What best way to close the season with a race of fools. Gran Raid Reunion was the last race of the season which I keep next performance but not a season full of events and discoveries of very different landscapes. And in late October a race that seems to be summed up this summer 2010.
I discovered a country that is an explosion of nature, volcanoes in eruption, large waterfalls, tropical forests with plants imaginable, from high mountains, beautiful beaches ... and all this little more than 160km long! But what impresses me most about this island is the mood and spirit trail we breathe. True, it is a paradise for trail running, but all the people they are enthusiastic runners and spectators of the race and al that can not run, even there, to encourage us and provide us with all his heart forces to cross the finish line at La Redoute.
The race started at 22h under a starry sky, with a very good atmosphere, music, smiles between the nerves ... the pace was quiet at the start and the climb to Crater Volcano is done gently, with eyes open on our right or the Piton de la Fournaisse offered us a unique spectacle, with the volcano erupting and abutments of snow on its slopes down, illuminating the dark night sky.
The race continues with Pascal White and convenient one hand together in the intense tropical forests and the long climb to the Crest of the English, to reach the Refuge du Piton des Neiges, the highlight of the event. This, with 85km leg, but not a lot of fatigue that I decided to take my own pace, starting on Cilaos descent, or "starts" the race. After a course planning very differently to the ultras precedents (UTMB, western, Tahoe, GR20) and I left without taking a lot of water or salt ... So I decided to drink and eat a lot of salt, calories out. And it seems that it works well, so I could enjoy much of the race and the atmosphere.
Magic Passage in Mafate unesco heritage and really deserved because these are dream landscapes with many villages that must be accessed only by foot, long arms and down to is the "last" long climb. Dos d'Ane or seen the sea for the first time and it seems that all this is let go until the finish but this is starting the race in the drive. Possession after just 20km from the finish it when fatigue starts to feel good about our bodies and find weaknesses or attack.
20km These are really hard, with very highly technical passages that do let you put the "automatic" So we must be very attentive or set foot in all the way to the English. Looooongue then climb to reach the Colorado, or knowing the advantage I had, I can afford to slow down and enjoy the atmosphere and the audience until the last run. There, just fun, 800m of rock, roots, technical trail, jumps with eyes fixed on the lights ahead of us all the way down to St Denis, Stade de la Redoute. The last mile, walking between the public gives its heart to the riders are just magical, I will not attempt to describe what was happening in my head while walking the second is impossible, so many emotions, which contained all the moments experienced during the previous 24 hours, operate in these last steps.
One season ended with the most magical race I ever ran a season full of meetings, trips, great adventures but also of great races and great performances. So no better shape to keep the sneakers until May in the island paradise of the trail!
now, sneakers, hidden in the closet, it's time to change them for skis, and returning to metropolis, nothing better we wait for the snow on the peaks!
0 comments:
Post a Comment