Ben Shaw: Chasing Mountains, Dedication, Discipline and the World Championships
Hi, I'm Ben Shaw. I was brought up locally in Dinorwig and then Llanberis in the 70s and 80s, until I eventually moved away for work. I ran with Eryri Harriers in the 1980s...sooo long ago🤣doing local fell races and of course Ras yr Wyddfa, which I won first local one year.
I had a long break from racing and started again around 7 years ago, where I fell in love with mountain ultra events. I rejoined Eryri Harriers 5 years ago. I really enjoy being part of the club especially seeing the people who are involved. I've been very proud to be part of the relay teams in recent years where we have competed in the British championships.
I'm not very competitive in the shorter fell races as the training I do is geared up for longer stuff........but love entering every race I do with the club vest on.I have had a really successful few years in the ultra arena which has culminated with Skyrunning UK selecting me to represent the UK in the World Masters Skyrunning Championships in São Pedro do Sul, Portugal.
It has been a huge honour for me and my family and shows that no matter what, if you are dedicated to something, it's amazing where you can end up.Training hasn't been specific for this race as I've just come off a heavy race schedule over the summer.
The actual race is notorious for a very high drop out rate. So I hammered the stairclimber in the gym, did loads of mobility work and more high intensity stuff. An average training week would be:
Zone 2 easy run (45 - 60 mins) | Threshold run (10k race pace or higher) 60 mins | A double gym session: Part 1 Stairclimber or incline Treadmill; Part 2 strength and conditioning |
Longer run 90mins to 2 hours over undulating terrain | Friday - rest or gym weights
| Saturday Epic of 4 hrs to 7 hrs. I do most of these in Eryri area, where I make sure I get 7000 to 10000 ft of vertical elevation and plenty of mileage. |
Sunday 30 to 45 mins easy run | All my training is time based rather than on distance. | |
I always taper for a minimum of 2 weeks before a big race. Nutrition and sleep are so important for training and racing too.
We did an opening ceremony and race registration bib collection etc the day before so race day was up at 4am for breakfast.
Venue at 5.30 for warm up and get the GPS fitted then to the start for kit check and line up at 6 30am. It was a headtorch start and we immediately got stuck into some steep technical ascent and descent. The terrain was very similar to Snowdonia with the height of the summits around 3500 feet. The big difference was the lines we took to get up and down. Very few paths of note and gradients were incredibly steep and technical (like going up and down the top half of the pyg track all day.!!) When the sun came up it was sooooooo hot. Hydration was constantly an issue as we were told not to drink from streams, so we had to rely on the 5 aid stations provided.
The scenery was really stunning and visibility was amazing. We had a big thunderstorm late in the afternoon which was very welcome. I also took 4 full dips in the streams along the way. When it got dark, the sky was full of stars so a really beautiful experience.
The race was incredibly difficult and took a monumental effort to complete with a lot of challenges along the route. It ended up at just under 43 miles with 19000 feet of vertical elevation and took 17hours. 44% of the field dropped out, bearing in mind this was the World Championships, so quite a staggering amount of athletes didn't get to the finish line. It was incredibly rewarding to finish this race. When I crossed the finish line - I was so relieved to stop!
As a UK team over various events we won silver. Portugal gold, Japan Bronze. This race was the culmination of the World Championships. On a personal level I was delighted with my performance. Well in the top half of the field and 7th in my age group.The race itself was the 7th time it's been run. Its called the Pisao Extreme Sky Ultra, extreme stomp 65k in São Pedro do Sul, Portugal. Would I do this particular route again..absolutely not. However, if I am lucky enough to be selected in the future,
I would definitely want to pull on the vest again for the UK...what an honour.So anyone who really loves what they do, are completely dedicated and disciplined, try their very hardest in every race, who knows where you can get to.
Cheers
Ben
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