Verdon Trail Race
A 7:30am start was planned but as all the competitors were on the line at 7:00am the race was started early, a bit disconcerting but in the light of what was to come probably a good decision. A short downhill loop saw us on our way and in the relative cool of the morning the pace was a little on the good side, this soon ended as we made the start of the first climb of almost 1000m to the high point of the day. The temperature rose with each step and didn't stop rising all day, the climbs were steep with the odd scramble here and there and the loose rocky surface made the going hard work; however the views from the top of le Grand Marges in to the gorge below made up a little for the exhausting climb.
Every now and again the race helicopter would pass by ferrying camera men to good vantage points or would shoot off to follow the, by now, distant race leaders. A fairly easy stretch was abruptly ended by a leg jarring descent into the gorge and a most blissful river crossing before following, "what can only be described as narrow ledges", the GR4 along the side of the gorge.
The heat was searing at times with the sun reflecting off the rock faces and any shade was most welcome. At times the path rose or fell steeply, often with steps set in the rock walls until eventually passing through a kilometre long tunnel, now I know why torches were mandatory.
All too soon the cool darkness ended and we were returned to the furnace of the gorge and a 3km climb to the finish, it couldn't arrive soon enough. With few facilities available keeping cool was the main item on the agenda, it was now 52 degrees Celsius and shade was at a premium.
Some competitors did not come off the course until well into the afternoon and reflected the severity of the days trail. A massage eased the aches and pains and was followed by lunch, rest then the race briefing and supper, it was then that we found out that breakfast would be at 3:00am and the start at 5:00am to help combat some of the expected heat!
