Himalayan 100 Mile Stage Race
Sky High Marathon ... and more
Rob Howard / 27.10.2010
Sky High Marathon ... and moreDay 3; the day of the Everest Challenge Marathon. It began very much the same as day 2, with alarms going off at 4am and weary bodies making their way to the breakfast hut. Sadly, yesterday’s porridge wasn’t on offer, but boiled potatoes and eggs were, with some bread and jam. Not your normal pre-marathon fare but calories all the same! Even so, some couldn’t manage the breakfast, due to fatigue or illness, and despite the demands of the day that lay ahead.
Dawn revealed Kanchenjunga in its glory again, but the second of the stats from Sandakphu was an hour earlier at 06.00 and was that bit colder as well. The first 10 miles along the ridge to Molle was the same as yesterday, and this was followed by an 8 mile out and back loop to Phalut, and then the big descent down to Rimbik, which was on firmly packed trails at the top, but looser and more slippery at the bottom on the way down to the a river crossing. Then came the final uphill section to the finish.
The start of the day may have been the same as yesterday, but now all the runners had one more day’s fatigue in their legs and many were nursing minor injuries, altitude or stomach illness. Dirk Stelzner set off with his swollen ankle, and so did Emma Bamford, who had almost fainted in the briefing the night before and had been put on IV drip.
For those in a good state of body and mind, the ridge top views were as amazing again, a second chance to make the most of running in such a stunning location. Taryn McCoy said, �The views on the 8 mile loop out to Phalut and back were just better and better. I kept stopping to take photo after photo. I took 35 in the end!� At the finish she added, “Today I felt good for the first time, shaking off a stomach bug and enjoyed the descent which was more like the trails we have at home. It was tough though, much tougher than the adidas Terrex (the UK’s AR World Series race), or the Abu Dhabi Adventure race.� In contrast the friend she had travelled with, Andrea Harrower, had a tougher day, suffering from a bad stomach and vomiting as she struggled around the course.
The Spanish group leading the race also enjoyed their day and the chance of a fast, more technical descent. Three Spaniards all crossed the line together in a time of 4 hours 50 minutes to continue their winning streak on every stage.
This time Monica Aguilera was with her compatriots Fernando Rodriguez and Angel Moreno Galvez and all were naturally in high spirits. “We ran fast today,� said Aguilera, “and really enjoyed being on the ridge again and then to run down so quickly. But the distance is never 42km. They said the downhill run was 12km, but we ran fast and took 1 hour 50 minutes, so I think it is more like 17km at least.� (Ed. If you are confused by the mixed use of miles and kilometres you are not the only one!)See All Event Posts
