Training Log Archive: Trav

Well that was plenty cool! The 31.5 k matterhorn ultraks race (http://www.ultraks.com/fr/), which I decided to run just a few days ago. 8:45 start with about 500 runners. Through town and then 600 metres straight up to sunegga, the first checkpoint. Across to riffelalp, across the freakish, unHammerable, wobbly Furi suspension bridge (big sign before you get on: a runner with a slash through him, which means NO RUNNING GODDAMMIT EVERYBODY--oh, and the deck is made from a see through metal grate, which sucked, and the whole thing hit the resonance frequency of all the HORRIBLE RUNNERS,who apparently didn't get the point of the big sign. I kinda blacked out--but I got across) and then another brutal climb to schwarzsee where of course it started to rain. Finally 12 kilometers of running down a recently cut dirt path until the main path into zermatt. That hurt. But then there was bologna, visible from a mile away, all cheers and smiles. She had been following online (yay, intertubes!).

Hoped to crack four hours and snuck in 6 minutes ahead of schedule. Pretty good way to run around the valley.

C • Racing the Alps 8

Sunegga to riffelalp hike. Astonishing terrain

Holy ickfay. Zermatt is some kinda serous wonderful. Astounding ascent to the mind bendingly beautiful schonbielhutte to the right of the matterhorn. The whole mountain laid out in front of us in its full clear skied glory. A run for the ages.

And then back down to zermatt. Tried to take it slow because I've spontaneously decided, at bologna's urging to run the 30k ultraks on Saturday. 2000 meters of climbing and descending, including part of what we ran today. Run the alps scored me a last minute entrance. The town is filling up with seriously fit people. This race brings in some of the best European runners. Should be a blast.

C • Cool! 1

Train to zermatt this morning. Then another 700 meters of climbing to the Trift mountain hut

Trot down to zermatt.

Lovely hike up the gemmi pass with bologna

Gemmi challenge. A 5k run up a cliff. Warning at the bottom: whatever you do, don't look up. It's pretty daunting when you do. Good time. If you get in under 60 minutes you get a free tram rode down and complementary entrance fee ratio the local hot spring bath. Caught bologna near the top. So good to see her on the trail again!

C • Congrats! :) 1

Hotel core in leukerbad.