TRANSJURASSIENNE 2012 -
by Guest blogger Tobes

Lycra



The second full w/e in February has always been set aside since I arrived in Canada, it is when the Canadian Ski Marathon is held. 160km over the two days with the night out camping out in-between, our year in France would mean it'd be the first year I'd miss the event ... but hang on a minute, that very same w/e the French hold their longest and most famous cross country world cup ski race -The Transjurassienne.

Not only did they offer and an Ultra Marathon event where you could race 50km of classic on the Saturday and 76km of skating on Sunday but due to a Siberian North Easterly they put on some veritable Canadian weather ... it was as if I'd never left home ... -19C with 60km wind put us around the -30C mark at the start line ... both days!

THE SIBERIAN NORTH EASTERLY

I've always been in awe at the casual way the Canadians cope with the cold ... but chapeaux off to the French .. perhaps not so nonchalant, but they do do it in lycra, mostly of the neon variety!!

They were 800 of us who set out for the 50km classic style Marathon on Saturday  ... the plan ... take it EASY ... I have an even bigger race on Sunday ... how naive can a man get ... EASY is not a word that should ever be associated with marathon, -30C  and gale force winds ... let alone all 3 at the same time .. but somehow I slide over the finish line some 4 hours later into the village of Mouthe ... but between blinding flashes of neon zooming ahead and the Siberian gusts giving it their best I did manage to stay warm an enjoy one of the most beautiful skis ever .. alpine villages, winding forest tracks and open terrain.

START OF THE 50KM CLASSIC

THAT'S ME A FEW KM'S BEHIND THIS PHOTO

MOUTHE

Pete and Leslie had managed to persuade a bunch of friends to come over for the event, Scott and Lucy had made all the way from Toronto .. we were 10 in total ... but there was only one fool who had entered the Ultra,  the others were skiing either the 54km or 30km on Sunday. My butt was saved by Pete and Scott who drove to the finish line to pick me up and take me back to the hotel, just enough time to have a quick bite and wax the skis for the next day.

Finishing 50km classic

Two wrongs make a right

I had not planned my lift to the start very well, we got lost among the spin drift and road closures so I missed the 8am start. Oh well I'd just start out late and see if I could catch anyone up! I got there at 8.25 to find everyone on the start line ... ready to take off at 8.30. I had also got the start time wrong! Yippee, now to see if my luck holds.

THE START OF THE 76KM SKATE

WATCH OUT FOR YOUR POLES!!

This start was with 2-3000 others, during the first 5km I must have skied passed 20 broken poles, tactics were elbows out but poles in, but the wind was back and even angrier than yesterday and I was finding the going pretty tough. After nearly 3hours of battling I had only covered about 25km and on cresting one hill I realized that after 4 hard strides and pushes I was in exactly the same spot ... I had hit my wall, zero energy, shaking and shivering and with frost nip on hands, nose, forehead and worse of all my privates. It was time to pack it in but as I turned tail I realized that I was only a few km form the next rest stop ... maybe there'd be a bus to take me to the finish there.

ENCORE DU VENT AU PIF

For the Commonwealth

They were great, they delivered me non-stop tea and biscuits as I tried to stop shaking and warm up, after 15 minutes I had even managed to cajole my head round to thoughts of heading back out, but the lady in charge was insisting I went to the medics and wanted to take my bib number. (I wasn't looking good) I managed to persuaded her I was on the mend and just needed to warm up. When I shyly explained about my privates she dashed off and returned with a copy of Le Matin (newspaper) which unceremoniously joined my insufficient 3 pairs of underwear.  There was still 45km to go but I knew the next 8km - although uphill - would be out the wind in the forest.

There were some 4300 skiers entered for the various races that w/e .. only 160 were doing the Ultra and there was only one Brit/ Canadian, so with thoughts of Queen and Commonwealth onwards and upwards it was.

Tobes heading up and warming up.

I'd love to take credit for gritting out the next four hours but it must all go to that most fantastic human body, with a litre of hot tea, half a dozen biscuits, a few raisins and not forgetting Le Matin newspaper the remaining kilometers were skied by. If my car had been in that kind of state it would have been in the shop for months and cost a small fortune.
I'm already looking forward to the Canadian ski marathon next year! I'll be the one in the pink and yellow lycra.