Long Mynd Valleys fell race
The Long Mynd Valleys fell race; the first fixture in the English Fell Running Championships 2023. When the fixtures were published in late 2022, my eyes were immediately drawn to this fixture. I've never been to the Shropshire Hills and so there was a certain allure to this 11 mile loop of the Long Mynd. Organised by Mercia Fell Runners, their website warns of a tough and unrelenting course - not one for the faint hearted. Still, needing to get metres of ascent into my legs ahead of the Dragons Back Race in September, I signed myself up. We used this as an opportunity for a weekend away, staying in Shrewsbury the evening before, followed by two nights in my home county of Cheshire afterwards. Having collected my race number and dibber from the local school, I made my way up towards the start which was close to the National Trust car park in the Carding Mill Valley. At 11.05am, we were off. Being a championship race it was popular, but the first few 200 metres are on the tarmac