Ultra Fiord
"Off to see the Wizard": Post race interview with Stjepan Pavicic
Anne-Marie Dunhill / 01.05.2015
When the 100miler race had started, what seems like a lifetime ago, in the tingling excitement of going into the new and the unknown, I had started singing in the van, “We’re off to see the wizard..” Late Monday afternoon, a week after the inaugural edition of the Ultra Fiord had finished, I was off to the NIGSA offices in Punta Arenas to see Stjepan Pavicic, the wizard who had created the event, before my 06:20 flight out the next morning.
Having reached out several times to him before publishing the piece “Tension at Estancia Perales” in order to get his point of view and having received no reply until once the piece was published, I was even more determined to include his point of view on all that had taken place.
In his message to me after the piece was published, he wrote that he felt the piece only presented one side of the coin, to which I’d replied it was the side of the coin that I had witnessed. He hadn’t ranted or threatened or asked SleepMonsters to retract; something other race directors have done in the past, so I was pleased that the meeting was finally taking place.
In Puerto Natales after the race, I’d talked to numerous people, trying to understand what “it” was. Those people included one of the porters who’d ferried equipment into the “fortress” and the assistant manager of Baguales brewery, Daniel Darrigrandi who’d come in second on the 70km race and I’d seen in the kitchen of Estancia Perales after he’d finished his race. We met again at an art exhibition at the Fondacion Patagonia. So many different points of view, questions on both sides and although a clearer picture of what had happened was emerging, Stjepan’s voice was still missing.
The meeting took four hours and this is what Stjepan had to say:
SleepMonsters: What were the security measures in place between Hosteria Balmaceda and Estancia Perales?
Stjepan Pavicic: There were twenty-two people with survival training, SAN WFR. Included in those twenty-two were war nurses. We had five people based at Balmaceda as well as two checkpoints: one before going into the mountain area and one coming out of the mountain area.
Runners had to check in and give their numbers at Chacabuco 1 (96 km) and they were checked again at Chacabuco 2 (102 km). I had one of my most trusted men, Antony, placed at Chacabuco 1 as well as Manuel. He was checking to see if each runner was ok and if they were not, he had the authority to send them back to Balmaceda.
Up to Chacabuco 1, the mountaineer instructor had visual and radio contact and after that point there was a clear path because my people had walked in the snow so there was a path.
At Chacabuco 2 the runners had to check in again. I was a bit worried about this part because of the shale present. I’ve been reading many race reports since the race has finished to see where runners had problems and no one has mentioned the part that I was concerned about before the race.
SM note: at this point we looked at the race route juxtaposed on Google Earth and Stjepan pointed out where he thought runners might have a problem and where their race reports showed that they did. He also showed the different routes he had explored on his 8-10 expeditions prior to the race to find a way through the “fortress”, before choosing what he felt was the best route for the runners. He added that he was comfortable with the safety on the race, he had been up to see the state of the path five days prior to the race start and he was reassured by what he’d seen as far as the snow and ice was concerned, whereas before he hadn’t been.
SM: What was the communication system you had in place for communication with the checkpoints?
SP: We had two emergency communications systems on the mountain, not one. We had satellite telephones and we had ten units of the InReach system. Of those 10 units, 8 are used with a telephone to send texts and 2 have their own keypad for texting. The CP’s could call us if they needed to, using this system, and I could send them a text telling them to contact me if I needed to, but no emergency was signaled so all systems stayed quiet.
SM note: at this point Stjepan made a phone call to one of his workers downstairs who brought up a plastic storage box that contained the different communications systems that were used during the race and yes, I counted each one.
SM: Could you walk me through the time line of what happened when you received the text from Estancia Perales concerning the situation that SM chronicled in “Tension at Estancia Perales”?
SM note: Stjepan takes out his phone and scrolls down, looking for the texts.
SP: At 05:30 I received a message marked “URGENT” from one of my workers, Camila Perez, with the text message that Leandro Chavarria had sent saying that there was a risk situation at the 70km finish line, that Nikki Kimball arrived very worried, many people with hypothermia , that she was worried about some cases of hypoglycemia, that we need to make account of the runners. Maybe people without experience so can be lost, there is fog so difficult to see markings. She closed the text saying Nikki believes there is life risk.
SM: What were you doing when the text arrived?
SP: I was sleeping before the start of the 30km race, it was one of the only times I actually got to sleep. At 06:54 I received another text message from Camila saying to forget the previous message, all ok.
If someone is lost at night, we couldn’t find them, we need to wait until morning. For example, someone out on that section for 21 hours is not a lost person.
SM: How did you feel about what happened at Estancia Perales? I was very sad about what I saw.
SP: I was not there for most of it, I had good luck. But I know what you mean, after the first Patagonian International Marathon, my people in the office were very sad because of how the event went. I said to them, ‘why are you sad? We’ve put on an event and it’s over’. (One of my self-critiques is that I’m too optimistic.)
SM: What if there had been a major incident, what did you have in place to respond?
SP: Well, horses and stuff like that are just for play, if there had been a major incident we would have had to call out helicopters and zodiacs. Here helicopters mean military. Before the race the president of the tourism for the area felt that the project was so important that she sent a letter the head military man in the area asking for his complete co-operation. That man was so interested in the project that he actually came out to the Remota hotel for the Trails in Motion before the race started. (SM confirms that a man in military uniform was present.) The military helicopters had been informed to be on standby. The local hospital was also called, they agreed to be on stand-by and I was given the direct number in case I had to inform them of an emergency.
SM: Some racers expressed that they felt that the videos produced by the race did not accurately represent what the race route was like. How do you respond?
SP: I think that the videos showed the reality. They showed crossing rivers, showed forest and turba (SM: peat bogs as they are called here). We also sent racers to see the photo albums that we had published of the race route.
SM: Other runners were critical of the fact that they received the race book by e-mail at 06:00 on the morning of the start of the 100miler and that gear requirements had changed. How do you respond?
SP: At 06:00 the equipment only changed from mandatory to recommended. I trusted that runners would know what they need. There was pressure from the elite runners to change so I put in more flexibility so I don’t see what the problem is. For next year I’m thinking of doing two categories, one for the elite and one for normal runners. The elite wouldn’t have a mandatory equipment list as they know what they need.
SM: After Harry Thomas Jr.’s accident, (ed. Brazilian runner/journalist who received a branch in the eye following a fall) are you thinking of adding clear eyeglasses as protection to that mandatory equipment list.
SP: No, because if you put it on the mandatory list, runners will just carry it in their backpack, not wear them. Runners are responsible for knowing what they need.
SM: Other racers expressed the view that this was an adventure race, not an ultra trail. How do you respond?
SP: It is ridiculous for people to think that this was an adventure race! Because an adventure race has many disciplines; needs a compass for navigation; the race route is never cleared; you need a team, you need a lot of mandatory equipment including a tent; you need to provide skills certificates such as rope skills, kayaking, etc.
Cite me one adventure racer who could beat the times of Jeff Browning or Xavier Thevenard. Also, look at these words that Candice Burt wrote me after the race:
Candice Burt: “I wanted to share with you that I feel that you did a very impressive job with organizing this big event in its first year! You should be proud! I hope to come back next year!... Many people only know what it is to be a runner. Being a race director is a entirely different thing. As a fellow race director I feel that the race was well organized and unique. It is something that is very hard to find- rare- and special and I hope t does not change from that. It is the kind of race I feel we need more of!... I am feeling very inspired by the race. I had this feeling today that I no longer want to do normal races I want extraordinary experiences. Thank you. Seriously, inspiration is a beautiful thing! Who knows where it will go??" (SM note: US runner Candice Burt was the only woman of the 4 women who started the 100miler to finish, winning the women’s category in a time of 37:12:15 and taking a fifth place on the overall podium).
SM: Some racers felt that there was unacceptable risk involved during the race. How do you respond?
SP: Risk is not objective, it is subjective. We told a thousand times that this race is for mountain runners, not city runners. Any runner, even the ambassadors, had to apply and fill out the registration form. (SM: at this point he made a call to Camila Munoz to have that link sent to us because it was no longer up now that race registration was closed. We then went through it, point by point. Although prior to the race it might have read as a standard disclaimer, each point addressed a criticism that had been leveled against the organizers.)
SP: The participation requirements were on the website and in the guide that we sent out. Each racer had to click on a link accepting that they’d read and accepted before being allowed to continue with registration.
“The registration of a Runner implies that he or she has fully read the Rules & Regulations of the event.” (Copied from the Ultra Fiord website).
SP: We had a selection process and I vetted all runners and often changed the distance that they could register for, based on the experience they’d written on their application form.
So I have to say, each step is your responsibility.
SM note; Stjepan then shared private correspondence he had received, both complimentary like Candice Burt’s above (used with permission) as well as correspondence giving suggestions on how to improve the race. Going through each point in one such well-worded e-mail, Stjepan simply said that it showed that the writer hadn’t read the rules and regulations.
To another he had answered, “We are very auto-critical and are always seeking to improve, but we will not change the soul of this race for any people…”
When pressed on the point of risk, he said,
“Risk perception is not the same as risk. You always forget what you did three weekends ago but if you have an experience close to your limit, you will always remember that. I have been in the outdoors here in Patagonia since 1983, before there were any trails. Once we went out with several friends when I was 17, we were wearing cotton clothes and tennis shoes like they had back then. At one point we had to cross a glacier run-off river and we got soaking wet. Then it started to rain. I made a shelter and my friends all came to use it with me so I made another one and had a great nights sleep. I have also been exploring for the Patagonian Expedition Race (PER) since 2002.”
In closing the interview he said, “There were 0 accidents, 0 loss and 120 deep, wild life experiences.”
As is often the case, the most revealing comment can come after things have wrapped up. After a tour of the NIGSA offices that are also his home as he has invested everything into his dream, Stjepan said, “You know, I didn’t want to create the hardest race ultra trail race or even the most difficult, I wanted to create an event with the stamp of Patagonia on it.”
In the end, the interview raised more questions than it answered, questions about personal responsibility, cultural differences, risk taking, informed consent and researching beforehand not only the race location, geography and weather, but also the race organizer to understand who they are and what their vision is. Stjepan Pavicic’s vision is different then 98% of the other race directors out there. As one respected journalist said in a private conversation, he’s “one step to the side.” But it was clear after this interview that he felt he had clearly expressed his intentions and the risks involved.
Although this reporter had woven magic into the fiber of all of the reports, in writing this final piece a quote from the Sufi mystic Rumi kept coming to mind: “Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing there is a field. I'll meet you there.”
The onus is on the ultra running world now to sort out the implications and impact of the Ultra Fiord race.
Registration for the second edition of the Ultra Fiord race opens on May 8th, 2015.
SleepMonsters
