Running

…and post-race

Cds IMG 3659And as soon as I finished running the Europa Marathon I had to do two things. Firstly hydration, and secondly food. Luckily they were both available right at the finish line.

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And I can promise you that I had more than 1 of both. Refuelling, of course, is very important!

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Europa marathon

When we last travelled to Poland, I realised that we could take a (somewhat) small detour and visit the lovely town of Gorlitz. The reason being that the Europa Marathon was in Gorlitz, and of course I grabbed the opportunity of running it.

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Entering Poland

This is a somewhat unique race in that it crosses the border into Zgorzelec in Poland – just over the river, and then back to Germany – my first (quite literally) cross-country race.

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Supporters – one of them gave me a mid-race beer

It was a tiny marathon; only 110 people ran it, so it was small and intimate; it was great running past the supporters because they would sit around relaxing and then burst into cheering and applause as I ran past.

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It was also a beautiful route to race – a large part of the race was country roads and bicycle paths through woods and farms.
Mid-race

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At the finish

I loved running this tiny marathon, and I’m somewhat amazed that it is not bigger. It was super-well organised and a lovely route. There are also a few other events (half marathon, inline skate races, unicycle marathons etc). If you have the opportunity go and run a marathon in Gorlitz.

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A well-deserved brakwurst and beer at the finish

Running in the Tatra mountains (part 3)

Read part 1, and part 2

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I left you on the Tatra mountains, roughly halfway between Zakopane and the Slovakia border. I was soaking wet, and running on some very water-logged trails, and having loads of fun. The flat, wide and dry touristy trails turned into waterlogged impromptu rivers, and these finally turned into firm earthy single-track trails.

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While I ran through the forest, I could smell a wonderful wet and earthy decay. That wonderful smell of nature composting dead branches and leaves back into earth from which new trees will grow. It was misty weather, so everything had a slightly mystical nature. I felt like I was running in one of the many fantasy novels that I have read.

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The view from the top was spectacular. I had finally run above the forest, so I could look down at the trees. I couldn’t see much besides the tops of the trees just in front of me, but it felt liberating to stand there, having run all the way to the top.

When I say “to the top”, I was only about 1/2 way to Slovakia; I had already climbed over 500m in about 7km, and that was the easy part of the trail. I very much doubt you would be able to run the second half to Slovakia. It would be a very tough hike.

Here is the route I took if you want to see it. https://www.strava.com/activities/702351830

Some quick notes on safety.

  1. I had the Tatra mountain rescue number in my phone. For reference it is +48 601 100 300
  2. I pre-loaded my route into my GPS watch, and my wife had a copy of my route
  3. I took water & some food with me
  4. I took a space blanket, first aid kit, compass, mountain maps, windbreaker & gloves with me
  5. I make sure Lois know my expected arrival time, and gave her a suggested window before she worry
  6. My phone was fully charged

Running in the Tatra mountains (part 2)

In my previous post I was telling you how good the trails in Zakopane were to start with. Well as soon as I got off the flat touristy trails it got wet…very wet…By now I was very much alone, and very much wet!

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There was so much water running off the mountain that the trails turned into rivers. This is part of the trail that I ran up. Yes, this is a trail – not a river.

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Two rivers joining an even bigger river.

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And more of the trail. At first I tried to stick to the edges and keep my feet dry, but soon I revised that it was hopeless, so I embraced the water and ran straight through the water. My feet got soaking wet. But I was having so much fun. I hadn’t felt so alive in ages!

To be continued…

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