Montane Winter Spine Race winner Anna Troup hopes that by putting herself out of her comfort zone to achieve a long-held ambition she will help inspire others to follow in her footsteps.
British star Troup and France’s Sébastien Raichon in the men’s race made it a Spine double this year for runners in their fifties as they conquered the 268 miles on the Pennine Way in ‘Britain’s most brutal’ ultramarathon – which again had weather to match that billing.
Troup was already a three-time Summer Spine champion but by her own admission the Winter version was something that in parts “terrified” her.
But she produced a masterclass of a performance in the extremely challenging conditions, running for a long time at the front of the race alongside Johanna Antila before the Finnish athlete was forced to withdraw less than 15 miles from the finish.
Troup, who is also the reigning Summer Spine champion, joins an exclusive club of only three runners to have won both races – Eoin Keith and Sabrina Verjee are the others.
‘An epic adventure’
And after taking a little while to start the recovery and let the accomplishment sink in, she has now posted a lovely message on her social media channels.
Writing on her public-facing Instagram account, she said: “4 nights after finishing the @spinerace and it won’t surprise anyone who knows me well that I have failed to post anything on social media. I have been overwhelmed by the lovely comments and congratulations and by all the amazing dot watching support. It was an epic adventure.
“This is the only photo I have – Cross Fell – and boy was I glad to see it. Spending time solo in minus temperatures on barren snowy mountains is not my natural habitat – I was terrified – and my double portion of noodles in Greg’s Hut with John Bamber and team, time I would never spend when racing the Summer Spine, felt like a reasonable “reward”.
“The Winter Spine was all I expected it to be – a lottery as to whether you finished or you ended up injured from a fall; lots of weather; the same Spine community I have grown to love – but surprisingly even more of it than in the summer. I was looked after, encouraged, cared for and sent back out time and again over the 106 hours.”
‘A dream realised’
She continued: “I can remember every step of the journey and I suspect every step will still be uncomfortable for a few days yet (although I am back in shoes – it’s the small wins). My appetite is slowly diminishing. My need to suddenly sit down is definitely reducing and the physical side effects of racing will be gone in another few days.
“I got the fairytale ending, the back to back double (after rolling down a few hills and developing a very undignified ultra lean). Now it’s time for some proper R&R, to allow my body to really mend and regenerate, to embrace doing nothing – the bit I find harder than racing.
“A really heartfelt thank you to everyone who came with me on this latest Spine journey and who took the time to send me the lovely messages, see me out on the course, or was in a checkpoint or part of an SST.
“If just one more person feels they can attempt “their Cross Fell” because this old lady has shown them “it’s possible”, then I will be so thrilled.
“In 2021 when I did the second half of the Summer Spine on my own I had never raced on my own or navved on my own. This Winter Spine was a journey I would never have been able to contemplate at that time. Now it’s a dream realised, so many life lessons learned and friends made.”
Inspiring words indeed from an ultrarunning legend who goes from strength to strength and proves once again that age is just a number.
