Race Review
Shanghai Running, We Run Shanghai
Hangzhou Mountain Marathon:
By James Mcleod
Runners in China who love hills and technical trails have the opportunity each Spring and Fall to participate in the Hangzhou Mountain
Marathon; 42 kilometres of wild trail on the mountains 20 minutes
from the City of Hangzhou and an hour from Shanghai by fast train.
This year 50 intrepid runners started the Trail at the Shangri-La Hotel
on West Lake and wound their way towards the National Park and up
in to the hills. The last finishers ( myself and my partner Louise) arrived back at the Shangri-La 10 hours and 28 minutes after we had
begun. We were two of approximately half the field who had completed the full distance.
We had lost the light 2 hours before our return but were luckily far
enough along the trail to know the course and finish by torchlight.
Darkness falls very suddenly out on the high peaks, so remember never
to attempt the full race without a fully charged torch and cellphone. If
you get in to trouble up there, there is no one around to come and help
you.
What are the fun aspects of this particular trail? There is 5200 metres
of ascent/ descent. Your legs get an excellent workout. About 60% of
the trail is dirt and very steep both up and down. If you are comfortable on technical trail, you will love this race and come in with a good
time. The fast athletes can compete the latest course in around 6 and a
half hours whilst the average runners amongst us will be looking at
anything between 8 and 10 hours.
The circuit is almost all in National Park land. There are bamboo forests, tea plantations, Monasteries, pagodas and fabulous views down
over the lake and the river.
There are no official water stops so it is essential to bring an aqualung
with a 3 litre capacity. You can buy water at various small villages, so
remember to always stock up when you can. The locals are all very
friendly and seem to find the novelty of predominantly foreign runners
limping through their villages as being something quite amusing.
It is interesting how one feels the next day after this race. Despite it taking Louise and I over 10 hours to finish and she was
the only woman to complete the distance, we felt fresh and
energized and there was an absence of any stiffness. The extreme ascents and descents seem to have the result of stretching the body in a way that mitigates the effects of most of the
lactic acid.
The people who take on this run are invariably friendly and
this creates a fabulous atmosphere out on the mountain and at
the pre race briefing and post race get-together in the bar at
the Shangri-la.
If you want details of the race, contact your friends at Shanghai
Running.
Next Hangzhou Mountain Marathon is on April 12th. Check out
the website http://ms2s.dk/hangzhou-mountain-marathon/
The last 4 kilometres are run over the causeway of West Lake. During
the day, the Causeway is pretty horrendous as it is a major tourist spot
in the region. This makes for a boring finish as you dodge people, mopeds and vans coming at you from all directions. However if you come
in after dark like we did, it is terrific. There is enough artificial light
and a general absence of people to truly enjoy the wonders of the lake
and surrounding vistas.
Copyright Shanghai Running 2013.
www.shanghai-running.com
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