TDS® 2014, an always surprising race that stays true to itself
Wednesday, August 27, 2014, runners in the TDS® [Traces des Ducs de Savoie] darted off on a course that was both wild - the semi-self-sufficient 119 km race with 7250 m of vertical gain crossed through three regions - and extremely friendly through the warm welcome that volunteers provided at each aid station. Xavier Thévenard's victory in the men's category marked a historic triple crown and the women's race experienced a surprisingly painful fallout. In the end Teresa Nimez Perez stood on the top step of the podium. Report from the event to understand the reality of this unique race.
August 28 2014
Running
© The North Face® Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc® - Alexandre Girbal
Xavier Thévenard, simply masterful
© The North Face® Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc® - Franck Oddoux - TDS - Xavier Thevenard - Samir Tamang
© The North Face® Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc® - Franck Oddoux - TDS
Finishing first in the TDS in 14:09:10, in front of Nepali Samir Tamang (14:45:09), and Spaniard Jordi Bes (14:46:50), Xavier Thévenard took the historic triple crown by winning each of the three legendary UTMB® races on his first try: CCC 2010, UTMB 2013, TDS 2014…
For the women, mayhem at the front of the race
© The North Face® Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc® - Franck Oddoux TDS - Chamonix (FRA) - Teresa Nimes Perez (à gauche)
© The North Face® Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc® - Pascal Tournaire TDS - Teresa Nimes Perez (à droite)
Up to the 86 kilometer mark, Frenchwomen Maud Gobert and Agnès Hervé maintained the lead from the start of the race. At Col du Joly Pass the situation drastically changed. Maud Gobert, tired and vomiting, was forced to stop. Agnès Hervé, just a short while later also declared forfeit. Spaniard Teresa Nimez Perez took advantage of the two women dropping out of the race to finish in first placerun to victory in front of Italian Lisa Borzani, and fellow countrywoman Nerea Martinez.
TDS, Contamines aid station – 01:43 in the morning
Ravitaillement des Contamines © PetzlWith the frontrunners already crossing the finish line in Chamonix, the remaining racers continued to pass through the Contamines aid station.
Some were obviously well-organized. Their support team was waiting for them, with everything neatly laid out for the aid stop to go as smoothly as possible. Others literally give the shirts off their backs, like one friend who donned the change of clothes so that his runner could wear something warm and dry!
There were other runners who somehow found the energy to laugh and make jokes.
And then of course there were conversations like the following that always finished with laughter.
- The wife of one runner, "Don't worry, it's all downhill at the end! Just a short 2 hours!!"
- The runner replied, "Right, JUST 2 hours!!"
This quick banter back and forth made more than a few other runners smile!
Interview with Seb Chaigneau, Team Petzl member
Seb came to cheer on the racers and to talk to us about his experience running at night.
Seb Chaigneau encourages kids by signing autographs on "mini" bib numbers
What headlamp do you use for ultramarathons?
"The NAO®!! It's the best in terms of both lighting power and burn times. I also carry the E+ Lite as a backup lamp."
How do you use REACTIVE LIGHTING technology?
"I don't necessarily use the pre-programmed profiles from the OS by Petzl software. I prefer the simplicity of the ON/OFF mode. I learned the ins and outs of how the headlamp operates during my training runs. By playing with the lamp's tilt angles, I realized that the lighting modes didn't change as often, which allowed me to gain up to an additional 45 minutes of burn time without any loss in lighting quality or power."
What do you think of the latest version of the NAO®?
"The NAO® already offered unrivaled lighting power when compared to other lamps, but with the latest version, it's out of this world! It takes lighting power and burn time to the next level."
How about a quick story about lighting during a night race?
"I remember one outing (this was a training run for me) where I was testing the capacity of my new headlamp. The battery ended up giving me trouble and the lighting intensity dropped off all of a sudden. I was on a technical course and fortunately I had a backup lamp. At that very moment I truly understood that a headlamp is a runner's best friend during a night race. It's really stressful to run without light. I've also noticed this during races… I remember the first race that I ran using the ULTRA headlamp. At the time the lighting power of this lamp was revolutionary in the nighttime trail running world! It was reassuring… the NAO® has had the same impact!!"
This year was a difficult one for you, especially with regard to your health due to severely dehydrating at the Transgrancanaria. Do you have any projects for the tail end of the season?
"Indeed, I experienced rhabdomyolysis and then caught mono. I had to accept my weakened physical state and that my energy level could drop off all of a sudden. This is what happened at the HARDROCK 100, after 80 kilometers I had nothing left in the gas tank! I plan to finish out the season with shorter races: Belle Île en Mer, the Canary Islands, and why not San Francisco. I need to get back to enjoying running."
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