This was the first time I was attempting the CCC®. The race is one of five races under the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) series ending in Chamonix, France. Balloting for the event started back in end December 2013, though before balloting, you have completed enough races with sufficient points to qualify for the race. For CCC®, I needed 2 points which I had already achieved. In fact, I had enough points for UTMB but as I was also attempting to register for Badwater 2014, I decided to plan as though I would be selected for Badwater 2014 and completed it. Hence, I would not have sufficient time to recover to attempt the UTMB, a 168km race around mountain passes and only 5 weeks after the Badwater race. In fact, I wasn't sure if I would recover in time to do CCC® but decided to give it a go to see I was lucky enough to get picked.
UTMB (168km), CCC (101km), TDS (119km), PTL (300km), and OCC (53km)!
Fast forward to Aug 2014, I was selected for both Badwater 2014 (and completed it) and CCC® 2014. :) Lucky me (or unlucky me, depending on how you see it). My hands were also itchy enough to sign up for the Bedok Reservoir Ultramarathon, which I wanted to use it as a "recovery" walk (but pushed myself too hard to run it). So I arrived in Chamonix, mentally tired. Luckily, I would be joining a group of like-minded crazy friends who had signed up for different races. Wee was the Chief-In-Crime, who was so fast and efficient in booking an apartment, which is a must when doing the UTMB races. (In fact, some runners even pre-booked the rooms a year in advance before they know if they were selected for the race!) The rest of the guys were ever so accommodating so Tiffany and I got a room for ourselves while they fight it out among themselves to "ration" who to sleep on the remaining bed, the couch and the floor. Race expo was a great shopping heaven and I ended up poorer and a heavier luggage stuffed with new trekking poles, food and headlamp. Arriving 2 days in advance also gave us more time to relax, to fuel and to prepare properly for the race.
Kee Seng Resting on the Couch (L); With Fernanda Maciel at the Expo (C); UTMB Chocolate (R)
Early morning, Tiffany and I woke up to catch the shuttle bus to the start point at Courmayeur, Italy. The CCC® was effectively, the 2nd half of UTMB (plus another 10~12km or so at the start around the Courmayeur area) and 101km in distance. If I could complete the CCC® within the cut-off time of 26 hours, I would have some chance to complete UTMB in future. So that was my plan. The bus ride to the start was uneventful though we had the chance to admire some scenery. The bus drop-off was about 1km away so we had to lug our drop-bag for the same distance. Luckily, the drop-bag collection point was just next to the starting point. After dropping off our stuff, I waited for Tiffany while she queue for the porta-potties. An official then signaled to me that he wanted to check my race stuff. I showed him the items that he asked for until I couldn't find my spare headlamp and batteries! Oh gosh. I told him that I must have left it in my drop-bag. He allowed me to retrieve it which I managed to do so with ease. (This showed how efficient their system and the volunteers were). After the inspection, which shook me up a little, Tiffany and I walked into the starting pent and we were flagged off 10mins after the first wave.
Getting Ready For The CCC®!!!
The Profile of CCC® - 6 Significant Mountains!!!
There was a festive atmosphere at the start as many supporters and locals were out in full force, clapping their hands, shouting words of encouragement and making music with bells, instruments or whatever they could find. The early part of the race were on cement ground so I ran as much as I could. But soon, the slope became steeper and I had to adopt a walk/run strategy. The first climb of the race came soon after though it was manageable. The trail was very crowded but not until you had no room to run/walk. Though I was just plodding along, I had no chance to admire the scenery until when we reached the steepest part of the mountain. It was a huge mistake to look up to see where the top of the mountain was. :( While my legs could go on and on, my heart rate was going too fast and I was out of breadth. I decided to stop, ate a gel, took some photos, before I continued. Even when I was slow, I always managed to pass people on the way up. This time was no exception although the number of people I passed was just a few. I decided to climb 50 steps and stopped to catch my breadth. This strategy allowed me to focus on what I could achieve rather than the feeling of being tired. I reached CP1 at Refuge Bertone after 4hrs 1min of running 15km.
First Major Climb - Look At The Beautiful Mountains In The Background!
One thing great about running in a trail race was that there was no distance marker every km or miles. I just aimed for the next check-point, which in this case, was 7km away at Refuge Bonatti. This section of the race was totally flat and I enjoyed chasing the runners in front of me. I managed to reach CP2 at Refuge Bonatti after covering the flattish 7km 1hr 27mins. I rested for a couple of minutes before pushing on for the next segment. The distance to Arnuva was a short 5km. The first section of the 5km route was a slight uphill before a steep downhill in the last 2km (or more). I struggled to keep pace with the runners in front of me but as it was still early in the race, there were plenty of other runners in front and behind me. I would not need to worry about loosing contact with the runner in front and got lost. I managed to reach CP3 at Arnuva in 1hr 1min even if it was only 5km. I was pleased that I managed to somewhat maintain the pace. I decided to fuel myself properly as the next segment would be a tough climb with a distance of 14km! In all, I rested 8mins at the tent before setting off.
The First Big Aid Station @ Arnuva Where Many Runners Refueled!
It Was About 3:41pm At Arnuva!
I was right about the fueling myself properly before I set off. The climb immediately after leaving CP3 was a steep climb of about 4km straight up the mountain Grand col Ferret. The climb was relentless. Then, it started to drizzle. I didn't really give much thought about it as I felt good. But after about 20 or so minutes, I decided to stop and put on my rain jacket. This was something I should have done earlier even though I was not cold as it was never a good idea to allow yourself getting wet up in the mountain. You might feel okie in the beginning but as the night fall and weather get chilly, you might end up feeling very cold. Just like the saying "drink before we get thirsty", we need to keep warm before we get cold. Unfortunately, the mistake was done and I could only push on. I reached the top of Grand col Ferret after 1hr 39mins of climbing. From there to the next CP was all downhill, something most runners would relish but not me as I was poor. While the drizzle had stopped, the weather remained cold. With some part of the terrain muddy and slippery, my speed slowed. In fact, I fell twice but luckily for me, no big damage. :) It took me 3hrs 45mins for the 14km to reach La Fouly. I spent some time (9mins) to have more hot soup as the next CP was 14km away.
This section was approximately 2/3 downhill followed by 1/3 uphill but surprisingly, I didn't fall on the downhill portion. By then the trail was relatively empty as the fast runners were long gone. Once in a while someone would ran past me but when I reached the uphill segment, I overtook some of them. Unfortunately, I also fell while trekking uphill! Twice! As my right shoe got stuck by the roots while I tried to lift my foot up the hill. Luckily, I fell forward and ended up knocking my knee against the ground. :( The great thing about running / trekking at night was you could only see where your headlamp could shine - how high to climb or how far the route was in front of you. But the run felt like forever. I was elated to the Champex-Lac CP at 23:01pm after 3hrs 18mns and 14km. The tent was warm and this being the midway point and a major rest point, many runners took the opportunity to refuel and rest. I tried looking for my drop bag but couldn't find. I asked the volunteers but they didn't know what I was talking about. I looked around me and noticed that none of the runners had any drop bag with them which was strange. The only explanation was there was no drop bag at Champex-Lac at all. This really screwed me up as my socks were wet and my running shoes had a big hole on top. There was still time before the cut-off time at 23:30pm but I didn't think I could complete another 45km in the current shoes. And so, I trudged unwillingly to the race official to pull myself out of the race. :(
The State Of My Mizuno Ascend Trail Shoes After Covering 56km!
I had committed a few unforgivable school kid errors for this race by not reading through the race booklet and assuming that the drop bag given to us would be deposited at the halfway point of the race. Because of that, I didn't pack enough dry clothing and socks with me. This resulted in me not being able to change to a dry set of clothing when needed. And if I had known there was no drop bag, I would not have drop my 2nd pair of running shoes in the drop bag and wearing my going-to-be-retired shoes. I would have worn a pair of shoes that could last me the entire 101km. Luckily for me, the surprised check done at the start of the race by the official meant that I had 2 full sets of headlamp with spare batteries, although by then, I was more in need of a recharge at Champex-Lac than my headlamp. As I limped out of the tent to catch the shuttle bus back to Chamonix, I cursed at my stupidity and vowed to be back to Chamonix to complete the CCC®!
