Marshals needed for fell championships

Calder Valley Fell Runners are asking for help marshalling a national event next month.The British Fell Relay Championships are being hosted by the Yorkshire club at Castle Carr.

Harness recall notice and battery advice issued

Two manufacturers have issued warnings about their equipment.The first, and perhaps most urgent, is from climbing gear makers Black Diamond who have put out a ‘stop using until inspected’ instruction on some of their climbing harnesses.The models affected are the ‘Speed’ range – Focus Speed, Gym Speed, Momentum Speed and Vario Speed harnesses along with the Wiz Kid.

Cozmo says The North Face is Cool

You may have noticed that grough tends to fight shy of the usual brand recommendations and exhaustive gear reviews.We have neither the time nor the money to fritter on comparing fifteen makes of water purification systems or enlightening you on which expensive waterproof makes you sweat the most (they all make me sweat – Ed).The CoolBrands Council's website (right)So it is with trepidation that grough dips its boot-clad toe in the murky waters of outdoors brands.

DJ to deliver AW lecture

Radio 2 DJ and upcoming grumpy Stuart Maconie will deliver this year’s Wainwright Memorial Lecture.The Lancastrian, better known for his cameos in Peter Kay’s Phoenix Nights and numerous appearances as a Rent-an-Opinion on Channel Four’s The 100 Best series, Maconie will no doubt be recounting his more fell-oriented pursuits.Falling far short, in grough’s opinion, of being a Grumpy Old Man at only 46, Maconie is a fan of the fells, and has reputedly more than 200 Wainwrights under his Vibram.

Charity trekkers at risk on Kilimanjaro

A shock report claims that not one of 20 charity treks up Kilimanjaro it studied followed expert advice to protect participants.Mountain medicine experts say this is putting lives at risk from altitude-related illnesses.The report, presented at the Symposium of Climbing and Altitude Medicine held at Plas-y-Brenin at the weekend, heard that the recommendation for anyone heading for the summit of Kilimanjaro should spend at least seven days above 2,500 m to acclimatise.

Glenmore offers an ice try

With winter just round the corner, climbers have the chance to learn all about ice techniques at two events next month.Glenmore Lodge, Scotland’s national outdoor training centre, is offering the chance to brush up on equipment and techniques for climbing steep waterfall ice.

Paddlers need better access, says canoe union

England and Wales’ 1½ million paddlers are getting a raw deal, according to the British Canoe Union (BCU).The governing body for canoeing and kayaking in Britain has cast doubts on the results of an access survey conducted by the University of Brighton which said that voluntary agreements for securing access for river users was successful.The report, commissioned by the Government quango the Environment Agency, looked at four voluntary agreements on river access and came out in favour of taking the voluntary route.

The end is nigh... Oh no, it isn't

The heart swells with pride, the muscles regain their power, the spring returns to your step. You’re almost finished: 95 miles under the belt an...

Sir Ranulph to tackle mountain marathon

Explorer Sir Ranulph Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, 3rd Baronet, OBE, (Ran to his mates) will be among those tackling the Original Mountain Marathon this weekend.The event, formerly known as the Karrimor International Mountain Marathon, has 66 teams in the elite class.