Snowman Race 24 Part 6: Race Day 3
Running near the village of Tshojong.
With no alarm, warning or perceptible explanation I snapped wide awake at 4:21 am. There was a tension, or maybe excitement, in my body. The third day of the first edition of the Snowman race was one of the most challenging days in the mountains I had ever experienced. This time it was supposed to be shorter in distance but the anticipation flooded through my body as I prepped my pack for the day. It was really cold that morning which added to the intensity of the anticipation and the eagerness to get the day started. Promptly at 6:00 am the race was underway and we headed out towards some of my favorite running on the planet.
Early morning aid station, Bhutan Style
The theme of the previous two days held as Cody and the Bhutanese runners went off the front leaving me in the gap between them and the lead Bhutanese women. I enjoyed running along the river and then in to the broad plateau next to the incredibly situated village of Tshojong. There in the crisp morning air I was greeted by a woman offering tea and snacks. I couldn’t help but take, and promptly burn my mouth, on a cup of hot tea. After a few scalding sips I bid her farewell thanking her as best I could before running up the valley. The section of running between Tshojong and the last village at the upper end of the valley, Thanza, is one of my very favorite places on the earth to run. There is a beautiful, smooth single track, that very gently climbs up the basin surrounded by huge mountains and flanked on one side by a tributary of the Pho Chhu River. Yaks graze lazily and birds soar overhead. I found profound flow and connection as I ran alone up the valley. This sensation of oneness, deep connection, is one of the things that defines the experience of Bhutan for me. The people in this place live with and as nature, not isolated from it. The feel the changes and the seasons, they rely directly on the ebbs and flows of the planet and for a brief time I felt that connection. It changed me, it continues to change me.
Nearing the village of Thanza, one of the most incredible places on earth to run.
As I entered the village of Thanza curious residents waved from the pastures surrounding their homes. Occasionally someone would cheer or clap, to which I would reply with a partial bow, and a thank you. The route wove through the village to it’s far upstream side before sweeping back down the other side of the valley, across a large suspension bridge, and then took an abrupt turn uphill towards the high altitude section of the course. At the base of that climb I crossed paths with Rich, who was on his way to becoming the first amputee to hike the entirety of the Snowman Trek. I acknowledged his incredible badassery as we exchanged a few words, then went back to the task of covering miles.
Looking back and down towards Thanza.
The next section of the route, from Tshang to Gophu La Pass, is what I consider the crux of the entire Snowman Race. It gently climbs from around 14,000’ to just shy of 18,000’. The climbing is so gentle that many miles are spent at the very high altitudes and that is what makes it so hard. Progressively the effort to move forward increases to the point that brisk walking feels like an anaerobic effort. Last time on this section I spent a lot of time sitting as I battled with the thin air and lost. This time though, was different. I felt much stronger and instead of frequent stops to sit and catch my breath I was able to run, or at least shuffle the majority of the miles. We hit snow around 15,500’ and the path became very challenging to follow. Path, is a loose term, as it is more like moraine and scree for miles that was marked as a path. With the added snow the footing became tricky and required serious concentration. I was able to navigate easily with occasional assistance from my watch to keep me on the designated path. The mileage went much faster than I expected and before I knew it I had passed the military checkpoint at the first high lake and was working on the final miles before the pass.
Lake near Gophu La Pass. Elevation 17,664’.
Then something unexpected happened, I saw runners ahead of me. In the previous days Cody, Sangay, Tashi and Leki were always well ahead, at least out of sight. Somehow I had managed to close that gap. I kept pushing the pace as best as I could and continued to slowly get closer as I also got closer to the pass. On the pass I took a moment to express my gratitude to the mountain gods for once again allowing my to pass through this beautiful place, and then I went to work chasing my fast footed friends. Just off the pass, past the lake and just beyond the military checkpoint I got off course. The snow had made seeing the course marking difficult and I blew a corner. For a few desperate minutes I floundered in a side canyon trying to get back on route. As I crested a small ridge a military volunteer waved me down and pointed to where I could rejoin the route. I thanked him when I got close, and he introduced himself as the Colonel in charge of the course marking team. We exchanged a few words before I thanked him again and went back to pursuing the runners ahead. In short order I actually caught Sangay and Tashi. I was as surprised as they were! Sangay mentioned that he was having trouble with his feet, but continued to put down a fast pace. After about 15 minutes of running together I was able to pull ahead which actually turned out to be more difficult as I had to take on the role of navigator in the bouldery terrain.
View from Gophu La Pass.
It didn’t take long before Tashi made a move and went around me quickly opening a gap that I knew I wouldn’t be able to close. I tried as hard as I could to hold on but he was simply too fast. I did manage to stay ahead of Sangay for the final miles and, in what felt like one of the highlights of my running career, I crossed the finish line in 4th several hours faster than I had reached this point the year before. I had managed to finish just a few minutes after the leaders and together we all relished in the beauty of the day’s challenge in the early afternoon’s sun. Sangay finished minutes behind me, and not long after that Rosanna Buchauer finished. It was such a cool moment to see Rosanna totally in her element as one of the best female mountain runners on the planet coming across the finish after an incredibly strong performance at very high altitude.
Night Halt 3 fashion show.
The rest of the afternoon was again spent cheering for our friends and celebrating the challenge of the day. As the sun dropped behind the mountains a wall of mist came up the valley, temps dropped but not our excitement as the final finisher of the day, the mighty Arafat, came in to camp. It was a warm greeting in our cold camp! This camp was situated on the edge of the river at over 16,000’ and we were in for a bone chilling night. After dinner sleep once again came easy and for me, a certain tension was relieved knowing that the most difficult part of the race was behind us, at least that is what I thought.