Big Bear's Ultra 100+ 2024 (121km / 6588m+), Žilina, 21.9.2024
A run that was rewarding.
Right at the beginning, let's be reminded of a memorable sentence stating that after a DNF at the MF100, I internally signed myself out of all the upcoming races and put my ultrarunning career on hold:
The upcoming races were KAT100 in Austria (the entire vacation was already booked and paid for there, everything was arranged) and for BBU100. I'm studying the terms and conditions for signing out and Miloš is strict, he won't let anyone just run away from the battlefield before the battle. And I know that I would be pissed off afterwards and would sign up again next year. In short - I saved myself a few mouse clicks, doubts and money and didn't run away 😅.
Fast Forward to September. I'm taking the train to Žilina and am surprised to see that I'm actually really looking forward to the race. The route, 70% of which I already know intimately, the people, the homely Slovak atmosphere of the homely Slovak event, the summer-autumn vibes of the weather, which the forecast has been promising for a week and I'll be taking a lot of photos and filming 😀. During the race check in, Miloš draws my attention to the time trial from Strečno to Javorina, and that it's possible to win a running vest. That certainly won't apply to me, because I'll be having a hard time crawling to Javorina, but let's not get ahead too much.
I don't have any pre-race nervousness at all, I even slept all through the night, like I haven't in a long time, and woke up before the alarm. I'm being transported to the start like a lady by the Žilina legend and Utrón from BTT Jožko Matz (for which I thank him here and now from the bottom of my Liptov heart and congratulate his Utrón team on winning the relays🥳).
A handful of runners gather at the start area under Budatín Castle, we have our mandatory equipment checked and pack our trackers. It will be possible to follow us online as small dots on a map. During the pre-start small talks, there will be comments on the Rajčanka River, which we will ford at about 80 km, and the Súľov ridge, which will add variety to our course at 88th to 103rd km. I completed all of this last year as part of the BBU60+, so I know what awaits me. I just don't know if it's good or bad 😂. Anyway, we ran Súľov again with Lenka, Kika and Jožko at the beginning of the summer and it still lingers fresh in my memory. I also don't know if it's good or bad 🙈 we'll see...
Although there are only a handful of us - 79 (18 pcs didn't show up), the start is electric. Not only because of the early morning autumn chill, but also because of the atmosphere. Just like at UTMB 😅. A gunshot rings out to the sounds of epic music, we run out from under the starting gate, do a circle around the castle park, emerge into the streets of the still sleeping Budatín and start the climb to Dubeň. I find myself somewhere at the tail of the peloton, but I don't mind. I plan to go at a lovely photo pace, arrive at the finish line within the cut off and in a good health while enjoying every kilometer of the route in this beautiful weather. After all those mud and water spa (read "tortures") last year at BBU60, this year in Hungary, Austria and Klin, this will be a well-deserved sunny paradise as a reward.
We ran through Dubeň and Straník at sunrise, nothing special happened on the pleasant forest-meadow section between Zástranie and Lysica, I somehow endured the dull, flat, even asphalt section through the endless Lysica and Belá. In Belá at the bus stop, a girl asks me what kind of run it is, I calculate in hundredths of a second how long it will take me to explain the entire BBU, probably a long time, so I just say: "Somewhere around Žilina". Her: "And where are you running?" Me: "To Žilina.". That must be sufficient for her. After Belá, I Indian-styled my way through the Malá Bránica valley and find myself in Sedlo na Koni. I look at Baraniarky, Žitné, Kraviarske and promise them that I'll be back in nine months 💪. They say OK, OK... 😏
I step onto a yellow traverse winding through a beautiful primeval forest. All around, ferns turned golden brown in autumn, swaying in the breeze, the sun flashing through the trees, blue sky and timidly revealing views of Veľký Rozsutec. The brown ferns smoothly transition into blueberries and cranberries, which color the slopes red, the trees disappear, the views open up to the fullest. It's amazing here. Endorphins flood me and on their wave I ride all the way to Snilovský sedlo at CP3. This was such a beautiful part! I melt away. But I'm probably doing it strangely, because it seems to me that Peťo K. at the aid station thinks that I actually hated that section. No, Peťo K., don't let me fool you, I really liked that part 😅.
I eat all sorts of things at the aid station, but those rice balls were a delight 😋 I would have anchored those rice balls in the regulations of all ultra races, in general. I thank the amazing volunteers and with a cup of Coke to go in my hand I head towards Veľký Kriváň. As we all know, Veľký (Big) Kriváň is just nothing comparing to Malý (Small) Kriváň. And so I'm up before I know it. Tina immortalizes me in a photo, I immortalize the views, we exchange a few words and I run towards Malý Kriváň. Today, it all feels probably the easiest of all the times I've done this section. So far, it's been enjoyable a lot and I've been feeling super good. But the real turning point is still ahead of me. Biele skaly and Suchý. I got pretty smashed there three months ago, I'm curious what awaits me there today. I run through Sedlo Priehyb, the yellow traverse to Sedlo pod Suchým is even more overgrown and forgotten than last time, and there are no memories left of it.
Even though today is a very pleasant autumn day with reasonable temperatures, we are still heading towards the sun, it is still shining in our eyes and it is still pretty hot in Biele skaly today. The heat is staying on the rocks and in the knee timber and not even a breeze is moving there. Never mind, let's climb it up quickly. Well, quickly... where Paťo hops like a chamois, I'm holding on to the pine branches and going at a pace of 20min/km 😂 BUT, in the end I climb the rocks, find myself on Suchý and I am not worn out or broken or smashed 💪 However, I am catching worn out Monika, who partied hard the night before and now wants to sleep. Monča is an amazingly unbreakable woman and I have great admiration for her, that even despite hardships and difficulties she can always reach the finish line (and today is no exception). After all, during the "run-down" to Chata pod Suchým, she even escapes me nicely. For me, this is another 20min/km section and when I'm at the cottage, I really take a breather. I catch up with a group of guys there, with whom I've been taking turns on the route. They say that the rest of the downhill to Strečno is nice and fine (😂😂😂) good for me I didn't believe them. That section wasn't fine at all 🤗. I won't linger at the cottage for long, there are a lot of wasps there 🙈. Monča stays longer as she wants to pull herself together a bit. I somehow survive that disgusting messy downhill that supposed to be nice and fine and I really take a breather for the second time only near Starhrad Castle.
Nothing special happened for the remaining few km to Strečno, the Strečno castle approached quickly. At the aid station at CP5 I pull myself together, eat broth and pasta, recharge my watch, change into a dry T-shirt, check the internet, replenish my emergency supply of gels and bars and set off to crawl out to Javorina, where the time trial is taking place. I think I was a candidate for the award for the slowest time, if they gave one. It doesn't matter, it's beautiful here and I'm enjoying a pleasant autumn evening (even though everything hurts already). At CP6 Javorina I ask for a coffee. They don't have any. Shame I didn't ask for one in Strečno where coffee was on offer... 🙈. It doesn't matter now. I crawl further in the direction of Saračníky and Minčol. It's slowly getting dark on the way, the sun is sinking towards the horizon, I feel warm for a moment, cold for a another, so I put on long sleeves.
The further into the forest, the darker it gets, the deer are going nuts (it's their rut season) and it's time to take out the headlamp. I have a new one 😀. I turn it on, nothing happens. I turn it on differently, nothing happens. I try differently again, nothing... well whatever. I put my good old one on and continue. But it really boggers me, after all, I bought such a strong headlamp and it betrays me right on the first race? So I stop and try again. I play with the buttons, with the flashlight, I twist and press all sorts of things, still nothing happens. All of the worst possible Slovak swearwords are playing in my head, I probably shouted some out loud into the darkness, but it didn't help. I continue with the old one, but it's still bugging me, both the headlamp and the worst possible Slovak swearwords, so I stop for the third time (and take a picture of the sunset while I'm stopping), finally remembering how this machine is turned on. Of course, it's also shown above the buttons 😅. So the mistake was somewhere between the chair and the keyboard. I triumphantly put on my new bright headlamp and continue to the top of Minčol in a bright cone of light. Hurray!
From Minčol to Krížava (in the distance behind me I see a group of headlamps - it's the guys and I wonder when they catch up with me again), from Krížava to Skalka (a brutal moon is rising), from Skalka to "under Ostrý" and then to Čipčie (again I can't see the views - last year it was whitest white fog, today it is blackest black darkness), and from there I run to Turie with constant deer barking, near and far, from all directions, sides and distances, I guess even from the underground. The guys haven't caught up with me yet.
In Turie, I catch Kamila chilling with a bowl of broth and saying that those downhills are not easy for her anymore... Well, the downhills are not easy for me by default. I also have broth, coffee and other things and I get a text message from Katka Hybka asking if I'm okay, I reply that yes, I am and is she OK too? She says that next to my name in the live results there is a DNF. And I'm like: WTF? I turn on the data, check it out and it says that I'm in Turie, with the time check and everything looks correct. I send her a screen as proof while recovering from heart attack. The timer must have gone crazy for a while. I would ban these new timers. Good old Hiking (previously used timer), where everything was always nice and tidy, clear, black and white, up to date and most importantly, it wasn't messed up.
I leave the aid station and the guys still haven't caught up with me yet. Kamila is staying a bit longer, but I'm guessing she'll pass me somewhere before the ford. Rajčanka is not quite flat after last weekend's floods. I throw myself into the cold stream of water with my shoes on - it's quite refreshing and pleasant. I shuffle to the other bank and splash on. It takes me about an hour to squeeze the water out of my shoes, swing over Skalky and Tlstá hora to CP8 Dielnice. No one has caught up with me yet. Here they serve baked potatoes in a pot and sit by the fire. Yummy! I eat the potato while sitting by the fire and move on. The worst part is over, but the worst part is yet to come. Súľov ridge. Between 88 and 105 km. At night and during deer rut season. That's what you want 🤌. If I pass this one, I'm the winner. Just like everyone else. But let's be thankful that it's not raining, there's no blizzard, there's no snowstorm, tornado, hurricane, downburst, earthquake or minus 20. Let's be thankful that we already made it up to here, and that the only thing separating us from the finish line is this Súľov ridge. Well, exactly... And the deer Death Metal is still going strong.This part should be 15km to the next check point under Hričov Castle. I'm cutting off bite after bite - Budzogáň, Žibrid, Patúch (no illegal Cola here this time, he was waiting there, but it took us a long time, so he went home 😐), Kečka, one no-name hump after another. Specific points and places emerge in my memory, I know exactly what awaits me where and I realize that it's great. Nothing is surprising me here. I'm grateful for that early-summer run with my friends 💗. In one of those humps, I catch up with two headlamps - Peťa and Martin. Peťa asks where I get my energy from. I, crawling from one foot to another, reply, what energy? I don't have any left. They ask if it's too terrible further. I say yes. it is. I didn't even have the energy to lie 😂. I'm slowly leaving them behind, but they'll surely catch up with me somewhere. Today I'm comfortable being alone - I can freely hate everything and shout nonsense into the darkness of the night.
Slowly but patiently and consistently, I conquered all the 16 teeth of the Súľov saw without a mental break down. I am in Sedlo pod Roháčom and already have 102km on the clock. Looking in the maps I find that the remaining distance to the aid station does not seem to be one kilometer long, but at least four. I accept this information with stoic calmness, to the point of surprising myself, but hey, I have Súľov psychiatry behind me, so I won, so some cringey extra kilometers can fuck themselves with those cringey extra kilometers, phew 💪.I'm approaching to CP9 - Hričov Castle and I've got 106km on my watch. It's cold here. By the way, last night it was pleasantly warm up in the hills and down in the valleys and villages it was so cold my fingers were freezing. Kind and frozen volunteers from the castle are making all my wishes come true. I'm replenishing my energy for the penultimate section. Behind Hričov, the sky is slowly starting to fade. A year ago, dusk caught me here, today it's dawn. The circle is closing. On the hill above Ovčiarsko, I take pictures of the sunrise, pass some foreign guy and run into the village down a Strava segment with a poetic name "A meadow of thousand shits". In Ovčiarsko at CP10 there's cold, Tina and Rado. I'm happy to be here. I grab something to eat, even though I don't feel like eating anything anymore. I'm mentally preparing myself for the final 6-kilometer run through Strážov and Žilina.
As the deer concert continues, I swing over the last small bump, head down to Strážov and thump thump through early morning in Žilina. I get lost in the same place as last time (by the gas station), I run along the canal, up the street, over the overpass, through the roundabout and intersections, through both squares, across Národná, under the station, across Uhoľná, around Lidl, across Kysucká, past Estakáda and I can already see Budatín Castle. Gosh, seems I'm really going to make it 😍... if I don't get hit by a car or killed by some junkie in the underpass.
I wasn't hit by a car, no one killed me, and I turn into the streets of Budatín, which we ran through yesterday morning into this beautiful route. I turn towards the castle and get chills again. I run past the finish line and just to be sure I ask the race crew if this is the finish line. They says yes, so I turn off my legs and watch and I am overwhelmed by completely ordinary happiness. My time of 26:04 was enough for 33rd place overall, 5th woman and 1st place in my age group. There are a few people in the finish area, it's quiet and peaceful. I get some stew, coffee, and a ride to the train station. Thank you. From the bottom of my Liptov heart, I thank you for today (and yesterday), day and night, to all the amazing volunteers for their tireless care of us zombies, you were all amazing and wonderful everywhere 💗. thank you to Miloš and his team for the great organization, marking (I don't understand why everyone is moaning about it, I thought it was great) and everything. I really enjoyed it to the fullest, exactly how I visualized it. Miloš, I'm sorry, I know it's hard to read this but I have to say that this race was a reward 😊.
Comments
Post a Comment