UTMB 2016 - Race Report

Distance: 170km (105 miles)

Ascent: 10,000m

Time Limit: 46.5 hours

Start/Finish: Chamonix, France

Finish Time: 44:25:34

Intro

I had discovered the Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc UTMB about 6 years ago when I read the blog post of an American runner. I’d then seen YouTube video’s of Kilian Jornet and other sponsored athletes competing in it. Everything about it fascinated me, not only the distance but the climbing involved and the amazing scenery. About 3 years later I decided that I could possibly enter the shorter CCC race (101k, 6500m+) if I did the Mourne Way Ultra (85k, ~2000m+) to prepare and qualify . All went well and I completed the CCC in 2013 in just under 24 hours. 

The year after I did the TDS (119k, ~7200m+) and found that much tougher due to altitude sickness, bad shoe choices and the most challenging run/hiking I’d ever experienced. I applied for the main event in 2015 but didn’t make the lottery but had double chances for 2016. Based on past experiences I would do as many trail events in Ireland with as much elevation gain as possible while spending lots of time in the gym strengthening my legs and core for the insane mountains you can only find in the Alps. Heading to Chamonix I felt well prepared and just wanted to make it through within the time limit.

Chamonix

The stampede of 2300 runners leaving Chamonix while the dramatic music plays is a great experience after all the hard work that has gone in to being here. The first 8k is surprisingly flat but it took a while to get moving properly because I started close to the back of the pack. This part of the route is the finish of the TDS  so some of it seemed familiar to me.

The sun was still strong at this time of the day so hydration really important even at this early stage. The amazing supporters were everywhere and cheering us on. It’s hard to stay at a conservative pace with such a great atmosphere. We began the first climb to Le Delevret which was long but manageable. There were some unofficial water stations along this route where I sponged some water over my head. I also ate some almonds which made me feel constantly thirsty for the next 3 hours.

My race rules were simple: salt pill every hour, stay hydrated, don’t bomb the downhills and address any chafing before it's too late.

Le Delevret

It felt good to reach the first peak while it was still bright. Next, it was a steep downhill into Saint Gervais. Head Torches started coming out and the pace was fast. The dry weather for the last few days ensured no-one was slipping on the downhills.

Saint Gervais

There was an amazing atmosphere in Saint Gervais including a live band and loads more supporters. This checkpoint was nicely spread out with lots of space and lots of runners just ran straight through but I didn’t want to run low on water so stopped for a few minutes. It was totally dark at this stage and we seemed to be running through lots of campsites where everyone came out to cheers us on. I remember a DJ playing that had setup outside especially for the runners. I was surprised to see some runners already looking really rough at this early stage. My guess is that they started too fast and the heat got the better of them.

It was a steady 11k to Les Contamines. The elevation profile for this part of the course is a bit misleading as there are some short but steep inclines that I didn’t expect. Still drinking loads and staying fuelled with Clif peanut bars and Wiggle gels.

Les Contamines

This was another busy aid station that many runners, including myself went through quickly. A quick refill of water, some noodle soup and time to get into the serious climbing. It was possible to see really far into the distance and observe all the head torches that were gradually making their way up to La Balme. I look up to the torches at the top in envy knowing that I’d eventually be up there.

La Balme

It felt good to be almost half way up the ascent to Refuge Croix Bonhomme. I didn’t want to hang around at La Balme as I knew a 5k ascent with 800m awaited me. It took me 1h45 to make it up. I found myself pushing really hard to make it further up and then I would turn around and notice the poor souls who had not even started this beast of a climb.

Ref. Croix Bonhomme

It was 2.45am when I reached this point and it felt great to be at the top. Almost 9 hours in and I felt good. There was a bit of a breeze at this high point but not enough to put on any extra clothing besides a light wind jacket. Now it was time to begin the 5k 900m descent into Les Chapieux. This is where my shoes started moving around against my heels too much and creating blisters. I wonder if I tied them tight enough or was it something else. I’ve since realised doing these events in the Alps that the downhills are much rougher than the uphills especially when your feet and quads start hurting. I didn’t experience any leg muscle pain at this stage as my main focus had been leg strength in the gym doing squats, lunges, box jumps etc.

Les Chapieux

It took about 50 minutes to arrive into Les Chapieux where I had some coffee and noodle soup. I managed to spill the soup all over the table but a friendly volunteer helped me clean up and got me more soup. There was a gear check when leaving this aid station. Jacket, torch and working phone.

I noticed there were Hoka staff analysing what shoes runners are wearing as we made our way up to Col De La Seigne. 

The profile on the UTMB/LiveTrail website for this part is misleading. It was a 10k distance with 1000m ascent up to Col de la Seigne, I found this really long and unforgiving. It was the same story as the last big climb where I was really jealous of the people already at the top when I still had about 2 hours to go. It seemed to never end and I spent 2 hours 40 minutes getting to the top. 12 hours in and I was feeling tired and annoyed with the last climb. It was however really great that it was bright and clear. The views were amazing and we were above a big pillow of cloud.

Col de la Seigne

It was nice to be over the worst of the climb and see morning light on the mountains. The next part was a small descent and then another ascent but the issue here was that there was no trail at all. It was just massive rocks which we had to scramble over. The surrounding mountains were dramatic and I felt like I was in the Dolomites. There was even some snow on the way up to the next peak. This is where I started feeling really terrible and questioning whether I wanted to continue. 

The ascent was short but really steep. I kept taking my salt pills every hour but left them on the ground when I was removing my phone to take some pictures. I realised this after 5 minutes and turned around to go back and get them. Some Italians made jokes saying I was going the wrong way but I was really happy I went back to get them considering how they saved me from cramping and dehydration. I started thinking about where I would drop out and what I would say to my wife and others. I came up with something along the list of 'the passion is gone, it's no fun and I have no desire to finish' . I started repeating this to myself to make it sound more acceptable.

Lac Combal

It was a short, rough downhill to Lac Combal in Italy and this place is beautiful. The lake had a strange mist and looked white. Only 14 hours in, so too early to be hallucinating. It was really sunny but not too hot at 8am. I continued to feel terrible at this aid station but said to myself that I’d make it to Courmayeur and then drop. I started chatting to an English chap on the ascent to up Arrete to Mont-Favre and that helped the time pass. I find many European races are not as friendly or chatty as races in Ireland or the UK but you'll always find someone to waffle too especially as time goes on.

Arrete du Mont-Favre

On top of the 4^th peak at this stage and 15.5 hours in. Still feeling rough and definitely want to stop at Courmayeur.

Col Chécrouit

This small aid station before Courmayeur was exactly what I needed. They had pasta which I wasn’t sure about eating until I’d reached the next major aid station but I had a bit and went down well. There was live music playing and the volunteers were so cheerful. I sat in the shade as it was 10am and it was warming up. One of the best UTMB reports I’d read from a Finnish guy mentioned how horrific the next 4k would be down to Courmayeur. 

The conditions were really hot and dusty on the downhill and it was so steep that my feet were moving around far too much in my shoes and I knew that there would be some nasty surprises once I took them off at the next aid station to change my socks. It was a long 4k and the worst downhill so far. I heard an Australian guy say the race is a joke and f**k the downhill. I guess he dropped at Courmayeur.

Courmayeur

Things turned around quickly in Courmayeur and I knew that i wanted to finish no matter what it took. The fact that I was about to do the 100k CCC course with 80k already on my legs makes it clear that I wasn’t thinking straight. The CCC took me 23h53 in 2013 and I knew that this time I would probably take 26 hours in much hotter conditions.

Meeting my wife and Mother in-law at the aid station was great. They helped me with changing clothes and getting organised in general. The sports hall was total chaos and hard to find anywhere to stop and sort things out. Family are not allowed in the upper area where you can eat which was a pain. I decided to change shoes here and this was a major mistake even though I had blisters. Having a shower here was great to refresh before setting off again.

I spent an hour in total at Courmayeur and think of it as time well spent before the harder part of the course begins. It was now midday and absolutely roasting. I walked with my family for a few minutes and then began the 5k 800m ascent climb up to Refuge Bertone which was horrific mainly because of the heat and lack of shade. It took 1h35 and many runners were out of breath, panting and generally wrecked. I tried to keep marching and stopped in any shade possible and counted to 10 or 20 before continuing. The shaded areas were scarce but provided a light breeze. I was drinking loads of water and coke as well as taking the salt pills. Any opportunity to dunk my cap and wet my head was taken.

Refuge Bertone

Such a relief to reach the top and top up my fluids. Took a short breather in the shade and began the 7k to refuge Bonatti. 20 hours in and feet really sore. Not feeling too tired. Made the most of the relatively flat terrain and dipped cap into every stream to keep core temperature cool.

Refuge Bonatti

Some guy fell and cut his hand badly but 5 runners with bandages surrounding him so i moved on. The terrain was still runnable and there was some downhill into Arnuva. While the downhill was nice, I couldn’t make the most of it due to my feet being blistered and bruised.

Arnuva

It was nice to refuel here considering the climb that awaited. I felt a sense of familiarity doing this climb after doing in the CCC 3 years earlier. The blog report I mentioned earlier mentioned not looking at the peak of a climb and just keeping the head down and marching up. I saw a walking sign that said 2 hours until the peak of Grand Col Ferret so I said I would complete in 90 mins which worked out well. The overall winner did it in under an hour which is really impressive. I actually enjoyed this climb which is strange considering it’s one of the toughest.

Grand Col Ferret

It’s always great to reach the top of this peak which is the highest in the course at 2527m. I remembered from last time not to hang around at the top because of the breeze. I put my wind jacket on and took advantage of the downhill which I managed to run. I chatted to an American guy who did Western States. I saw a small water station that I was convinced was La Fouly but was mistaken as it was another 4k. 

I really hated when I misjudged where I was on the course or how far I’d gone between aid stations. Spoke to an English girl who had stomach issues from the noodle soup and then to an Australian guy who had almost collapsed at Arnuva. He was chatty for about 20 minutes but then went totally silent. He would then drop at La Fouly which I think was the right decision considering how close he’d been to collapsing.

La Fouly

Arriving at La Fouly was great as it was a big aid station with plenty of supplies. I started hearing thunder which didn’t seem possible. My wife texted and said she was near Champex and that it was raining there. I put on jacket and pondered what to do with my blisters. I went to the medical tent and they drained all the fluids which actually made things worse because it stung so bad. There were loads of people in the medical tent in a terrible state because of the heat. I spent 30 minutes in total here and then headed into the night. I felt lost and disorientated after stopping for so long. 

It was a long 14k to Champex and this is where I started recording how far I’d gone because I was sick of mis-judging the distance. I also wanted to inform my wife roughly when I would arrive at Champex. I didn’t enjoy this part at all and really underestimated the climb up to the Champex aid station. It literally never ended and I was so sick of it at that state. I remembered this from the CCC but seemed longer this time.

Champex-Lac

It was great to arrive here and see my family. They went off to get me food while I had a sit down. I kept insisting how I would never do any event like this again ! I left Champex and started listening to music which really picked me up. The climb up La Giete is the first of the last 3 long ascents and once again I saw the classic diagonal lines of headlights were ahead. I felt really strong climbing but a few people pushed it and overtook me. It was long but manageable. This is where the hallucinations really began. I was seeing torches ahead that I thought were an aid station and one point an old red Coca-Cola sign with the red Santa Claus on it. I quickly snapped out of it and carried on. Going for almost 35 hours at this stage so was time for a caffeine gel.

La Giete

This house appeared out of nowhere but was certainly welcome. I wanted coffee but ended up with noodle soup. Next it was a long, rough downhill to Trient.

Trient

I just ate some cake here and tried to leave as quickly as possible. I was about 2.5 hours ahead of the cut-off so didn’t want to waste time. This was the start of the second day so was nice to do this climb when it was getting bright.  I found this went well and I got up in a decent time. I felt really sleepy  half way up so took another caffeine gel to wake me up. 

Catogne

Getting to Catogne was great as I knew there was only 1 major climb remaining before the downhill into Chamonix. Unfortunately, my feet were wrecked from the blisters so I couldn’t run the downhill much, I preferred to walk quickly and was overtaken by plenty of other runners. The views are incredible up on these peaks and we were also lucky with the weather even if it was a bit too hot.

Vallorcine

I was happy to arrive here but had no time to waste. Some guy picked up my poles thinking they were his but mine labelled so no worries there. I filled my reservoir, took some bars and started marching to the final climb up to La Tete aux Vents. There were plenty of other hikers and walkers at this time cheering us on. Still 2h30 ahead of cut-off.

La Tete aux vents

This section is notorious for fooling you into thinking you are at the top. It’s basically another 8k climb with 900m ascent but each time you look up there is more to climb. There were hikers and walkers here too and they were really fresh unlike the rest of us. The panorama at the top is incredible. It was way too hot and I made my way over to the checkpoint which is actually over some nasty rocks once you’ve reached the top. 

Race volunteers insisted that it was just 4k to La Flegere and I could see the checkpoint in the distance but it was a rough journey over to that point. There were plenty of sharp rocks and uneven trails to make my feet hurt even more. I was measuring the distance again as I didn’t trust hearing people guessing the distance !

La Flégère

Felt relieved to arrive here and could sense the finish was so close. In and out with some water and was assured that the final 7k was all downhill. I would of actually preferred flat terrain as my feet were worse on the downhill. I texted my wife and told her I’d be down in about an hour. There were many supporters on the way down cheering us on which was amazing, they told us that everyone was out in Chamonix waiting to welcome us back into town. You could feel a great sense of hope from all the remaining runners around as they all knew it would be over in less than an hour. I passed through a lovely restaurant terrace with everyone cheering us on.

Chamonix

Arriving into Chamonix was great for a number of reasons, everyone is cheering you on, you’re off the trails that hurt your feet and my wife is waiting there to run the final few hundred meters with me. I felt like a winner because of all the cheers I received from everyone. I always manage to have energy to run the last past of a race no matter how terrible I feel. 

I finished in 44:25:34 and was part of the last 350 runners to come in to the finish and I later learned that only 57% of the starters actually finished. It’s understandable based on the hot conditions that were present the entire week.

I picked up my extremely odd Columbia finisher vest which could be described as a sleeveless bin bag that doesn't fit.

It was time to take a finisher picture, have a sit-down and eat a Midnight Burger which is a burger with fries inside it. Washed down with a beer, just perfect. I didn’t feel tired at this stage despite being awake for more than 2 days.

What went well

• Salt tablet every hour. No cramping
• Hydration. Really happy I had no issues with this considering the heat and how many people were dropping around me.
• Climbing. All the time spent in the gym doing squats, lunges, box jumps, core etc. really paid off.
• Black Diamond Z-poles: once again they help on the uphill and even the downhill to save your quads from getting trashed too early.
• Nutrition.  Kept things simple and had no stomach issues. Wiggle gels worked well. Overstims caffeine gels tasty nasty but really give you a boost during the night.
• Being acclimatised. We arrived 3 days before and visited the Mer de Glace (elevation 2100m) to help with this.
• No chafing issues like in the CCC thanks to Body Glide cream.
• Shower at Courmayeur was time well spent.

Lessons Learned

• Need to train on rougher downhill’s to ensure shoes are suitable. Feet moving around in shoes on technical downhill gave me blisters that slowed me down.
• Getting blisters drained at La Fouly made things more painful and cost me 30 minutes.
• Train with all gear in advance. Race number belt and rubbish disposal pouch were bouncing and really annoying.
• Petzl Myo RXP torch was too heavy so need a lighter one for next time.
• Dont change shoes just because you brought a second pair. I changed mine to try and help with blisters but it was a big mistake.