Some numbers: 83.3.
The distance in kilometers of next month’s Transvulcania Ultramarathon, roughly
the length of two marathons. 8,525. The accumulated ascent and descent in meters over the race course, equivalent to climbing up and down the Empire
State building 11 times. 90. The approximate temperature in Fahrenheit along
the caldera at last year’s race. 1801. The number of competitors who this
year will attempt to complete the ultramarathon (or its marathon and
half-marathon variants). The “1” is me.
The Transvulcania
Ultramarathon, set for May 10 on La Palma in the Canary Islands, is part of the
Skyrunner Ultra Series, a group of five extreme long distance races held in
some of the most beautiful and challenging sites in Europe and the United
States. Participation in Transvulcania has grown each year since its launch in
2009. This year’s field is not only the biggest to date, it includes many of
the world’s top ultra runners.
Chief among them is the
26-year-old Catalan Kilian Jornet. A 3-time winner of the Skyrunner World
Series, Jornet is a rock star in the ultra world, a veritable Justin Bieber of
the trails. Jornet competed in the 2012 Transvulcania race and lost narrowly to
an American, Dakota Jones. (Having pushed himself to the limit, Jornet
collapsed at the finish and was carried away on a stretcher.) Last year, Jornet
returned and won the race in a record time of 6:54:09. Jones will also be returning to La Palma
this year, as will last year’s women’s winner Emelie Forsberg and women’s
record holder Anna Frost (8:11:31).
Kilian Jornet, Dakota Jones, Emelie Forsberg, Anna Frost |
It goes without saying that Jornet, Jones, Forsberg and Frost will be recuperating in a hot tub, sipping sangria while runners like me are still shuffling along the caldera sucking salt tablets and clutching rosary beads. Indeed, Jornet could hop on a plane and be halfway to Tegucigalpa before I drag my tired loins across the finish line in the tiny town of Los Llanos de Aridane.
Which brings me to one more number: 18. The hours competitors have to finish the race. For me the key to success in Transvulcania is not speed or strength. As the course has an average incline of 30 percent, I won’t be doing much running, uphill or down. Rather, it will be all about managing hydration and energy resources, and remaining mentally tough.
The race starts at 6:00 a.m. I hope to be done before midnight.
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