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Once is not enough...
I'll not bore you with the
detailed report of the 2 weeks I spent in Silverton getting
ready for Hardrock 100. And I'll not tell you everything I
thought during the race: it's difficoult for me to translate my thoughts in english.
I'll just try to tell you a little bit about the deep emotions I
had the chance of living at Hardrock 100.
First: I really like the small
village of Silverton. That's a place where I could even live, if
I had a job there. Many tourists come up during the day, but
after the steam train has left in the afternoon, I like to walk
along the empty streets of the village and look up to the
mountains all around. It's such a quiet and beautiful village,
so far from the noise of the cities...
The San Juan Mountains: I adore
them! They are are so wild that you can walk for hours without
meeting any people, and the only human signs you see are the
remains of the old mines. The course is really tough, because of
the wilderness, the monstrous vertical gain, and the altitude.
Anyway, that's not bad: the course is beautiful, and you can
really enjoy being there!
What to say about people? I feel
that staying in Silverton in the weeks before Hardrock is just
like being part of a family which gather together for a big
event. Only on this race I had the chance to meet the other
runners before the event: it is much easier to make friends
during the trail marking than on the race days! During the long
days spent on the mountain following Charles Thorn marking the
trail, you got plenty of time to socialize with other fellows.
Then, during the race, you can appreciate the kindness of the
volunteers. It's amazing how these persons will help you at the
aid stations: sometimes I am even embarassed by this!
I ran Hardrock without crew nor
pacer. I think they are not necessary to achieve the race: as I
told, the volunteers at the aid station are wonderful and do
everything they can to help every single runner. In Europe pacer
are not admitted, so we are used to rely only on ourself to
finish the race, and I like to do that even when pacer are
permitted. A great event like Hardrock will always remain in my
mind, and I'm happy to remember that I run the entire course on
my own without any other help!
The accomplishment of an ultra trail
is always a big experience, but kissing the rock at the finish
line in Silverton is also a deep emotion. My first finish last
year was a dream come true, but after I returned home I could
not stop thinking about that. I felt the urge to come back and
run the race in the other direction. Only now I can consider
myself a real hardrocker, and I'll not go to Silverton in 2008.
That doen't mean I'll forget Hardrock: it will always be in my
heart as a great experience! And I hope that some day I'll have
the chance to go back once more!
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