A Dream come True

In 2021 I finished the Parish Walk as 1st lady and 6th overall. I was amazed considering my target for the day was to get another finish. I knew a finish wasn’t too ambitious having finished six times previously but over 85 miles anything can happen; literally anything. The actual finish time didn’t matter to me however I certainly didn’t think I’d be finishing top 10, especially as the 1st placed lady.

This winning time put me on the leaderboard in 9th place behind 5 amazing female walkers. 

Nick's words of advice before I left the house were ‘don’t get drawn into it and set off too fast’, but from the start I set off well and was walking at around 15th place up until Arbory Church. The pace felt comfortable and I was really enjoying myself, mainly due to the fact I was getting incredible support from the public who were congratulating me for being 1st lady on the road. I could tell I was beaming, I felt like I smiled all day.  

 

(You may notice I am wearing different trainers in these two pictures – my advice is to always have a backup pair of trainers in your support car just in case. I never planned to use them but 2021 was the first of my finishers where I’ve had to change my shoes before the end. The first pair were just too tight and were feeling really uncomfortable. I made the decision to change into an old pair between Peel and Kirk Michael, which took me to the end). 

At Rushen I clocked-in in 12th place. On the way up the Sloc I caught up with Mason Prince and the two of us remained together until we reached Patrick, at which point Mason decided to push on a little faster into Peel as he was unable to go any further due to his age. Mason did brilliantly, arriving in Peel in 1st place as an under 21 male in a time of 6:09:09 (the 3rd fastest time recorded in the U21 males race). I arrived 40 seconds behind him in 12th place.

It felt as though my pace had been steady from the start, and climbing out of Peel I caught up with one of the parish's most consistent walkers; Andrew Titley. Andrew and I walked together for a good while, chatting along the way. Anyone who knows Andrew will know he is great company and always has such a positive spirit. I can’t recall when Andrew and I separated on the road but by Kirk Michael I was in 9th place, after a couple of the walkers ahead of me had retired.

Fast-forward to Andreas and I was now up to 6th place. Richard Gerrard had retired and I had passed Stew Jones and James Quirk somewhere en route. From here into the finish I was able to hold my position.

Looking back I believe 2021 was probably my best year in terms of my energy levels - I took much more food and fluids on board than I had done previously and not once did I feel lethargic or drained.  I ate little and often and at times felt quite full; even when I didn’t feel like eating, I attempted most things that my support was offering me and in hindsight I believe this was key to keeping me going and feeling strong throughout.

Another little trick that worked for me that year was brushing my teeth, which I did a couple of times after Andreas heading through Sulby into Lezayre. Some people might laugh at this or find it a little bizarre (it is a bit, I guess) but it’s certainly something I’d recommend if you feel like you’ve eaten too much sugar or you’re feeling a little sick.

My approach to Maughold wasn’t as bad as I expected or remembered. It was during the descent down to the Church that I had a brief interview with Manx Radio and  kept Paul Moran on his toes for the short time we were on air. 

At no point did I consider how far behind second placed lady, Lorna Gleave, was, however after coming through Laxey I was half-expecting to see her as I was coming back down from Lonan Parish. On the climb out of Baldrine I learned that if I kept the same pace going, I was going to do it!

The final stretch along the prom was quite surreal. Due to the ongoing road works there was the adjustment to the finish line, meaning we had to walk to The Palace Hotel, turn and head back towards the old Summerland site instead of carrying on for the War Memorial. Although the distance was the same, it felt like an extremely long journey on the return and was a bit of a psychological test but on reflection we got to feel the support of everyone who was waiting at the finish line twice.  

To finish 6th place overall and 1st lady in a time of 16:38:51 was way ahead of my anticipated finish time. It also gave me a huge PB taking 59 minutes off my previous best time of 17:37:31 in 2012. I certainly couldn’t have achieved it without the support and encouragement from my husband Nick allowing me to take the time to get out training. As I’ve mentioned previously, I try to fit walking in and around family life when possible; time is precious when you have a young family so I try to get out for quicker, good quality walks where and when I could.

I was speechless and quite overwhelmed with the number of messages I received. It was hard to believe, I felt like it took several days to fully sink in and that euphoric feeling is one I will never forget.

One thing for sure is I couldn’t have done it without my amazing support team and the help of my wonderful family and friends. They all know who they are. 

Sammy x