Black Combe Runners complete the first all-women Leapfrog Round: ‘The Black Combe Frogwomen’

On 5 July 2024, eight BCR women aged 20 to 54 completed the first all-women Leapfrog Round in 14 hours and 37 mins. The Black Combe Frogwomen team consisted of two women on each leg; Beth Ripper and Helen Walker (leg 1), Becca Cleator and Emma Seery (leg 2), Ava Grossman and Julie Darigala (leg 3), Petra and Verity Chapman Gibbs (leg 4). They did the round without any support - just a kayak for safety on swim 1 (Ava, who also ran leg 3), and swims 2 and 4 (the ninth team member, Jackie). They also did all their own vehicle support.

Here’s their account of epic fun in the fells and waters of the Lake District. Advance warning: there is a lot of whooping!

Petra: The Frog Graham round is such a beautiful and challenging round. So what better thing to do with your equally crazy friends than a relay? I suggested this to some women in our running club who are all fell runners and good swimmers back in February, and of course they were up for it. Black Combe Runners are always up for fun adventures. The planning took shape and reeces were completed. Logistics were getting stressful as we inched closer - who was driving where and kayaking at which point, the weather, time off work - but on the day it was plain sailing.

Leg 1

Beth: 3:30am is a fairly antisocial time for your alarm to go off...but today was no ordinary day! I quickly showered, force fed myself porridge and sneaked out of the house with "Frog Frog" along for company...!

Helen: It was a very early get up, and for me after a late shift at work. But I was alive and excited, and met my lovely companion Beth in Keswick.

Frog Frog, our squeaky relay baton, facing the first mountain

Beth: We touched the Moot Hall doors and at 05:40 we were off! Skiddaw by the main tourist track is by far my favourite route up any fell in the Lake District (not!) As we climbed the weather was pretty challenging; despite it being early July the winds were very strong and bitterly cold, and the compulsory Skiddaw clag swallowed us whole. It took a good while to reach the summit trig point, then we didn't hang about - we turned around and ran straight into the wind, down the steep, slatey trail towards Carl Side. We dropped out of the clag and were both in awe - I'd forgotten how absolutely stunning the view was from this summit, even more so in the morning sunshine that was breaking through the clouds.

Beth and Helen on the summit of Skiddaw, in amazing summer conditions!!

Helen: Yep, as we headed down, we were greeted with stunning views. And approaching the church, ready to swim, we were feeling good. A quick change into our wetsuit and we were ready to head into a choppy Bassenthwaite. We could see our teammates awaiting our arrival on the other side.

Touching the Church, our second checkpoint

Beth: And it was great to see Ava too - our safety kayak support. The swim across Bassenthwaite was great. Like Helen says, a bit choppy but much warmer than I'd expected. And it was easy to spot our Leg 2 runners, Emma and Becca, who had placed some hi vis jackets at the exit point for us.

Frog Frog getting excited for her first swim

That first early morning swim – Helen and Beth crossing making it over Bassenwaithe, with Ava kayaking

Helen: After a lovely swim we arrived on the opposite shore. My balance was shot due to having water in my ear and no hearing aids in. We decided to cross the road with Emma and Becca, with Emma guiding me across the road - no time to put the hearing aids in! The final laugh was Beth helping get me out of my wetsuit which I was firmly stuck in. Fantastic fun.

Leg 2

Emma: We’d done lots of nervous pacing and hi viz jacket arranging on the shore of Bassenthwaite when we saw our first frogs emerging from the water to finish leg 1. Hi fives. Photos. Handover of the squeaky frog baton. A high-octane road crossing (especially for Helen!) and we hit the trail.

It's a flat few km to start, so we got moving - each thinking the other was going too fast – but the steep scrappy climb up Barf soon sorted that out. We were treated to gorgeous views as we ticked our first few checkpoints on the tops and then enjoyed the downhill dash to Whinlatter Visitors Centre. Wisely prioritising photos with Gruffalo over making time to use the toilet.

We stomped up Grisedale Pike where we found the wind, but also the dramatic undulating ridges that make this leg the best one! From here we toured the tops, getting buffeted around but having a generally lovely time. Even on the stagger up Crag Hill, which always goes on a lot longer than it should.

Becca: Frog Frog had a great view out the back of my backpack and she didn't seem to mind the cold on the tops. The time flew by because Emma knew the route very well and we had a lot of fun.

Emma: Ha ha. I’d never done most of it before, but very glad I did that recce to Ullister Hill! After a short scamper down Rannerdale Knotts to Crummock Water our ~20.5km run was done, and we could see Jackie waiting in her kayak to back us up on the swim. And Beth, Petra, and Verity cheering us on. Frog Frog squeaked back.

Jackie: I had a lovely peaceful morning on Crummock Water until I could hear whoops and cries of enjoyment as leg 2 (Emma and Becca) descended to the lake. Still talking whilst changing and eating, which is not an easy feat. They were soon off on the swim leg and it all went quiet as they powered across to the other side. My job was to try and not bump into them as there was quite a strong cross wind.

Becca and Emma kit change and faff before Crummock swim

Leg 2 swim setting off - Emma and Becca with Jackie in the kayak on Crummock

Emma: The wind tried to push us off course, and there was a bit of lake water drinking, but all pretty cruisy.

Becca: The swim was pretty cold, but short. And great views!

Jackie: Ava and Julie were shouting encouragement and bouncing up and down ready for the off, and with the frog baton exchanged they disappeared into the distance.

Leg 3

Julie: Me, Brent, and our spaniel pup Flint were relaxing on Embleton beach in warm sunshine, contemplating a paddle in the North Sea when my phone pinged with a message from Petra. ‘Thanks so much for cutting your holiday short….am hoping you won’t regret it.’ Friday was suddenly looking like the more favourable weather day. Time to head home…I was so happy to be paired with Ava for leg 3, she is so cheerful and exudes enthusiasm and warmth. I knew we’d have a fun time whatever the weather threw our way.

Ava: On the day, we had a pleasant stroll from Buttermere village to Low Ling crag for the start of our leg. We soon spotted Emma and Becca’s rapid descent off Rannerdale Knotts, and after they made short work of the choppy waters of Crummock, we raced off to tackle Mellbreak. After I’d thrown my van keys onto the beach just in time… ha ha.

Julie: Forty minutes of rough, heathery scrambling later and we popped out at the south summit, chuffed with having nailed that awkward line. Thankfully it was breezy but pretty clear on the tops as we navigated our way via the waterfall and climbed Red Pike, pausing briefly at Scale Beck to refill our bottles. Soaking in the beautiful views, we raced along the undulating ridge and dug in for our final ascent of High Stile. As Ava led us expertly over the rocky summit we bumped into a couple of guys from down south, interested to learn about our undertaking. Funnily enough it transpired they knew Tim Ripper (Beth’s hubby). Small world.

Julie and Ava working their way up Mellbreak

Ava: No time to hang about chatting – although weirdly we all ended up in The Round together later on! Julie set an amazing pace as we hurriedly descended to Horse Close.

Julie: Ava is a powerful, year-round swimmer (unlike me) and was quickly changed into her cossie and packing up my float as I squeezed into my wetsuit. I was a little apprehensive about the swim across Buttermere and initially stuck close to Ava, but it felt wonderful in the cool water in spite of the intermittent waves. After a short time, we could see the smiling faces of Emma and Beth, Petra and Verity across at Hassness…hi fives as we stumbled to shore and cheered our mother and daughter duo off.

Ava and Julie swimming across Buttermere

Julie exiting Buttermere. What a dramatic back drop

Leg 4

Verity: When my mum asked me to be a part of the leapfrog team, I was apprehensive – I had heard how hard the Frog Graham is and I hadn’t been swimming much. But I was keen to be a part of the team and I agreed to do leg 4. Although I’m a Black Combe Runner, I live in Manchester during University term time so my training probably looked a bit different to most of the other team members. Mainly running to Media City, swimming in Salford Quay, and running back to my house in South Manchester.

Petra: I was so pleased to complete leg 4 with my daughter. A proud moment indeed. And amazing to complete the round with such inspirational women.

Verity: The morning of the Leapfrog I was very nervous, especially for the long swim across Derwent water. I made sure to eat two breakfasts. And watching Emma and Becca come down from Rannerdale Knotts and transition into their Crummock swim it all seemed real. I felt a swirl of excitement and nervousness.

We then had a coffee and lunch and it was soon time to head to the edge of Buttermere to prepare for our leg. Ava and Julie flew down High Stile and across Buttermere. It was a rush to hand over Frog Frog and we set off up Robinson. This was a hard slog but we were soon at the top and heading on to Dale Head. The next three peaks came quickly, and fuelled by jelly babies and hula hoops we ploughed on up High Spy and Catbells. Then was the long-awaited Derwent swim.

Petra and Verity excited to start their leg from the shores of Buttermere

We made it to the top of High Spy, our 3rd checkpoint

Petra: Approaching Derwent water to see it calm, inviting and the sun shining just made me want to get in straight away. This is my favourite leg - the glory leg and a swimrunner’s dream. Getting out and running across three islands adds to the excitement.

Just about to set off for the fourth and final swim of the Leapfrog. Jackie and Frog Frog are ready!

Jackie: It was quite hard work paddling across to the start of the Derwent swim with the wind against me. And because Petra and Verity were ahead of schedule I only just got there in time. No messing from these two they were soon into the swim and on to the first island which was occupied by hundreds of seagulls who expressed their displeasure in unpleasant ways.

Verity: The water was cold and I struggled to get into the rhythm of the swim. It wasn’t far to the first island but the second swim was harder and I was very tired by this point. But encouraged by our amazing kayaker Jackie, I powered on across the next three sections of the swim and finally made it to the other side.

Petra: We even found the shingle bit on the third island this time, and from there we could clearly see and hear our fellow team members whooping from the shore.

Jackie: They beat me across on the second island and then onto the third, and soon the end of the swim is in sight with more whoops and other such noises from the rest of the team. A beautiful night on the lake and brilliant to watch a group of people having such a good time.

Stunning evening to be swimming across Derwent

Verity, Petra and Frog Frog exiting Derwent, with Jackie having safety seen us over.

Verity: We were cheered on by our other team members as me and my mum clambered out of Derwent and ran with Emma, Ava, and Julie to the final checkpoint at the Moot Hall. Emma led the way along the road to Keswick we sprinted to the finish point. After the obligatory photos at the Moot Hall it was time for a much-needed sit down and a drink.

Petra: Yes, Emma didn’t half sprint us into the finish at the Moot Hall.

Emma: And maybe another drink. And a few pizzas. (And even more whooping…)