On Friday 1st April 2022 James Gibson will once again find himself at Keswick Moot Hall.

Question:

What do you do with all the fitness gained by becoming the first person ever to complete a continuous round of the Wainwrights in winter?

Answer:

You run the whole route again - in the summer!

James has been training with previous record holder Paul Tierney at Missing Link Coaching to get his mind and body in just the right place to traverse all 214 peaks for the second time in four months.

In case you missed it; that will be a total distance of 325 miles - again, and an ascent of 36,000m - again!

The Climbers Shop staff team are very proud to join James and his support crew to help him achieve his summer round both on the hill and behind the scenes. In fact, it looks as though he may have even more than the 70 folk who helped support his winter record!

Happily, we have a second till in place on the front counter of our Ambleside shop primed and ready for dot watching as James’ tracker shows his live progress. There will also be updates on this page as we catch up with him on the hill.

You can read all about James successful first ever Continuous Winter Wainwright Round here and listen to James talk about his monumental achievement on our Outdoor Gear Chat podcast here. James also has his own website No Limits Adventuring which outlines just how much he has done to train for this.

We caught up with James when he popped in to the shop yesterday; he was printing off the last of his maps and absolutely psyched for the challenge to come but - why now? Why April? His answer was simple; it’s not just about maximising on his winter fitness but also making sure he can fit the Summer Round in before his main work as a local mountaineering instructor kicks in!

Oh and maybe, just maybe that little matter of another record:

I knew that with some additional training I would have the potential of putting in a time similar to that of the quickest attempts made to date. There’s only one way to find out.
James Gibson

With no fewer that two previous record holders (Steve Birkenshawe & Paul Tierney) and the current record holder Sabrina Verjee out on the route with him, we know that once again, James has THE best possible support team working to help him towards his goal.

We are all looking forward to meeting you out on the hill James!

Go Go Go!!!

You can follow James progress on his live tracker here:

https://live.opentracking.co.uk/jgwainwrights22/

Update 01.04.22

Mere mortals might have a bit of a nervous tummy before heading out on a monumental run but James was taking the final minutes to cram some extra calories before heading out from Keswick Moot Hall at 9 o’clock this morning. Just his normal relaxed self as usual, super chilled and ready to crack on with the job in hand.

It’s been a beautiful, dry, chilly first day for James and he is definitely cranking the pace! If you click through to his tracker you will see an orange trophy icon - if James’ orange dot is in front of it that means he is moving faster than the record pace. This is going to be nail biting stuff!

Previous record holder Steve Birkenshawe supported James on leg one which he finished in a scorching 4 hours 35 minutes but managed to get him to stop for a pic on top of Raven Crag. He’s still smiling :-)

James getting in some rest and the all important foot check while re-fueling. The rug is critical so he doesn’t get any grit in his socks.

Update 02.04.22

James is going strong after a “long” 90 minute rest at Ennerdale and just 20 minutes after leg three. That’s the first 100km completed in 18 hours! One of our part time staff team members Will Betts was on the hill with him last night and was blown away by James pace, testament to the pure strength and endurance of Sabrina Verjee who set the current record last year.

The Leg from Wasdale to Hardnott is certainly the highest section as it takes in Scafell Pike and there was a little reminder of winter on the ground as they passed through the weather. Our Ambleside Shop Manager Chris Worton is part of James support team on this leg and managed to send through a few images from above the snowline while it is still light. Just Bowfell, Crinkle Crags, Pike O Blisco, Cold Pike and Hard Knott before another rest.

As the evening progressed Chris reported that James was moving like a train, taking cat naps to re-set. Only another short 9km section before a decent sleep.

Update 03.04.22

With the Wasdale fells well and truly behind him, James is maintaining his lead on the record pace as he works his way through the Langdale valley with current record holder Sabrina Verjee for company.

It’s a real mix of terrain today and you can just see in the above pic that James is keeping an ankle niggle in check with taping.

It’s been a punishing day for James as he’s pushed through a niggling sore ankle to take full advantage of an epic rest tonight. The good news is he’s on home turf as he lives in Rydal so a night in his own bed will be the perfect r & r. Some of our staff team met him after work to run down off Loughrigg together. He’s still going well but things must have got serious as he’s covered his legs!

Update 04.04.22

Had to do a double take when we looked at James tracker this morning - he’s motoring!! Must be the rest, massage and bath he got at Rydal!

The weather has definitely taken a turn today so it’ll be a bit blustery on the tops. For those worried that his dot has fallen behind the record pace - it is important to remember the trophy represents an average time. Don’t fret yet! To give you an idea of James’ pace our Ambleside Manager Chris (veteran of many ultra’s including The Winter Spine Race) is still recovering two days after supporting James over Scafell:

“I don’t usually have any effects on my legs at all after a regular long training run but two days later my legs literally feel like they’ve run a race!” Chris Worton

Images have been hard to come by today because, understandably, all eyes have been on the navigation to make sure that James is absolutely on track. The pressure on the Nav Captains for each leg is immense;

“…….with the conditions we had it was very much map and compass in hand, head down and crack on!” Will Betts

Massive kudos to the support teams!

Update 05.04.22

It’s been pretty grim on the tops today and very windy with gale force winds. Our staff team member Steve Hopwood was out supporting and confirmed it was not a day for taking pictures - other than a daft grainy selfie somewhere around the Dodds!

“James has been enduring weather now for hours and hours. His mental fortitude is immense! You just don't see the full picture when watching a dot on a screen.
The support crews are doing an epic job and apparently James still looks very strong, it's just the weather keeping him from his full pace potential.
Those of you watching on the link will notice the record trophy slowly pulling away. I'm sure James won't even be thinking about this, his aim was to do the fastest he could. I'm sure he's a bit gutted he's had poor weather, and there's plenty more to come - but I also know he won't be sulking about it. He will be cracking on with the aim of getting the job done.
We're so proud! Keep going buddy!” Lakeland Mountain Guides

Meanwhile, the support crew are flexing their massage muscles out in the field……

Update 06.04.22

With 50 mph head winds last night James is tired and his feet are a bit battered but wine gums have been deployed and he is on the move again……

….and the technical term for todays weather: MINGING!

Many thanks to Paul Wilson for letting us share his images from Skiddaw. Either James is actively putting on weight en route or his clothes are filled with wind…..

Binsey is in the bag and James was running strong into The Pheasant check point this evening. Amazing!

After a quick massage, it was a burger plus a pint (a pint!!) and he was off again. It looks like being another wet and windy night but at least some of the fells are a bit lower tonight. Go James!!

Update 07.04.22

There’s snow on the tops again this morning and the wind in the valley last night was string which meant another tough night for James. The weather has been brutal but he is still cranking the pace. He’s just missed the summer record but just to put things into perspective when it was set by Sabrina Verjee last year there were evenings where you could run in shorts. To cover a route in a matter of days that most people take years to complete is an outstanding achievement. To do it twice in a matter of months leaves us all with our jaws on the floor.

It’s looking like James should be heading into Keswick for lunchtime and those of us that aren’t working are all psyched to cheer him back to the Moot Hall as the first person EVER to complete two Wainwright Continuous Rounds. Go James!

And he’s done it!

James smiled his way through Keswick and up the steps to the door of the Moot Hall 6 days, 5 hours & 23 minutes after leaving on his (non) summer continuous round of the Wainwrights. This makes him the fastest male, the youngest person (again - although he’s not as young as he was in December), the only person to have done it twice and, most importantly: the fastest Cornishman.

In true James fashion, he enjoyed a couple of beers at the end and some good craic full of smiles, laughter, tales and jovial reminders from his support team of delicate personal moments across the past 6 days. It’s fair to say that once again; a great time out in the fells with friends old and new has been central to James momentous round. Although to be fair, his first words after touching the Moot Hall door were: “Never Again”……….

Congratulations James on another fantastic achievement, we’re looking forward to working in the shop with you again soon.

And He’s off…….AGAIN!!!!!