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Ramsey Island 3 Peaks

When you’ve been up Everest and touched both poles what do you do on a Saturday morning for fun!?! Well it would appear head down to St Davids and partake in the Ramsey Island 3 Peaks!

The event is very simple, A four mile route with 3 “modest climbs!” an exhilarating rib ride to the starting point, which was made a little bit more special due to the high tide and lively swell in the sound! All of which made alighting the craft a “do I keep my lifejacket on” moment!

The route itself is challenging but spectacular and it really does not matter is you run or walk it. Virtually all who crossed the finish line uttered the same words “That was tough but magnificent” or very similar.

And it say’s something about the route and location that the vast majority of runners once finished put on their warm clothes and set off to walk some of the route or to head back up the last peak just to see “that view” again or even to check out one of the bays covered in seals and their pups Before returning to the farm house for our hosts to make us a cup of tea and to just sit around and soak up the feeling of “total relaxation”

Now a challenge wouldn’t be a challenge without a bit of competitiveness going on! And today it was The 3 Peaks Course record held and set by the warden Greg Morgan who up until now has managed to hand pick his competition! but he knew today that title would be gone, because he knew a friend or his brothers, (this is Wales and we are all friends with someone’s friend) a certain Rowan Hobbs was coming and having just run a 1hr 21min Cardiff Half was likely to take this crown. And to be sure that is what Rowan did, smashing Greg’s 33.09 record to create his own of 31.24 and all of that whilst stopping for a selfie on one of the peaks! But to be fair on the RSPB warden, Hobbs was the only person to beat his time.

Whilst the first lady in was Brecon’s Catherine Etchell with an impressive 41.33, which lead to some discussion of, was this the fastest female time? With Greg stating that no female had gone under 40m, however this statement was wrong as our records show that in July Firefighter Lottie Chant did it in 36.21!!! Which is still the ladies benchmark.

Whilst in second place overall was Robert Silcox representing the Westcoast Tri Team followed by Warden Greg! Catherine was fourth and seconds behind her was Marcelle Mackay as the second female to finish and just behind her was Extreme Wales’s very own Richard Parks who after filming on the Island for his TV series was that impressed that he came back on his day off, just to join in and experience the Ramsey 3 Peaks (Says it all really) It would appear that the rest also enjoyed the occasion, with Gareth Lloyd running off course to chase the Stags on the Island, and Thea doing a Usain Bolt at the end to get under the hour “the goals are all personal!” and a couple of couple having a moment away from it all together, very nice!

Overall a very pleasant morning chatting to some very interesting characters, all with some very interesting tales I’m sure, like the very Welsh sounding Huw Glyn- Jones from Swaziland, who speaks in a South African Accent!!

Anyway the plan for the next run will probably be a late Saturday afternoon in July with a bit of a BBQ and a beer on the Rock

Massive thanks to Greg, Lisa and Sarah the RSPB wardens for hosting us, Rhys Price and his crew at Voyages of Discovery for shuttling us over and back!

And an interesting fact, whilst putting the signs out on Friday I meet two men on the Island, who I spotted off the main track on a headland, which I thought was peculiar say’s the man standing on the Island with two big flags! They explained they had walked from the most easterly point in England to the most westerly (accessible) point in Wales and that headland on Ramsey was it. This was a journey that had taken them 4 years, the length of time had been delayed due to circumstances like visiting too many pubs and breweries and getting side tracked!!

PositionNameTownTime
1Rowan HobbsBridgend31.24
2Robert SilcoxCardigan33.38
3Greg MorganRamsey Island38.24
4Catherine EtchellBrecon41.33
5Marcelle MackayAberdare41.50
6Richard Parks#Extremewales41.55
7Meirion WilliamsGareth LloydSquare & CompassSt Davids42.41
9Ian BartlettHaverfordwest43.23
10Huw Glyn-JonesPembroke43.42
11Dan LewisKilgetty45.55
12Lisa MorganRamsey Island46.22
13Anna TompkinRedditch46.40
14Sarah ParmoreRamsey Island47.40
15Betsan O’ConnorLlangrannog49.22
16Mike HodgesBoncath50.08
17Chris MorganBridgend51.55
18Craig AlexanderLauren AlexanderLlantwit MajorLlantwit Major54.52 
20Thea NobleSolva59.26
21Danni HassallMark HassallStaffordStafford1.06.31
23Bronwen JonesPembroke1.14.09