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Frozen Fat Ass 50k 9:00 Sun 27 November 2011 - Fordham, Essex How much will you freeze your Fat Ass off? |
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Frozen Fat Ass 50k 9:00 Sun 27 November 2011 - Fordham, Essex How much will you freeze your Fat Ass off? |
Spend a day running on the trails around North Essex along a 50k route that offers a variety of surfaces to run on and sights to see. From quality single-track through secluded woods to coastal paths along tidal estuaries this event has it all.
The 50k distance is an excellent distance for both first-time ultrarunners and those who are more experienced. As a first-timer who has perhaps run a couple of road marathons this would be a excellent challenge. Not only would you break through the magical 26.2 mile barrier you would also be running off-road and having a very different experience from a road event. More experienced ultrarunners would find a route that provides a variety of challenges and would make an ideal training run for those with their eye on more challenging distances.
Fat Ass Running events are not races, they are more like social gatherings with some ultra-distance running thrown in. If you want to hammer off into the distance then of course you are welcome to, though you might find it a whole load more fun staying with the group, chatting and sharing the experience.
This event takes place on the last weekend in November and it's going to be best to plan for the worse that the British weather can throw at you. It's likely to be cold, wet and windy so dress accordingly.
That said, make sure you have layers on that you can add and remove as required. Who knows, the sun might come out and anyone dressed in full arctic gear is going to over-cook very quickly.
It's also important to plan for all eventualities and that includes getting injured and having to walk. When that happens you'll get cold very quickly so make sure you have enough gear on you to keep warm under those circumstances.
Personally I like to have a warm hat, a thermal long-sleeved base-layer and perhaps some sort of weatherproof jacket that packs up very small. Whilst running I'd never need them but who knows what the day will bring.
Remember the ancient proverb: "Fail to prepare and you prepare to fail"
Fat Ass Running promotes events that are free of frills, distractions and entry costs. As such this event is free entry. You're not going to get a t-shirt, nor a medal. There wont be huge crowd cheering you on and you wont get a goody bag at the end. What you get instead is a friendly group of runners experiencing some great trails through the North Essex countryside.
The entry procedure is simple, just click on the following link and complete the details (don't worry there's not much to fill in). This will send an email to the race leader indicating that you want to participate.
The route starts and ends at a small village called Fordham which is a couple of miles west of Colchester. The start point is a large public car park so if you're driving to the start there is plenty of room to park. The first 5k of the route heads out over Woodland Trust land along the Essex Way towards the village of West Burgholt.
From West Burgholt there is a complete 40k circuit of Colchester along a route devised by the Colchester Ramblers known as "Camuplodunum". Imagine a circle drawn around Colchester that goes through (or past) the following places:
After completing the loop around Colchester it's back to the start point in Fordham back along the Essex Way.
As mentioned above, the loop around Colchester is 40k and together with the out and back section at the start (from Fordham to West Burgholt and back) this takes the full distance to 50k.
Please take the time to familiarise yourself with the route as in the event that you become seperated from the main group and find yourself running alone you will need to be able to navigate the route yourself.
View Frozen Fat Ass 50k in a larger map
Below are link to GPX and TCX files which map out the entire course, these can be imported into GPX devices for use in navigation. Right-click on the link below and choose "Save link as...".
Frozen Fat Ass 50k.gpx
Frozen Fat Ass 50k.tcx
This is a great map produced by Derek Keeble of the Colchester Ramblers in 1974. It shows a 25 mile section of the route which goes all the way around Colchester.
Camuplodunum - Colchester Ramblers
The most reliable mapping you're ever likely to get it an honest paper map and you can get one which covers the entire route of the Frozen Fat Ass 50k from Ordnance Survey. The map that's needed is OS Explorer Map 184.
OS Explorer Map 184 - amazon.co.uk
If you want to view these maps online then Ordnance Survey provide the facility to browse them using the link below. Please don't attempt to take screen-shots of these and paste together your own map of the course. Firstly it's against their copyright and secondly the paper you print them on will not cope well with getting wet, which it is highly likely to be in late November. Use this online resource to familiarise yourself with the route but please invest £7 in buying a copy of OS Explorer Map 184 which you can carry with you on the day.
Click the link below and then enter the map reference TL926286 into the box at the top/left of the page and hit 'Go'.
This run features no organised aid stations but there are several places along the route where food and water can be purchased. I've added the map reference of each of these locations in bold.
Use the Ordnance Survey Get-A-Map service to locate exactly where these are.
I generally plan to drink 500ml of electrolyte per hour during a winter run which means if I plan to complete the run in about 6 hours then I'm going to need 3 litres of water. That means I'll carry it all and wont need to find any on the route. As for food, I can carry enough supplies not to have to get during the race either.
That said, I have checked that the places mentioned above are going to be available on the day of the run so if you need the facilities they will be there for you.
Do you know anyone who might be willing to help out during the race?
Do you want to help out other runners?
Did you know that volunteering for help runners acheive their goals can be highly rewarding and enjoyable?
Well, it's true. Almost everyone I know that has helped out at events has said that it was a positive experience. Perhaps it's the fact that you get to see so much suffering when experiencing none yourself. Hmmmm. Perhaps. More likely it's just a great way to see some lovely countryside, spend the day outdoors navigating around the route and lending a helping hand to people trying to acheive something special.
Becoming a event crew member might mean:
All of these are great ways to help out. If you think you can to help out then please contact the event leader, Matt Biggin.
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Matt is a highly experienced ultrarunner who is both
leading this event and also running it. He is familiar
with the course and the area. As an experienced
member of the Halstead & Essex Marathon organising committee
he's aware of what it takes to ensure that runners enjoy
themselves during an event.
Matt holds a valid UK Athletics coaching licence in the Leadership
in Running Fitness qualification (URN: 287 5993), and is also
CRB (Enhanced) checked. As such the Frozen Fat Ass 50k is
covered by UK Athletics public liability insurance.
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Please be clear that entry into this event is entirely at your own risk. There are no aid stations, no doctor and no first aid. Running ultra-distances takes training and you need to be sure that you've put the training effort in to be able to confidently take part. A trail 50k is not easy. In fact it's hard. That, of course, is the attraction because by being hard it makes it something worthwhile and rewarding to do. You have to be able to do it safely though.
I don't want to labour the point but I need to make it clear that the event leader (in this case Matt Biggin) takes no responsiblity for your safety. The route is fully described on this page, the challenges are clear, your safety is your own responsibility.