Tips and hints These are the race instructions for The Picnic. You will not receive anything through the post. WARNING! These races are incredibly tough, the toughest in Britain. Take it easy! Top tip: run the slopes, walk the stairs. Pace yourselves - leave some for the second half. If the temperature at the start of The Picnic exceeds 30°C, or 28°C for the Midsummer Munro, the start will be delayed until the temperature at the start line drops to these temperatures, for safety reasons. Despite the current rain, there is practically no possibility that the race will be cancelled or postponed due to bad weather. Please arrive at the race start (at the Burfoot slope, bottom of the Zig Zag Road, Mickleham, near Ryka's car park) at least 40 minutes before your race start, to collect your race number (you do not need to bring any paperwork - just yourself). DO NOT PARK IN RYKAS CAR PARK (you risk being locked in) Park along the road adjacent to the race start. There are no toilets at the race start itself: closest toilets are behind Ryka's. There are no changing facilities at the race start - it is on the side of a hill. We will have an area where you can drop your bag - don't leave anything of particular value in there. You can drop your car keys with us when you collect your race number. The Picnic marathon starts at 2.00pm. Please run on the left at all times. Since this is an out-and-back course, you will be passing a lot of other runners going the other way (even if you are in the lead, or last). PLEASE give all runners maximum encouragement - you are all in this crazy race together. Headphones are banned for this very reason - do us all a favour - don't run in a bubble! Ordinary trainers are perfectly good enough to complete this race - studs and spikes are banned (and aren't necessary anyway). Keep to the pathways at all time. Watch where you put your feet: the tracks we are using are uneven. Twisted ankles, tumbles and cuts are not unknown. In case of any accident or emergency, the next marshal should be within 1km of you (either in front or behind), so send a runner to get help. The race medical service provider is the St. John Ambulance Service. In any emergency, marshals will call through to a central number, and we will organise assistance. There are water stations every 2 miles or so. At the quarter, halfway and three quarter way points in The Picnic, you will be able to pick up a squeezy pack of orange flavour Lucozaid sports drink, as well as at the end of the race. Please do not litter the course - drop cups etc only at the water stations - thanks! Mile markers are not accurate (you'll see why when you see the course), and are approximate only. However, the length of the course is as accurate as we can make it. It is not short. For The Picnic, there is a cut-off of 3 hours to reach the half way point (where you can gain the medal for the Midsummer Munro, at least), and 5 hours for the three-quarters point. Note: all runners will be escorted from the course after 7 hours. The course will be marked with tape, signs, paint and marshals. Keep your wits about you and you'll get around fine. If you want a time at the end, show us your running number. No visible number, no time! Remember to smile. Results and photos will be up on the web site in the days after the race - make sure you refresh your browser to see new pages. |