Fit for the Challenge

Fit for the Challenge ?

By Michael Neary.

These notes are not meant to discourage people from attempting the very
enjoyable experience of a challenge walk, but they are intended to ask
questions and to bring forward issues that should be considered before the
walk, rather than perhaps having them arise when you are tired on a cold, wet,
fog-bound mountain top somewhere close to where you think you should be
on the map.

These walks are a challenge for any person no matter how fit they may
be. For most participants the walk will on unfamiliar territory and be over a
distance and height that will be longer than their usual hike. So, a greater
level of stamina will be required to finish the walk and good navigation will
be necessary to ensure that the long walk is not made longer by poor route
finding. Throw in bad weather, poor visibility and dangerous or steep ground,
and it is clear that to minimise the possibility of having to withdraw before
the end, good sound preparation is required in the period before the walk.

Most of these walks are run by walking clubs on a voluntary basis and
every care is taken to ensure the safety of the participants. Mountain rescue
are usually on standby and a system is in place to monitor the progress of each
of the participants. However this should not be taken to be a reason for
someone to start a walk who has not put in adequate preparation or who has
little chance of successfully finishing the walk due to inadequate fitness levels
or poor navigational abilities. Participants should also be aware that if they
leave a walk before the finish they should notify the organisers as otherwise
it would be assumed that they are lost and a search for them would take place.

These walks often start early in the morning from 06.00, and to be ready
walkers may have to rise from 04.00 onwards or earlier in nearby hostels or
other accommodation. They need to have their gear in order, their food prepared
and be available for registration at the start of the walk. The organisers will
have a number of check-points on the route which serve as a way of keeping
track of the walkers. Often minor first aid may be available there and they
serve as a safe point from which those, feeling the pace or otherwise, can
withdraw safely from the walk. The check-points will usually have a cut off
time which means that the organisers have calculated that those who do not
reach this point by a particular time are likely to run into difficulties
finishing the walk in daylight or, due to their current rate of progress, are
unlikely to finish the walk.

So the main message is GOOD PREPARATION IS REQUIRED. The main
areas of preparation outside of good and appropriate gear, which is assumed,
are fitness and navigation.

Fitness - Many of these walks
are in the range of 25 kilometres distance or more and climbing in excess of
1500 metres. To have any reasonable chance of finishing a walk such as this,
and more importantly enjoying it, a participant should have prepared well and trained
for it. It is a good guide for such training that a walker should have been on
a trek which is about 70% of the total distance and height climbed of the
challenge walk a couple of months before the actual walk. And within this
period a regular routine of hill walking should be taking place to ensure good
preparation and this should increase substantially the prospect of a successful
and enjoyable day. A useful exercise in this preparation period is for the
walker to measure these training walks in distance and height climbed and to
time their duration. From this it is possible for them to assess their own rate
of walking as a percentage of the Naismith Rule which is  12 mins
per km and 1m/ 10m height gained.

The following example or similar can help to tell each walker
realistically how long it should take them to finish the actual challenge walk,
for example:

If a training walk of 15k and 1100 metres takes, excluding lunch break
etc, say 6 hours,

this would be equivalent to a rate of 4k per hour and 8 metres climbing
per minute calculated as follows:

15k                @ 4k per hour
...............................................3 hours 45 minutes

1100 metres  @ 1minute per 8m
(1100 divided by 8).........2 hours 17 minutes

                                                                        Total            6 hours 2 minutes.

Applying this to say an upcoming challenge walk of 23k and 2000 metres
climb would give a total estimated time for the walk, assuming the same pace as
the training walk and excluding breaks, of approximately 10 hours and this
would indicate a rate of walking which is 25% more than Naismith. This type of
analysis of training walks would enable walkers to calculate the likely
duration of any walk based on distance and height climbed.  

This raises a number of questions that should be answered before
the walk is attempted, such as, with more preparation can the pace of walking
comfortably be improved, or by attempting to walk a longer distance that the
usual walk is the pace likely to slow down. Also would you be happy to be out
walking for the 10 hours plus and have you done this before on familiar
territory before attempting it in a more difficult location.

Naismith or each individual's percentage variation of Naismith( which
could be a percentage increase or decrease) is a useful guide to telling you
whether the challenge walk through your own training experience is within your
abilities. Remember also that ‘Naismith’ will be affected by difficult terrain,
poor weather, difficult descents and load carried.

Another useful way of training that some people use is to measure
heartrate to try to keep it appropriately in the "training range".
Limiting heartrate on the walk to a known safe limit, particularly at the
beginning, is an extremely good way of preventing anaerobic activity which can
lead to fatigue. I know of a person who tries to limit his heartrate to around
145-150 while going up slopes. He is actually capable of handling 165 but gets
tired very quickly at that level. Off slopes he tries to keep it to 110 or so.
Younger or fitter people would have higher figures while older or less fit
people should have lower targets. Clearly prior to using this for training
purposes each person should consult with their own doctor first as to the level
appropriate to them.

The Second Major Preparation is Navigation and Mapping.

If you are a regular walker in a particular mountain range it is likely
that you will be familiar with the terrain. While map and compass will be
available, more often than not you will know the routes, the turns, the twists
and the kinks in any familiar route. The challenge walk situation is usually
quite different. This may be a mountain range that you have not walked before,
and while on a good day this will be a real treat and adventure, if the weather
is not good this will make the navigation a challenge in its own right. For
that reason it is important before you start the walk, and not in the hostel
the night before, but over the previous days and weeks you do some of the
following;

-           get the best available
map of the area

-           use Trailmaster or similar to
"fly" around the terrain, over a reasonably long period. This gives a
great idea of the shape of the land.

-           make sure that you have
a good weather proof map cover

-           study the map over a
good period of time

-           read up if possible on
routes through the mountains

-           check areas to be
avoided at all costs

-           set out safe escape
routes (and tell the organisers at the time)

-           do out a route card of
your intended trek

-           work out the headings
at home and not on the mountain

-           calculate the likely
duration of the walk
 

For those who can use one, combined and as a back up to map and compass,
bring a GPS and have necessary waypoints entered or uploaded before the start
of the walk. Some proficient users have GPS which have display maps uploaded
which can act as a combined map, compass and GPS.

So, in conclusion, with yourself well prepared through timed training
walks and with a clear understanding of the route and its navigation you should
be all set for the adventure.

Enjoy
it - it's exhilarating.