Monday 31 May 2010

Tough race in a few words

Just got back to Kathmandu after travelling back from Namche Bazaar. I have managed to finish the marathon and even take the "first westerner " title.
We are all know that theer was no way catching the sherpa runners, but had a great battle for my final 36th place. I ran/walked for 5:34minutes and finished 4th foreigner (first westerner, behind 3 indian army runners). Unfortunately my stomach issues forced me to slow down/ even walk for a long time after keeping my pace to 4:45-5:05 target time. All happened after the 30km mark and I could not do much... Despite of all these facts I was extremely happy to finish in one piece. More details and pictures soon... (Picture: close to start area at Base camp - one day before the race)

Friday 21 May 2010

Heading up to the start line

After 10 days of recovery and slow training in Namche I am heading up to Everest Base Camp ...once again. In the last days I managed to get back to my "nearly normal" health level (thanks to a huge dose of antibiotics) and even I raised my training regime. Yesterday I topped it with a 190minutes run with 1200m ascent and descent. No need to say that my speed was not detectable and my form needs to be worked on. Other than that I feel pretty much ready for the quest. There will be about 100runners with approx. 30 westerners. Next time I will reporting abouth the race itself.

Thursday 13 May 2010

3 week round trip summary




Just a recap from the last 3 week:
I have missed out on a few bits , but most of my plan was executed in a safe manner.
I moved up in Gokyo Valley and stayed about 5-6days there and I crossed Tso La and moved to Khumbu Valley then to "Chukung Valley" and returned.
Facts:
  • 15 days over 4700m, 7 times over 5100m
  • 3 pass crossings: Renjo La(5400m), Tso La (5350m), Kongma La (5533m)
  • 2 small peaks ( Gokyo Ri, Chukung Ri)
  • 20-25kg backpack, poles, 80% of the time walking and running in trainers
  • snowed about 4-5 times (no rain)
  • crossed 3 glaciers
  • extra feature: Cho Oyu Base Camp visit (amazing place)
  • additional challenge: viral infection (still recovering)
I will be posting a more detailed trip report (areas, walks, inforation, etc.) once I am back home in June. Of course there will be more short reports on the marathon.

Monday 10 May 2010

Back in Namche

Just a short one, before I give a full report. I am back in Namche safe and sound, unfortunately not 100% healthy, but I guess it is all part of the game. I managed to collect a throat infection, so spent some time off and missed out on a few extra bits, but overall had a great time and still up for the challenge. More soon.