WIESBADEN ULTRAMARATHON

©Wiesbaden Lebt

After a few days with little sleep due to long hours at work, the JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge in my legs and suffering from a cold, I was not too sure whether it was the best decision to start at the Wiesbaden Ultramarathon. Though I was not feeling 100 percent well, in the end I decided to take part.

The course measured 50 kilometers with 1450 meters of altitude gain. It was a lovely trail with a number of fun technical sections, which was leading the field of runners through a blossoming forest near Wiesbaden. Even though we were running in the shade for the great majority of the trail, it was hot and humid.

I started off well, finding my pace and trying to listen to my body. While the kilometer count on my watch was increasing, I felt well. It was a fairly small field of runners with around 100 participants, so most of the time I would be running by myself. Only every now and then I would pass a fellow runner and shared a short conversation. 30 kilometers into the race, my body slowly started to show first signs of tiredness. Although I was slowing down the speed, my body became weaker, forcing me to walk.

With 20 kilometers to go, I worked myself from aid station to aid station switching between running, light jogging and walking. I was exhausted, but I kept pushing. Finally, I arrived at the final kilometer of the race. One last ascent was awaiting me, before I crossed the finish line.

I had entered the event with zero expectations, but I was hoping to finish the course in around five hours. After all, the clock stopped at 5:51:56 hours placing 14th overall and 1st in my age group. It may not have been the most ideal race, but bearing in mind the circumstances, it was a good and long training run.

After the race, I took off a few days to fully recover and to get rid of the cold, before leaping back into training. Though, I had started off the year, with less focus on training, but to adapt to my new job, over the last few months I was able to train pretty well. Now, with around two months to go, I am feeling ready to conquer the Mont Blanc.