Tor 130 / Tot DretDistance: 133km (according to my Suunto 9)
Elevation gain: 12,000 metres
Finish time: 38:31:32
After completing a race in June of an almost identical distance but with less elevation gain in just under 18 hours i didn't stress too much about running the Tor 130 even if the elevation gain was apparently 12,000 metres.
In the weeks leading up to it i started to look at the route and stats in more detail. That's when it dawned on me that some of the climbs involved 1000m over just a few kilometres and the whole Tor des Géants (TDG) route is notorious for unforgiving acsents followed by really rough downhills.
The bus from Courmayeur to Gressoney took about 2 hours and it's quiet on the bus as everyone trying to shut their eyes for the last time for a day or 2. Once we get there I check in and start sorting my gear into bags for half way and the finish. Disaster strikes when i fill my reservoir and realise that the connector is broken and it's leaking everywhere. Luckily i was able to buy another one outside as a replacement.
The website mentions lots of mandatory gear and optional recommended gear but none of it is checked which is surprising.
It's a 2k walk to the start line and a local restaurant is offering a plate of pasta, apple cake, coffee and water for €10 - perfect.
Leaving Gressoney was fast and full of amazing support from the locals, there were a few k's on the road and then straight onto the trails.
The ascent to Col Pinter is long but there are so many supporters on the route that it'a great distraction and of course the legs are still fresh at this stage ! The descent after is a different story, it's very steep and technical with some parts requiring you to hang onto rope while climbing down some rocks, i nearly rolled my ankle about 15 times and realised that i cannot take my headlamp off the path unless i wanted to get injured. It gradually smooths itself out and becomes runnable through fields and farmland into the Champoluc aid station.
The ascent up to Col de Nannaz is another steep climb but more spread out than the previous one, still feeling good here and able to run the downhill into Valtourneche which is a big aid station full of Tor des Géants runners sleeping. I was assured by a French runner here that the next 40k's are much more forgiving than the last 2 ascents and descents.
Rifugio Barmasse is a welcome sight after a long climb. The sun is up now and the views all around are breathtaking. There is a massive lake to take in with the backdrop of the mountains. There is some running to be taken advantage of here with some rolling hills and i chat to a Swedish runner Johan for the next few k's.
The day had warmed up and i'm drinking loads of water and trying to protect myself from the sun. Rifugio Lo Magia appears in the distance and it feels good to have a sit down and stock up on food and water.
Next up is a 3k 600m ascent into Rifugio Cuney which takes alot out of me and i'm feeling tired way too early in the day. I'm downing coffee and coke like there's no tomorrow and it's giving me a sick stomach. It's a long rolling 5k up to Col de Vessonaz 2794m but the panoramic views are like being on another planet.
The next 10k descent into Oyace is where the fatigue and too much caffeine catch up on me and i start questioning whether i want to continue because i feel so terrible. I try and run as much as possible as it's mostly downhill and feel like I've been on these trails before, convincing myself it's part of the UTMB route which it definitely is not.
An Australian runner Jake asks if there are more Irish runners doing the race and we end up chatting for a good while, he seems faster than me but has had a few falls. One of his poles has broken so he'll do without them for the rest of the route.
I bump into Paul Tierney who is crewing a TDG runner and introduce myself. He informs me that Oyace is still about 7k away but straight down. I'm still feeling a bit off and probably low on sugar and just want to take a break.
It is such a relief to reach Oyace which was changed to the main life base aid station instead of Ollomont. I have a sit down to compose myself and honestly feel like dropping. An aid station volunteer saw i was a mess and asked how he could help. I meet Johan as he's leaving and he advises me to get 30 mins sleep, eat and get out of there. Only TDG runners are meant to be allowed to use the sleep tent but it was empty so i jumped into a bed, set my timer and closed my eyes. Although i dont think i actually slept it helped somehow.
I left Oyace hoping i could hold it together at least until Ollomont, it was a tough 1k climb over 6k up to Col de Brison, i passed a TDG runner who i encouraged and i felt like if he could make it this far then i could keep going.
Ollomont - 9pm. Arrived here and it's mostly beds for the TDG runners, i half think of asking if i could have a sleep but instead opt for an Asian pot noodle with chicken and more coffee. There are just a few benches here full of runners and supporters so best to get moving.
It's a long, horrible slog up to Rifugio Champillon which is probably the lowest point of the race. I finally enter this small refuge and just want to pass out.There is a spot at a table where 2 others have their heads down for a nap. I wanted to do the same but also wanted to eat and drink without getting too comfortable or losing too much time.
I grab some noodle soup and coke but none of it is going down. I honestly didn't know what to do with myself but knew i had to take a break. I went to the bathroom and forced myself to puke, nothing came up and my stomach reflexed in agony as if to tell me stop what you're doing !
Again, i wanted to stop here but quickly realised that how would i get back to civilisation even if i did drop, i had to make it 15k to the next major stop, Saint Rhemy en Bosses. The owner of the refuge said it was a short uphill of about 30 minutes followed by an hour down into Bosses. In reality I was a fool to believe this !
Once i reached Col Champillon i could see Bosses down below and it honestly didn't look that far away. I said to an Italian runner that we could make it down in 2 hours and he nodded his head in partial agreement. What i didn't realise that the route was almost 16k and it went the most roundabout direction towards the town and took absolutely ages. It began with a steep section of switch backs followed by more runable trails of which i mostly walked because of being absolutely wrecked !
It's really dark now and i'm marching along, falling asleep and walking diagonally, fellow runners pass me by and see if I'm OK. All i can do is try eating a caffeine gel to stay awake. I'm drifting in an out of consciousness and everything i see on the ground seems to turn itself into some sort of crazy pattern that's appearing all over my line of sight !
I see the village when i look down and it looks like an enormous anvil is perched right beside a motorway, i keep staring and it doesn't change. It's only when i get a bit closer to town that i realize it's nothing of the sort and the buildings and shadows are messing with my head.
It took so long to get to Bosses that a sit down and chat with some other runners is welcome. It's just 25k to go until the finish which is a great psychological boost.
It's a long 800m climb to Merdeux and I'm sleepy again. My watch tells me every time i hit a kilometre and how much elevation i did which is reassuring on my progress. It's dark and lonely climbing up and no-one else seems to be around. I'm so warm that i roll up my t-shirt to try and catch the breeze. Finally we get to an open field like area and it feels like less effort to follow the markers. I'm nodding off again and when i open my eyes i see other runners around various spots and for a moment i think we are all working together to collect the yellow markers from the trail. I approach a sheep farm thinking it's an aid station and the farmer comes out to say Bonjourno and looks at me as if to say this is not an aid station !
My Suunto 9 has done well on full GPS at 31 hours and instead of dying it offers me another 11 hours of battery on a slightly less accurate GPS setting, what a great feature !
It felt great to get Frassati, I meet the Belgian chap doing the Tor des Géants again and also a friendly Italian who had an injured foot. Lisa Borzani is here (2 time TDG winner) checking on runners and i said she was a legend of the race and she replied that legends are dead and she is very much alive! She then repeated what i said in Italian to the staff and they all burst out laughing. Don't want to waste much time here as i know i'm not too far from finishing and also I'm really excited to head up the last major climb that is the infamous Col Malatra.
Leaving Frassati i knew it was just 1 kilometre to the Malatra summit. I could see runners ahead heading left along a slanted, rocky trail that was going up to the summit. It was serious calf burning uphill and then you could grab onto some rope to help you up. What an incredible feeling to make it up here ! Photographers take shots of you from both sides so you get the vista on one side and the Mont Blanc behind you on the other.
As great as it is to be up here i waste no time running down the other side of the mountain and to the next small aid station.I'm told it's last climb after descending the other side of Malatra, Made our way downhill a bit more and saw an old unused building which i of course thought was Refuge Bertone. I asked a few hikers and was told there was another 5k to go and i saw another uphill we had to go up !
As we progress I see more buildings in the distance that i was convinced where we were going, lots of hikers out pointed to a building in the distance which was still not Bertone, to cut a long story short it took ages to get to Bertone and i wanted to send my wife a text and get out of there ! I could smell the finish and knew the upcoming final descent into Courmayeur route from ascending this twice on the UTMB route in the past.
I was told the journey down from Bertone would take about an hour so i was happy to get into a rhythm and make it down in 45 mins, It took a while to find my mojo on the downhill here and a few fast runners flew by me but once i got going i was moving fast and the flatter it got the faster i became, it's becoming a pattern that i run my fastest split in the final few k's of a 130km race and i love it. I'm following the yellow tags into town and turn a few corners before the final stretch into the finish. There are more amazing Italian supporters sitting in cafe's cheering me on and it's such a boost for the mind.
What a relief to complete this event and now it's time to sign the famous TDG finisher poster !
My feet did ache a bit in the last 20k especially on the downhill but i was relieved that when i took of my double socks i had 2 tiny blisters and only one bruised toenail, not bad considering the abuse my feet had been through over the last 38 hours.
I found the event to be well organized, very challenging and a very good alternative to the UTMB if you love lots of ascent and varied terrain. Looking at the finisher stats i noticed that out of 420 starters 223 dropped which outlines how challenging this race is. I made some foolish mistakes and will learn from them going into similar races in the future.
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What needs improving
Ensure watch mode has distance and elevation so you are sure how long it is until the next aid station. This is extremely obvious but it's a mistake I've made many, many times in the past !
Don't get cold at aid stations ! The weather was mild enough to rarely require any form of jacket which was great but even just 10 minutes at an aid station not moving could make you really cold when you set back out on the trail.
The life base drop bag for Tot Dret is small. Think carefully what you will need for half way.
Check all your gear when packing it. My reservoir connector broke and became unusable. I ended up buying another one that was a pain to use and kept leaking.
Don't pack so much water if the weather is mild. The weight of a pack with all your gear and water on your back for 38 hours is tough on the shoulders. There are enough water stops/aid stations to stay hydrated.
