Sorry can't really help you Bigskyboy maybe you'll be able to register on the day and for the swiss events you don't generally need any medical certificate I'm doing a 16km uphill race on the sunday if you end up looking for an alternative www.thyon-dixence.ch

and here's a quick postDavos few words for anyone thinking about doing the K42 next year.

I was a bit worried it would be a repeat of the Alpage (Anzere - Leukerbad) one I did last year - fiercely fast with me trailing at the back some where, out of puff from the word go. But Davos attracts mere mortals as well as the superfast, many aren't fussed about their time they are just out to enjoy running in the mountains with other people and keep stopping to take pictures. So it's relaxed atmosphere in the middle of the pack with plenty of chatting. The bulk of the climbing is fast hiked rather than run, particularly as you need to conserve energy for the last 12km which is potentially fast. If your fast on downhills you'll likely encounter slightly frustrating bottle necks, it can be a struggle to get past on the rocky trails. I'd highly recommend it for newbies to trail running/mountain marathons.

To continue from Kate's post above, I'll add a few words about the K21. What a race! In terms of scenery, fresh air and exercise very few races will compare with the alpinemarathon events. The first 10km are essentially all uphill and there's many places where you have to walk either because it's simply too steep or because of bottlenecks caused by very narrow trails.

I wasn't exactly prepared going into the race as I'd only been back running 3 weeks after being out injured for almost 2 months. I (somehow) managed to get round in 2h10 and was quite delighted with that. My race strategy of "taking it easy" possibly didn't quite work out, as my average heart rate was 94% - don't underestimate the effects of altitude! Even though I spent most of the race thinking I was going to die, I now cant wait til next year!

I'll tell you what though - I have the utmost respect for all the runners of the K42 and the K78. Seriously impressive.

Ms Kate, great effort on finishing the Davos marathon! I think being a mere mortal is more fun than having to live your running life against a clock

Thanks for the pointers. The thyon-dixence 16k appears to be in the same region as the Leysin half marathon...the Valias area of CH, right? My little running group in the States normally does about 20mi (36km) on the weekends that we do not have a trail race - so a Sat and Sun run (Leysin half and then 16km at Thyon-Dixence) may be good.

In any case, I don't break any land speed records. I'm one of the mere mortals, in the middle of the pack...or last, if the pack is too fast

Better to be last than on the couch.

I have had success in getting registered for the Leysin 1/2 on Saturday (http://www.skiclubleysin.ch/Plaquette_09.pdf or http://eslleysin.ch/Portals/0/Affichette%2009.pdf) and the 16km run at Thyon on Sunday (www.thyon-dixence.ch). It looks to be a good running weekend!

my impression of the thyon-dixence race - it was a toughie! I found it harder than the shorter Aletsch half marathon but maybe it was the conditions and my unrested state after a weeks climbing. The start was put back half an hour to allow for the driving rain and lightning to clear.

I loved the single track trail for most of the course, which sits high above the main valley, but obviously muddy conditions added an extra element yesterday. Well organised with marshals with radios rescuing fallen runners at regular intervals. Attracts a fast crowd at least on a poor weather day.

Whoa, "fallen runners at regular intervals" - I am imagining this mud-filled course with runners slipping all over the place, and Kate picking her way around them and around the rescue personnel rushing in to help them... Quite an intense race day!

not to mention the 2 dead sheep along the way.

The driving ice cold rain on the climb to the last aid station was a bit tough! Especially for me because I have been racing "hot" for the last 3 months. The last climb was hard...I was a bit pooped from the climbing from Aigle to Leysin the day before. But a fast out-of-control run down the switchbacks to the dam made the climbs worthwhile. I did not notice too much mud...of course, my definition of mud is 5cm deep or more, haha!. The view from the dam was pretty cool, but I was a frozen popscicle by the time I got down to the hotel.
I had a slow start because I was stiff from Saturday so I merged on the single track farther back in the pack than I probably should have. Normally I would slowly make my way up the pack but on the single track there were very few changes to pass. Later in the race I passed 20-30 runners as the climbs took their toll and runners paused by the side to rest. I have some great pics...but none of the driving rain, though. I noticed that there were 3 runners from the US, one (Brandy) who is very fast.

The Aigle-Leysin demi (half) marathon on Saturday was much different. A smaller and faster field. The weather and the views were awesome! (many more great pics!). The climb was hard (1650m over 15km), and the downhill was brutal; and a good test of my new grippy shoes! I posted a few of the pics of flowers and views on Facebook and my running group was very envious. All in all a great weekend! Thanks, Ms Kate and advntur for the pointers!!

Did not see these...not that I was looking for sheep I did notice some sheep at about the 10-11km point; and I thought briefly about snapping a photo (captioned: cute little sheeps lounging on the Swiss countryside), but because it was raining I thought better about pulling my camera out. I short circuited my previous camera at the Sweetwater50k in May (river crossing) so I was reluctant to lose another one so soon.

Great to hear about the races Kate and BigSkyBoy -- thanks for sharing. I was really curious how the weather was working out for the Sunday race as it was storming on the trails where I was at that time (near the French/Italian border). Glad it turned out ok for you!

Hey Bec, did you ever get any info on this?

I'm moving to Basel in September from Victoria, Canada. I've been racing triathlons and training for a Half-iron but will miss my first opportunity (mid-September). I am looking for training groups/partners for triathlons, but I don't know where to start.

Let me know if you've found any good info.

Tim

You need a medical certificate for ALL races in France, even a little village race. It's an insurance/legal issue. Maybe for a big races one not-in-french would do, but elsewhere - Good Luck!

As I like to say - France is very french!

Seems like there is a lot of EF running activity going on in Basel lately - here is just one thread: (Basel) New runners starting this week
and here is the website link.

Also Basel is not that far away from Zurich, so maybe you could come out to one of our bike rides here sometime...many of us are training for triathlons. And it's always more fun training with others IMO

For those of you interested in the Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB), I recently posted a story and photos about my experience running the 166km course over 3 days (as training for the race at the end of August). Please feel free to check it out on our Hillseeker blog. Happy running!

Great blog report on the UTMB, advntur! The elevation gain and potential adverse weather makes it a gnarly 100 miler. I will have to put it on my roster of future races But I probably will not test myself on an easier 100mi until late next year. I definitely think you did the right thing by pre-running the course. Good luck!!

Many thanks! All the best with your running and whatever races you end up picking for next season!

I was a bit hesitant when I posted this, whether I am qualified to make such statements being new to all this. But no, my subsequent experience with Inferno Schilthorn proved that I was quite right there

Essentially the same profile: 21.1 km dist, 2200 m climbs, summit at 2970 m and cold. Continuous uphill, with only 1-2 kms of flats

I could complete in 3 h 28 min, 112 out of 144 runners in the main category, but happy nevertheless. I made a fairly big mistake: based on my past experience with Zugspitze I thought food points would be far between, so over-filled in the first stop, bloated, and had to walk for half an hour sections which I should have been running, before I felt okay again. Valuable experience for the future

Weather was foggy, almost nil visibility, but fine for running. The first time I experienced my own sweat frosting on my leg hairs.
Of course, the continuous uphill was back-breaking, but once at the top I realized I wasn't really spent, I still had a few more hours of reserve, probably because of all the mulish walking I had done in the early part


Organization/support was excellent; I think most were not paid employees but rather volunteers. Well-organized to the minutest details, well-thought out catering (in contrast, the Zugspitze guys had only Red Bull as "sports drink" and I had run without drinking anything ), in fact in the last few points when we were all wet and shivering, they had hot water and tea I think these seemingly minor points make a lot of difference when you are tired and at 2500 m altitude.

As for mementos, can't understand how for a 50 CHF fee they could provide a waist water carrier, a cap, a finisher t shirt, plus the catering and post-run pasta. And oh, a nice massage too And the cable car ticket back to Murren.

The winner ran in 2 hr 4 mins. But what inspired me more was a guy I had befriended in Zugspitze, he is 61 years old and did the Inferno in the same time as me . When I told this to my friends back in Zurich, many remarked, well that must have been pretty demotivating. I said, No, I just found it very motivating and inspiring

This one is next on my agenda. But I find it terribly stressful/confusing to navigate the bureaucratic hurdles, language barriers, not even sure if I qualify to participate .

Basically, according to google translator, the the applications are FCFS until the 600 slots are filled. Applications will be deemed valid only if accompanied by a medical certificate. Which means I will lose several days before I get it all ready. I would have preferred to submit the aplication contingent on my ability to produce the certificate before the race day, you think they will agree?

I read the discussion above on this subject, I understand any family doc would suffice but I ain't got any, so any specific recommendation with address in Zug/Zurich would be much appreciated. Inexpensive, non-fussy if possible.

Any one else planning for this run? Would love to exchange notes before I dare to pick up the phone and talk to the organizers about the registration formalities.

Thanks!!

I don't know if you've seen this already, but they have one summary page in English hidden in the middle of their website.
As far as I understand, you can pay online (thus securing your registration), then go and see a doctor, then send the certificate (thus confirming/validating your registration). Shouldn' t be a problem.

I'll be happy to help in case your attempts to speak/understand Frenglish over the phone fail.