Marathon du Mont Blanc race report
Tuesday, June 30th, 2009Mark Colley reports on his alpine adventure…
The race starts at 7am from the historic centre of Chamonix, heading out of town it climbs though the forest passing the ski resort of Argentiere, this is the easy part. At the village of Vallorcine, you begin a 1000m vertical climb to the top of the Aiguilles des Posettes… but the view of Mont Blanc at the top is enough to take your breath away (if you have any breath left!).
After a moment to check you can still see straight it’s down the other side of the mountain in places so steep I wish I’d packed a parachute… Down in the village of Tré le Champ your knees get a rest as you queue to refill your camelback, it’s now 25°C
The final 11k is back up hill through the forest and ski slopes, the terrain is so rocky it’s impossible to run let alone walk. But the organisers kindly save the steepest part for the last 800m to the finish
This is one race I will never forget…. the course & views are breath taking, the organisation is second to none and the whole town of Chamonix is out supporting the runners.
This really is a tough race, as this profile reveals… (click for a full size image).
Split times…
| Location | km | Altitude(m) | Ascent(m) | Descent(m) | Time | Pos |
| Vallorcine | 18.2 | 1260 | 608 | 383 | 01:58:14 | 552 |
| Aiguillette des Posettes | 24.1 | 2201 | 1549 | 383 | 03:18:55 | 555 |
| Le Tour | 28.3 | 1470 | 1553 | 1118 | 03:59:52 | 604 |
| Tré-le-Champ | 31.2 | 1385 | 1590 | 1200 | 04:20:21 | 584 |
| La Flégère | 36.9 | 1865 | 2112 | 1242 | 05:37:51 | 578 |
| Planpraz Arrivée | 42.2 | 2016 | 2511 | 1490 | 06:32:07 | 600 |