INOV8 athlete James Gibson has set yet another record on one of the UK’s toughest fell running challenges, completing the Double Paddy Buckley Round in a time of 50hrs 58mins.
The iconic 61-mile, 47-summit circuit through the mountains of Snowdonia is often touted as the hardest of the UK’s ‘Big Three’ rounds, alongside the Bob Graham Round in the Lake District and the Charlie Ramsay Round in Scotland.
His time betters Ajay Hanspal’s previous record by nearly two hours.
James battled brutal weather conditions on his way to his Paddy Buckley success, covering around 56,000ft of ascent on some of the most unforgiving terrain in Wales.
The phenomenal feat comes just three months after James completed the Double Bob Graham Round in 42hrs 56mins – becoming the first to complete the double in winter conditions.
We caught up with James as he recovered from his effort to find out how it went down in the Welsh mountains.
The conditions looked brutal, how challenging was it out there?
The weather conditions were extremely challenging at times. I knew going into the second round that the weather was due to deteriorate, but it was on the edge of possible, so I made the decision before starting that the second round would certainly be the crux!
Initially when setting on the dates for the attempt (10 days out), the weather was looking great, but as it edged closer, it slowly got worse, but it certainly made it more challenging - that’s for sure.
The first round went fairly smoothly; a bit wintery on the highest mountains (Snowdon, Carneddau, etc.), boggy on the boggy parts and windy at times.
The second round was very different, and the real gusty winds hit not long after daylight. Going towards Tryfan on Leg 6 was very exciting and we took our time to make sure that we all stayed safe across the rough ground. There were many moments where the wind all but stopped us in our tracks, but we somehow managed to keep moving.
The heavy rain and snow on the tops started on Leg 7 and stayed with us, combined with the strong winds until late afternoon. During the entirety of the second round, we barely saw anyone, unsurprisingly.
It was absolutely savage and I really had to dig deep to get to the end of those legs and with the help of the incredible support team I had around me, we got it done.
What made you want to take on the Double Paddy Buckley?
After finishing the Double Bob Graham over winter and it being a success, I changed my initial plans for the summer – completing the Big Three in one – and swapped it for trying all the doubles in a shortish timespan, with enough time to recover and build a bit more fitness in between.
Three months later, here I am and I can certainly say the Double Paddy was so much harder than the Double Bob, for many reasons!
How pleased are you with setting the record?
Very happy! Initially I wanted to try and aim for sub-48 hours. The first round went smoothly, and I finished 10 minutes over my planned 21-hour schedule, but as soon as the weather hit and the unrelenting ground conditions, I just couldn’t keep the pace required to keep under 48 hours.
We realised on Leg 8 that time was slipping away, but the overall record was still certainly possible, so I very quickly dropped my planned 48 hours and pushed for just over 50 hours. Finishing in 50hrs 58mins.
None of this could have been possible without the amazing support team that were surrounding me the entire time. Everyone was fantastic!
What were your key pieces of kit?
It has to be the MUDTALON™ SPEED V2 for its epic grip on the varied ground all weekend.
I had the CLIMASHELL PRO ALPHA jacket on, combined with the STORMSHELL V2 jacket, which was a perfect combination for the weather this weekend, with the VENTURESHELL jacket over the top during the really rough weather on the second round, which kept me dry and warm throughout.
What’s next?
Well, it would be rude not to complete the trio. So, I’m hoping to attempt the Double Ramsay Round in a couple of months in hopefully some cool late spring/early summer Scottish sunshine.
I’m looking forward to resting and recovering this week though!
*All photos by Jamie Rutherford @jmruther4d
