Waiting for the call…
As I write, at 11pm on June 15 th (with the editor’s deadline fast approaching!!), this year’s summer edition of the world-famous 268-mile Spine Race is under way, and competitors have been on the go for 39 hours. The first runner (Ireland’s Ed Payne) has around 150 miles under his belt, and a lead of about an hour. For the first time in several years, BSARU have no competitors in the event, but a hefty percentage of our members will be avidly “dot-watching” - following the online trackers that all competitors carry. Over the years we have had a fair number of callouts for the summer and winter events. It seems to be those at the front, who are really pushing the boundaries of human performance, and those near the back who are on the go for up to seven days with almost no rest, who struggle in the latter stages. They enter our patch at Byrness and complete this final 28-mile leg through the Cheviots to Kirk Yetholm across very remote terrain with no roads, no habitation and just two isolated mountain refuge huts to use for shelter if required.
The very nature of the challenge means that some hit the buffers towards the end, when sleep deprivation, navigational trouble, injury, blisters or simply utter exhaustion can make it impossible to carry on. This is where we come in. Along with our colleagues from the Northumberland teams, we are in a state of slightly elevated expectation that a “shout” will come in during the last couple of days of the event. And because the runners go all day and all night, the callouts can come in at horribly anti-social hours.
People across the UK requiring help from mountain rescue often take a lot of stick from the media and the public. Some, admittedly, deserve a wee bit of flak, but the majority are simply folk out doing what everyone involved in mountain rescue loves to do - enjoying time in the great outdoors and testing their skills, talents and limits. It doesn’t take a lot to come a bit unstuck through bad luck, poor choices, accident or illness. We are ALWAYS happy to attend a callout and to help, and a shout with a successful outcome, especially in challenging conditions, leaves the whole team buzzing and energised for days.
In all walks of life, having the opportunity to help, and to make a positive difference to someone feels good. It’s why folk volunteer to work for charities, to lead scout groups, to pick litter, to visit the lonely in care-homes and a hundred things beside. And it’s why those of us involved in mountain rescue, 365 days a year come rain, hail or shine, are waiting for the call.
