I recently enjoyed a weekend at a hostel near Aviemore in the company of some 30 women, all of whom had taken part in the Veteran Women’s Munro Relay earlier this year. It was the chance for reunion and to participate in a range of outdoor activities and “challenges”, as well as to eat lots of food!
Here are a few of the things I learned during the weekend
1) Age doesn’t define us
While everyone in the group was aged over 40 – and many were over 50 and 60 – there was still an incredible sense of energy. This was witnessed both physically and mentally. It was amazing to be part of such an energised bunch of outdoors women.
Everyone enjoyed the rewards of plenty of exercise and time outdoors. For some “enough” daily exercise seemed way beyond what I could do day after day but we are all different and it’s good to reflect that “rewards” are different for all.
Age has not stopped these women continuing to run, walk, swim, ride, paddle etc. In fact, many of the women aged over 55 (so older than me) were still very fit, fast and motivated. It gave me lots of hope…
2) We talk more openly about menopause
As well as some chat about age, there was plenty of conversations about menopause. Talking about this topic is far more common than it used to be and HRT was also a big subject. There are many women who swear by HRT, some who have never taken it – and others who were interested to find out more.
3) Races and goals are important
I overheard many conversations about forthcoming races and goals. They were as wide-ranging as running a faster 5k parkrun to finishing a round of Munros, to walking more 3000m peaks and even 6000m peaks, plus multi-stage running and cycling events.
It seems that for many women, the focus of a new challenge, race or event is a big motivator and I can understand that.
I was both impressed and inspired by some of the challenges and races that we chatted about.
One conversation has even led to me checking out details of what a multi-stage race in Europe might entail.
4) I’d like to improve my downhill running
I already knew I was a cautious downhill runner but when running with some of the women during the weekend, I felt like I was going backwards.
The women were gutsy downhill runners and while I am quite a good and competent uphill runner, they left me behind on the descents.
I am going to look for some advice on becoming more confident on the downhills. I always worry I’ll slip or trip if I go too fast and I don’t want to be in a situation where I am injured and can’t run at all.
5) Women are good at working together – and having fun
As well as being good at energetic activities, many women proved to be smart and creative, too.
As part of the weekend, a clever member of the group had created a series of challenges to complete (if we fancied) in teams over 24 hours.
Some challenges were relatively straightforward, such as taking part in the Aviemore parkrun, swimming across a small loch, enjoying a brew in a bothy, summitting a Munro, building a sandcastle and visiting an RSPB reserve.
The weather – cold and windy – meant some of these challenges were trickier and there were many other tasks that seemed, well, a great deal more challenging, such as three re-enactments, spotting a buzzard and a crested tit, paddling with a stranger, swimming to a castle and throwing a snowball etc.
My team turned out to be brilliantly up-for-it and we enjoyed a really fun day of activity. We had many laughs and giggles as we attempted to come up with alternative versions for some of the challenges that we couldn’t do as first intended.
I learned that while challenges can sometimes seem impossible, with a bit of alternative thinking and the support of a bunch of great women, anything is possible.
It’s great when you meet people for the first time and discover you can have fun and giggle very easily.
6) The smallest things can cause the biggest laughs
One of the re-enactments was to create an image of Pooh, Piglet and friends playing Pooh sticks. When our tiny Piglet fell off the bridge into the fast flowing water – thus creating his own version of a Pooh stick – our group could not stop laughing.
PS Piglet was saved!
Another enactment was a scene from Chariots of Fire. I recorded my team doing a run along the beach and then created a video. It still makes me laugh out loud to watch our team acting up and enjoying the silliness and hilarity.
7) You don’t always need to get to the summit
On the Sunday, some of the group planned to do a run-hike to a mountain summit. However, as we set off the wind was much stronger than forecast and many of us were struggling to stay upright.
While there is a sense of achievement in reaching a summit – and I do love a summit – it doesn’t have to feel like an extreme challenge. It’s also important to be aware of your own limitations and feelings of safety.
I was happy to turn back without getting to the top and I enjoyed a lower-level run instead.
8) Women tend to over-do the catering!
This wasn’t a new discovery, but it was definitely confirmed: Women always bring far more food and drink for a group gathering than can ever be eaten, and then head home with what appears to be almost the same as they arrived with. We enjoyed a fantastic communal meal with many people bringing different dishes.
9) Cairngorm Lodge is a good group accommodation
The Cairngorm Lodge is part of Hostelling Scotland’s Rent-a-hostel scheme. It is large with good-sized dorms, a big lounge, warm showers, a superb (but smelly!) drying room and a big kitchen. It would be even better if they added another couple of ovens.
I would recommend booking this hostel if you are looking for a large group accommodation in, or near, Aviemore.
- Thanks to everyone who made this weekend away so well organised and enjoyable.