Transalpine Run – DAY 4 Written on September 8, 2009, by andys.
Transalpine Run – DAY 4
Length: 39.9km
Climb: 2339m up / 2734m down
Andy & Tom: 1st overall / 3hr 51min 25sec
Ben and Angela: 1st mixed team
Heart rate: ave = 147bpm / max = 164 (slowly decreasing – not for lack of effort!)
Post race fountain dip
Today was the longest stage and it was good to get it under the belt. We’re now half way through in days and past the half way mark in terms of distance. Tom and I opted for a cruisey paced start which paid dividends as we were able to hold a steady tempo for the 4 hours it took to cross the alpine divide from Austria into Switzerland. It was very much a trail run today with limited steep or rough sections such as those we encountered in the first three days – not our preference, but an enjoyable run all the same.
We rolled in in just under 4 hours, nearly 20 minutes ahead of the next team. It was a hot day’s work today and conveniently there was a fountain right by the finish in the village to cool the legs and body in afterwards, which attracted about as much attention from the supporters as when we crossed the finishing line.
One of the other unusual highlights had to be the full on rock n roll style live performance of the transalps theme tune “Keep on Running” on the start line at 9am! A quick adreniline rush to prepare for a four hour mountain marathon…
Andy
