My Complicated Affair with the UTMB
The Elephant in the Room of Trail Running
The Race That Won’t Let Go
I had planned to write about UTMB all week, but now it’s almost over. Okay, that’s an exaggeration. The supreme discipline, the 100-mile loop around Mont Blanc, doesn’t even start until tonight. But the hype has been in full swing since Monday.
Like every year, I carry mixed feelings into this weekend.
UTMB is the big elephant in the room of trail running. You can’t ignore it. You can’t escape having an opinion about it.
The Corporate Shadow
For the last few years, it was easy to criticize UTMB. Ever since the merger with the Ironman Group, the organizers have taken steps that clearly clash with the unwritten laws of our sport. Many voices in the community were quick to point that out. So was I:
And yet, UTMB has also reached a level of “he always tried his best” (German readers will hear the ironic undertone of “Er war stets bemüht”). That’s more than can be said about most companies of its size.
So instead of another critique, I want to shift the focus to the personal, emotional, almost irrational connection I have with this race.
The First Time: My CCC in 2021
I ran my first 100-kilometer race here in 2021, the CCC. It was big, it was hard, it was beautiful. And it was my first 100k race. But honestly? It wasn’t particularly emotional. It didn’t carve itself into my memory the way I had expected. In my book Runhundred I wrote:
“I’m only guessing, but the reason my emotional amplitude stayed rather flat might have been because almost everything went according to plan. Apart from a few unexplainable energy dips that made me sit on a stone for a breather more often than I wanted, which I am not ashamed to mention here, I just about had a trouble-free race. Despite my short experience as an ultrarunner, I know that this is atypical for running such long distances. Even at shorter ultramarathons, such as 50-km or 50-mile races, you most likely face a good number of unexpected extra challenges and setbacks, as well as the often-related emotional highs and lows. That was not the case at my CCC, which left me with a nice, but not very intense, first 100-km race. The Levelhead was happy, though.”
And yet, my CCC experience was hugely important. It set something in motion that would change my whole life. The CCC was a qualifying race for the Western States Endurance Run. That one lottery ticket was enough to send me on the most moving journey of my life. And to write a book about it. 1.5 books, to be precise.
That's why I feel a close connection to the CCC and the UTMB, even though my actual racing experience there was remarkably uneventful.
The Year That Changed Everything
2017, however, was different. Unforgettable.
That was the year my, at that time, future wife, Lisa, made her lifelong dream come true: running around Mont Blanc. The big loop, the masterpiece: UTMB.
2017 was an exceptionally tough year at the UTMB. Dramatic weather conditions prevailed, with rain, snow, hail, gusts of wind, and thick fog at higher altitudes. Of the approximately 2537 starters, only 1686 reached the finish line. Around 851 participants did not finish the race, mainly due to the extreme weather.
I was lucky to be there, to watch her, to support her (although the job had been officially assigned to her friend Manishe), while quietly adoring and falling even deeper in love with her.
At the time, our relationship status was best described as “complicated.” We weren’t yet ready to give in to our mutual affection, even though it was obvious where life would take us.
Watching her finish that race in that landscape, in that atmosphere, in that way, etched itself into me forever.
Lisa’s Secret Energy
Lisa is a special kind of ultrarunner. She runs with heart and gut. Sometimes also with her head. When she has to solve small problems before they become big ones, for example. But when the race turns dark, when all signs point to failure, or when the heat of a competition is on, that’s when something inside her ignites.
She glows. She becomes pure energy, calm on the outside, blazing on the inside. Focused not on the past, not on the finish, but only on the present moment. Her moment.
Running becomes both the smallest and the most important thing in the world. Nothing else can bring out this power in her.
Since 2017, I’ve seen glimpses of this state again, but never as clear, never as overwhelming, as during her UTMB.
The UTMB Effect
That’s the magic of UTMB. The race itself, the mountains, the atmosphere, they have a way of unlocking something deeper. That’s why I know this race will never let go of me. Or of Lisa.
Looking Back, Looking Forward
What does this mean? For now, nothing more than livestreams, memories, and goosebumps.
But maybe, just maybe, we’ll find ourselves back on those trails one day. Despite the hype. Despite the controversy. Despite the commercialism.
Because the mountain doesn’t care. And maybe that’s exactly why we do.
Everything Not Running
It's that time again: The Burger Club is going on a bike tour.
Together with three of my oldest friends, I'm spending this weekend in Franconian Switzerland on my gravel bike. Bad humor, bad village Italian restaurants, and hopefully good weather.
I'm glad to have my Burger boys. Even though our lives have taken completely different paths over the last 20 years, we've always managed to maintain a common ground. The term “Burger Club” is just a placeholder for everything that has connected us for so many years.
It's normal for friendships to come and go. But with a little care, you can maintain them for a very long time, maybe even forever. For Martin, Christian, Atze, and me, I hope that will be the case.
On Repeat
Today's agenda: headbanging.
I've always found the music genre "melodic death metal" to be one of the most accessible. Despite its typical metal elements, the melodies, especially the guitar riffs, are often extremely sophisticated and open up a new dimension for me that I miss in some metal bands.
But I haven't experienced a band that plays this style of music as fresh and modern as Orbit Culture in years. The band formed in 2013 but didn't catch my attention until 2019/2020, when my friend Marco's agency, Avocado Booking, became their European booking agent. Since their 2020 album "Nija", they've been part of my standard audio player repertoire.
With their brand new album, "Death Above Life", which will be released on October 3, Orbit Culture is taking things up a notch. All three advance releases are complete domination. This includes the song I picked, "The Tales of War."
A YouTube comment sums it up perfectly: “I'm now completely deaf and my neck is fractured. Worth it.”