Ladies Lake District 24 Hour Record

Kit worn

I set off at Stair at 3am wearing a Helly base layer with a Raidlight Performance top. This a light, breathable short sleeved top with a long zip. I like zips in all my tops - and resorted to sewing zips in my own tops before I came across this top in 2009. I wore the older version in both Reunion Grand Raid and the Grand Raid Pyrenees in much hotter temperatures than I experienced in the Lakes and still felt comfortable. I took the Helly off after the 1st leg and continued on with the pink top until Honister.

I also set off  in my Raidlight Ultralight Jacket which is one piece of kit I would never be without now; I have been looking for a lightweight windproof with a hood for years and this is perfect.

I was wearing  Raidlight shorts with the Raidlight 3/4's over the top. This was so I could discard the 3/4's as soon as I was too hot. The system worked very well. They both have elastic pockets in which I used for my map as they are large enough for that without constricting movement.

The Raidlight hat shown here I first purchased for Grand Raid Reunion in 2009 and it comes with a detachable neck flap which is vital for the beating hot sun in the tropics.

I wore one (new) pair of  X-Socks all the way round. I thought about removing my shoes (Inov-8 Mudclaw 333's) at Wasdale when I felt some stones but then forgot about it and carried onto the finish. I finished with a little bruise on my foot pad from the stones but that is the only damage to my feet.

I have been wearing Inov-8's since they first came out with the grey 290's. Now there is more than enough to chose from but the Mudclaws have always given the best grip in my opinion. The new 333's are far more comfortable and don't give your feet the same battering as the 330's.

At Honister I changed into my Patagonia Capilene top and my Raidlight Trail Zip top . I have been using the Patagonia top for over a year now and there is very little signs of wear. It is a very comfortable warm top and can be worn underneath many of my other tops without riding up or rubbing. The Trail zip top is slightly thicker material than the Performance top and fits quite snugly. This combination was all I wore over the last section.

I changed out of my shorts at Newlands conscious that tired, cold legs do not work very well. I put on some Raidlight All Season tights. These are very comfortable breathable tights and best of all they fit skinny long legged females such as myself who usually have to put up with either a) baggy long length tights or b) good fitting but above the ankle tights.

My torch is a biking torch recommended to me by Ian Fitz and purchased from the U.S from GeoMan Gear. A bit of a chore to buy as there was customs of £24 to pay when it reached the UK which I hadn't realised. Then it needed a different charger as the supplied one wouldn't work. But Geoman Gear sent me two chargers free of charge and gave a very good service. I have been extremely pleased with the torch ever since.

The torch comes with a battery pack and not used to carrying such things I practised quite a lot with various options. The best option I came up with was to wear the smallest, lightest fitting rucksak I could find to hold the battery pack. This was a Raidlight Extreme light rucksak. Although it's probably too small for most of my runs I am now going to try it out on longer races as I don't get on with bumbags. I have also used the Endurance 14 Ltr for all my recce days and supporter duties and consider it one of the best rucksacks on the market.

Although not seen on all the photos - I did carry my lucky multicoloured buff round with me all the way. When not on my head it is responsible for my slightly protruding stomach that can be seen on many photos as I've tucked it into my shorts !!