OCC 2015 (UTMB): the mountain through thick and thin...

OCC 2015, the mountain by mounts and vales; tale of a little Walloon boy at altitude! I literally fell under the spell of this first mountain experience. It won't be my last ride in the mountains. This race was a pleasure for a large part of it. However, I really enjoyed the entire southern balcony of the Chamonix valley. A race that clearly changed me...

Preamble

I've been preparing for the OCC since the beginning of the year. It's my goal for the season, but above all it's my revenge on the mountains. Last year, I was supposed to take part in the Traversée de Verbier St Bernard in Switzerland, but for reasons explained earlier on this blog, I wasn't able to run it. So the OCC was my first mountain race. For the little Walloon I am, that alone is a mountain in itself (the pun was easy, I grant you :D).

Coached since March, my preparation went well. La Bouillonnante had given me the endurance I needed. After a few weeks working on my speed in short races for pleasure, I was back in top form to tackle the preparation for this objective. For the first time, I even included specific mountain training. Three weeks before the OCC, I set off to the Écrins to do some hiking and trail running. This training at altitude, but above all in altitude differences, was a good validation tool, even if the muscular fatigue I'd built up hadn't disappeared 100% the day before the race.

Pre-race

I arrive in Chamonix two days before the race. The town is in full swing with the world's biggest trail race, the UTMB. The town eats, sleeps and breathes Trail for almost a week. It's an atmosphere you have to experience at least once in your life. Excitement is at its peak!

Now, in many respects, it's a far cry from the original Trail spirit. The "competition" spirit oozes everywhere. That's the game. I'm not criticizing. More than once, both on and off the course, I've had the impression that some runners were only there for the "glory" of being on the UTMB (and other races) and wearing their finisher's t-shirt. No pleasure, just consumption... Too bad! On this point, let's not be hypocrites: the UTMB is magnificent, but it's also "that".

By the way, I'd like to thank the Belgian race organizers (and others, but the OCC is my 1st race abroad) for sparing me this sad spectacle so far. I'd like to thank you for keeping the trail spirit alive, the spirit of nature, of surpassing oneself and of the "simple" pleasure of running.

Fortunately, this "simple" pleasure of running was nevertheless present in the vast majority of runners. In Chamonix, this pleasure is ALWAYS satisfied, as the mountains are so breathtaking. What's more, the mountains and the weather are going to be generous with us, offering us an UNFORGETTABLE day in the mountains.

Wednesday morning, I pick up my race number. I've rarely seen the organization so well organized! Everything went like clockwork and, less than half an hour later, I had my precious sesame. The equipment has been validated. All that's left is to wait. In the end, waiting is the hardest part! Because, strangely enough, I'm under a lot of stress. It's probably the mountain effect. I've never run in the mountains with a race number, and I know that running in the mountains is nothing like running on the plains (even with the same gradient).

My two weeks of preparation in the mountains and my previous trips have shown me that this mountain gradient has a soul, an intrinsic specificity that makes it almost magical. You may train in the dark forest valleys of Wallonia (which, for our French friends, takes its name from it 😉 ), but the difference in altitude won't have the same weight on your thighs. The fault lies mainly with the length of the effort. In Wallonia, the climbs and descents may be steep, but they're never very long. Even the multiple repetition of a 100m D+ climb will never be worth a 1000 D+ ascent in the mountains, let alone a descent!

The race

Rhythmic on a slope

D-Day, departure at 6:30 am sharp. We're staying in Argentière and, according to the GPS, it takes no more than 50 minutes to reach the start in Orsières. I have a light breakfast as usual. In my bag, I've packed some almond paste, a banana and two flasks, one of isotonic drink and the other of protein. I'd done the same thing at the OHM Trail with some success.

Arriving 1/2 hour before the start, I don't really have time to cool down as the elites are called into the airlock. Then the great, the very great Ueli Steck arrives as a tourist. He makes himself very small and doesn't even choose the elite airlock. He's a man I really admire, and it was with amazement that I saw him arrive at the race. After the traditional speech by Madame Poletti, the start is made. It was delayed by half an hour compared with last year to allow the schoolchildren to see us off. What a magical start. The whole village is on its doorstep and the children are on the side of the road. He's having fun shouting our names. It's stupid, but even with 2 kilometers under our belts, it's a pleasure to see.

Leaving the village, you climb gently, alternating between roads and forest tracks. It started off quite fast and I picked up the pace. I'mmaking good headway and keeping up the pace on the climbs. Unfortunately, there's nothing to be done with 1,400 runners thrown together, and things get clogged up pretty quickly as soon as there's a bottleneck or a hill. By the time we reach the first climb to Champex, we're all in single file, but unlike Bouillon earlier in the year, it's still smooth sailing. I'm walking at a slightly slower pace than I would have liked, but it's moving along. That's the main thing! Whenever there's a chance, I pick up the pace.

Powever, since the start, my bad feeling of the day before has been confirmed. I didn't manage my overcompensation very well with the coach. Cardio is extremely high! Too high! No way of calming it down. Fortunately, my legs are keeping up, so I'm not paying too much attention. I'm just afraid of running out of energy too quickly.

I arrive at the Champex ravito in good shape. I stop for 30 seconds to refill my water bottles and drink a Coke. I set off again immediately afterwards. The passage along the lake is really magnificent. I'd have taken a dip, but we're not here to buy a piece of land. From Champex to the foot of the first difficulty of the day, I'm making great progress. The pace is really good, and I'm surprised at myself! The descent (unfortunately :D) comes to an end, and the day's first difficulty begins: the ascent to La Giète.

The first part, on an upward slope, is creamy. It's a rolling forest track. I keep up a good pace despite the increasingly steep gradient. When the steepest slopes arrive. I catch up with quite a few people and overtake them. My pace is excellent. I' ve got my poles out (a race first) and I knit my way up the climb, which alternates between rolling sections and more technical sections. As I approach the summit, the landscape gradually unfolds to offer a magnificent panorama of Martigny and its valley.

We're greeted at the summit by a herd of not always cooperative cows. Some are posed and observe us with disdain, while others have decided to accompany the runners on the trail. One of them starts running ahead of me and I have to steer her to the right with my sticks to force her off the path. After this little cattle interlude, we reach the summit which precedes a short descent to la Giète, where a second water supply awaits us. I take the time to recharge the flasks, put some protein back in and eat half a banana.

We're already 18km into the race and 1400m of D+! The next stage is downhill to the Col de la Forclaz and then on to Trient. It goes off without a hitch. I take the opportunity to let my horses loose and enjoy myself. The atmosphere at the pass is simply brilliant. These little oases of civilization do a world of good. After a short level-off, the rest of the descent to Trient is much steeper and more technical. You have to watch your footing!

Arriving in Trient, the welcome is just as thunderous as in the small villages we passed through earlier. It's really very, very strong. You realize just how important these races have become in the region. Everyone lives the race! At the feed station, I fill up on bananas and drink a Coke. I set off again, walking and eating. I know that the next hurdle will be a tough one, especially as the heat is getting more and more oppressive and we're facing due south! It's best to fill up on energy before tackling these 850m of D+.

And indeed, this famous climb to Catogne represents almost 900m of ascent over 5km. Suffice to say, it's a steep climb. The heat doesn't help. I saw a lot of runners literally stalling all the way up. Unfortunately, the high altitude breeze isn't enough to cool us down. On this climb, I had the legs so I got into a rhythm that I managed to hold all the way. The scenery at the summit is simply magnificent. The Emosson dam appears on the other side of the Vallorcine valley, while the Aiguilles rouges appear in the distance, synonymous with the return to Chamonix!

I take my time in Catogne to fill the water bottles. I pause for a few moments to contemplate the scenery and replace one of my two soft flasks, which literally burst at the start of the race. The organization distributes water and I take the opportunity to replace my flask with a bottle. Initially, the long descent to Vallorcine gives me no problems, even though my legs are beginning to feel the difference in altitude (2185D+ in my legs). But then the descent gets steeper a few kilometers from Vallorcine, and I start to lose momentum on the way down. I'm being overtaken by quite a few runners...

The Way of the Cross

I realize that I've never done more than 2300D+ in a race. By the time I reach Vallorcine, I'm feeling great and in high spirits. My legs are certainly tired, but after 34 km and so much ascent, I tell myself it's normal. I'm managing to eat and drink properly. However, I take my time at the feed station as if I had a premonition of what was to come. I rest for a few moments, fill up my bottles and take my endless bananas.

After Vallorcine, there's a long false flat climb to the Col des Montets, followed (unlike the OCC and UTMB) by a short descent to Tré-le-Champ, before tackling the climb to La Flégère via the middle balcony. When I leave the tent, I'm 6 hours into the race, 34 km and 2300 D+, and knowing that I've taken long rests at the refreshment points, my pace is pretty decent. However, it will take me another 3h30 to reach Chamonix! That's the real blow I'm going to take!

On the ascent to the Col des Montets, I decide to walk a little to recuperate. Then I start running again. It's hard work, but I get through it. I manage to maintain a decent average pace all the way to Tré-le-Champ. The heat is on and I'm drinking a lot. Problem is, I'm starting to get saturated with the sweet stuff, so I give up my protein drink.

As we begin the climb to La Flégère, it's a real debacle. I get out my poles right away, but the climb is hell. I'm not getting anywhere! I'm literally dragging myself along. Several riders are even worse off than I am. One is even sleeping under a survival blanket. Others are throwing up. It's a massacre.

Unlike the UTMB and the OCC, which attack the climb directly from the Col des Montets to La Flégère via the Tête au Vent, we attack the ascent at Tré-le-Champs towards the Aiguillettes d'Argentière. Instead of continuing towards the latter, we dip down almost 200m into the valley to climb up the middle balcony to La Flégère.

I have to tell you, this descent is absolutely boring! As technical as it gets, it's impossible for me to run. Many of the runners around me are grumbling about how bad the section is. Then it's off again for a long and, I must admit, uninteresting climb through the woods (unlike the one to Tête au Vent, which is just breathtaking!).

That's when I enter the calvary. Literally! My legs are gone. I'm thirsty and therefore dehydrated. All I can do is plod along, leaning on my sticks like an old man. Hikers could go faster! It's total decay. And that's when I really gave up trying to break the 9-hour barrier! And yet, this time was perfectly feasible.

What was the reason for this pitiful setback? We'll have to analyze that with the coach. As far as my diet is concerned, I think I did pretty well. I didn't overdo it on the carbs, so I didn't have any gastric problems like I did on the Bouillonnante. I ate regularly and in quantity. I didn't feel hungry like I do on the races where I only run on isotonic drinks. However, I didn't drink enough from Vallorcine onwards, or rather I didn't have enough water for the stretch between Vallorcine and La Flégère! So I think I was pretty dehydrated.

As I said, this climb was hellish.I'd set myself regular targets like: "In 700m, you can stop and sit down, but not before". So I'd walk up to the goal and sit down or lean on my poles to regain my composure. That's how it was until the top. At the refuelling station, I did take 10 minutes to drink enough, but not too much so as not to vomit. It all went like clockwork and I was able to attack the descent to Chamonix in good shape!

The renaissance

On the descent, the poles were a lifesaver, as my legs had been out of action for a long time (muscularly speaking). I even managed to catch up with some runners. Then the Chalet de La Floria came into view, a sign of imminent arrival. All that remained was a rolling descent, and then it would be madness in Chamonix! I'm still able to unwind well, proving that I'm back on track and that the dizzy spell was the result of dehydration!

Through the trees, I can make out a few rooftops. There are more and more people at the side of the road. That's a good sign! Then comes the tarmac! The tarmac! That's it, I'm in Cham' !!!! We make our way down to the sports complex, and from there on it's a dream come true! People are shouting our names, cheering us on, urging us on. I catch up with some runners and we form a small group of four. The magic happens! We joke around, exchange a few words!

The clamor gets louder and louder. It carries us along and I involuntarily raise the tempo. For any trailer, it's just a dream. It's indescribable. Chamonix celebrates you in its own way, even if you're the smallest players this week! Who cares? You've run the mountain, you've enjoyed the mountain, you've celebrated the mountain. You've conquered your fears and your pains. The finish line! General madness and tears, you're sad because you're now FINISHER and it's already over!

In figures

I finished in 418/1317 (1435 starters/118 withdrawals) in 9h 38.

Conclusion

This first experience in the mountains was exceptional, despite the debacle. I'm taking these setbacks as an opportunity to draw useful conclusions for the future. I now know that a mountain race is approached completely differently from a race on the plains. This doesn't mean that I was ill-prepared, but that I now have the elements to perfect my preparation for my future mountain objectives.

The OCC 2015 is just the beginning of my mountaineering experience. In 2015, I was a little weary of training, but now I'm back to full speed. My aim now is to accumulate as much mountain experience as I can, so that I can ride in the mountains as often as possible. In fact, the mountains will be the driving force behind my 2016. I'll explain in detail in a future article.

Now it's time for a well-earned break of a few weeks before setting new goals. The end of the season will be all about unrestrained pleasure! No more training plans, no more imposed sessions, just impulsive practice that I'll use to shoot my first videos.

If you're reading this, I'd like to thank you for reading the whole of this long (very long) report. I've been prolix, but I needed it to put down on canvas all the thoughts that went through my head during those 9 hours and 38 minutes of pleasure, pain and pride! Thank you for supporting me with your comments/attention/encouragement. It literally boosts me and convinces me even more to continue this blog! THANK YOU.