If Elton was like me finishing in the dark he missed out on the beans on toast, probably gobbled up by the earlier finishers, however the lovely vegetable soup was extremely welcome and warmed the cockles a treat.

That's a great description of the day Elton ... But how good was the ambrosia rice at checkpoints and the beans on toast at the end!!

Rain. Heavy rain, light rain, but always rain. Mud. Wall to wall mud, ankle deep if you were lucky, almost calf deep in places. Narrow paths with deep puddles each side or, more often, in the middle. The wind doing its best to drive the rain into any gap in your waterproofing. Cold numbing your fingers and (very wet) toes. All of which made it an event to be remembered: by those who did it with affection and by those who didn’t show up, with envy. It surpasses even the icy Punchbowl of a few years back.

Most fun was to be had as darkness approached and judging mud depth became more tricky. Though by that time it didn’t really make much difference. Every time your shoe hit the ground it was debatable whether more mud squelched in or more mud squelched out.

We were supported as always at the checkpoints by smiling and friendly faces, encouraging words, and plenty of food and drink. The hardest part was leaving these havens of comfort and going back out into wet, wintry, wildest Surrey. Thanks to Jackie, Ted and the checkpoint teams for an event which no participant will forget in a hurry.