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HIGH IN THE HIMALAYAS
By Jacqueline Windh
Ultrarunning Magazine, January 2014 Issue
An international collection of racers gathered in the small village of Mirik, in the Darjeeling region of northern India, this past October 26th, before embarking on the Himalayan 100 Mile Stage Race. Most racers hailed from the U.S., the U.K., and Spain, with others coming from Sweden, Norway, Germany, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, South Africa and Canada (me!).
The pre-race activities in Mirik (5,500’ elevation), including tours of monasteries and a tea factory, allowed us 36 hours or so of minor altitude acclimatization – nowhere near as high as we would be going by the end of Day One. But better than nothing. Most of the five-day race would have us at altitudes ranging from 6,600’ to just shy of 12,000’.
The first three days would be in the mountains, mostly following a very rough cobblestone road along the ridgeline that forms the border between India and Nepal. If you tripped and fell to the left, you would be in Nepal.
“Do not go to the Nepal,” Race Director C.S. Pandey warned us repeatedly. He told us the story of an Australian racer some years back who had gone left, and was missing in Nepal for eight hours before his team somehow located her, “if you go to the Nepal, I cannot help you.” The final two days were road runs at lower elevations around 6,000’ – shorter and faster routes, but still with substantial elevation gain and loss.
STAGE 1: 24 MILES, FROM MANEYBHANJANG VILLAGE AT 6,600’ TO SANDAKPHU MOUNTAIN AT 11,815’
The first 400 yards of the 24-mile route were flat. Then the switchbacks started, and we never saw flat again. Other than one long 1,700’ descent mid route, the entire day was an uphill journey, the first two miles paved, and the remainder of course on an extremely rough cobblestone road. These are not cobblestones in the European sense. The road, constructed in 1948 and barely traversable by jeep, is made of irregular stones ranging from first-size to boulder, inlaid together. I had debated log and hard over which shoes to bring with me, and was very happy that I had finally chosen a pair with a solid protective sole. Many other runners suffered from sore feet after a day or two of the cobblestone.
The previous night, there had been some discussion over dinner about strategies for dealing with the altitude, and also about being careful not to go out too hard on the first big day. The big question was how much to try to run the uphill (which is pretty much the entire route today) or whether to walk. The UK’s Martin Cox placed a bet that he would finish today’s route in four hours. I’m not sure if anyone believed him, but when we hit the start of that uphill he and several others accelerated ahead and out of sight, while many of us played it more conservatively, settling into walk-run routine that he would stick with for the next six to eight hours.
While in previous years racers have had to deal with heat and sun on this first day, this year the weather got progressively worse: from a cool drizzly overcast as we started, to colder and windier and threatening rain. As we gained elevation, the forest opened up to scrubbier open land, but the fog gradually thickened and obscured our views. I made it to the top at Sandakphu in 7.30, about three-quarters of the way down the pack, and quickly changed into dry clothes and hoed into the hot soup that was waiting. Just after I arrived, as darkness was desending (at 5:00 p.m.) the skies opened and an icy cloudburst drenched the runners who were still out on trail; a few made it in, and the stragglers were collected and brought up the hill by jeep.
Martin missed winning this bet by a meager 39 seconds – an impressive performance for such a challenging route. Norway’s Marit Holm also impressed, finishing as first female and second overall in 4:55. Dan Desedel, from Minnesota, took third for the day in 5:08.
STAGE 2: 20-MILE OUT-AND-BACK ROUTE ALONG THE RIDGELINE BETWEEN SANDAKPHU AND BORDER OUTPOST MOLLE, ELEVATIONS RANGING FROM 10,500’ TO 11,815’.
The Fog-wind raged through the night, blowing right through our huts. Morning dawned much colder than anything most of us had expected (apparently a cyclone in the Bay of Bengal was feeding bad weather up to the mountains), so many of us showed up at the start line dressed not just in our running gear, but in nearly everything we had bought with us.
We soon found out that “rolling terrain” in the Himalaya is understatement: the ups and downs both steeper and longer. We were running the ridgeline that is the Nepal-India border again. This was supposed to be the section where we would get views of four of the five highest peaks in the world: Everest, Kanchenjunga, Lhotse, and Makalu, but the fog didn’t even allow us to see the next switchback below us. Even so, it was an enjoyable and interesting route – but strange, running in terrain you don’t know and where you can’t see around.
Martin and Marit took first and second again, in 3:15 and 3:20. A couple of the racers who had a tough time yesterday sat out today’s route, but for most this was an easier day, compared to yesterday’s big uphill and tomorrow’s marathon.
STAGE 3: THE MT. EVEREST CHALLENGE MARATHON, 26+ MILES, WITH THE FINAL EIGHT MILES A STEEP DESCENT FROM MOLLE, AT 11,665’, TO THE VILLAGE OF RIMBIK AT 6,350’.
Miracles of miracles – five minutes before the 6:30 a.m. race start, the skies cleared. I was frantically packing my race bag when there was an urgent knock on the door of our hut, and Assistant RD Mansi Pandey’s voice called out, “Come quick! Kanchenjunga is clear!” Our grey-toned world had erupted into color with the giant mountain looming over the start line, and all of the racers clustered around frantically snapping pictures.
Then we were off. The clouds closed over within minutes, and for the first hour I was back in the familiar fog, our first 10 miles today repeating the out-and-back section from yesterday. Then I rounded a hill into sunshine, and there in front of me was a skyline of snowy peaks, with one towering high above the rest: Everest!
There are times when it is great being a back-of-the-pack racer, and this was one of them. While some of the fast runners weren’t even sure if they had seen Everest, for me and the runners around me, the race stopped. We dropped our packs and pulled out our cameras. This might be the only moment in our lives to see Everest. The sky could cloud over at any moment.
But it didn’t. The remainder of our ridgeline there was just view, with the blue sky overhead, and the sun on us, and the forested slopes below, covered in Himalayan blue pine and wild rhododendrons. And more mountain views around every bend. I was here as a journalist but I finally had to stash my camera in my pack, or I would never get off the ridge.
The descent was, as expected, relentless. We were now on a narrow stone path in accessible to vehicles. In many places the stone were washed out, and we ran along ruts carved several feet into dried mud, barely wide enough for your two feet to pass. We were soon down into uninhabited jungle, on a steep slope high above a rushing river, eventually passing through colorful villages with smiling friendly people and brightly painted homes with flowers planted around.
The Final four miles was flat, alongside the Siri Khola River, to the village of Rimbik, Where we would stay in a basic but comfortable hotel for the next two nights. Martin and Marit again took first and second, Martin finishing this tough marathon route seemingly effortlessly in 4:17, and Dan from Minnesota taking third.
STAGE FOUR: 13 MILES ON PAVEMENT, DOWN 1,400’ THEN UP 1,600’
Now the road runners were smiling. We started with a steep descent from Rimbik village, along tight switchbacks winding down towards the Lodoma River. After three days above 10,000’ we definitely felt more energized down here, starting at 6,350’, then descending to 4,975’ where we crossed the river, then rising back up along more switchbanks to the finis line at 6,560’.
Rankings didn’t change much in the men’s division. Martin again won the stage, finishing this half-marathon length route in 1:26. There were some changes in the women’s race, though, with the UK’s Fiona Bugler, who had suffered in previous days from the altitude, making top three for the first time, finishing in 1:51, just four minutes behind Marit.
STAGE FIVE: FINAL 17 MILES ON PAVEMENT, GAINING AND THEN LOSING 2,000’
We started at yesterday’s finish line by continuing the climb above the Lodoma River, six miles along more switchbanks, to the crest of the ridge at 8,555’. There followed an 11-mile descent, skirting the ridge-flank (just in case anyone had working quads muscles left).
We finished where we had started the race five days earlier, in the village of Maneybhanjang, with rows of uniformed school children flanking the final run into the finish line, clapping and cheering for each finisher. The Assistant Rd was on hand, offering a high-five to each of us as we broke the finish tape (which was set up for every single runner).
Final standings were no surprise. Although the Spanish men had started more conservatively, and had finished strong on the final two days, they did not make up enough time for podium placements in overall rankings. Martin Cox came close to setting a new course record, with a cumulative time of 15:07 for the 100-mile route. A total of 31 racers finished all five stages, with the last ones finishing in around 30 hours. Special distinction goes to the UK’s Rex Whittle, who was running the course for his seventh time. Although he didn’t finish all of the stages this year, at age 73 he impressed us all with his can-do attitude (especially seeing him push to finish the marathon by headlamp in 12:55), and was an inspiration to us all.
