17 May - Stage 4 'Mauna Kea' 48.0m (77.6km) 10974ft (3345mtr) of ascent

Vision of hell

We are up and about at 05:00 to get ourselves ready for the bus ride to the start of The Long Stage. As is the norm for multi stage ultras, people are a bit more quiet and reserved of a morning as they try and prepare themselves mentally for the test to come. This course certainly promises to be just that. Not only do we have to cover almost 50 miles but we have to climb almost 11,000ft. To put that into context, that is 38% the height of Mt Everest. We will reach a height of 9,200ft asl as we reach the summit of Mauna Kea so air will be very much thinner than at the start. All in all a pretty tough day ahead, or day and a half for those who will use the 34 hour time limit.

We are hollered towards the transport and, if I'm honest, I am not looking forward to an hour cramped up on a mini bus. Fortune is smiling though as there are a number of 4x4s driven by the organisation and I manage to secure a seat on one of these. The convoy revs up and we are off. There is sunshine forecast but, at the moment, it is not looking like it. I have my Montane raincoat on for added warmth against the morning chill and decide to keep it on to see how the weather pans out. I have decided to ditch the leggings for this stage in favour of some short shorts. If the sun really is going to put his hat on, the old legs would benefit from a bit of colour. I make a mental note to keep lubing!!!

We arrive at the start area and immediately there is a queue for the toilets. The remainder mill around and stare at the steep slope that looms in front of us. The sun is now quite warm so I decide to use 10 minutes to dry out a couple of bits of kit; mainly my Owain Glyndwr banner that has been in the top of my daysack getting the brunt of the weather. I hang it on a fence and immediately the paparazzi appear. The flag is upside down so I utter a mild challenge. "Don't worry" I am told "It won't go public" I will find when I return to the hotel that it did go public and I will have to defend improper flag hoisting!!

We line up for the start minus 17 of our brethren who are still back in camp as a result of being faster than the rest of us. It should have been 15 but there was a computer error yesterday that missed out a couple of the top dogs. They are instated back into the late start group as well as the 2 beneficiaries of the error. One of these is young Chris and he is not too happy about being in this elite group, having a vision of trailing in in right at the back of everyone. I have assured him that he will be fine. He has performed well for the first 3 stages and there is no reason he won't on this and the 2 others to come.

The horn blows and we are off. Immediately I realise that I still have my rain jacket on and,

Not really dressed for it (Me not Olle!)

after cursing, make a mental note to remove it at CP1at the top the first climb of the day. With the better runners yet to start, we all set off pretty much together and maintain the group for the first couple of km. Assaf and Gregory have trotted off together and lead us for much of the first leg. I have noticed that I have been steadily making progress and decide to have another hero moment. I don't launch into a sprint as there is a long way to go but I do step up the pace a small notch and soon enough I find myself leading the stage! This isn't a mad dash for 30 mtrs of fame though and I stay in the lead until I decide that I am likely to cause myself some mischief if I don't take my rain coat off as I am actually melting!! This short delay has the obvious result as I am swallowed up by the peloton in no time. No matter, I have had my second moment in the limelight and am now happy to plod along for the rest of the stage.

Bedragged hero!

As we pass CP1 the course levels out a bit and as we break free of a small wooded area we get decent view of Parker Ranch, the largest ranch in the USA. It is quite impressive and I grab a passing Australian to take a hero photo.

The course meanders and goes up and down and I try to memorise the terrain for the route back. As I never use GPS, I always find landmarks handy for gauging distance and there are seemingly plenty to choose from. CP2 comes and goes and then I reach CP3 at the foot of the climb to the summit. I decide to have a short rest here before cracking on and have a chat with some of the volunteers. They do an amazing job and it's not often we get the chance to interact with them on the course as we're usually flying through, stopping only to fill water bottles and maybe apply various creams.

A few short minutes later and feeling reasonably rested I set off for CP4, a mere 6 miles uphill! The route is fairly steady with a few cheeky climbs but the main challenge is from the lack of air. I am not feeling light headed but occasionally have to really concentrate on breathing. As I plod towards the summit, I begin to be caught by the elite runners. Florian from Switzerland is the first to pass me and it is incredible how quickly he is moving although he does have to slow down on a couple of the cheeky bits. I see him again as he passes me again on the way down and he is absolutely flying, as are a couple of the others -Vicente, Luigi and Takuya to name but 3.

As I level out on the approach to CP4 and the turnaround I spot a familiar t-shirt. My roomie, JB, has been playing a stormer and is ahead of me in the distance. As we reach the CP, almost together, another familiar face in the shape of Richelle shows up, She quickly sorts herself out and then is off again with her relentless pacing and that is the last I will see of her until camp. JB and I take the opportunity for a bit of a catch up and I decide to change socks. Every little treat is welcoming at this stage of the race.

During the sock change and lull in the conversation, I take the opportunity to survey my surroundings. We have been told about the lunar landscape in the course book but, until you actually see it in the flesh, so to speak, you can only imagine what it might look like. It certainly doesn't disappoint but I can't hang around here and stare at it all day as I have the small matter of another 24 miles to cover. It is also threatening to rain again so I prepare myself for the off, bid farewell to JB and the CP crew and make those first steps.

The journey back down to CP3 (now 5) is not as straightforward as I imagined and the air is still pretty thin. I meet a few more of the elites and many of the not so; all of my team mates are in both of these classes and I realise that, for the moment I am first from the tent (in position rather than time as I know that 2 of them will beat me for time).

I make it down to CP5 still in one piece and decide to have another rest and chat. Salvador is sat down with his shoes off and, for him, the race is over. He has turned an ankle and doesn't want to make it any worse by continuing. He has another race in 3 weeks (!) and doesn't want to take any risks.

Darkness is not far away so I decide to get moving. I recall that there was a short descent into what was CP3 but this has now transformed into a gruelling uphill slog. I whip out the roadbook and realise that I have not studied and recalled the ground as well as I thought I had earlier. After this 3km climb of approx. 400mtrs the ground does generally take a downhill stance as far as CP6 but even this seems a lot farther distance than it did on the way out. Dusk has long passed, night has fallen and visibility ahead is not great so thus probably has a lot to do with it. Besides, I am still struggling for air and have to take numerous stops.

At CP6 I take another look at the roadbook and am dismayed to realise how much climbing still lies ahead. The roadbook says it is a mere 9km but this seems to take forever. I keep hoping and praying that each climb will be the last one but they are endless. A couple more of the elite runners pass me including Tom and Jose. I get his name right this time and wish him well.The only memory in my now tattered brain is of running down a gentle slope through some overhead woods so I keep looking for those. Just as the climbs never end though, the trees never come. Except of course they do. After what feels like an age, I hear the most exquisite sound of cow bells and realise the CP is close by. I decide that I am not going to settle at the CP as I just want to get to the finish, which is now just 6 short kms away.

With a very small spring in my step, I set off down the hill just behind Sharon who has come bursting out of the tent. Again the leg seems longer than it did on the way up but I am happy in the knowledge that the stage is almost over. I am passed on the way down by Mirjam and then Phil of the elite group and am suddenly conscious that I have not yet seen Sarah or Chris since I saw them on their way up. That was hours ago and I am slightly concerned that neither of the have yet caught me up. I put this thought behind me and continue the descent until, eventually I see the bright lights of the finish line in the distance. I jog across the line to be met by a traditional long stage hug from Tess and cameras shoved in my face from the various film crews. Once they realise I am not one of their targets though, they hastily leave me alone. I have completed the long stage in 16:52:10 at just shy of 1a.m. Although shorter than MdS and G2G long stages, the ascent and conditions have made it a comparable stage so I am happy to have completed it over 2 hours faster than either of those. I am even more happy with the knowledge that tomorrow is a rest day.

I meet up with Gazza and some others who have finished some time ahead of me but have been kept around waiting for transport. I feel slightly guilty that, a mere 10 minutes after I have crossed the line, I am in the back of a 4x4 heading for the beachside campsite. I am sharing with Tom and Scott, 2 inseparable compadres from G2G who go under the aliases Han and Wookie. There is little chance for small talk as we are all shattered and are immediately trying to get a comfortable position in order to get a catnap. It is not really possible so we are all reduced to chins on chests.

Eventually we roll into camp and, whilst I am vaguely aware the sea s close by, I head straight for the tent where I confirm that Chris and Sarah are still out on the course somewhere. I resist the urge to take a look outside, drag my roll mat and sleeping bag from my daysack and settle down to a restless sleep.