Snowman 24 Part 8: Race Day 5
I woke on the 5th day feeling a mix of excitement and sadness. The excitement stemmed from the knowledge that at the end of the day’s stage I would be arriving at the finish area and back in the arms of my partner Tanae. The sadness was brought on by the knowledge that I would be leaving these beautiful high mountains and returning to the hectic demands of life in the modern world. There is a wonderful simplicity that comes with extended trips in the mountains. Life is distilled to the simple tasks of sleep, eat, movement, eat, sleep. Mix in some wonderful company of friends, who felt more like family, and that is a rhythm that I find very satisfying. I crawled out of my sleeping awash with these mixed emotions and went to the task that was feeling very routine. Put on the running kit, pack the running vest, and head out to get breakfast.
The after breakfast, pre run dance party was longer and more enthusiastic than the prior days and I couldn’t help but feel a wonderful joy as a group of us wiggled, shimmied and shook to the music playing from Kelly’s phone. A few additional layers were removed as the dance party concluded and we gathered for the start of the last day of racing. The terrain ahead was a steep climb and then many miles of descending all the way to the finish. As the whistle blew to start the race I knew immediately that today was a day that I wanted to push myself as hard as possible. The last few races I had done this summer had not gone particularly well and I was hoping that this day would follow the theme of the previous few days and that I would be able to properly run and to do so near my potential.
Juley La Pass
I went out the start gate hard, and was very happy to lead the group all the way up the climb. It felt good to breath hard, to taste the tang of blood in my mouth, and to have my legs protesting at the hard effort. Mind you, we were still above 14,000’ and the high point of the day was above 15,000’. Per my routine, I paused on the pass the thank the mountains for allowing me and my friends to pass through safely and for just a few seconds to take in the scene. Smoke billowed from a stupa on the pass, prayer flags flapped in the breeze, high mountains loomed in the distance, and my dear friend Cody caught me. We shared a quick smile and then Cody took off down the descent. I started to follow and within a few minutes was caught and passed by both Tashi and Sangay. I could see Pascal catching up and for probably 30 minutes or so I stayed ahead of him. We ran down a steep trail and through a grassy alpine basin filled with yaks and water crossings, and then eventually joined a proper single track. It was on that trail where Pascal caught me.
For the previous 4 days I had pretty much run by myself. There were moments when I ran for a few minutes with Pema, Leki, or Cody, but by and large I was alone. Running with Pascal was a delight. The trail had gotten very technical as we dropped into the river basin with ling stretches of rock hopping intermixed with mud and few and far between sections of very smooth single track. For the first several miles it felt like we were racing, both pushing the pace. Which was exactly what I wanted. I wanted to push, I wanted to dig and Pascal kept me honest with my desires. We covered miles much faster than I would have had I been alone. For several miles I led, then Pascal shifted in to the front and I had to try very hard to keep up. We wove through braided sections of deep mud, helped each other with the nuances of micro navigation; shifting from one side of the trail to the other hoping to move through shallower mud or to find the most runnable way forward. A quick side note for those of you reading this that don’t know of Pascal. He is mountain running royalty. He was the Junior Swiss Mountain Running Champion in 2007 and world Skyrunning Champion in 2018. He has over 100 racing results on website spanning from 2005 until present with the vast majority of of them top of the podium. I would have never dreamed to be matching pace with a mountain runner of his caliber, and yet here we are in Bhutan, on the final day of racing, matching step for step, mile after mile.
I had interesting moments during those miles of trail with Pascal. I would have a vivid memory of a certain tree or meadow, where I would recall having been in that exact spot two years prior, and then we would go miles where nothing looked familiar. It was strange and beautiful how my mind was working. Eventually trail started to widen and we saw a few people, then we went through and arch and were greeted by 50 school kids yelling “welcome to Bumthang” as the trail transitioned to a road. Tears filled my eyes with emotion as the yells filled my heart. From this point it would be roughly 10k of road running to the finish. Pascal and I were both ragged, me more than he, and it was proper hard to keep the pace. We ran through so many groups of children and teens out cheering for us as we closed the final miles. With about 4 miles to go we were joined by a motorcycle escort that led us in to town, clearing the traffic and honking it’s horn to alert the groups of school kids and spectators of our arrival. It seemed to me that the cheers filled us with the energy and strength to continue pushing all the way into town.
Pascal and I crossing the finish line
As we rounded the final corner and entered in to the finish chute, which was lined with spectators cheering the tears again filled my eyes, making it hard to see the over 2000 people gathered to welcome us at the finish. Together Pascal and I crossed the finish line and we were immediately greeted by the Prime Minister who congratulated us on our finishes. More hugs with friends and then a lap around the field to shake hands and share high fives with the large crowd. After finishing the lap, I was able to give Tanae a big hug.
Discussing trail running shoes with the Prime Minister of Bhutan shortly after finishing.
Pascal and I sharing high fives with hundreds of people after finishing.
The best post race hug shared with my partner Tanae.
After the victory lap, we were ushered inside for a quick medical check. Snacks were shared, along with stories, smiles and laughs. The rest of the afternoon was spent cheering in our friends, a formal awards ceremony, and more snacks. The finish area, crowd, and vibes were on a different level than any other race I have done on the planet. It seemed pulled out of a fairy tale where trail runners and climate ambassadors were treated like heroes and celebrated for work they had done and had yet to do. When I finally made it to bed late that night, I dropped in to bed feeling very similar to the morning, only now it was a sense of incredible joy for having completed this incredible challenge and just a little sadness that it had already come to an end.
Post Race Medical Checks with Pascal.
