UTMB: My Experience, and what it taught me about Encouragement.

UTMB - the Race, and being there - 

  In the marathon world, this isn’t a large race in terms of competitors. However in the ultra scene, Ultra-trail Mont Blanc (UTMB) is the Wimbledon, the Melbourne Cup, the Kentucky Derby of trail running.

  UTMB is actually a week long festival – with 5 separate races in the Mont Blanc massif area –finishing in Chamonix, but crossing France, Italy and Switzerland. The festival sprung out of the single race – UTMB, the iconic race of circumnavigating the Mont-Blanc mountains.  The atmosphere is suffocating, with a massive ultra running expo, exhibiting all the major races from around the world, and the latest products from all ultra-sport companies.   It’s all good – but frankly, it does nothing to settle pre-race nerves, and the over-sensitive state one gets into, prior to a race like this.

UTMB is a qualified race – meaning, everyone must qualify and show evidence of completing several ultra-distance races around the world - so everyone who comes, is experienced and proven.  For me, it was three 100km races completed in the last 18months, to get into the ‘draw’ - then I was fortunate to be selected from the 2016 UTMB draw.

  For me, the goal was simple – to start and finish, and secondly to experience the scenic trails of the Mont Blanc massif.

Little did I know, I was gain something more valuable.

Chamonix Acclimatization

  We arrived in Chamonix (~1000m elevation), eleven days prior to the race, to help acclimatize. The heat (22-30C) was surprising to us – though not unfamiliar having coming from HK’s 34-38C. days. But as I found in my first mountain run  (Plan du Augille, 1300m up from valley floor) the air was far drier and cooler…the dryness something I didn’t really come to grips with, in terms of hydration – even in the race.

  This run was a great confidence boost to me on my cardio readiness with heart rate staying below 140,  however it did reconfirm a weak, maybe slightly strained calf, I had been nursing for the past 4 weeks.  So I did very little running thereafter, but continued in the pool, and some gym for my taper – not ideal,  but better to go into the race with a little less fitness, than an injured muscle that’s ready to blow.

  Aside from this, 48hours prior to race start – I seemed to contract some digestive problems, which worried me, knowing I would be ingesting a lot of food through the race.

The race begins: Chamonix - St Gervais - Les Contamines

  The race begins at a strange time, of 6pm Friday evening, making the Friday morning-afternoon seem long, arduous in building pre-race nerves to breaking point.  With Chamonix town packed with competitors, support teams, booming music and race announcements the air is electric. At 5.58, the countdown begins with the iconic race music – Conquest of Paradise, by Vangelis – that all the competitors know so well.

  The race begins, through the streets of Chamonix, blanketed either side for several kilometers of people cheering, and classic alpine cow-bells and horns blowing – as if the race wasn’t enough to get your heart rate moving. 

  The race heads out of Chamonix, and towards Les Houches, the first checkpoint, at the southern end of the Mont Blanc valley. I had been warned of the over-zealous starts at UTMB – and it’s hard not get caught up in it all.  At 6km in on rolling trail terrain, my heart rate was at 140 plus, causing the classic barrage of self-questioning, are you fit enough for this?, did I have a stomach bug?, was everyone else that much fitter?, was I just over-excited?, or maybe I wasn’t acclimatized yet. Well, I would find out later, we were running at 7.5 km/Hr - not smart, when you have 98miles to run, ahead of you.

  From Les Houches, we begun the climb upto Le Delveret at 1700m, where you look out of the valley and down to Saint Gervais, the second check-point. This would be the beginning some spectacular dusk and dawn views of alpine sceneries, these countries are blessed with every day.  We were only 21kms in, but my Italian, French and Spanish vocabulary had tripled with monotonous well wishes of enthusiastic locals crying out -  ‘allez-allex-allez’, ‘superpa’ and ‘Bravo Bravo’ :)

  On arriving into Saint Gervais, the atmosphere was buzzing with what felt like the whole town converging to the streets, welcoming racers through. I took a few things on board then kept quickly moving back out onto the trail – and headed for Les Contamines, the 3rd checkpoint at 31km.  The check-point here felt more like a carbohydrate fest for starving hunger strikers marching for some crazy cause – rather than a refueling station.  But as usual, there were already signs of some who had gone out to fast, and some even bowing out, having only covered 18% of the race – remember this is ‘qualified race’, yet we humans are sometimes slow learners. For me, while my calves-legs were fine, I started noticing a twinge on my left outside knee joint – something I hadn’t experienced since my late teens, but something that would begin to progressively hamper me later down the trail.  Nicole and Ryan were waiting there for me – and with Denver (at future check-points) they became my pillar of strength as I looked for help to face the mountain ascents and descents ahead.