Hundred Hills 50km with Kallum Pritchard

2nd place finisher Kallum gives us his Hundred Hills race report

Read on for Kallum’s race report and watch this space for more exciting announcements coming soon about Harrier and some top UK trail runners.

"Race day conditions were ideal, much drier than last year, which meant the usually muddy sections were far more runnable. The Hundred Hills 50km takes place in the Chilterns, covering over 4,000 feet of climbing on beautiful rolling trails, and as always, Centurion Running put on a fantastic event. The volunteers and atmosphere made it a pleasure to race. Having finished second last year to Mark Darbyshire, I knew this would be another tough day at the sharp end. When the pre-race preview came out, I spotted some seriously strong runners in the mix, including Joseph Turner. Jo runs for Team GB over 100km and recently set a new PB of 6 hours 35 minutes, so I knew his flat speed would be a problem. My training hadn’t included much hill work, and with a deep field, I wasn’t expecting to be in contention.

But once the race started, I found myself up front, running alongside Jo in the opening miles. The pace felt quicker than last year, and after the first big climb and descent, I realised I had a small advantage over him on the hills.With that in mind, I decided to push harder on the climbs and descents, knowing Jo would have the upper hand on the flatter sections. This worked for a large chunk of the race, and I managed to hold a slim lead of a few minutes. But with ten miles to go, the course flattened out with long road sections, and my strategy quickly became unsustainable. Jo took the lead and used the faster terrain to extend his gap, crossing the line in 3 hours 42 minutes and 54 seconds.

I finished just over five minutes back in 3 hours 48 minutes and 6 seconds, which was a huge improvement on last year’s time by 16 minutes, so I was more than happy with that. I was so locked into racing Jo that I didn’t realise Nick Berry, another great trail runner, was closing in fast, finishing just three minutes behind me. Last year, Mark Darbyshire showed me what elite climbing looks like. This year, Jo gave me a lesson in flat speed. This year a large number of runners ran under Mark Darbyshire's course record, which is testament to the type of competition that the Centurion events attracts.

This was my first race using the Harrier 10L Kinder Race Vest, which made carrying all my kit effortless. I only stopped at one checkpoint halfway to restock on P&H, and having everything easily accessible meant I could focus on racing. The vest has a ridiculous number of compartments, making it easy to grab nutrition on the move, even while battling for position. After the race, it was great to catch up with so many runners and soak up the atmosphere.

Next up, I’m heading to Australia for a few weeks of mountainous warm-weather training. My misses still thinks we are going on a family holiday (apologies Danielle), but the plan is to get in some good climbing ahead of the British Trail Running Championships at the end of May, an 86-mile race along the Ridgeway. Looking forward to seeing how that one unfolds" 

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