Himalayan Challenge Marathon
Day 4; Uphill again?
Jose Manuel Jimenez / 03.11.2007
After a nice cup of coffee and a chat with the few runners that were already watching the spectacle, an early morning stroll through Rimbik was the last thing before the beginning of the next section; 13 Miles towards Palmajua (6560 ft). The runners although a bit stiff from yesterday were all in great spirits and ready to take on the next challenge, knowing the type of terrain they’d be running on had them all at ease and confident that it would be a great run.
The road on this section is paved and it leads downhill towards the bottom of the valley approximately 2000 ft below Rimbik, the road is very sinuous and steep in parts and then follows the river, here the borders of India and West Bengal meet.
Along the route many homes and schools can be seen, in which many times the runners end up being followed by children laughing and cheering until their little feet can’t follow any more. After reaching the end of the valley and crossing the river by an old bridge the uphill climb to Palmajua is imminent.
A long and curvy road leads the way through lush vegetation of ferns, bamboos and other trees all the way to the top and to the end of this short stage. During about half of the stage the two leaders from the previous days took hold of the first and second positions and didn’t let go for anything in the world. But as they reached the ascent they started lagging a bit and were passed by the ever present Emyln David Christie (UK), coming in second was Duncan Larkin (USA) followed closely by Vincent Hua Chang (UK) and Miguel Angel Merino (Spain).See All Event Posts
