FM”, or as Will would call me, “Dancing Queen”. Every day blasting the best hits from the 70’s and 80’s to keep the morale and spirits high on the trail was my goal, whether it helped 1 or 50 people on the trail each day, I was happy!
I came into the first 3 days with a somewhat reserved approach. Travelling so far to participate in the race, with the time and money investment I put into Cape Wrath Ultra, I didn’t want to fly out the gate and roll an ankle on day 1 to then not be able to finish the course.
The other factor that played into my approach was the terrain; rocky, technical, boggy (downright impossible to run underfoot at times) meant it was like nothing I had ever “run” on before - coming from Australia where these conditions don’t exist.
Once I learnt on the fly how to run those technical down hills (I took the No Brakes approach), navigate the bogs and sludge through the muck that littered the trail, it was on! From Day 4 onwards, I took a bit more of a “Race” Attitude towards the course, knowing confidently I could do well on the leaderboard.
A short boat trip across the Loch Linnhe to the start line ©No Limits Photography
Days 6 & 7. As the daily miles grew, the terrain continued to test my ankles, the bogs, and my patience. It seemed though the closer to the end of each day was where the course threw all it had at me, at times becoming almost impassable. This is where my go-to snacks, a cheeky Snickers Bar or Oreo, singing along to some tunes, or slinging terrible banter with racemates, became my way to embrace the suck.
Day 8! It had finally arrived, the day that I would see that Majestic Lighthouse breaking the horizon off in the distance. Like every other day, the scenery did not disappoint, starting out with a very fast runnable route, transitioning to that beautiful white sand, and finally paralleling the coast along the cliffs. Boasting views of full 360 absolutely stunning landscapes as far as the eyes could see.
Running down that road to the lighthouse was something else - just realising what the human body can be put through and still show up the next day and do it all again! Getting cheered through that finishing gate by fellow race mate Henry (2nd male) and sharing a cold IRN BRU, ham sandwich and crisps with a mate at the finish had never tasted so good!
8 days of adventure in the Scottish Highlands ©No Limits Photography
Tips and Advice to Others
Having a coach or a past participant(s) to leverage knowledge on how to focus training would be very beneficial for people looking to undertake the Cape Wrath Ultra. Preparation for this event is like no other – there’s a lot of factors that play into success on the course, whether that’s mileage, nutrition, hydration, correct kit, strength and injury prevention, or navigation and route selection. I would seek out as much advice as possible in all aspects to ensure success.
Have confidence in your shoes and equipment. I studied the terrain, read articles, talked to the Facebook group and worked out what I thought would work best for me based on advice from other participants. I then implemented this into my training to test it out. Never do anything new on race day!
Come up with a daily routine that works for you, and stick with it. Every day I would do the exact same thing when I returned from the day run so I knew I could recover well enough for the next day.
One of my #1 recommendations is to use the cold water streams/rivers that are at each night camp! Free Ice baths!
Protein shake and unlimited plates of chips! A recipe for success.
Have those go-to snacks, songs, memories or methods of getting you through those tough spots because you will encounter them.
The Cape Wrath Lighthouse ©No Limits Photography
Remember…
…you paid to be there! Don’t forget to breathe in the surroundings. You may have been told to never look back in a race, but trust me – if you don’t, you will miss that view!