Club Relay: Glyndwrs Way
One Tuesday evening, on the way back from a run, we came to a realisation: It had been two years since we last ran an MDC relay! Quickly, a plan was hatched to go out, visit the finest unknown sections of rural Wales, and get as many runners as we could on board to run short sections of the route. Where could we go that was unknown territory for everyone? A long route which normally wouldn’t be considered by people who love to run up hills?
After a brief consultation, it quickly became apparent that was really only one possible option: Glyndŵr’s Way. Forming a horseshoe between Knighton and Welshpool, two of the towns that freedom fighter Owain Glyndŵr raided, and passing by his parliament house in Machynlleth. When the two ends are connected up using Offa’s Dyke, it forms a 260km loop through the rolling hills and valleys of northern Powys.
The runners signed up. The campsites were booked. The mammoth spreadsheet grew in detail. And before long, the start line beckoned. We rolled up to Welshpool for the start line, heading down Offa’s Dyke on the Friday afternoon. Marcus and Matt led the charge over the start line, along the canal, up the first hill, and down again the other side. The first few legs, of between 7 and 12 km, were ran in pairs, and all went smoothly.
While most of us set up our tents in a beautiful valley campsite on the edge of town. it became apparent over WhatsApp that something was amiss. Geraint had followed Google’s highly questionable ideas of drivable roads through the Shropshire hills, and ended up missing his changeover onto the final leg of the day. Would Gethin be running the leg on his own? Darren, having missed fell running so much, decided he needed some extra distance to make up for his pancake-gradient experience of life in Cambridge, and so extend his leg 4 straight onto leg 5. The intrepid duo ran into the dark, and landed straight into the pub in Knighton, where the rest of the team had settled in to hear stories of MDC relays past from seasoned runners Martin and Kay.
The dawn broke on a cold Saturday morning as we awoke. A sprinkling of frost on our tents showed us that it was colder than expected. As the sun rose, Flora and Cara crossed the starting line on day two, Glyndwr’s Way proper, heading West over rolling hills, past coppices and sheep filled fields, all beautifully illuminated in the morning sun. From the hill tops, the views stretched from the Beacons on one side to Cadair Idris on the other.
The morning changeovers flew by, as we settled into the rhythm of the relay. Around mid-day, the route passed through Abbeycwmhir, site of ruined one-time largest abbey in Wales, and grave of Llewellyn ap Gruffydd’s body – the last prince of Wales before the English conquest. After taking in Cara’s history lesson, the route carried on into the afternoon, as Karen decided to show her enthusiasm by significantly extending her assigned legs.
Keen to show how inclusive MDC relays are, the walking team of Emma, Chris, Dougie, Gareth and Kay led the way down the hill into Llanidloes, before passing the baton on. The following changeover at Clywedog dam was the most spectacular of the trip, as we cheered the incoming leg runners of Marcus, Simon and Gethin hurtling down into the gorge, over the bridge, and straight back up the other side to our viewpoint.
The outgoing runners passed along Llyn Clywedog, before handing over to Matt O’Keefe and Martyn as they ascended the highest peak of the journey, and out into the uplands, with spectacular views over the Dovey valley at sunset. While most of us had set up camp for the night in a beautiful orchard campsite, Matt C & Chris W ran the final leg of the day, this time out into the dark. As most of the MDC crew recovered, drank and fed in a local hostelry, our eyes were glued to the GPS tracker. Would they make it there in time for last food orders?
At 8:59pm, they charged down Machynlleth high street, and arrived at the bar just in time to order the final pair of Burger and Chips of the night. Having food served and eaten in record time, we all retuned to the campsite, and set our alarms for the final mornings run.
Sunday dawned, considerably warmer than the day before, and Simon and Geraint were off for the sunrise run. Sunday’s legs were a little shorter than Friday and Saturdays. A few changes in, and the social side of getting to know clubmates a little better was showing – between runs, we found ourselves stopping off at every village café for another breakfast roll. The day-trippers of Roger, Donna and Coral arrived for their first legs, glad to have made their way up from South Wales, and seemed very keen to run far beyond their allocated distances. Embryonic fell running club Ceinych Ceredigion, based around Aberystwyth, contributed Phil, Ruby and Berian for the day. As we ran down the wooded Vyrnwy valley, the numbers running each leg increased, with people really wanting to cover more legs, and mix with more people. As the afternoon clouded up, the end was in almost sight, with just a few changeovers left. Marcus, Darren and the three Matts pushed hard over the few short hills, and down into Welshpool. With just one kilometre to complete the run, all remaining runners gathered for a procession down Welshpool high street. A few minutes jog, and a few strange looks from passersby at us celebratory rabble, and we found ourselves back at the canal, at the stone marking the end of Glyndŵrs way. Big smiles all round, we had completed the loop we started 51 hours earlier. All highly relieved to be finished, and a huge sense of achievement – and glad to have the following day off to rest. The only question left is: What route do we want to run for the next relay?
