Monday, October 25, 2004

My first ultramarathon...

...was scheduled last Saturday. The 50 km Albmarathon featured a altidude difference of 1100 meters, which where spread over 3 major and 2 minor hills, quite an ambitious course for a lowlander like me. :)

Before the race I met others from the ForumTeam at the start. The race weather was perfect for late October, almost too warm and really sunny. So shorts and shirt was the rule. I started calmly the first five kilometers, talking with Sabinchen, before finding the right pace for today. I tried to run as the hills as long as my legs felt good, and walked when most started to walk, which where mostly the last 5 to 10 minutes to the top. Downhill I was very carefull at the beginning, as I had no experience how my knees respond to such a new strain. Until km 30 I really felt good, but then the hard time started. The change of speed and endeavour caused by the hills became apparent.

The good thing at this point was, that the three major mountains had been passed at this stage, and that 20 km are a manageable distance. Moreover I was really good in time, better than I had even dreamed of before. So I had at no point the thought of giving up. I knew that I would finish my first ultra and my first mountain run. But in return, it was still hard pushing me to keep up my speed. Especially after passing the marathon distance at 4 hours, motivating myself for every step became a hard mind work. See some pics here of the race photographer (type number "42" in the first form from the top).

I reached the finish line completely happy and with aching muscles at a time of 4:46:03 (result pdf). After the race we had some beers, watched the award ceremony (Frieda and our women team won each a trophy), and went to a restaurant, before I returned home in the evening.

Now, after two days I can say, it was a lovely and nicely organiced event (except some significant problems with beverages and the medals for the slower runners). The scenic course offers a lot for the eye, but is nontheless a lot of hard work!

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