GORE-TEX® Transalpine-Run
Leaders of all Categories Defend their Titles
08.09.2009
Today held more of the same of experiences the runners have enjoyed already over the last few days: beautiful weather, exciting trails and phenomenal vistas! The British runners Andrew Symonds and Tom Owens of 'Saab Salomon Outdoor' seem to thrive on these conditions as they managed to claim a fourth consecutive stage victory (03:51:26.0 hours). Neither a vertical gain of 2,339m nor a distance of 39.92 kilometers could slow them down, they simply deliver extraordinary stage times, one by one.
By comparison, the next ranking top Men's team, Thomas Geisenberger and Michael Veit (Team Dr. Steinbauer, 04:10:07.5 hours), took nearly twenty minutes longer before crossing the finish line and putting their legs up. The Italian team 'Ferienregion Ober-Mittel-Vinschgau' (Anton Steiner and Alexander Erhard) trailed the second-placing Germans by five minutes (04:15:42.1 hours) but managed to claim the third podium position with what is still a phenomenal time.
Scorching temperatures didn't make today's run across Futschölpass (2,768 m) and Piz Clünas (2,793 m) any easier for the runners. Tom Owens of the leading Men's team claimed to have taken it easy for the longest time because of that. He and partner Andrew Symonds ran with a small group up front before eventually increasing the pace and leaving the rest behind to cinch the stage. By the end of the day, their overall lead in the race had grown to over an hour, a comfortable buffer to be strategizing from for the rest of the week. Tom Owens pointed out that they're "satisfied with the way the run is developing, but also tired. It's good that tomorrow's uphill sprint race will be sort of a rest day."
Tom Geisenberger and Michael Veit of Germany continue to solidify a runner-up position immediately behind the seemingly unbeatable leaders. 'Team Dr. Steinbauer' once more managed to shake off yesterday's podium ranking 'Telmekom Team Südtirol' who, in turn, arrived in seventh place today. Team 'Dr. Steinbauer's ambition to land a top-ten overall position seems within reach at this point as long as they can maintain their current condition. Geisenberger is thrilled: "We went across the day's first pass with some others, but after reaching Alp Laret they weren't able to keep up to our pace. We're happy that things go so well right now."
SleepMonsters
